James 3:1-2, NIV
¹ Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly. ² We all stumble in many ways. Anyone who is never at fault in what they say is perfect, able to keep their whole body in check.

Words create worlds.
–Jo Saxton

CONTEXT
James is writing to congregations that are facing persecution from both outside and from within, to the point where intense fighting and quarreling is threatening the life and liveliness of the church (4.1). But this ought not be as the church is the Body of Christ, and the Body is one as God is one (Deuteronomy 6:4-6; Matthew 22:36-40, Mark 12:28-31, and Luke 10:25-28). As Paul writes for similar reasons: “Make every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called to one hope when you were called; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is over all and through all and in all” (Ephesians 4:3-6). James starts by exhorting teachers, and then the church, about the power of words to either harm or heal (via the tongue). He is essentially paraphrasing several known Proverbs (13:3, 18:21, 10:19, 21:23).

Though words create worlds, they first reveal worlds. The truth of our inner worlds.

Words reveal worlds.

Matthew 12:33-34, NIV
³³ “Make a tree good and its fruit will be good, or make a tree bad and its fruit will be bad, for a tree is recognized by its fruit. ³⁴ You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.”

Matthew 15:11, NIV
¹¹ “What goes into someone’s mouth does not defile them, but what comes out of their mouth, that is what defiles them.”

James 3:3-6, NIV
³ When we put bits into the mouths of horses to make them obey us, we can turn the whole animal. ⁴ Or take ships as an example. Although they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are steered by a very small rudder wherever the pilot wants to go. ⁵ Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body, but it makes great boasts. Consider what a great forest is set on fire by a small spark. ⁶ The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the body. It corrupts the whole body, sets the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell [Gehenna].

CONTEXT
Gehenna—translated as hell—appears twelve times in the Greek New Testament: eleven times on the lips of Jesus and once in the letter of James. The term refers literally to the Valley of Hinnom, located on the southwestern slopes of Jerusalem. In the Old Testament, this ravine became notorious as the site of child sacrifices to Molech (2 Kings 23:10; Jeremiah 7:31–32; 19:6). After King Josiah defiled the area, it came to be remembered in Jewish tradition as a cursed and unclean place. Over time, it became a refuse dump where fires burned continuously, making it a vivid symbol of the final judgment when God would rid the world of all evil. As Fleming Rutledge writes, “The wrath of God is not an emotion that flares up from time to time, as though God had temper tantrums; it is a way of describing God’s absolute enmity against all wrong and God’s coming to set matters right.” After all, as Miroslav Volf adds, “A non-indignant God would be an accomplice in injustice” (The Crucifixion). See also Isaiah 10. Jesus drew on the imagery of Gehenna to warn those who chose the path of rebellion rather than the way of peace and reconciliation with God and people. His warnings proved prophetic when, in AD 70, the Romans destroyed Jerusalem—reducing the city to ruins and, in effect, turning it into a grotesque extension of its own burning waste heap. James echoes Jesus comparing the world's way of destruction versus God's way of life and love (For a more expansive dialogue, see: Four Views on Hell).

We are destined to imitate the god we imagine.
—Father Greg Boyle, Homeboy Industries

James 3:7-8, NIV
⁷ All kinds of animals, birds, reptiles and sea creatures are being tamed and have been tamed by mankind, ⁸ but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.

The tongue cannot be tamed.

James 3:9-12, NIV
⁹ With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. ¹⁰ Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be. ¹¹ Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? ¹² My brothers and sisters, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water.

Cursing God's image is like cursing God.

James 3:13-18, NIV
¹³ Who is wise and understanding among you? Let them show it by their good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. ¹⁴ But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. ¹⁵ Such “wisdom” does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. ¹⁶ For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice.¹⁷ But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. ¹⁸ Peacemakers who sow in peace reap a harvest of righteousness.

Actions speak louder than words.

Works reveal worlds.

How do we live out of God's heart, matching our words with good works?

James 3:9-10, NIV
⁹ With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness. ¹⁰ Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers and sisters, this should not be.

James 3:9 is the heart of the letter and the Bible itself.

Genesis 1:26, NIV
²⁶ Then God said, “Let us make [humankind] in our image, in our likeness, so that they may rule over the fish in the sea and the birds in the sky, over the livestock and all the wild animals, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.”

What does it mean to be made into God's image and likeness?

God's image means sharing in God's presence and purpose.

A reporter asked Mother Teresa how she prayed, and she replied: “I look at God, He looks at me… We smile (at each other).” “[I am then] seeking the face of God in everything, everyone, all the time, and his hand in every happening; This is what it means to be contemplative in the heart of the world. Seeing and adoring the presence of Jesus, especially in the lowly appearance of bread, and in the distressing disguise of the poor.”
― Mother Teresa, In the Heart of the World

PRESENCE
Spend at least 5 minutes a day resting in God's loving presence.
Receive God's: Validation, Comfort, and Return to Joy

PURPOSE
God has placed you in whose life to make a significant impact (write down in journal):
Daring Prayer: God, reveal to me someone you want me to impact (write down in journal): 
Participate in our Backpack Drive, and consider a Local Team (see below).

Table Talk:

• How have teachers had a significant impact on you? Describe:
• When have you experienced damage caused by words?
• In what specific ways could you bless friends, family, co-workers, fellow Christians or even strangers more consistently?
• Am I becoming a living example that demonstrates that the work of the Gospel has taken root in my heart and is bearing fruit?