Folks who use their tongue to praise God on Sunday can use it to hurt people on Monday. James sees the tongue as a “restless evil” and a fountain that springs drinkable and undrinkable water. It is seen as a vine that produces unexpected fruit. It blesses and curses. It is a fire capable of burning down a forest. Makes you wonder if James had been on social media. We have reached a time when people do not care what they say or how they say it. Christians must not participate in this duplicity. Let the Spirit, whose fruit is self-control, do something with our tongues and our reckless speech.
“So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great things. How great a forest is set ablaze by such a small fire! And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell. For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by mankind, but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so. Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and salt water? Can a fig tree, my brothers, bear olives, or a grapevine produce figs? Neither can a salt pond yield fresh water.” ,James 3:5b–12 (ESV)
