James 3:1-12 – Getting One Thing Right – Bible study

James 3:1-12 Getting One Thing Right I am going to speak to myself tonight, but you can stay and listen. The message I am going to preach to myself is one of those "getting back to the basics messages." Lets look at that text with several thoughts. I. \#1-2\ Dont Over Reach. A. It is interesting what most people think about verses 1-2. B. Most seem to think that James was telling his readers NOT to become a teacher of the Word of God. 1. They get that thought from putting the emphasis of the verse on the word "master." a. In the academia world, when a person learns a lot about a particular field, they are called a "master." b. If they learn more than that, they are called a "doctor." c. We still use the term when we speak of a person getting a "masters" or "doctors" degree. d. So a person who was very educated, very learned, a supposed expert on a subject, would be called a master. e. This title is used often (69x) in the New Testament. 2. So what some seem to think James was saying was dont become a "master" or a teacher or an instructor in the Bible. a. That seems to be the equivalent of saying, "Dont get to learned in the Word of God." b. Frankly, I cannot imagine James or anyone else telling Christians not to strive to learn and to share the Word of God with others, but that is what some think James was saying. 3. They go on to explain why James would not want some Christians to become teachers of the Word. James 3:1 "they will receive the greater condemnation." a. In short what they say is, "Dont share the Word of God because the more you share it, the greater your risk of teaching something wrong will be. b. I have to admit that is true, but not sharing the Word of God increases EVERYONE ELSES risk of condemnation. c. The heart of the teacher, preacher, evangelist, soul winnerand whoever will share the Wordis to help save others. d. For that reason, they do risk teaching the Bible and getting something wrong for which they will have to answer when they stand before Godbut that risk is better than the alternative. 4. The bottom line is I dont see this interpretation working at all. 5. What is James saying? C. I believe verses 1-2 go with verses 3-12 and they are emphasizing the importance of getting at least one thing rightthe tongue. 1. James emphasis was not on the word "master" but on the word "many." 2. James exhortation is dont try to "master" too many things at once while failing at getting any of them right. 3. James isnt telling us not to become masters or experts, but not try to master everything at the same time. 4. His counsel is that we should concentrate on getting ONE thing right. 5. Then James goes on to suggest a good first thing for us to get right, the tongue. 6. So if you (or ME) is looking for an area in which we can improve ourselves in 2019, why dont we focus where James focused. a. Lets get our mouths right. b. I know some of us would like to get our weight right, or our spending right, or our interaction with others right, or our ministry rightall of those are good things to get right, but lets start James suggested. II. \#3-12\ Get the Mouth Right – James tells us (me) some important truths about the tongue, some truths that I need to be reminded of. A. The Tongue Is A Danger 1. \#3-4\ Notice its dynamics. It is very powerful. a. \#3\ It is like a bit in a horses mouth. b. \#4\ It is a like a rudder on a ship. c. Both of these things are great, if you know how to control a horse or to steer a ship; but if you dont, youve got access to great power with no knowledge. d. Social media has released the tongue. (1) Today, anybody can say anything about anyone and be heard by hundreds, by thousands, and by millions of people. (2) Things that people would have never said face to face, they will now broadcast from the safety of their lavatory. (3) And the reason they would not have dared to say it face to face is because they know they would have been called down or punched out for what they said. e. I understand something about this kind of power because I have a pulpit. (1) I can and have said some things which I deeply regret saying. (2) I am a very slow learner but I have learned that with great power comes great responsibility. (3) We have to be careful about (a) WHAT we say. (b) HOW we say it. (c) WHEN we say it. (d) WHY we say it. (e) To WHOM we say it. (4) If we are not 2. Notice its dangers. a. \#5\ The tongue can kindle a GREAT FIRE. (1) There are two things about a fire: (a) It can destroy a lot of things. (b) It can get out of control quickly and easily. (2) So can the tongue. b. \#6\ The tongue can defile the whole body. (1) That means my tongue can ruin everything. (2) It can ruin relationships, marriages, careers, ministries, testimonies. (3) It can ruin yours too. B. The Tongue Has A Driving Force. James 3:6 it is set on fire of hell. 1. There are two ways that the tongue can do damage. Both can be severe. a. Intentional – We can lie and provoke people. b. Unintentional – We can be trying to communicate with someone and their ear does not hear what we meant our words to say. 2. The Bible is saying there is a force behind both of these tongue incidents, it is the devil. 3. The Bible describes Satan as a roaring lion, stalking and waiting for a chance to devour someone. Why wouldnt he us our words? a. People have gotten offended and left the church over something someone said. b. Ive attempted to settle issues where something that in my eyes was relatively small and unimportant was of critical importance to someone else. c. I think the devil us using our words to create divisions and problems where none really should exist or at least should not exist like they do. d. We need to break out the old poem, "Bricks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me." C. \#8\ The Tongue Has A Difficulty James 3:8 But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison. 1. The tongue cannot be tamed. It cannot be defeated. It cannot be broken. 2. That is not the same as saying the tongue cannot be controlled. a. Somebody might read that and think, "Whats the use then?" b. The thought of being tamed is the thought of taking the nature from the wild animal. c. You cant take away the cats tendency to claw or the dogs tendency to bite. (1) Animals do what animals do. (2) However, you can teach them control. (3) Dogs dont have to bite people and cats dont have to claw up the furniture. 4. In 2003, Barnum and Bailey headlined their now defunct circus with Siegfried & Roy, animal trainers who "tamed" lions and tigers. These men were internationally known. I suppose they raised and trained the lions and tigers from cubs. The animals were trained to stand on stools, jump through hoops, and more, but one day the tame tiger turned on Roy, almost killing him. Wild animals are always going to be wild animals 3. We cannot stop the tongue from being the tongue. a. It is wild. b. The tongue will always have to a watch set on it for it will always want to speak before the brain has time to speak or lash out when its user has been offended. c. But we can and should control it. III. \#9-14\ Set the Boundaries Tight – James gave us two specific areas to work on without tongue. A. \#9-12\ Corruption should not flow from a pure spring. 1. Throughout our nation, the rivers, lakes, and streams are monitored for sewage and toxins. Our fresh water is continuously being checked, either my automatic or human samples. Every test starts with the assumption that fresh water should be pure. From that assumption, they measure for contaminates. 2. If anything should be pure, it is the stream that flows from the Christian’s mouth. 3. We should not have a mixed fountain: a. \#9-10\ The mouth that blesses God should not curse men. b. \#11\ The mouth that has sweetness should not speak bitterness. c. \#12\ The mouth that speaks refreshing words should not speak salty words. 4. That means that some things should never come out of our mouths. a. Lying b. Profanity c. Negativity d. Provocation e. Ingratitude f. Boasting g. And I am sure the list could continue. 5. The best we (I) can, we (I) should seek to uplift, edify, and encourage. B. \#14\ James specifically mentioned three things that do not flow from a pure stream. 1. Bitterness – comes from unresolved grudge 2. Envying – comes from an unsatisfied longing 3. Strife – comes from an unsettled argument C. The lesson here is not to learn to keep your mouth shut, but rather learn how to settle problems. 1. God made a depository to hold precious gifts: love, joy, peace, and others. 2. Too many have become a trash bin to hold the unresolved grudges, unsatisfied longings, and unsettled arguments. 3. The only way to resolve and settle things is to resolve settle them. 4. Just like you cant have Jesus inside of you and He not come out, neither can you have garbage inside of you and it not come out. 5. If we can get rid of the garbage, we will get rid of the words. Matthew 12:34 out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. I realize this may seem like a simple messageand it is; however, James devoted almost, if not all, of an entire chapter to this topic. Why? Because it does not matter how many things you try to master, It matters how many things you do master. Lets get this one right.