Pastor Barry's  "Chapter & Verse"  Day 163

June 14;   James 3:8;   220/260(I);   ‘The Untamable Tongue’

James 3:8 But no man can tame the tongue. It is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison.

On face value, this verse gives us no hope.  It seems, according to this verse, we are doomed to speak evil out of our mouths with our tongues that spew forth deadly poison.  Could this possibly be our fate?  Unfortunately, for those who do not know Jesus as their Lord and Savior, much of what they speak is evil, poisoning their relationships and lives.  Unsaved people are surrounded by negative, sarcastic, rebellious people and information that forms the basis of what they speak.  The word ‘man’ in this verse is the generic name for mankind.  A Born Again, Spirit Filled man or woman is not an ordinary man or woman.  We have God’s love in our spirit.  We have the Holy Spirit, who is our Counselor and Helper, in our spirit.  We have the Word of God that renews our mind, opening to our mind godly, life giving, holy information that enables a Christian to speak in a manner, that the lost cannot.  The Lord Jesus is our Example as we read of His character and conduct in the gospels.  He was a Gentlemen with women. He loved and prayed for the children. His sermons, telling the multitudes that they were loved by the Heavenly Father was revolutionary in Jesus’ day.  The way we speak today sets us apart from all of those who do not know the Lord Jesus as of yet.  As Christians, we can and must use our mouths to speak the good news of Jesus.  Our words are courteous, kind, respectful and reflect our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, who has filled our mouths with His vocabulary changing Word.