Good evening.
The Bible says:
“Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasteth great things. Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth! And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell.”
James 3:5-6 KJV
I ve heard hundreds
Of sermons regarding the message about the tongue. Many a tongue have gotten us in trouble.
One story goes :
a preacher was in revival.
A woman came to him after
His sermon one night and said she wanted to lay her tongue on the altar following his version of the sermon.
To her reply the crusty ol Preacher said ma’am, that altars only about 12ft long.
He said you will have to let the rest of it hang over the end of the altar!
Heeheehee. Now to me, that’s funny.
But some might take offense today, though there’s a message in that story alone.
But that ll do for another day.
But as the text reads tonight, the tongue is dangerous. It says it’s a fire. When one gets
To waggin too much it sure can start a commotion.
Have you ever
Noticed the animals have a tongue too.
But the trouble doesn’t come from them. It’s from those that were given a brain to go with it.
That’s a dangerous combination. Seems like some just don’t know how to use theirs.
They lead to no good sometimes.
It could be they spoke before they let their brain work.
I know I’ve often done that.
And I learned to be more
Careful but still let it get the best of me from time to time.
It’s even more important since I surrendered to the calling to preach.
I often trip on my words. Sometimes I realize only Tooo late that somethings I’ve said just didn’t come out the way I meant for them to. But then it’s too late.
Ever felt that way?
Just the same , it s too late after the fact and those words you say have a way of hurting. And ,of coming back to haunt you.
Boy,
did I learn that one the hard way.
But if it’s so dangerous you have to wonder why did God let us have one and a mind to go with it?
Heehee I doubt that he intended for us to get ourselves in to all that trouble with it!
But we often do.
But the Bible gives good instruction… To guard your lips for they can utter things that might be divisive And hurtful.they can do A lot of damage.
I can remember we used to say the childhood poem… Sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never harm me.
Boy,were they ever wrong about that. That once could be said with fairly good assurance, but they were counting on folks being mannerly and courteous.
Today it seems that many folks no nothing about either .
The pitiful stuff that I’ve heard from some lips these days…. Why….
My grandma would a washed their
Mouths out with soap!
Yep child abusers !! That’s what I called it too.
But then there was
More trouble that followed
For the little rascle I was.
I quickly learned that there were some things that were better left unsaid.
But The tongue is meant to communicate and Praise to the Lord!
Not be profane and
Reckless.
Tonight can you think back?
The things you’ve said today….
CareTo take any of it back if you could?
Yeah
Me too.
But God knows our heart.
And that warning is good Biblical instruction. Let’s have a study period on it!
Think it would be good therapy to think more before we talked.
Think it would do us all a while lot of good!
Gotta say “oh Me” on that one.
Good night.
