Taming the Tongue
James 3:1–12 · NASB 1995
Preacher Ed | Waupaca Church of Christ
EVV Keeping the Faith 2026
The Smallest Member
The Loudest Evidence
Homes collapse over words. Congregations fracture over words. The tongue reveals the largest problem in the heart.
Where We’re Going
By the end of this lesson, we will see how speech exposes maturity and respond with disciplined obedience.
See the Tongue’s Power
Identify James’ three analogies that expose the tongue’s disproportionate power.
Measure Maturity
Explain why control of speech is the clearest measure of spiritual maturity.
Expose Hypocrisy
Distinguish genuine worship from the hypocrisy of blessing God while cursing people made in His likeness.
Commit to Obedience
Commit to disciplined obedience in speech that reflects submission to Christ.
Faith Speaks
Before It Is Seen
If faith must be shown, it will be shown first in what comes out of the mouth.
“Let not many of you become teachers, my brethren, knowing that as such we will incur a stricter judgment.”
Stricter Judgment
The one who speaks for God will answer to God with greater severity. Teaching is not a platform for ambition; it is a weight of accountability.
“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.”
Perfect Means Complete
“Perfect” means mature, brought to the intended end. Speech is where that maturity is tested.
Three Movements
- I. The Weight of Responsibility
- II. The Terrifying Power of the Tongue
- III. The Contradiction and the Cure
The Weight
of Responsibility
Teaching Multiplies Influence
Public teaching multiplies influence, and influence multiplies responsibility before God.
Before You Speak for God
Ask yourself: Am I prepared to answer to God for what I am about to say?
The Simple Test
Listen to your words when you are criticized, contradicted, or inconvenienced.
The Terrifying Power
of the Tongue
“If we put the bits into the horses’ mouths so that they will obey us, we direct their entire body as well.”
Small Restraint
Massive Direction
“Look at the ships also… driven by strong winds, are still directed by a very small rudder wherever the inclination of the pilot desires.”
Who Is Piloting
the Heart?
The tongue reveals the pilot: anger, pride, or Christ.
“See how great a forest is set aflame by such a small fire! And the tongue is a fire…”
A Small Spark
A Vast Forest
The Very World
of Iniquity
The tongue can embody an entire organized system of unrighteousness.
Set on Fire
by Gehenna
Destructive speech aligns with the moral order of judgment, not holiness.
The Valley
of Hinnom
Where children were burned in sacrifice. It became a symbol of divine judgment.
Whispers Feed
the Flames
Proverbs 26:20 – Where there is no whisperer, contention quiets down.
The Contradiction
and the Cure
“Every species… is tamed by the human race. But no one can tame the tongue; it is a restless evil.”
Apart from Christ
We Can Do Nothing
Control of speech requires submission to Christ, not merely discipline.
“With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the likeness of God.”
Blessing God
Cursing His Image
One Spring
One Kind of Water
A fountain does not send out both fresh and bitter water. Only divided hearts produce divided speech.
After Worship
Does Your Speech Align?
Examine your words after worship services. Do they match the praise you offered?
Submit the Tongue
to Christ
Confess careless words. Seek reconciliation where speech has wounded. The smallest member reveals whether the whole person belongs to God.