Read the
passage here.
The tongue
is small yet has great power. It sings
praise to God and curses our neighbours. It cannot be tamed.
James really
doesn’t mince his words does he?! I feel
pretty convicted when I read this. I
have the opportunity to preach/teach from time to time and I am guilty of this
hypocrisy. On one occasion I’ll be
sharing with people God’s words and another I may be gossiping or criticising
someone harshly.
The
challenge is not to tame our tongues (because it cannot be tamed James 3:8) but
to tame our thoughts. 2 Corinthians 10:5
tells us to ‘take captive every thought’. Our tongues simply give expression to our
thoughts so it is there, in our ‘hearts’, that we must be disciplined.
Possible
areas of discussion
Is it fair
that teachers are to be judged more strictly?
Does
hypocrisy matter?
Should
swearing matter to Christians?
How do can
we ‘take captive every thought’?
Feel free to
talk about anything that’s on your heart.
Verse 9 is incredibly challenging. It convicts me as I don't see people as God's creations as often as I should. I see thieves and layabouts when I should be seeing souls in need of grace, waiting to be liberated from slavery to sin by the love of Jesus. Just like he did with me :)
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