James 3

James 3. As we continue in the book of James, chapter 3 covers two relevant examples of living a Godly Christian life. First, James addresses taming the tongue and second, he gives us a description of wisdom from above.

6 And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity. The tongue is so set among our members that it defiles the whole body, and sets on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire by hell.

17 But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy.

James 3:6 & 17, NKJV

James 3 - Watch your tongue!

James is rather harsh with his words when he says, "The tongue is a fire . . . and it is set on fire by hell!

That is some rather strong language, yet can we disagree with him? How many times have we spoken acidic words that we wish we could take back? When we were children, we used to recite:

Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.

Yet, even as children we knew that words do hurt--sometimes even more than sticks and stones. Think of your memories. I am now in my 7th decade of life, yet I can still remember specific words spoken to me when I was a child that deeply wounded me.

As believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, it is our duty to guard our words and heed the instruction of James to watch our tongue. Taming the tongue is something we cannot do on our own. We must constantly go before the Lord and ask Him to help us to guard our tongues. Let us use our tongues in a positive way to encourage believers and to tell the lost about the Lord Jesus Christ.

James 3 - Wisdom from Above

It is hard to add to the words shown in James 3, verse 17.

But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy.

Our culture today is a difficult culture. We are told to speak our mind and we are encouraged to live our lives for ourselves. Gone are the attitudes of gracious and kind actions toward one another.

That does not exempt true believers from following the Word of God. Wisdom is not gained from books. Wisdom and knowledge are two completely different things. It is through Christ that we learn to be peaceable and gentle to one another. It is through Christ that we learn to seek the good of others over our own good. It is through hearts that are devoted to Christ that we see evidence of mercy and love from believers without partiality.

Sounds pretty perfect! Can we do that? Not by ourselves. While on this earth we will continue to fail, but as we grow in Christ, we will find our lives gradually becoming more and more like Christ. Heaven is coming! There we will truly see wisdom!

Go to Christ today and seek wisdom from above!

God Bless You,

Linda