Alright, let's look back at the
passage that Brother Joe just read, James chapter 3. And we're going to talk today
and the next week or so about faith and controlling the tongue. Faith and controlling the tongue. It's been said that if there
were no other passage of scripture in the Bible that could plainly
set out the condition of man by nature, and our inadequacy
and impotency and the impossibility of being saved and being justified,
made righteous by our works, by our obedience, by deeds of
law, and the fact that we are at the mercy of God for salvation. salvations by grace. None of
us can earn it. None of us deserve it. Our need
of the righteousness of God in Christ. Our need of mercy. There are no other passages of
scripture in the Bible that could set that forth. This one would.
This one would. Because it's obviously talking
about sins of the tongue. Sins of language. Sins of speech. And controlling the tongue. Here,
James presents the matter of the tongue as just another test
of living true faith. Because true faith, genuine faith,
faith that is the gift of God, faith in Christ, will be demonstrated
and manifested by speech. And so will false faith be manifested
by speech. Someone said, nothing is more
telling on the heart than the tongue. And it's of great concern
to James. You know, this is really here
in chapter 3. This is not the first time he mentioned it. Look
back at chapter 1 in verse 19. He's spoken of this matter. He says in verse 19 of chapter
1, Wherefore, my beloved brethren, let every man be swift to hear
and slow to speak, slow to wrath. The Bible teaches us so much
about what we say and what we ought to say, how we should say
it. And one of the things that it
teaches us is that we ought to be very careful in what we say,
very slow, and sometimes not say anything at all. You know,
sometimes it's best not to say anything at all. But that's a
problem with us, isn't it? It's hard for us not to do. Look
at verse 26. He said, If any man among you
seem to be religious, and bridleth not his tongue, control his tongue,
but deceiveth his own heart, this man's religion is vain.
He mentioned it there. Look over at chapter 2 and verse
12. Here he says, So speak ye. These
are good words here. So speak ye, and so do, as they
that shall be judged by the law of liberty. That's the gospel.
of God's grace in Christ. That's the gospel of liberty
and freedom. How Christ has set us free by
His finished work on the cross. He freed us from condemnation
and wrath. He paid our debt in full by the
shedding of His blood and establishing righteousness for us. And so
when we speak, He said, let's do and speak as those who are
sinners saved by the grace of God. And that's what removes
pride boasting. That's what removes the partiality
that we're so prone to in the flesh, because we know that we're,
in our minds, we're the most undeserving people in the whole
world. That's why Paul said, Christ
Jesus came into the world to save sinners of whom I am chief. He wasn't setting up some kind
of a contest between him and other people. He was just simply
saying, this is how I view myself. And so when we use our tongues
in pride and boasting and looking down on others or putting down
others, then that's an issue not of grace, but of self-righteousness. So speak and do as they that
shall be judged by the law of liberty. That's good speech. And then look at verse 14 of
chapter 2. He says, Of what doth it profit
my brethren though a man say? Now he's talking about what we
say. Though a man say he hath faith and have not works, can
that kind of faith save him? We say a lot of things, and we
fool ourselves in saying a lot of things. But what kind of faith
is it that is saving faith? It's the faith that not only
says we believe in Christ, but it's the faith that actually
rests in him for all of salvation. It's the kind of faith that not
only says we love Christ, but it's the kind of faith that follows
him because we love him. And it's not only the kind of
faith that says we love the brethren, but it's the kind of faith that
actually operates in action in what we say and what we do. That's
the kind of faith, that's the evidence of it. Over in chapter
4, look over there, in verse 11, he speaks of it. James 4, verse 11, he says, Speak
not evil one of another, brethren. He that speaketh evil of his
brother, and judgeth his brother, speaketh evil of the law, and
judgeth the law. That's the word of God. But if
thou judge the law, thou art not a doer of the law, but a
judge. In other words, when you speak evil of a brother or sister
in Christ, you're setting yourself up above the law. Therefore what
does the law say to you? It's kind of like over here.
Let me just read this to you in Romans chapter 2 where he's talking
to unbelievers here We're talking about unbelievers talking to
believers in Rome But he's talking about unbelievers and he says
in verse 1 of Romans 2. He says therefore thou art inexcusable
Oh man, whosoever thou art that judges for wherein thou judgest
another thou condemnest thyself for thou that judges doeth the
same things in other words if you look at a person and And
you say, well, that person is condemned or lost because they
are a sinner. What have you just done? You've
just condemned yourself. You know why? Because you're
a sinner too. I am a sinner too. And that's what James is talking
about, speaking not evil one of another. And then look at
chapter 5 of James, look at verse 12. James 5 and verse 12, he says,
But above all things, my brethren, swear not, neither by heaven,
neither by the earth, neither by any other oath, but let your
yea be yea, and your nay, nay, lest you fall into condemnation.
In other words, say what you mean and mean what you say. You
don't have to boast out and live out these high lofty oaths, you
know. You know, I heard a man say over
a little controversy that preachers were having, and incidentally,
I'm going to talk about preachers today. And I feel sorry for you
all. I told somebody, I said, whose
toes are you going to step on today? I'm not going to step
on anybody's toes, but I'm going to step on everybody's tongue. And that's
the way it is here. But, you know, when preachers
get into a controversy, they get real real prolific, they
get real high and mighty, and one fellow said, I'll stand before
God on this. That's crazy. You don't need
those kind of oaths. I mean, it's either in the Word
of God or it's not. In fact, I'll tell you something,
I hope that I never stand before God as to whether I'm right or
wrong on any passage of Scripture or doctrine. I want to stand
before God in Christ, that I may know Him. whom to know his life
eternal." I guarantee you, when we stand before God, we're not
going to be arguing about our interpretation of a scripture
or doctrine. Our mouths are going to be shut.
And our advocate is going to stand in between us and a holy
God and plead our cause. Now, that's it. And we might
as well face it now. We'd do better if we keep our
mouths shut more on those issues in this life. But you see, James
is being used by the Holy Spirit here to show us that we as true
believers, now what's a true believer? A saint, sanctified
one, sinner saved by grace, born again by the Spirit, by the Word
of God. James had mentioned that, how
of his own will begat he us with the Word of truth. That's the
Word and the power of the Holy Spirit. The Gospel is the power
of God and the salvation. And what he's saying is we have
in us new life. We have spiritual life that we
did not have before the new birth. And the Spirit of God himself
indwells us. And he has written the law, the
Word of God, in our hearts. And that's going to manifest
itself. Now, it's going to evidence itself
in the way we live and the way we talk. That's what he's saying. It's a very convicting truth
for me and for you. He talked about evidences of
faith there. That's his whole point in the book of James. He
talked about how faith is going to evidence itself in endurance
in trials and submission to God and temptation to sin, obedience
to God's Word in chapter 1. He spoke in chapter 1 and chapter
2 how faith will evidence itself in loving concern for the needy,
widows and orphans, those who are poor coming to the church.
without partiality. That's chapters 1 and 2. And
in chapter 2 again, he spoke of how faith will evidence itself
as a pattern of good works, as the fruit of God's grace. Not
the cause now. Not trying to earn blessings
from God. Christ did that. Not trying to
remove God's wrath and gain His favor. That's the work of Christ
on the cross. That's why we plead His blood
and His righteousness alone. We don't plead our works, but
the good works that evidence faith are the fruit of God's
grace, the fruit of faith, their evidences. And now here in chapter
three, he says, now true faith shows up, not in only what we
do, but how we talk, our speech, our words. And here's the issue. The issue is this. We who are
saved by God's grace. We who are born again by the
Holy Spirit, people of true faith in Christ, disciples, followers
of Christ, we must, without fail now, we must consciously, as
we are inspired by the Spirit and guided by the Word of God,
we must engage ourselves in this battle of controlling our tongues. We've got to be engaged in that
battle. You see, and we need to use our
tongues as instruments of righteousness. That's that opening song that
I read there. He said, my tongue shall speak
of thy righteousness all the day long. Not going to talk about
my righteousness. My righteousness is Christ's
righteousness. It's him. So I'm going to talk
about his righteousness. We need to engage our tongues
as instruments of obedience. Instruments of love. instruments
of praise and worship, instruments of encouragement one to another,
and not instruments of evil. And we need to avoid the sins
of the tongue. First, avoid the sins of the
tongue in false doctrine, speaking false doctrine, false gospels. We need to avoid the sins of
the tongue in boasting, in flattery. How about this one? How about
gossip? in slander. How about this one? Complaining.
You know what that's called in the Old Testament? Complaining.
Murmuring. Murmur, murmur, murmur. That's
what they did in the desert. Murmured. They murmured. And
he said murmuring there was, it's against God. It's unbelief.
And the Bible has so much to say about this. There's just
not time. I'm going to do several messages
on chapter 3, but there's just not time to go through it. But
let me, I'll give you a couple. Psalms 34 13 it says keep thy
tongue from evil and Thy lips from speaking guile dishonesty
or proudly Proverbs 15 and verse 4 it says a wholesome tongue
is a tree of life But perverseness therein is a breach in the spirit
now a wholesome tongue There is a healed tongue and that's
what our tongues need healing and that healing comes from God
but look at James 3 in verse 1 and 2 now the first and And
this first and especially applies to preachers and teachers. That's
how James starts out. Look at it. He says, My brethren,
be not many masters. That's teachers, preachers. Don't be so quick to be a preacher
or teacher, to have something to say, an opinion to offer.
Back there where he said, Be swift to hear and slow to speak.
So, My brethren, be not many masters. Knowing that we, we
who preach and teach, shall receive the greater condemnation. Now let me first start off by
showing you a couple of things. Turn to 1 Corinthians chapter
9. This thing about preaching and teaching. There are some things you already
know about this, and there are some things you really don't
know. Because you kind of only know them by experience. And he says, look at 1 Corinthians
9, look at verse 16 of 1 Corinthians chapter 9. I've got to get to
1 Corinthians, I'm in Romans. Look here, 1 Corinthians 9. Look
at verse 16. He says, for though I preach
the gospel, that's what I am, a preacher of the gospel, the
good news, that's what you who teach, you teach the gospel.
I have nothing to glory of, nothing to boast of. There's no boasting
in this. For necessity is laid upon me."
This is needful. This is not even a choice. It's
a necessity. And listen, it's just like a
thirsty man showing another thirsty man where to find water. A hungry
man showing another hungry man where to find bread. That's the
kind of thing it is. And he says, for necessity is
laid upon me. I didn't take it upon myself.
It's laid upon me by God. Yea, woe is unto me. if I preach
not the gospel. I've got no choice here. Woe
unto me if I don't lead sinners to Christ. Point to Christ. If I stand up here bragging on
myself or bragging on you, woe unto me. That's what that's saying.
I've had people wanting me to do that. Stand up here and brag
on preachers, brag on people. Well, if I do that, woe unto
me. That's not what I'm here for. That's not what I'm saying.
That's not the necessity of life. You've got plenty of other people
to brag on you, and you'll brag on yourself. You don't need me
to do it. You don't need to come here on
Sunday morning, Sunday night. We've got to do that. Woe unto me, he says. He says in verse 17, for if I
do this thing willingly, I have a reward. That's the reward of
grace, not of merit. I'm not up here earning my way
into heaven. If you think that, you haven't
heard me. I'm not up here trying to make myself righteous by what
I'm preaching and what I'm doing. No, sir, Christ is my righteousness.
I'm not up here trying to earn blessings from God. I don't earn
blessings from God. He's blessed me more than I deserve
already. We're blessed in Christ with
all spiritual blessings in heavenly places. So if I do this thing
willingly, I have a reward. What's the reward? My preaching
and my obedience in this area will evidence my standing in
Christ. And that's the reward. He said,
but if against my will. There are times I don't want
to be here. Did you know that? Times I don't want to be here.
Times when I'm up here and I feel like I'm just beating my head
against the wall. And it's not your fault. It's
mine. And he says, but if I do it against my will, a dispensation
of the gospel is committed in me. The gospel is preached whether
I want to or don't. If I preach Christ and Him crucified
and risen again, if I preach the truth of who God is in His
holiness and justice and who I am as a sinner, wretched and
depraved, in need of salvation by grace, if I preach God's way
of salvation, So you see it really in that sense, I mean as far
as the ministry goes and what I'm saying, it really doesn't
have anything to do with what you think about me or what we've
been through, it's am I lifting up Christ in the ears of the
hearers. And then look over at verse 24
of this same chapter, 1 Corinthians 9. Verse 24, Paul writes, he
says, no you not. that they which run in a race
run all, but one receiveth the prize. So run that you may obtain."
What's he talking about? The one who finishes. He says,
and every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all
things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown, but we an
incorruptible. I therefore so run, not as uncertainly,
so fight I, not as one to beat it there." You know, they're
having the Olympics now. Well, these athletes have trained.
They've disciplined themselves and their bodies to train for
the events that they're trying to win. And so they will deny
themselves certain foods, and they'll eat certain things, and
they'll get up at a certain time in the morning, they'll do certain
exercises, and they'll practice, and they'll do that. That's what
Paul's talking about there, bringing himself under discipline. Now
again, he said, now they do it uncertainly. They don't know
if they're going to win or not. But he says, we fight not as
uncertainly. We know because of what Christ
has accomplished on Calvary that we're going to receive the prize,
the prize that he earned, the prize that he's given us graciously.
You see the difference? I mean, they don't know. I mean,
they might think, you know, it's like Muhammad Ali back in the
60s. You know, I mean, he just knew
he was going to win everything. And he pretty much did for a
while until old Father Time got a hold of him. Then the bragging
stopped. And that's the way it is, isn't
it? Still uncertain. But you see, we're not running
in a race that's uncertain. We're running the race of grace,
looking unto Christ, the author and finisher of our faith. So
that's why he says in verse 26, I therefore so run, not as uncertainly. I'm a winner. Because Christ
has already won the battle. He's already won the prize. He
earned it for me. And so fight I not is one to
be there. But look at verse 27. So he says, But I keep under
my body, and bring it into subjection, lest by any means, when I have
preached to others, I myself should be a castaway, be disqualified.
In other words, what he's saying is, I'm fighting a warfare here. trying to keep myself in check.
Now, I know I can't do it. It's got to be the Spirit of
God in me, and I'll show you that in just a moment. But he
said, keep my body. That includes the tongue, what
I preach, what I say. And so this certainly does apply
to preachers. Now, it applies to all of us in everyday life,
but it applies to preachers especially. Look over at 2 Corinthians 2. Look here. Look at verse 14. 2 Corinthians 2, verse 14. He writes here, now thanks be
unto God which always causes us to triumph in Christ. As long
as we look to Christ, as long as we trust Him and rest in Him,
as long as I preach Christ, I'll triumph. Now I may mess up in
other places, even in messages now, and I'm going to show you
that too in just a moment. But as long as I point you to Christ,
that's a triumph. You may come in one day and you
say, well, you know, you've struggled or I didn't get anything out
of that message. Well, listen, if I pointed you to Christ, you
got something out of it. I may not have communicated that
day as well, may have may have had Joe like the sign is not,
although I have a hard time thanking God for that, but it's there.
But it's there, you know, we thank you for all things, don't
we ultimately? But but if I point you to Christ, that's a triumph.
And so he says, and maketh manifest the savour of his knowledge by
us in every place, for we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ
in them that are saved and in them that perish, to the one
we're the savour of death unto death. That's sad, isn't it?
That's the unbeliever. That's the one who walks out
in unbelief. And to the other we're the savour
of life unto life. That's the believer. And who
is sufficient for these things? No man. So he says in verse 17,
for we are not as many which corrupt the word of God, but
as of sincerity, but as of God in the sight of God, speak we
in Christ. Literally, that should be off
Christ. We speak in Christ, but we will cause we're ambassadors
of Christ if we preach him, but we speak of him. We talk about
Christ. We preach of him. We talk about
the glory of his person. the power of his finished work,
his blood and righteousness. That's what we do. And so this
is the issue. So what he's saying back here
in James three, when he talks about masters, teachers, preachers,
here's what he's saying to me and to you who teach that I've
got to use my tongue to preach God's word, not mine. I'm not
up here to give you my opinions. I have to use my tongue to preach
Christ and Him crucified and risen again, to point you to
Christ, away from me. Christ must increase, I must
decrease. That's what he's saying. I've
got to preach to you in a way that I'm honest about God and
honest about myself and honest about salvation. Now, you may
think, you may have the preacher upon the pedestal, and you're
wrong to do that. But the problem is, is there's
a lot of preachers who promote that. But I'm not one of them. I'm not. If you think that I'm
a super Christian or something like that, then you better think
again. I would say come live with me for about a week, but
I don't want you there. Not for a week. No, we're just, listen, I'm telling
you, we're all in the same boat together. And I'm not denying
the gifts that God has given me to preach the gospel. They're
there, but who makes me to differ? Who made us to differ? God did. And I know he didn't look down
through a telescope of time and say, well, boy, that Bill, he's
certainly a nice character and he can communicate. No, no, no,
no. No, he raised me up for this
purpose. And I'm telling you, it's just not what people think. But don't let's not promote that.
But here's what he said. I, as a preacher, I have to speak
the truth. I speak the truth in love. Now,
sometimes it may not always come across as love. Sometimes I get
down about that, but, you know, I try. I try to preach the truth
in love. I'll tell you this much. If I
point you to Christ, that's the greatest love I could ever show
you. And then I must preach the truth
in a way that promotes worship and praise and thanksgiving. That's what I want here. That's
why I caution some of the men. Now listen, I know there's a
time to talk about controversy. There is. Because I think one
of the worst things among People who claim to believe the gospel
today is when, if a controversy arises that challenges the gospel
that we believe, the worst thing you can do is ignore it now.
It's just like if you had a cancer in your body, the worst thing
you could do would be ignore it, wouldn't it? And we're told
to deal with it. But you know, when we come together
here, when we're in the study, the men, and we read scripture,
that's a preparation for worship. That's not a time to raise controversy.
That's a preparation to worship. And that's the way I want to
preach, to encourage worship. I want to promote growth and
unity and love, not division. Look over at Romans 16. This
is a passage we're getting ready to come to in our Sunday school
lessons as we close out the book of Romans. Look at Romans 16
and verse 17. Listen to this now. Now, this
is an awesome responsibility to stand behind this pulpit or
to stand behind the lectern and preach and teach the gospel.
And so we want to keep these things in mind. But look what
happened here. Look at Romans 16 and verse 17. He says, Now
I beseech you, brethren, mark them which cause divisions and
offenses contrary to the doctrine which you have learned. Now,
that's the gospel, the basic gospel issues which every Believer,
every child of God is taught by the Spirit through the preaching
of the Word. Every one of you who are saved
understand the doctrine which you have learned, the doctrine
of the person of Christ, the doctrine of His finished work,
His offices as mediator. This is not some, you know, he's
not talking about some later learned knowledge. or interpretation
of a passage of scripture which some elite group of preachers
and people claim to know now. And if you don't know it with
them and come with them, then you're just not really saved
or you're on the second tier or something like that. The Bible
says, they shall all know me from the least to the greatest.
That's what he's talking about here. They shall all be taught
of God, every believer, from the least to the greatest. knows
this gospel. And so when anybody comes in
and teaches, and this is talking about from within the church,
anybody comes in and teaches any doctrine that's contrary
to that which you have already been taught, he says, avoid them. Avoid them. Don't promote them. And he says in verse 18, he says,
for they that are such serve not our Lord Jesus Christ, but
their own belly. That's their own appetites. It
may be an appetite for self-promotion. It may be trying to draw a crowd
to themselves. It may be filthy lucre. It could
be any number of things, but their own appetites. And look
here now, and by good words and fair speeches, there's the use
of the tongue, they deceive the hearts of the simple. Now, the
simple there doesn't refer to ignorant, dumb people. You know
what the simple refers to there? Listen, I'm all for positive
thinking. To a point. But don't be a simpleton. It's
the person who wants to believe the best about everybody. That's
what simple means there. I just want to believe the best
about everybody. Now, in theory, there's nothing wrong with that.
But in practice, you can be really deceived by that, can't you?
I want to believe the best about you, but I mean, listen, if you
come up and slap me upside the head, it doesn't take long for
me to figure out there's something wrong here. Oh, he didn't mean
that. Yeah, he did. You got a black
eye to prove it. That's the sample. But how do
they do it? By good words. In other words,
it's not a total denial of the truth. They don't use their tongues
to stand up behind a pulpit and say, I'm denying everything about
the gospel. I'm denying the deity of Christ.
I'm denying the humanity of Christ. I'm denying the faith. No, they
don't do it that way. But they pepper in the deceptions,
the confusions. And I'm going to tell you something,
child of God. Now, you listen to me, and I'm talking to me,
too. If it confuses you or perplexes you, get away from it. Get away from it. That's not
God's Word. I don't care how eloquent they
are. I don't care who they are. I don't care how long they've
been your friend, your family member, or even your pastor. If it confuses you or perplexes
you, get away from it. Now, it may be that God will
teach you more knowledge about things. That's okay. But it won't
be contrary to that which you have been taught. No matter how
fair the speech is or how good the words are. It's just not
so. Look back at James 3. He says
here in verse 1 that those who preach and teach shall receive
the greater condemnation. Now that's not really a good
translation of that condemnation. What he's talking about is judgment.
And what he's saying is that preachers are judged by a higher
standard with greater severity than others, greater accountability.
That's what he's saying. And that's the issue. I mean,
think about those false preachers who stood before the Lord as
he related it in the Sermon on the Mount, Matthew 7, 21-23.
Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? Have we not done many wonderful
works, cast out demons, all that? He said, depart from me ye that
work iniquity, I never knew you. What was their problem? They
were pleading what they thought God had enabled them to do, rather
than pleading Christ. I've got no reason to be before
God at judgment, but Christ and Him crucified. And what he's
saying there is this, what you preach and what you say in your
teaching is going to evidence You're standing before God, either
in Christ or not in Christ. And that's a great responsibility.
That's greater. That's greater. Look at verse 2. He says, For
in many things we offend all. And aren't you glad that preachers
don't stop right there? In many things we offend all.
If any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man, and
able also to bridle the whole body. What he's saying here is
no preacher and no teacher is without fault and without error.
In many things we stumble and even cause others to stumble.
That's why I feel sorry for you all sometimes. Paul said this,
he said we have a treasure, 2 Corinthians 4. We have the gospel which communicates
by the power of the Spirit the glory of God in the face of Jesus
Christ. What a treasure. That's 2 Corinthians
4, 6. He says it's a greater miracle
when God brings a sinner to salvation. When the Holy Spirit brings a
sinner to be born again, that's a greater miracle than the creation
of the world. It sure is. That's why he said,
for God who commanded the light to shine out of darkness has
shined in our hearts to give unto us the light of the knowledge
of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ. But you notice
verse 7 there in 2 Corinthians 4, he says, but we have this
treasure in earthen vessels. What's an earthen vessel? That's
a clay pot. It's very breakable. And I've got a treasure for you,
but you're looking at a clay pot. an earthen vessel. I'm a man, a sinner saved by
the grace of God. I'm no better than you. I'm no
greater than you. I haven't done one iota of a
work that would earn more than you in heaven. That's right. I don't deserve it any more than
you. My whole salvation is Christ. And I know the gospel. I know
the gospel of God's grace in Christ. But there's a lot of
things about this book here that I don't know. I don't know the
right interpretation of every verse of scripture. There are
verses of scripture that I come on to and I try to make a stab
at it. And I know this, you know, there's a lot of times I come
to a verse of scripture and I know more about what it doesn't say
than what it does. That's the truth. But I know
this, any interpretation of scripture, any opinion of a particular scripture,
what it says, what it doesn't say, it must glorify God as he
reveals himself in this book. If it does anything to take away
any truth about the nature and glory and character of God, I
know that's a wrong way of looking at it. It must exalt Christ in
his glorious person. God and man in one person. If
there's any verse of scripture and somebody comes along and
they read that verse of scripture and they say, well, you know,
well, for example, you know, when Christ talked about his
distinction from the Father and they say, well, that means Christ
is not God. Oh, no, that's a wrong interpretation. He is God. Or
if they come upon a scripture and it says, well, that means
he's not man. Oh, no. He is man, perfect man. He's God-man. He's
God in human flesh. And any interpretation or view
you have of any scripture that denies that doctrine which you
have been taught, you can throw it out the window. Any interpretation
of scripture that makes man more than what he is, a sinner who
doesn't deserve and cannot earn salvation, That if God at any
time, at any stage in my life, I mean even right now, if he
gave me what I've earned, it would be eternal damnation. Any
scripture that denies man to be ruined by the fall, dead in
trespasses and sins, who cannot save himself and doesn't want
salvation in God's way, except the Spirit of God come into his
life and make him willing in the day of God's power. Any interpretation
of Scripture that exalts man and his works on an equal plane
or above the work of Christ on the cross is a wrong interpretation. Throw it out. Any interpretation
that doesn't speak of how God can be just and justify the ungodly
based upon the merits of the blood and imputed righteousness
of Christ Any scripture that denies that or challenges it
or confuses it, you can throw that interpretation out. Christ
came to save his people from their sins and he saves them
to the uttermost. They cannot lose it. And any
interpretation of scripture that says they can, you can throw
it out. It's not of the grace of God. Any interpretation of Scripture
that denies the work of the Holy Spirit in us, His sovereign work
in the new birth, you can throw that out, and you can go on and
on. So you see, we offend all, and
if there is one who doesn't offend, that person is a perfect man. Now what he's talking about is
that person is a mature, complete person. He's a complete person.
And he's learned to bridle the whole body, he can control the
whole body. Now, what I believe he's talking about there is a
perfect man, complete, and there's none to be found. He says in verse 2, for in many
things we offend all. He's not saying that in many
things we offend everybody, he's talking about literally that
we all are offensive in some ways. There's sometimes, that's
just the way it is, we're human, mess up. Sinners saved by the
grace of God have a treasure, but it's in an earthen vessel.
And if there is one who doesn't, that's a complete person, a perfect
person. He's a rock, but there's no such
thing, you see. So listen now, look over at verse
13 of chapter three. If a person can learn to control
his tongue. The scripture says here he's
wise, verse 13, who is a wise man and endued with knowledge
among you, that's given knowledge, let him show out of a good conversation
his works with meekness and wisdom. This is the preacher, the teacher,
or the person, the believer, who has learned what to speak,
when to speak, how to speak, for the glory of God and the
good of the church. Now let me close this message with two startling
realities, okay? We're going to come back and
I want to read through some more of this just in closing. But
here's two startling realities I want you to consider and think
about. Number one, just as faith reveals
the true state of the heart and works reveal the genuineness
of our faith, our words reveal the true state of our hearts
and our faith. Somebody said, the tongue is
a tattletale, and it tells on the heart. That's right. And we'll read some more about
that next week. But out of the mouth come the issues of the
heart. Therefore, that man who preaches
Christ continually, that person who looks to Christ continually,
what is the state of their heart? It's a heart of the grace of
God. You see, it's not that we never
use our tongues wickedly, but that we do. And I'll show you
that, too. We war, but we have to war and
fight it. You see, the issue of the heart
is the battle and godly sorrow that leads to repentance. That's
the battle. There's a battle within our hearts.
But here's the second styling. See, the first one is our words
will reveal the state of our hearts. But here's the second
thing, and this is a sad fact about the tongue now. We cannot
control it. You can't do it. Look at James
3. I'm going to come back and give you some particulars on
this, but look at verse 3. Behold, we put bits in the horse's
mouth, that they may obey us. And we turn about their whole
body, just that little bit in the horse's mouth. Behold also
the ships, which though they be so great, and are driven in
fierce winds, yet are they turned about with a very small hem,
whithersoever the governor listeth. Even so the tongue is a little
member." Somebody said the most dangerous member of the church
is right here, the tongue. Even so the tongue is a little
member, and boasteth great things. Behold how great a matter a little
fire kindleth. You ever, when I was a teacher,
I used to do a little exercise and we had the kids in a row.
I'd tell something to the first kid and they would turn around
and tell it and they'd go all around the room. When it got
to the last student, it was nowhere near what it started out to be. All it was, just that little
old tongue. You tell a rumor or make an accusation. You know what you've done? You
just lit a match, a little old match. That'll cause a forest
fire. And you know, it's amazing how
a lot of people can do that. Make accusations, unfounded,
tell rumors, spread rumors, believe rumors, and then go around talking
about how much they love God and the brethren when they've
just murdered somebody's character. He says, verse six, the tongue
is a fire, a world of iniquity. So is the tongue among our members
that it defileth the whole body. seteth on fire the course of
nature, and is set on fire of hell." You know what that literally
means, that set on fire of hell? That hell there, the word hell
there, is Gehenna. That referred to a burning garbage
dump outside of the city of Jerusalem. And what he's saying here is
the match that lights the tongue is a burning garbage dump. That's set on fire of hell. That's
what sets it on fire. He says in verse 7, "...for every
kind of beast, and of birds, and of serpents, and of things
in the sea, is tamed, and hath been tamed of mankind, but the
tongue can no man tame. It is an unruly evil, full of
deadly poison." Now, we cannot control it. Well, what's the
answer then? It can only be controlled by
the grace of God. He does it by the presence of
His Spirit. He does it by the knowledge that
He gives us. He does it by the sorrow that
he brings us to. He does it by the desire that
he gives us to be like him. And he does it by his word to
guide us. And we'll talk more about that
next week. But believer, within you, within
us, is a warfare. And it's a warfare of the flesh
and the spirit. You have both fleshly thoughts within your
heart and spiritual thoughts. Now, which are you going to express
with the tongue? That's the issue, isn't it? Alright.