Text : James 3:1-10
"1 My brethren, be not many masters,
knowing that we shall receive the greater condemnation.
2 For in many things we offend all. If
any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man, and able also to
bridle the whole body.
3 Behold, we put bits in the horses' mouths,
that they may obey us; and we turn about their whole body.
4 Behold also the ships, which though they
be so great, and are driven of fierce winds, yet are they turned about
with a very small helm, whithersoever the governor listeth.
5 Even so the tongue is a little member,
and boasteth great things. Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth!
6 And the tongue is a fire, a world of
iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole
body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of
hell.
7 For every kind of beasts, and of birds,
and of serpents, and of things in the sea, is tamed, and hath been tamed
of mankind:
8 But the tongue can no man tame; it is
an unruly evil, full of deadly poison.
9 Therewith bless we God, even the Father;
and therewith curse we men, which are made after the similitude of God.
10 Out of the same mouth proceedeth blessing
and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not so to be."
Today, I'd like to offer a message entitled "The Judgment Against The Teachers." In text of James, it speaks about teachers.
"1 My brethren, be not many masters, knowing that we shall receive the greater condemnation."
From this verse, we understand the work of "masters," that is, of "teachers" will receive "the greater condemnation." A teacher is in the biblical sense is the office of teaching God's word to the people. It may come as a surprise to us that this work will receive "the greater condemnation." But, let's see how great this condemnation is and why it is so.
In the scriptures, it says "teacher or pastor." So, the work of teacher and pastor are similar. So, this verse may also be warning against the work of a pastor in a wider sense.
Let's take a closer look. There are those in Jesus' age who correspond to the teachers in the church age. They are Pharisees and scribes. Jesus accused them with a very severe word. He even called them, "Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers." This is a very serious scene because Jesus is the one who says "love your enemy." Why is Jesus so heavy on them? Because they are responsible for teaching the people. When they make a mistake, many people will also make a mistake. Therefore, this kind of severe word is given from Jesus.
The Pharisees and the scribes kept the old testament. But not only this, they also serve as a model and figure of the teacher in the church age. The scriptures written about them serve as warnings for those of us in the church age so that we do not commit the same failures. The work of a teacher in the church age corresponds to the work of the Pharisees and the scribes in the age of Jesus. Therefore, we can imagine that the judgment upon teachers will be severe just like the judgment upon the Pharisees and the scribes.
In addition, there is one other thing. There are other offices and gifts in the church like prophet, healer or tongues. But, a severe word is not found in the text for those abusing the office and gifts of prophet, healer, or tongues. Instead, this severe word of judgment is used only with reference to the teacher. Please think about this. What is the difference between these works and the work of a teacher?
Prophets do the work of prophecy. If a prophet renders a false prophecy, it will be corrected when we rightly discern it. A healer simply does healing work. There is little room for failure or doctrinal error to be committed by the audience. People who exercise the gift of tongues also do not have a great possibility for committing failure. But, the teacher is in a different position compared to the others because he directly handles God's word.
If teachers commit a mistake, the whole church will follow the mistake. In addition, they are recognized as experts, so there is no one to correct them in the church. Therefore, Satan's attack is concentrated upon this gift and office. So, this is the work which has the highest possibility to make a mistake. That was the reason why Jesus had rebuked the Pharisees and the scribes so severely. If scribes said, "The Bible says, 'Anyone who heals people on the Sabbath is committing a sin,'" the people would have believed them and followed. Likewise, if a teacher in our time makes a mistake, believers will follow the teacher's words. Let's look at another insight into the scripture.
A parable has been used in the text, and parables contain a double meaning. There are both a surface meaning and a parable meaning. The superficial meaning is a teaching and warning about human tongues, human words. But, there is also a hidden parabolic meaning. At this level of meaning there is written a warning for teachers in it. Today, we are not focusing on the superficial meaning; instead, we want to see the hidden parabolic meaning of this text.
" 2 For in many things we offend all."
This word "offend" is the same word used in the verse to follow.
Roman 11:11 "I say then, Have they stumbled that they should fall?"
Therefore, this word talks about the stumbling of believers. There is a possibility that many will stumble because of a teacher's words. Therefore, it is warned that many should not be teachers.
"If any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man, and able also to bridle the whole body."
Concerning the word "word" used here, we may think it is the word we usually use in normal conversation. But, there is another meaning to it. The original meaning of this word for "word" is "logos" in Greek. So, this "word" also means God's word, the Bible. Therefore, what is written about here is our handling of God's word. If we make a mistake in our transactions with it, the blessings of God will be limited, and there is even the possibility God's people might not enter the kingdom of heaven because of our mistaken teachings.
For instance, the Jews at the time of Paul made a mistake in understanding the word about circumcision. At this time, the church faced the risk of being bound by the law again. (See the books of Acts and Galatians.) We may understand how an accurate and correct understanding of God's word is important through these cases.
The word "body" is written in this verse. In the Bible, the word "body" indicates "Christ's body" - the church. Therefore, the hidden meaning of this verse is that if anyone does not make a mistake in the ministry of God's word and does good, he is a great worker and can bridle and control the whole church.
"3 Behold, we put bits in the horses' mouths, that they may obey us; and we turn about their whole body."
The contents of James chapter 3 is somewhat funny. At first, it deals with a severe condemnation of teachers. We can understand that. But, suddenly the topic is changed to the bits that go into a horse's mouth and the helm of a ship. Then, at the end, it comes to the human tongue.
A severe word continues such as "Out of the same mouth proceedeth blessing and cursing." This means we should really pay attention to our tongues and what we say. We should not talk evil of other brothers and sisters. But, I have a question. How do these commands to "pay attention to our tongues" and "do not say bad things about our brothers" relate to the severe rod of judgment against teachers? To understand this we have to know that these verses have a double meaning. I do not know whether James intended any double entendres when he first wrote his epistle. But, I do know that the real author, the Holy Spirit superintended the writing process with such an intention. So, let's uncover the hidden meaning.
There are 3 parables in this text. That is to say, the bits of the horses, the helm of a ship and the tongue of a man. And these three parables are talking about the same subject. These three are parables about teachers.
When we pull the small bit, we can move a big horse. A big ship is controlled by a little helm. A small tongue defiles the whole body. These parables talk about the same thing. Bit, helm and tongue point to "the teacher." The pulled horse, the driven ship and the human body signify "the church." The word "whole" is used frequently in the text like (the horse's) "whole body" or (the man's) "whole body." It talks about the whole church compared to the teacher. That is to say, "the teacher controls the whole church." And if the teacher makes a mistake, the whole church will be judged. This scripture in James suggests this principle. The expression "bits of horses" used here is a very rare one. It is very rare in the Bible as there is only one other such expression in the new testament.
Revelation 14:20
"And the winepress was trodden without
the city, and blood came out of the winepress, even unto the horse bridles,
by the space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs."
The phrase "winepress was trodden" indicates judgment. And the expression (this blood reaches) "even unto the horse bridles" is meaningful. The judged blood reaches the horse's bridle (the teacher).
"5 Even so the tongue is a little member, and
boasteth great things. Behold, how great a matter a little fire kindleth!
6 And the tongue is a fire, a world of
iniquity: so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole
body, and setteth on fire the course of nature; and it is set on fire of
hell."
Here the text says, the "tongue is a little member." As it is written in the verse below, a teacher is "a little member" in the whole body (church).
Roman 12:4
"For as we have many members in one body, and
all members have not the same office."
But, because of this fire, a great amount of trouble kindles from a little thing. When a teacher makes a mistake, every member of the church makes a mistake. As a result, the fires of judgment kindle against the whole body.
Ezekiel 15:6,7
"6 Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; As
the vine tree among the trees of the forest, which I have given to the
fire for fuel, so will I give the inhabitants of Jerusalem.
7 And I will set my face against them;
they shall go out from one fire, and another fire shall devour them; and
ye shall know that I am the LORD, when I set my face against them."
It is written in the Bible that the tares will be burnt and the harlot Babylon will be burnt in the end time. Why will they be judged and burnt by fire? One big reason is the teachers who have control of the helm but make a mistake. And because the teacher did not give the people the right warning, they suffer too. And it is written in the text that the tongue "is set on fire of hell." From this word, we may recall the words of Jesus when he said:
Matthew 23:33
" Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers,
how can ye escape the damnation of hell?"
The text says, "so is the tongue among our members, that it defileth the whole body." When a teacher does not speak God's word correctly, the whole body makes a mistake and be defiled.
"7 For every kind of beasts, and of birds, and of serpents, and of things in the sea, is tamed, and hath been tamed of mankind: 8 But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison."
It says in the text that "the tongue can no man tame." It says no one can tame the teacher. This is true in the church. No one can oppose the man who is in the position of teaching in the church. Even a president or prime minister as believers can not do so; for, in the church even they are mere members. So, no one can "tame" a teacher. Therefore, it is difficult to correct a teacher's fault in the church. These verses talk about that.
For example, a man who has the gift of tongues in the Catholic church may teach something in a church. It may be good as long as it is a proper teaching or speech. But, sometimes wrong teachings are told, i.e. the pope is innocent, Mary is also innocent, and evolution is reasonable. These are completely false teachings. But, no one in the Catholic church can correct or stop this teaching. It is really as per the word "the tongue can no man tame." Of course, this does not apply only to the Catholic church. The Protestant church also has the same problem.
"9 Therewith bless we God, even the Father; and
therewith curse we men, which are made after the similitude of God.
10 Out of the same mouth proceedeth blessing
and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not so to be."
Is it possible to bless God the Father and curse men with the same mouth? It is possible. It was done in Jesus' age. The Pharisees worshipped and praised God on the Sabbath, but also cursed Jesus, the son of man when he did not keep the Sabbath the way they thought it was to be kept. This is not a story that happened only in the age of Jesus. The same things happened in the time periods of the apostle Paul or John Wesley. Those who persecuted these prophets were men and women who served and praised God, too.
The responsibility and judgment upon the people who handle God's word in this age is completely the same as that of the Pharisees in Jesus' age.
Let's note these warnings from the Lord and serve him faithfully.
Let's do the will of Lord in this end time.
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