Does Our Speech Matter?

For we all stumble in many ways. And if anyone does not stumble in what he says, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle his whole body. – James 3:2 (ESV)

We live at a time when the freedom to speak is under intense assault. While it is a fundamentally protected right in the First Amendment of the Constitution, many forcefully argue that speech is a weapon that can used to cause harm to the lives of others. Instead of training people to engage in discourse and debate without taking personal offense, there are those seeking to limit and criminalize how people can express ideas and ideologies. While those who seek to wield this power would aim it at more conservative streams of thought, it will one day be used against anyone deemed a threat to society, regardless of their sociopolitical view. It is without hyperbole that we can say today that speech has never been under greater attack in our nation.

For Christians, our ability to speak freely is of utmost importance. The gospel is a spoken message. We communicate via word the message that Jesus Christ, the Son of God who took on flesh, came to live a sinless life, that He might represent Man before God and take the righteous wrath of His Father in the place of sinners. This is not a message that comes from observing the world at large or being absorbed through some sort of mental osmosis. We must communicate in word, by speech or print, that the gospel is the only hope of salvation. The Christian cares most dearly about any effort to curtail or criminalize speech. Yet, Christians do have an authority to which we must adhere regarding the nature of our speech, Scripture.

In the third chapter of his epistle, James gives Christians a blistering assessment of our speech. He writes, “And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, and set on fire by hell” (James 3:6). The wickedness of the tongue is a direct product of the sinfulness of man’s heart. Christ Himself points to this in Matthew 12:34 when He said, “For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.” There is a direct tie from the manner and words we speak to the condition of our hearts and James brings a stern warning to his readers about failing to tame the tongue.

As Christians in an ever-hostile culture, the temptation to respond to those who hate Jesus and speak with vitriol on their lips in like manner is great. There is little that is considered sacred in the unregenerate world. Where once matters of faith may have been given some level of respect, today religion, specifically Christianity, is particularly marked out to be reviled. The world hates the idea of a God existing outside themselves that commands their obedience and punishes sin. It desires not only to pursue its depraved passions to the uttermost but also to eradicate any possibility of hearing about God who will one day bring them into account. To that end, all manner of vile speech, wicked acts, and evil pressure are brought to bear against Christians to silence them. They claim Christians are the real cause of suffering because we proclaim Christ and His Word. And because their consciences are pricked by even the slightest utterings from our lips, they will go on full assault to shut us up.

Yet, the Christian is called to forego the methods of the world. We are indeed commanded to speak the truth of God’s Word without qualification or apology. We do not waiver or equivocate in the slightest lest the message of Christ be tainted and lost on those to whom we speak. We are to trust fully in the power of God to change hearts through His Word and we are not to lose heart when we speak it to others. Yet, we are not of the world and we are not to partake of the world’s ways of dealing with detractors. Scripture repeatedly warns us against thinking, speaking, and acting like the world. We are called to be separate and apart from the world at large while living in it as a kingdom of priests, proclaiming the glorious riches of Christ.

Then, what is the antidote to the wicked tongue? And how can we speak to a Christ-hating world? James gives us the answer when he writes, “Who is wise and understanding among you? By his good conduct let him show his works in the meekness of wisdom” (James 3:13). The wise Christian conforms his speech and actions to the Word of God. Our initial desire may be to submit to the emotional state that wells up within us from enduring unjust treatment by the world. We want to draw from our own power and let loose the invectives that would make the world regret its behavior. Instead, we are called to act and speak in “the meekness of wisdom.” Meekness is power under control. We are equipped and empowered by the Holy Spirit and the Word to speak to the world. But, we are to temper that power by being conformed to the wisdom of Scripture. When we respond, we are to use our words to point people to Jesus, alerting them to the sins for which they will be judged and the only hope of escape which is in Christ alone.

But, do not the actions of the Christ-rejecting world represent a threat to the church? And should not the church respond most vociferously? To answer this, we must consider 1 Peter 3:9, which says, “Do not repay evil for evil or reviling for reviling, but on the contrary, bless, for to this you were called, that you may obtain a blessing.” In our responses to the world, we are not to draw from the same well of wicked speech as the world. Yes, we are to call sin for what it is and we are to warn the world of the judgment it will bring on them. But, we are not to enter into the place of reviling along with them. To do so reveals only the wickedness of our hearts.

Does this not mean that the world may get away with evil oppression and persecution of the church? It is indeed quite possible and even likely. Yet, even as we face unjust oppression, we have been commanded to respond with speech that is conformed to Christ. Peter further writes:

“But even if you should suffer for righteousness sake, you will be blessed. Have no fear of them, nor be troubled, but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame. For it is better to suffer for doing good, if that should be God’s will, than for doing evil” (1 Peter 3:14–17). 

In other words, it is better for us to endure persecution and suffering for Christ’s sake than to bring dishonor to His name by sinning in our speech. God, in His sovereignty, has appointed us to suffer for the name of Christ that through this, the gospel goes forth and His name is glorified. Should we take it upon ourselves to “fight back” by speaking as the world speaks, we draw the glory away from God and put the light upon ourselves. Such things should never be. Therefore, while we stand firmly for the truth, while we call out sin and preach repentance, we never lower ourselves in thought and speech where we sin against God.

Christians must be concerned about a culture that seeks to restrict our speech while elevating the speech of Christ-hating pagans. We ought to speak out against it and encourage those around us to protect all forms of speech lest we all end up silenced by the powers that be. Yet, in our fight to do so, we must not allow the war against Christian speech to become a shield for speaking with sinful or vile intent. Instead, we must always surrender our will to the Word of God which directs and commands our lips.

If we do not do so, then we run the risk of revealing our hearts are not truly with Christ, as James writes, “Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and saltwater? Can a fig tree, my brothers, bear olives, or a grapevine produce figs? Neither can a salt pond yield fresh water” (James 3:11–12). Yet, the heart that is fully committed to Christ reveals itself in this way, “But the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere. And a harvest of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace” (James 3:17–18). And such we all should be. 

This article was also published on X.comX.com.