Consider what a great forest
is set on fire by a small spark. The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil
among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole person... and is set on fire
by hell. James 3:6
Did you ever smoke a secret
cigarette when you were a teenager? Go on, admit it! You thought you were
so grown up, so daring.
Well, a couple of years ago a 14-year old boy in the middle east decided to smoke not a cigarette, but a hookah, one of those eastern water pipes. After getting it lit he absent-mindedly tossed the live coals he had used onto a patch of grass. And the result? 42 deaths, 10,000 acres of forest destroyed, 250 homes damaged, a bill for £50 million. The worst fire in his country’s history.
Properly tended and controlled, fire is a great force for good. But once out of control - well, its potential is appalling.
Well, a couple of years ago a 14-year old boy in the middle east decided to smoke not a cigarette, but a hookah, one of those eastern water pipes. After getting it lit he absent-mindedly tossed the live coals he had used onto a patch of grass. And the result? 42 deaths, 10,000 acres of forest destroyed, 250 homes damaged, a bill for £50 million. The worst fire in his country’s history.
Properly tended and controlled, fire is a great force for good. But once out of control - well, its potential is appalling.
James, the brother of Jesus, tells us that
each of us has a potential fire in our mouth. It's called the tongue. What to
us may seem a harmless and innocent comment can have repercussions far beyond
anything we could have imagined. And so he reminds us to be very careful how we
speak. No gossip! No backbiting! No lies or half-truths! No harsh words. None of
that sniggering behind-the-hand "Hey, did you hear about..."
When I was a child a teacher told me to ask three questions about anything I said: Is it true? Is it kind ? Is it necessary ? I wish I could say that I have carefully observed those three rules ever since. They would have saved me - and, more to the point, a lot of other people - much pain and unhappiness.
Of course, we live in days when there are all sorts of new ways of speaking. Any Twitterers out there? Any Facebook addicts? Be careful! Do you really want your careless thoughts to be read by, potentially, millions of people? And should you be putting them on line anyway? Should you even be thinking them in the first place? Are they worthy of a follower of Jesus?
One of Shakespeare's plays has a character called Rumour. He appears on stage wearing a robe "painted full of tongues". And what is his business? That of "stuffing the ears of men with false reports". He proudly boasts of how much hurt and confusion he causes.
When I was a child a teacher told me to ask three questions about anything I said: Is it true? Is it kind ? Is it necessary ? I wish I could say that I have carefully observed those three rules ever since. They would have saved me - and, more to the point, a lot of other people - much pain and unhappiness.
Of course, we live in days when there are all sorts of new ways of speaking. Any Twitterers out there? Any Facebook addicts? Be careful! Do you really want your careless thoughts to be read by, potentially, millions of people? And should you be putting them on line anyway? Should you even be thinking them in the first place? Are they worthy of a follower of Jesus?
One of Shakespeare's plays has a character called Rumour. He appears on stage wearing a robe "painted full of tongues". And what is his business? That of "stuffing the ears of men with false reports". He proudly boasts of how much hurt and confusion he causes.
There's also a neat
saying I rather like: "a lie can travel half round the world while truth is pulling
his boots on". I don't know how old that saying is, but couldn’t it have been written exactly for the internet
age?
We are to use our tongues to speak truth, to bless, to encourage, to build people up, not to drag them down. A kind and loving word can do untold good. Is that how we aim to use our tongues?
I know that, regarding that fire I mentioned, all our sympathies must be with the victims and their families. But I can't help feeling also some pity for the boy who started it all. I imagine that the memory of what he did - not meaning the slightest harm! - will blight him until the day he dies. Poor child! In the same way, though, every one of us who speaks an unguarded word may end up tormented with regret.
Every now and then somebody comes up to me and says "I know I shouldn't really be telling you this, but..." To which there is only one correct reply: "You know you shouldn't be telling me? Then don't tell me! Keep that mouth of yours firmly shut !"
We are to use our tongues to speak truth, to bless, to encourage, to build people up, not to drag them down. A kind and loving word can do untold good. Is that how we aim to use our tongues?
I know that, regarding that fire I mentioned, all our sympathies must be with the victims and their families. But I can't help feeling also some pity for the boy who started it all. I imagine that the memory of what he did - not meaning the slightest harm! - will blight him until the day he dies. Poor child! In the same way, though, every one of us who speaks an unguarded word may end up tormented with regret.
Every now and then somebody comes up to me and says "I know I shouldn't really be telling you this, but..." To which there is only one correct reply: "You know you shouldn't be telling me? Then don't tell me! Keep that mouth of yours firmly shut !"
Dear Father in heaven, thank
you for the gift of the tongue. Thank you for the great good we can do
through words of truth and kindness. But forgive me, Lord, that there are times
I use my tongue for wicked and destructive purposes, thus playing into the
hands of the devil, the father of lies. Cleanse, Lord, my tongue!
Cleanse, Lord, my heart! Amen.
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