James 3:1-12
*Who is it
(sermon/Scripture passage) about? Us or God? Explain: How is it about
God? (Points to the gospel: the revealing of our sin as evidenced
through our speech; revealing again our need for God's perfect son,
Jesus, who died for sinful man in obedience and to the glory of God.)
*The tongue is the
revealing of our soul. James 3:9-12
“With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father,
and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s
likeness. Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My
brothers and sisters, this should not be. Can both fresh water
and salt water flow from the same spring? My brothers and
sisters, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs?
Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water.”
- Jesus said that the mouth speaks what is coming out of our hearts, what does that mean? (Luke 6:45) - How important are the things that we say according to the Bible?
“We will miss the point
if we do not recognize the continuity of thought between the
previous section and this one. James has just given his readers a
sobering picture: the certainty of judgment and their
vulnerability in that judgment because of the terrible evil they
do with their speech. It leads to one of the most fundamental
questions of life anyone must face: How can I hope to purify my
behavior (such as my speech) when it flows from my corrupt inward
character? How can my heart be changed from its selfishness? Is
there any hope?”
*What does your tongue
reveal about your soul?
Changing our tongue/speech
does not change our salvation, rather it is a revealing of the work
of the Holy Spirit in our lives. (John 14:23; 1 John 5:3; Psalm
119:4)
With commentery from: http://www.biblegateway.com/resources/commentaries/IVP-NT/Jas/Spirituality-God
Bible Study credits: Terri Stellrecht http://howmysaviorleadsme.blogspot.com/
