James 3:9: “With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse human beings, who have been made in God’s likeness.”
Our speech should be consistently glorifying to God.
In our #JournalingJames lately, we have seen the power of the tongue. Our language can direct our lives, and it has the power to destroy. Today, we begin to see how our tongue has the ability to delight.
We use our tongue to praise our Lord and Father. Webster defines praise as “Commendation bestowed on a person for his personal virtues or worthy actions, on meritorious actions themselves, or on anything valuable; approbation expressed in words or song.”
Praise is primarily a vocal activity. Let’s use our language to praise God, not curse man.
Jesus shows how we speak to others impacts our relationship with God. He says in Matthew 12:34-37: “You brood of vipers, how can you who are evil say anything good? For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of. A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in him, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in him. But I tell you that everyone will have to give account on the day of judgment for every empty word they have spoken. For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.”
Out of the heart, the mouth speaks. When we are in constant praise, worship, and adoration of God, it penetrates to the depth of our hearts, to our soul. When we have praise on our lips, it is hard to curse.
Some questions to consider:
-Are you using your tongue to praise God or curse man?
-How can you spend more time in praise and worship of our Creator and King?
-Why is it essential to see all humans as being made in the image of God?
Photo by Carolina Jacomin on Unsplash
Scott Maxon 