September 14, 2003
James 3:1-12; Mark 8:27-38
James continues his admonitions concerning the relationship of faith and "works" by becoming very specific. The tongue he says, is capable of great good and great harm. It is very powerful. He contends that the tongue cannot be tamed, but that it must be controlled. Like a small fire, it can start something that is very distructive and very difficult to get under control. The tongue can even be contradictory in the power it expresses. As an example he points out how the same tongue can be used to bless God and curse men. "From the same mouth comes blessing and cursing. My brethren, this ought not to be so." He is clearly picking up on what Jesus taught about judging one another, i.e. that we should not judge one another. No one is perfect and each of us can be judged because of our lack of perfection in some area or specific behavior. James indicates that just as the bit in a horses mouth or the rudder of a boat can contol the direction of a large boat or powerful horse, even so the tongue is a small member that does much to indicate the course of ones life in it impact on other human beings. If one has healthy and legitimate faith, that faith should be shown by its control and through the manner in which the tongue is used--to tear down and destroy or to enourage and build constructively.
The lesson of James concerning control and use of the tongue is especially pertinent in our day when communication is such an important aspect of our lives. When the epistle of James was written the world was vast and a variety of "worlds" existed on the earth. Communication within a given society was by word of mouth or lettera. Verbal communicateion was circulated very slowly and with considerable difficulty. Today the world is "small", and generally speaking, no part of it is without the influence of every other part. Communication for practical purposes is instantaneous. An entire and powerful industery has evolved from verbal communication. If the power of the tongue was thought to be great two thousand years ago, how much more powerful it is today in an age of instantaneous and worldwide communication!
The Gospel of Mark addresses the importance of personal witness, i.e. the use of the tongue, in sharing the good news of who Jesus was and the good things that he taught and did. The disciples were asked by Jesus who others were saying that he was. He was told that some thought he was one of the prophets risen from the dead. But then he asked who they thought he was. It was Peter who replied that he believed Jesus to be the Christ (Messiah). Jesus responded by telling his disciples that those who shared the belief that Peter expressed would need to be willing to pay a high price for sharing their belief. He told them that at that time, they should be quiet about their belief in him. The time was not right for them to share their belief but in the future verbal sharing of their belief in Jesus as "Christ" would become both very important and very costly--both to him and to them. History attests to the truth of what Jesus told them. Many have given their life as a result of sharing the good news. But the world is better because of their "paying the price". Not only is the world better but the lives of countless millions across the centuries have found "life in abundance" as a result of the faith that has been nurtured in the goodness of God through a sharing of the "Jesus story".
The history of the world has been changed from what it would otherwise have been because of the "telling" of the "Jesus story". Clearly much more needs to be done. Notwithstanding the great good expressed by human beings in the world, great evil is also expressed. Proper use of the tongue can be very effective in the battle to overcome evil with good. The tongue can be used to be "part of the problem" or "part of the solution to the problem".