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The power of our words (Aug. 23, 2020)

Uniform Lesson for August 23, 2020
Scripture passage and lesson focus: James 3:1-12

The writer of the letter of James has already wisely warned us to be “quick to listen” and “slow to speak” (1:19). What a difference, we observed, that would make: in sidewalk banter, boardroom discussions and presbytery deliberations! Now we are warned about the potential for both harm and help once we begin to form words with our tongues. This is not abstract wisdom but wisdom as tangible as the tongues and palates and vocal cords in our bodies. Just think about the power of words in the human community down through the centuries, especially words bearing false testimony surrounding gender, race or God.

James 3:1-5 — A warning to teachers

James leads off with a particular warning to teachers. In Scripture, spoken words can create and destroy not only people but worlds. God said, “Let there be light” (Genesis 1:3). Moses (through Aaron) said, “Let my people go” (Exodus 5:1). Jesus said, “Lazarus, come out!” (John 11:43). Furthermore, faith, according to Paul, is a matter of hearing, and no one can hear without someone else to speak/proclaim (Romans 10:14). Speaking is serious business in Scripture — sometimes a matter of life and death.

Thus, teachers are especially liable in this regard — and we’re all teachers! Our whole study of wisdom this summer has made it clear that the speaking of wisdom is not just confined to the pulpit or the lectern but is out in the streets — as parents talk to children, as mentors guide their interns, as coaches train their players. Whenever the vocal chords begin to vibrate, and the tongue curls to pronounce a syllable, and the sound goes out of our mouth and into the ears of someone willing and able to listen — be on your guard! Not many of us should become teachers, yet all of us are. So, let us remember, James warns, “that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness.” Are we using our tongues to lift up or to tear down, to kill or to resurrect?

James 3:6-8 — The tongue is a fire

James, then, is not asking us to stop speaking but to bridle, steer and control our tongues. Fire, in Scripture, can be a sign of God’s presence — in a bush, on a mountain, in an upper room. But fire can also be a means of destruction and death — as cities are pillaged, reputations are destroyed and the gospel is distorted. How can it be? The same member of our bodies with which “we bless the Lord and Father,” can be the one that “stains the whole body, sets on fire the cycle of nature, and is itself set on fire by hell.”

Here again we encounter a familiar theme in wisdom literature. Our lives are a series of choices. To whom will we listen? What words will we speak? What should we do with our tongues, our hands and our feet? What’s most interesting here is that James declares that choices we make with our tongues may be even more critical than choices we make with our hands and feet (and other parts of our bodies). Would that the church of Jesus Christ was as concerned with what we say in the church parking lot as what we do in the privacy of our bedrooms! I’m wondering what a “Purity and Chastity Amendment” might look like when it is applied to our tongues? For while our words may occasionally reveal our mastery of grammar, they always show forth the character of our hearts. “Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and brackish water?” “No,” James declares, and to paraphrase, “Heck, no!”

James 3:9-12 — Bearing false witness

In order to bring this even closer to home, listen, if you will, to some words from The Study Catechism on the 9th commandment: “God forbids me to damage the honor or reputation of my neighbor. I should not say false things against anyone for the sake of money, favor or friendship, for the sake of revenge, or for any other reason. God requires me to speak the truth, to speak well of my neighbor when I can, and to view the faults of my neighbor with tolerance when I cannot” (Question 114). The catechism then goes on to speak directly about negative stereotyping with regard to “any vulnerable, different or disfavored social group,” including “Jews, women, homosexuals, racial and ethnic minorities and national enemies” (Question 115). Yes, these are life and death matters — for our witness toward our neighbors and toward God.

For discussion:
One of the few brave things I’ve done as a pastor was refuse to discipline one member for suspected homosexual behavior until we disciplined another for well-known gossip. What would James say?  

RICHARD BOYCE is the dean of the Charlotte campus of Union Presbyterian Seminary, and associate professor of preaching and pastoral leadership. He is a minister member of the Presbytery of Western North Carolina.

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