Speaking with wisdom
We're going to be looking at James Chapter 3 this evening, and I'd like to invite you to open that chapter before you so that we can look at it together. One of the main themes of James is wisdom. It's all about wisdom. And there's been a verse in Chapter 1 that's been really a constant anchor to me for most of my ministry, and it says this:
"If any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to you." (James 1:5)
Now, I have often prayed that prayer because there are many times where I don't feel particularly wise, and I wonder what on earth God wants me to do. And yet this passage says: Pray, and God wants to give you wisdom generously. Notice He hasn't said, "I'm going to give you more and more and more information." I'm going to give you so much information it's going to feel like a flood. Do you feel like that at the moment? You've got so much information, it's like a flood of things taking place, particularly if you're on the internet.
What this is saying is: If any of you lacks wisdom, I want to give you wisdom.
But of course, what is wisdom? How do we think about wisdom? How do we go about thinking about wisdom in this day and age? And I think one useful definition is this one:
Wisdom is knowing how to live God's way in God's world.
Knowing how to live God's way in God's world. Now, you might think that that's kind of maybe up in the clouds a little bit. What does that actually mean practically? Well, it turns out that wisdom is actually quite practical.
For example, if you go to the book of Proverbs—you might like to look up Proverbs Chapter 1—you'll see at the very start of Proverbs these words. It basically says: "Son, don't get involved in a criminal gang." Listen to these words:
"Listen, my son, to your father’s instruction and do not forsake your mother’s teaching."
Okay, all the parents here will be saying, "Yes, I agree with Proverbs at this point." But as he speaks to his son, he says this:
"My son, if sinful men entice you, do not give in to them." (Proverbs 1:10)
Later on in verse 15:
"My son, do not go along with them, do not set foot on their paths; for their feet rush into evil, they are swift to shed blood." (Proverbs 1:15-16)
And then in verse 18:
"These men lie in wait for their own blood; they ambush only themselves!" (Proverbs 1:18)
So, if you get involved with a criminal gang, what's going to happen is you're going to suddenly find yourself the subject of that criminal gang. And don't we see that playing out in the streets of Sydney at the moment? See, it's very practical. How do I live in God's world in God's way? Well, don't get involved in a criminal gang.
It's not surprising, then, when we come to James Chapter 3, that James wants to address the issue of words—the way we speak. And you'll notice today that the words that James uses have a significant connection with the tongue. So, do we have any speech pathologists out there? People who help people with their speech? I want to say thank you. If you're a "speechie," you do a wonderful job, a God-given job of helping people. And I think that's a great thing. So thank you for serving us in that way.
But today, the Bible wants to serve us as well in terms of words and our tongue. How are we going to look at James Chapter 3? I'm going to suggest three different headings for our time together:
- Words Matter
- Words are Poisonous (that's a little bit more uncomfortable)
- Wisdom from Above Changes Everything
1. Words Matter
Let's start thinking about this idea that words matter. It's noticeable throughout the Bible that words are significant. If you go way back to Genesis Chapter 1, you read these words:
"And God said... spoke... 'Let there be light,' and there was light."
The very creation of our world is with words. And then, of course, as we come down through the Old Testament, we hear many words spoken. Covenants spoken with the people of Israel. Ten Commandments given. Words spoken through the prophets. Words of wisdom spoken. And you hear over and over again words are used to draw people back to God, but also to describe the world that we live in and to describe how to live in God's world in God's way.
What's extraordinary then, as you will notice with the passage, is in John Chapter 1, verses 1 to 3, we read:
"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was with God in the beginning. Through him all things were made; without him nothing was made that has been made."
Words are so important that we discover that Jesus is the Word. And He is the one who speaks. Words matter. Words are important.
Now, as we come to James Chapter 3, we see his version of what he's saying about words. Look at what he says in verse 1 of Chapter 3:
"Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly."
Well, that's speaking to people like me. And I find that very challenging because I know I'm accountable for the words that I speak. And one of the things I appreciate about working with City to City is I get to hear people all around Asia speaking the words of God into people's lives. But unfortunately, I also hear pastors leading people astray. And they will be accountable for the words they speak, just as I am accountable for the words I speak. Notice: they will be judged more strictly. That sits with me, even as I speak with you this afternoon. I'm conscious that my words are important.
James doesn't let people like me off the hook, but he does say it actually involves all of us. He says:
"We all stumble in many ways. Anyone who is never at fault in what they say is perfect, able to keep their whole body in check." (James 3:2)
Did you notice that? Everybody is involved in this. We're all involved in speaking and saying things. But what I think is interesting here is the link it has to our bodies. It keeps our bodies in check.
Now, if you're a parent, you'll know this. Because one of the things you spend your time doing when children are younger is helping them with their behavior—helping them to say things that are appropriate and stopping them saying things that are inappropriate. But you're also helping them with your words, and helping them with their words so that their behavior is appropriate. And so you can see a strong link here between the words and the way that we act. It helps us stay in check.
Now, I think probably that's the reason that in the English sense of the word, we had "manners." You know, where you say "please" and "thank you" and you did all kinds of things in the way you spoke to people because that was keeping your behavior in check. Now, some of that seems a little bit old-fashioned these days, but I think that's where this came from—the idea that your words keep your behavior in check.
2. Words are Poisonous
But then James wants to broaden our understanding. We all stumble in many ways, but he wants to broaden our understanding and understand what it means to keep our words in check and to consider the role of the tongue. And so he goes on to say—and he gives some illustrations here—but I want you to notice verse 5 at the end of that paragraph:
"Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts."
Now initially when I read this, I thought, Oh, that's talking about pride. It's talking about the idea of being prideful. But then I thought, actually, look at the illustrations beforehand and see what they're saying. And what I think he's doing is something slightly different. He's trying to say the tongue has a greater influence than we might imagine. It has a greater influence than its size would suggest. It's only a really small thing, and yet it does great things.
And the two illustrations that he gives are:
- Bits in the mouths of horses. I'm not sure how many people have ridden a horse—it's been quite a while since I've ridden a horse—but they have bits in their mouths so you can pull them around and try and stop them galloping off on you and all those kinds of things.
- Ships. He gives a second illustration: "Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants them to go."
Think of the small rudder on the back of a large cargo ship. And I give you that illustration because I've experienced this. When I was in primary school, we were on a cargo ship going back to Borneo. And for some reason, the captain invited me up into the bridge. And you know the wheelhouse where they have the big wheel? He gave me the wheel. And apparently—I don't remember this—but apparently, I started to turn the ship around.
I'm a tiny little kid! I'm turning a wheel... but why are we turning the ship around? Because it's a small rudder on the back.
And that small rudder on the back is like our tongues. It has a huge influence. If you think about it, God speaking creation—that's a huge influence. He creates reality. Now, of course, we're made in His image; we don't create reality. But it has a lot to do with our self-image, doesn't it? Words. Think about the way you see yourself, how you understand yourself. The verdicts that have been spoken over you over many years. Things that parents and teachers and friends have said to you. How they have shaped the course of your life.
I can remember being a senior minister at one church in Eastwood, and I was there for about 11 years. And at one stage, as I was going to that church, I wasn't sure I should go. I was really unsure. I had met the people there—really lovely people. But many of them were far better educated than I was. Many of them were in far more significant positions than I would ever see, earned far more money than I'd ever seen. And I said to my Bishop, "I don't think... I'm unsure that I'm the right person for this job."
And you know what he said? He said, "Roger, if God wants you there, He will give you everything that you need to minister to those people."
And he was exactly right. But you can see how those words, spoken in the moment at the right time, then shaped my next 11 years. Words are really important. They matter. And tongues are really important. They matter. They direct so much.
Of course, that makes this next statement a little bit uncomfortable. You see there at the end of verse 8:
"...no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison."
Now, in the previous verses, he's also pointed out that the tongue is a spark that creates a great forest fire. We've had those terrible fires over the last few days. All of those fires began with a very small spark, and they spread quickly. You know how gossip works like that. It can just be a small statement, a tiny little statement, and it can spread like wildfire. And all of a sudden, people believe all kinds of things about one another.
These verses also say it stains your body. It corrupts the whole body. Because words are so powerful, it can change who you think about, how you think about yourself. In fact, he's so strong about this, he talks about it being full of restless evil, set on fire by hell. You can see the evil intent here, can't you?
Now, as I've already said, your self-image is an accumulation of lots of verdicts that people have spoken over you, whether it be parents or teachers or friends. And words can change the course of your life. A small child hearing from a parent or a friend that they're stupid all of a sudden starts to shape who they think they are. It's like toxic chemicals in the soil; it starts to leach into the whole person's life.
Now, many of you may know this firsthand. Many of you may know the words that are still ringing in your ears from what people have said. Of course, it's not just what's been said to you; it's what's said to communities. And very often, the words that are used break down civil order, lead to social and economic unrest. We all know of governments that have acted like that, where they don't tell the truth, where they speak words that bring unrest.
What's interesting here is James doesn't actually give us a lot of detail about what exactly these words are. If we look throughout the rest of James, we can see in James 4 he's got a couple of references. He talks about fights and quarrels amongst you. He talks about not slandering one another. He talks about not grumbling. And above all, brothers and sisters, do not swear by heaven and earth—so let your yes be yes and your no be no. So that's about truth. So he gives us a bit of a clue about the words that he's speaking about here, but he doesn't go into great detail.
And in truth, I don't think he wants to give us the complete list. I think we can pretty clearly understand how words are so poisonous. If you think of the cancel culture with J.K. Rowling—words are very powerful. If you think about the social media ban that's just about to come. Why is it coming? Because the words are so powerful. There's a woman called Emma Mason who gave a speech at the UN, and one of the main people behind this ban... and the reason she's speaking that way is because of what happened to her daughter, who's no longer with us. She was just a young teenager, bullied on social media. Words matter.
I can think of a woman in my church who was an older woman. And in Australia, we have this really strange thing—I still don't understand it—but sometimes people who are Margaret are called Peg. Okay? I don't know why, I'm not quite sure why, but there's some kind of association there. But she was called Peg, and I only knew her as Peg. And one day we were talking, and she says, "I'm looking forward to heaven because I'll have a new name."
I said, "Oh, okay, that's interesting. I'm not sure about that bit, but that's an interesting insight. Tell me why."
And she said, "Well, my name is Peg. And my father told me that all I was good for was to peg on the washing line. I was completely useless."
And she'd lived with that message all her life. She was a wonderful scripture teacher in the local primary school, but her self-esteem had taken that battering all her life, and it impacted her family. It impacted her kids. It impacted whatever she did because of what had been spoken over her.
Or I think of my brother. When we returned from Malaysia permanently—he was about 13 or 14—he walked into high school. We had been living in Asia for all those years, so we were white kids with an Asian background. I know that's weird, but that's what we were. And he walked in, he got lost in one of his classrooms, and the kids started to bully him. Now, his name's Stephen. But there's also this other weird Australian phrase: "Borneo Bill." And so someone worked out he came from Borneo, and so they called him Bill.
And the truth is, for the whole of his high school, he was known as Bill. And it was a way of remembering him and bullying him that whole time. Because words have power.
Now, what's remarkable about him is he's a godly Christian man, he's a lecturer at the Baptist College. And he organized the reunion. And people couldn't work out why! They said, "Why would you organize the reunion? We bullied you so terribly." And he said, "Well, you know, the grace of God works like this." And a lot of them were very confused because they didn't realize they had a Stephen; they thought they had a Bill. But God's grace is like that, isn't it? It can change us and transform us and make a significant difference.
And so words matter, and they're poisonous because they can shape our lives. And we can shape other people's lives, of course. So it's not only what people are doing to us; it's the way we speak to other people as well. It shapes their lives as well.
Now, it gets a little bit more complicated. If you thought that was complicated, we are complicated human beings. Look what James then goes on to remind us. With the tongue, that powerful little organ:
"With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing."
And then James uses this imagery which suggests why this is so confusing:
"My brothers and sisters, this should not be. Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring?" (James 3:10-11)
Surely if you belong to Jesus, that can't be happening.
"My brothers and sisters, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water." (James 3:12)
Do you notice the conundrum here? And of course, we know this to be true, don't we? You will have been singing here today joyously and wonderfully—it's lovely to hear you sing. But I bet there are times when you've walked out of this congregation, and I've walked out of a congregation too (so we're all in the same boat), where the words we've spoken in the car may not be that kind.
And so we live this. We live this idea that we can sing praises and then we can sing other words. Our words are poisonous. So this is challenging, isn't it? We have this conundrum in terms of the way we use our words, our tongues, and James is confronting us with that.
But he also wants to take us somewhere else.
3. Wisdom from Above Changes Everything
And so as he moves on to verse 13, we notice something about wisdom. Because remember, we're talking about wisdom here, and wisdom and words. And so when we get to Chapter 3, what we discover is that James broadens the subject a little, but it still applies to words. Listen to what he says:
"Who is wise and understanding among you? Let them show it by their good life, by their deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom." (James 3:13)
So remember the concept of behavior and deeds is there already, so we know that words are important for our deeds. And then verse 14 says something really interesting:
"But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth." (James 3:14)
Notice boasting and truth come up again.
"Such 'wisdom' does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic." (James 3:15)
So we've already had those themes running through the idea of the tongue and speaking words in the previous verses.
"For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you will find disorder and every evil practice." (James 3:16)
It's really interesting to reflect on the connections here about who we are as human beings. Jesus says something very similar in Luke Chapter 6. And of course, James was Jesus' half-brother, so no doubt he heard Him speak these words:
"Each tree is recognized by its own fruit. People do not pick figs from thornbushes, or grapes from briers. A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of." (Luke 6:44-45)
Did you notice that reference there? Do not harbor any envy or selfish ambition in your heart. It turns out that our hearts are also connected to our speech, to our tongues, to what we say. And what Jesus is pointing out is that where our hearts are will actually determine what we say.
I think I've shared this quote with you before, but I think it's relevant here again:
"What the heart loves, the will chooses, the mind justifies, the body does (that is, says, behaves in particular ways), and the gut feels."
You think about it. If your heart really loves something, you can justify anything. And you can justify choosing to do something. If you really love something, you will come to all kinds of conclusions—and I've seen it over and over again in my life and in the life of others. We can convince ourselves that something is right and true and proper because of our loves, what our hearts love.
And so the issue here is our words are connected to our bodies, to our tongues, to our hearts. And so how do we deal with the fact that we are people who both speak God's praises but also speak poisonous things to other people?
Well, it's interesting what James does. He goes on in verse 17 to say this. We're talking about wisdom, living in God's world in God's way:
"But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. Peacemakers who sow in peace reap a harvest of righteousness." (James 3:17-18)
Now the first thing to notice about these verses is that the solution doesn't come from within us. Wisdom doesn't come from us. It's not like we become the wise person and the guru. No, wisdom comes from above, comes from heaven.
And so it's interesting to reflect on this wisdom that comes from heaven. How does that work? Well, let's link it to 1 Corinthians, another place that talks a lot about wisdom:
"It is because of him that you are in Christ Jesus, who has become for us wisdom from God—that is, our righteousness, holiness and redemption." (1 Corinthians 1:30)
Who is wisdom? Jesus.
Jesus is the one who comes from above. Jesus is wisdom. And notice that James is saying that wisdom that comes from above is pure, peaceable, loving, considerate, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. Do you see what he's doing here? He's not just giving us a list of virtues of things to live by. He's describing a person. He's describing the person of Jesus.
You see, in God's order, in God's world, in God's way, wisdom is not just information. It's about a person. It's about Jesus. Ultimately, wisdom is not a principle. It is a person. And that is the person of Jesus.
And so we could put things like this, if we reworded these verses:
But the wisdom—Jesus, who comes from above—is first of all pure, then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. Jesus is a peacemaker who sows in peace and reaps a harvest of righteousness.
You see, Jesus, by His coming, by His dying in our place on the cross, takes all those words that are spoken over us, and all the words that we have spoken, and in His wisdom, He nails them to the cross.
And He says: Let me have your heart. Let me capture your heart. Come with me. I want to give you wisdom. I want to give you wisdom in the way that you live, wisdom in the words that you speak. I want to come partner with you so that there is a harvest of righteousness in your life. A new humanity that is reconciled to God and to one another.
And so the call is not simply to become more pure, more gentle, more merciful, to change our words just to look better, but it's actually about letting wisdom dwell within us. It's about us being captured by the love of Christ. About our hearts being transformed by that love.
And you know what happens when we fall in love with Jesus? All those other loves start to fade. All those other loves start to become insignificant. They start to be put in their right place. They don't become what we choose to do because we want to meet that idol.
What the heart loves, the will chooses. If the heart is more in love with Jesus, it will choose more of what Jesus wants us to do. And that's what will happen to our words. Because as we are further united with Christ by His Spirit, day by day, the wisdom that will come from above becomes ours.
And so therefore our speech will change. Our behavior will change. The way we treat other people will change. But it starts with us being captured by a better vision of who Jesus is, and learning to love Him more and more.
So, sisters and brothers, if any of you lacks wisdom, you should ask God. For He gives generously. He wants you to have it. Without finding fault, and He will give it to you.
He's taken the words that you have spoken and the words that have been spoken over you to the cross. And He's nailed them there. And He says, "I want to give you something generous. I want to give you wisdom."
Amen.
Discussion questions:
- What struck you the most from the sermon?
- Have you ever experienced the power of words (positive or negative) in your life? What happened?
- What is the source of poisonous words? What are some things you can do to be more mindful of your words?
- How does wisdom from above enable you to speak with wisdom?