“TAMING THE TONGUE”

”Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to hear, slow to speak, slow to anger; for the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God.“

James 1:19-20

How does pressure affect your speech? How does it influence your behavior?

In today’s passage, James discusses the dangers of an unbridled tongue. The first thing he wants his readers to do is to silence it. Instead of talking, they should listen. His emphasis is not just on the amount of listening (listen a lot) but on the speed of listening (listen first): be quick to do it. The harmonizing command is to be slow to speak.

The reason James says this is because people tend to do the opposite. When under pressure, we are slow to listen and quick to defend ourselves. The text implies that James wants them to strive to maintain a good testimony in the midst of a hostile environment. He isn’t telling them to avoid conflict, but he wants them to demonstrate the kind of life God desires.

God wants us to listen and make way for healing and restoration. However, listening is not easy when we’re angry. In fact, anger is often the main reason for our failure to listen and be quick to speak. In the heat of the moment, we could say things we would later regret. The problem is, that we can never un-speak hurtful words; we can never undo damaging acts.

James understands that adversity triggers people’s fear, self-pity, and anger. These things surface, resulting in fighting, judging, and disunity. Therefore, he reminds us to be quick to listen to understand and slow to speak to show compassion and respect.

In a world where freedom of speech is everyone’s battle cry, Christians are commanded to exercise biblical wisdom as we express ourselves. We don’t have to respond to every comment. Sometimes, saying nothing is better than saying a lot of things.

Pursue the Savior today!