Matt Chandler - Blessings, Curses

We’re going to be in James chapter 3, verses 1 through 12, during our time together. But here’s a fun fact to start our day: the average person—yes, the average person, not the overly talkative or the super shy one—spends one-fifth of their life talking. If all of our words were put into print, the result would be this: a single day’s words would fill a 50-page book. Within a year’s time, the average person’s words would fill 132 books of 200 pages each. That’s average, all right? Some of you may be thinking, «That’s simply not true about me; I’ve only written four books in a decade,» while others are saying, «Bro, I’d fill a library! I’m over here on the scale; I am definitely not over there.»

So, the point of this stat is this: we are constantly talking. We talk to ourselves, we talk to others. Yes, texts and tweets do count; we are communicating creatures created by a God who communicates via words. We are constantly talking, constantly thinking, constantly sharing what we think. Some of us are external processors, and some of us are internal processors, but we all talk a lot. One-fifth of your life will be spent with your mouth open. Now, that is a lot of opportunity to bless, and that’s also a lot of opportunity to curse. And I don’t mean curse words—are you tracking with me? That’s not what we’re discussing here today.

In here, it shouldn’t surprise us that the Word of God and God’s invitation into life as He designed it would have something to say about how we use a fifth of our lives, right? So it shouldn’t be surprising that God has an idea, a design for how we use those words. Already in the book of James, he has alluded to some of it; in James 1:19, he said, «Know this, my beloved brothers: let every person be quick to listen and slow to speak.» So, be quick to listen and slow to speak. All my quick-witted, fast-talking friends may feel some shame! Be quick—be speedy to listen and slow, like molasses, when it comes to talking.

But are we not a culture that flips those two? Have the 24-hour news cycles and the incessant need for gossip made us talkers long before we are listeners? James 1:19 has already weighed in on this, but in chapter 3, the first 12 verses set forth the premise we’re about to read: words are powerful. With them, we bless; we build up. With them, we curse; we burn to the ground. Let me show you this throughout the Bible; this is actually a very common conversation. In Proverbs 18:21, here’s what Solomon says: «Death and life are in the power of the tongue.» That might sound overstated, but as I was preparing for the sermon, I did some simple research on how often in mainstream media news we come across teenagers and young adults who take their own lives simply due to the incessant tearing down and mocking by their peers.

There are far too many examples to choose from; literally, in the last three years, hundreds and hundreds of stories of teenagers, college students, and young adults who have ended their lives—not because of deep depression or a chemical imbalance, but because of the relentless, nonstop belittling, mocking, and tearing down by others, either via social media or in person, which led them to take their own lives. Words have the power of life and death. Proverbs would also argue that not only do they have the power of life and death, but they also have the power to heal. In Proverbs 12:18, we read, «There is one whose rash words are like sword thrusts, but the tongue of the wise brings healing.»

So words can wound, and if we’re honest, almost all of us could probably think back and remember when someone said something to us that cut so deep it affected us later. Many of our children are ill-equipped to face this. We send children out into the world with catchy phrases like «sticks and stones may break your bones, but words will never hurt you.» Who wrote that? Someone who couldn’t hear. Words are powerful; they wound in ways we may not even be aware of. Most of the ways we lash out and act have to do with some sort of wound, probably caused by words. They can wound, or they can heal, and this is especially true for teachers.

This is James’s point: all verbal activity is potentially dangerous. Teaching is especially so. The teacher of error has the potential not only to destroy themselves but also to harm their students. This is the crux of James’s point. Teachers who slander, who make reckless accusations or verbal attacks, who grumble and quarrel will inevitably cause greater damage to the community by virtue of their position and their implicit authority.

So hear me—be careful whom you listen to. James’s appeal to this church is clear: not many of you should desire to step into the role of teacher for a couple of reasons. One, you’re going to be judged with a stricter judgment, and secondly, in your desire for authority, you might poison the very community that you teach. My doctrine professor and my preaching professor was a man by the name of [name].