Right thinking leads to right speaking
9/24/2009 11:37:07 PM
Good Morning. James again turns our attention to the importance of being prudent with our speech. In verses 1 and 2 of chapter 3, he says, "Dear brothers and sisters, not many of you should become teachers in the church, for we who teach will be judged by God with greater strictness." (NLT)


Good Morning.


James again turns our attention to the importance of being prudent with our speech. In verses 1 and 2 of chapter 3, he says, "Dear brothers and sisters, not many of you should become teachers in the church, for we who teach will be judged by God with greater strictness." (NLT) In the first century, great respect was paid to teachers--it was prestigious to have a following, both in the Jewish culture as well as the Hellenistic culture in which the Jewish Christians scattered abroad found themselves.


I cannot read these verses without thinking about recent leaders within the "church" who have fallen, and taken a lot of people with them. Amy, my little girl, (soon to be 23!) had just started walking, and I can remember standing in my mom's kitchen watching her drunken-sailor walk, when the scandal broke on the little television on my mom's counter about Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker (1986). Then, along came Oral Roberts-1987; Jimmy Swaggart-1988; the Catholic Church's shameful p.p.p. (priest pedophilia problem); Ted Haggard-well-known preacher in Colorado and leader of the Nat'l. Assoc. of Evangelicals-2006. . . "not many of you should become teachers". . . Locally, here in So. Orange County, we have had a couple large congregations split because of pride; we've had several of the named priests from our local parish! What is going on? What has happened? So many people have been hurt in the wake of these leaders' falls-- [Ted Haggard----like the evangelicals needed any more bad press!] Is it any wonder that people are finding their spirituality away from the "church"? Millions have let Oprah define their spirituality with her promotion of "The Secret" and more recently Eckhart Tolle's A New Earth; people get immunized with enough spiritual notions to feel good about themselves, but unfortunately stop short of the truth of the Gospel, the truth of Jesus Christ. "Not many of you should become teachers"


Is it any wonder that Christianity has an image problem? As I commented a couple days ago, Christianity's problem is Christians--Christians who don't uphold what they say they believe. Where is the lack? Character, I believe. Our lack of integrity of character has set up a cultural climate of mistrust of Christianity, and made us vulnerable to false teaching; about this, James warns us.


Pressing on, James likens the tongue to a bit in the horse's mouth, a rudder--small, but able to control a large ship, and a spark--able to ignite a forest fire. Each directs something much larger than itself. Let us look again at what Jesus said about the tongue in Matthew 12. For out of the overflow of the heart the mouth speaks. The good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him...


So what can we do about the heart, the mind? First, employ wisdom about what we put into our minds, (be wise about your consumption); second, desire to "be transformed by renewing your mind" Romans 12.2; Third, "Take your thoughts captive" 2 Corinthians 10.5. You might learn to 'take your thoughts captive' as Paul said, by replacing them with pure thoughts. The Psalmist said, "I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against You." (119.11) And no discussion about right thinking would be complete without meditating on Philippians 4.8, where Paul says, "Whatever is true, whatever is noble, whatever is right, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is admirable...think about such things." (What are those things, my friends?) And lastly, please consider Psalms 19.14, a verse I have taught my boys, Dylan and Danny, to pray, "Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my Rock and my Redeemer."


So, today, we have another choice--that of how we will use our tongues--to speak words of life to people--words that encourage and build up--or not.


Dear Jesus, would You please help us to think before we speak? AMEN. So be it.


Think well. . . speak well today,

Christine