Lord Jesus always warned us in many places in the New Testament, regarding the deception in the last days. We see that Satan deceived Eve, in Genesis and in 2 Corinthians, Apostle Paul, also says that, ‘I am afraid that somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, your minds may be led astray from the simple and pure devotion to Christ. We need to be careful and take our Christian walk seriously, if not we will also get deceived. We will be under deception! Let us press on to perfection, reach the higher ground! This is the area where we need to be more careful.
James 1:26, ‘If anyone thinks himself to be religious, and yet does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this man’s religion is worthless’.
If anyone of you think you are a Christian, and if you cannot control your tongue, you are deceiving yourself and your religiosity is worthless, is worth zero.
Even when we know many truths and have right doctrines, follow new covenant principles, and when we cannot control our tongue, our Christianity is worthless! How is the way, we talk to our spouse, our children at home? How are we talking to others, at work? Christianity is very practical! Let us be serious and apply it very seriously in our lives.
James 1:22, ‘But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves.’
When we hear the Word and do not apply it to our lives, we are deceiving ourselves!
Matthew 12:36, ‘But I tell you that every careless word that people speak, they shall give an accounting for it in the day of judgment. 37For by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.’
Jesus says, for every careless word that comes out of our mouth, we need to give an account for it, in the day of judgment. Our words should be filtered. We need to be very careful how we speak! One of the true marks of a spiritual man is, ‘having control over his tongue’!
James is also saying about the seriousness of sin, which we do with our tongue!
Proverbs 18:21, ‘Death and life are in the power of the tongue, And those who love it will eat its fruit’.
The choice is ours, as death and life are in the power of the tongue and those who love it will eat its fruit.
James 3:2-12, ‘For we all stumble in many ways. If anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able to bridle the whole body as well. 3 Now if we put the bits into the horses’ mouths so that they will obey us, we direct their entire body as well. 4 Look at the ships also, though they are so great and are driven by strong winds, are still directed by a very small rudder wherever the inclination of the pilot desires. 5 So also the tongue is a small part of the body, and yet it boasts of great things. See how great a forest is set aflame by such a small fire! 6 And the tongue is a fire, the very world of iniquity; the tongue is set among our members as that which defiles the entire body, and sets on fire the course of our life, and is set on fire by hell. 7 For every species of beasts and birds, of reptiles and creatures of the sea, is tamed and has been tamed by the human race. 8 But no one can tame the tongue; it is a restless evil and full of deadly poison. 9 With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the likeness of God; 10 from the same mouth come both blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be this way. 11 Does a fountain send out from the same opening both fresh and bitter water? 12 Can a fig tree, my brethren, produce olives, or a vine produce figs? Nor can salt water produce fresh.’
The Bible clearly says we are deceiving ourselves.
Matthew 15:11, ‘It is not what enters into the mouth that defiles the man, but what proceeds out of the mouth, this defiles the man.”
If we don’t have control over our tongues, then we are deceiving ourselves.
Ephesians 4:29, ‘Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear.’
Let no corrupt word or corrupt communication, ever come out of your mouth. Our words should give edification, according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear.
Ephesians 5:4, ’and there must be no filthiness and silly talk, or coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks.’
There should be no filthy talk or foolish jokes or silly talks or coarse jesting which are not fitting for a believer, but rather we should always give thanks. We should take God’s Word very seriously in our Christian lives.
Job 2:9-10, ‘Then his wife said to him, “Do you still hold fast your integrity? Curse God and die!” 10 But he said to her, “You speak as one of the foolish women speaks. Shall we indeed accept good from God and not accept adversity?” In all this Job did not sin with his lips.’
We know that Job was going through very tough situation in his life. His wife also started to say strong words against him. She was saying to Job to ‘curse God and die!’ Even in this situation, where his wife should be supporting her husband; God’s testimony for Job was very encouraging! In this tough situation, Job was correcting his wife, by saying, ‘You speak as one of the foolish women speaks. Shall we indeed accept good from God and not accept adversity?’
God gave a testimony on Job, that ‘In all these tough situations, that Job was going through, Job did not sin with his lips!’ He did not sin with his tongue in his life, in what he said.
Job 16:5, ‘I could strengthen you with my mouth, And the solace of my lips could lessen your pain’.
Job was saying to his friends; when they were saying things against Job, they were discouraging him; but in these situations, also, Job was saying this, ‘If I were in your places, my friends, I would strengthen you with my mouth and I could have lessened your pain!’
NLT Version, V5, ‘But if it were me, I would encourage you. I would try to take away your grief’
We see the spirit of Job, it is always encouraging others, to strengthen others and to correct others. In all these situations, Job was having control over his tongue. He did not sin with his tongue, in what he said. This is an encouragement to us also. Let us also not sin with our tongues!
When things do not go smoothly, when we are under too much pressure, in this situation, when someone says something against us, how is our response? We may lose our control. God gave a testimony on Job, that ‘In all these tough situations, that Job was going through, Job did not sin with his lips!’ We need to have control over our tongue! This is the mark of a true spiritual man!
Isaiah 50:4, ‘The Sovereign Lord has given me his words of wisdom, so that I know how to comfort the weary. Morning by morning he wakens me and opens my understanding to his will.’
We need to have the tongue of a disciple! Where we can strengthen those, who are weary and encouraging others. Let us desire to have a tongue of a disciple, in all the situations we are going through in our Christian lives. If we are not having any control over our tongues, then we are grieving the Holy Spirit. Let us come to God with a repentant heart!
Matthew 26:73, ‘A little later the bystanders came up and said to Peter, “Surely you too are one of them; for even the way you talk gives you away.”
Our speech reveals that we belong to Him. Peter got a good testimony from the servant.
V74, ‘Then he began to curse and swear, “I do not know the man!” And immediately a rooster crowed.’
Peter was scared for his life and he started to curse and swear! He could not control his tongue! Immediately the rooster crowed. It reminded Peter of what Lord Jesus told him before!
V75, ‘And Peter remembered the word which Jesus had said, “Before a rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.” And he went out and wept bitterly’.
In many areas when we do not have control over our tongue, when we are falling in many areas, we do not need any rooster; but the Holy Spirit is there to remind us, that the way we used our tongue, what we said was not right! The Holy Spirit will remind us, that the way we used our tongue to speak to our spouse and children; is not the correct way. Peter went out immediately and wept bitterly when he heard the rooster, with a deep repentant heart. When God convicts us of our sin, when God shows us the area, where we used our tongue, in a way which is not pleasing to our God, which grieved the heart of God, the Holy Spirit, we should immediately come back to God with a repentant heart, like Peter. God restored Peter. God loves us. God is ready to restore us. Always come to God with a repentant heart! We see how God used Peter mightily, after the day of Pentecost, for His glory. God wants us to have a tongue of disciples.
1 Peter 3:10, ‘For, “The one who desires life, to love and see good days, Must keep his tongue from evil and his lips from speaking deceit’.
Let us have the willingness to have a tongue of disciples, in every situation in our Christian lives. We cannot control our tongue by our own strength or might! How can we control our tongue?
James 3:8, ‘But no one can tame the tongue; it is a restless evil and full of deadly poison.’
We need the help of the Holy Spirit. We need to come to God, with a desperate need, to have control over our tongues. Only God can change our hearts and help us to control our tongues. God will help us! We need to put our tongue on the altar and let the fire of God come and purify it. Then only it will be purified as in,
Romans 12:1, ‘Therefore I urge you, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship’.
Present our bodies, as individual parts of the body; present our tongue also, as a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God. To be a pleasing aroma to God. This is what God wants from our lives. It is possible in our lives, when we come to God with a longing desire, for help in this area, and the Holy Spirit will help us.
Jeremiah 13:23, ‘Can the Ethiopian change his skin Or the leopard his spots? Then you also can do good Who are accustomed to doing evil’.
We might feel hopeless in controlling our tongue but God is encouraging here, by giving us great hope. An Ethiopian cannot change his skin, or a leopard cannot change his spots. But the Holy Spirit is encouraging us, that we can also do good, who are accustomed to doing evil! It is not possible by our strength or might but only God can change our lives. Only God can change us to have a tongue of a disciple. We should not deceive ourselves by not controlling our tongue, then our Christianity is worthless. When we fall in many areas, we need to come to God with a repentant heart and God will restore us and He will strengthen us to have a victorious life!
Psalms 19:14, ‘Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart Be acceptable in Your sight, O Lord, my rock and my Redeemer’.
Let us also have this prayer in our hearts, ‘Dear Lord, let the words of my mouth be a pleasing aroma to You. In all the situations, let it not grieve You, I want to use my tongue, only to glorify Your Name’. Let us have this longing in our hearts and God will help us in all the situations. Let us also have the good testimony that Job had from God. ‘In all these things, Job did not sin, in what he said’. In case of Peter also, ‘your speech reveals that you are a disciple of Jesus’. Our speech will reveal that we belong to Him. We need to keep this testimony wherever we are! With our tongue, let us glorify God and with our tongue, we might be found to be a pleasing aroma to God.
May God bless us.
