The Biggest Enemy to Great Works

James 3:6

And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell.

James 2 talks about the works of a believer. In James 2, God makes it clear that the outside world will only know what Christ has done for you on the inside by the works that you do. For instance, when a person gets saved, nobody truly knows the decision they made because nobody can see what is happening in their heart. However, when their life begins to change and the things that were wrong are replaced by good works, it is then you can see something has changed in that person’s life. How do you see the change? You see the change by their works. Does it mean they are not saved if they have no works? Absolutely not! Works simply justifies to the outside world the justified work that Christ did on the inside when a person gets saved.

However, James 3 is all about the tongue and the damage it can do. God spends a whole chapter talking about the importance of works in the believer’s life to show the lost world that they are saved. He then follows up by showing the believer the importance of not letting your tongue destroy those works.

God says many powerful things about the tongue and the damage it can do to the works of the believer. He says the tongue is a fire. Fire destroys everything. When someone’s house has burnt to the ground, the fire destroys every good memory that you held inside of that house.

God also calls the tongue an unruly evil, full of deadly poison. You cannot drink poison and it not kill you. It does not matter how healthy a person is; if they drink poison they will die.

God also compares the tongue to bitter water. Many people are bitter towards another because of what they heard that person say about them. Many relationships are bitter because of the words said to each other.

My friend, it will not matter the greatness of the works that God has done through you if you can't control your tongue. Your tongue can stop the great works of God and limit the works He can do to you in the future because of the damage your tongue has caused to others. What you have to understand about the evil of the tongue is that it will destroy every good memory you had with others if you don't control what you say. The bitterness of the tongue will make the best of people forget the good memories you have had with them.

Therefore, we must be careful about what we allow our tongues to say. You would be wise to think about what you say before you say it. You can spend your life producing good works that build relationships, and with one unwise word, you can destroy all the good you have built. It might seem unfair, but words are powerful.

The best way to control your tongue is to be slow to speak, think about what you are about to say, and if what you are about to say is not good or will not help, don't say it at all. Likewise, keep your mouth shut if you are about to say something about an area that is not your responsibility. Do not let your tongue be the tool Satan uses in your life to destroy all the good works that God has done through you.