Lesson 17: Fire in Your Mouth (part 3)
Read James 3:1-12 - www.bible.com/bible/59/jas.3.esv

 James 3:5-8 – fire. A tiny spark, smaller than a fingernail, holds the power to destroy thousands of acres of forests. Such is the power of the tongue. Like a controlled fire, when the tongue is held in check it is a power for great good. But, out of control, what great havoc can be caused!

*Proverbs 26:20-21 compares our words to _____.

Like a fire, the tongue can heat things up. Psalm 39:1-3 - I said, “I will guard my ways, that I may not sin with my tongue; I will guard my mouth with a muzzle, so long as the wicked are in my presence.” I was mute and silent; I held my peace to no avail, and my distress grew worse. My heart became hot within me. As I mused, the fire burned; then I spoke with my tongue:
No wonder Solomon wrote in Proverbs 17:27, “Whoever restrains his words has knowledge, and he who has a cool spirit is a man of understanding.” And in Proverbs 14:29, “whoever is slow to anger has great understanding, but he who has a hasty temper exalts folly.”

Fire spreads and the more fuel you give it the faster and the further it will spread.

James 3:6 – “And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defiles the whole body, and sets on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of hell.” James means that the whole world of evil finds its expression through the tongue. Boastful pride, destructive anger, cutting bitterness, and flattering lust – the tongue communicates them all. Like a garbage dump, all the filth of the heart is accumulated at the tip of the tongue.


Like releasing feathers, time does not undo or correct the sins of the tongue. We may confess our sins of speech but the fires keep on spreading. Our words can destroy souls and send people to hell for eternity.

*What does Colossians 4:6 say our speech or words should be? _____

James 3:7-8 – Man has tamed many wild animals, but there is one beast that even the greatest man cannot tame – the tongue. In verse 8 James says it’s like a poisonous snake. Even other animals at the zoo that look so tame are dangerous. There are signs up everywhere, do not feed the animals, leave your windows closed. Like a poisonous animal, the poison of our tongue works secretly, slowly, then kills. We wouldn’t dare turn poisonous snakes or angry lions loose in the sanctuary full of people yet we will have the same effect by our uncontrolled tongues. James reminds us that animals and fire can be tamed. When this happens you get a worker instead of a destroyer and you generate power. When God, instead of hell, lights our tongues on fire it can be a mighty tool for witnessing and spreading the gospel like fire.