Gracious Lord, forgive the sins of the preacher,
that only your Word might be proclaimed and only your Truth be heard. Amen.
Whoever said “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me” is both a fool and a liar. The fact of the matter is that bruises fade, but memories remain. How many of us still carry wounds and insecurities from a comment we overheard or something that was said in the heat of the moment? Broken bones heal, but broken confidence or trust is much harder to recover. To be clear, violence is never to be tolerated, whether physical, emotional, or verbal. But to deny the power of words is not only foolish, it is bad theology.
As
James notes in this morning’s epistle reading “How great a forest is set ablaze
by a small fire! And the tongue is a fire.” Indeed, when God created the
heavens and the earth, it did not come about by a thought or the snap of a
finger, but by the words “Let there be…” And when God spoke, nothing was
transformed into something. Likewise, our salvation comes through the Word made
flesh. Words like “I forgive you” or “I love you” can be the most powerful and
liberating words that we will ever hear. Words are amazing things that can lead
to beauty and community, praise and gratitude, tears and laughter. Words can be
the difference between war and peace. Words bring about calm or panic. As we
read in Proverbs 18, “Life and death are in the power of the tongue.”
There
is tremendous power in words. This is why James cautions us that we ought to be
careful about how we use words. Words aren’t just things to be thrown around,
rather words are how we participate in the ongoing creative activity of God. Some
even say that part of what it means to be made in the image of God is to be
communicative – to be in relationships with others. And even those who are
unable to speak or hear still participate in the power of words. Braille and
sign language are words just as much as Arabic, Mandarin, or German.
Now,
perhaps you’re thinking “Well, James said ‘Not many of you should become
teachers for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness,’
but I’m not a teacher, so I’m good.” Well, sorry, but this message is for us
all. It’s not just school teachers, professors, and preachers that have to
worry about this. Every one of us who uses language is accountable for how we
use words. And we are all teachers – either as parents, mentors, or advice-givers.
Plus, we’ve been commissioned by Jesus to be teachers. After the Resurrection,
Jesus tells us to go into all the world and make disciples of all people,
teaching them all that Jesus has taught us. So there’s no getting out of this
one – we all need to mind our tongues.
I
will note that, as a preacher, I am aware of the privilege and perils of
preaching. About a month ago, as I stepped into this pulpit I was overcome with
a sense of honor and holy terror. The duty of standing here Sunday after Sunday
and speaking for 15 minutes is something I take very seriously. Quite frankly,
I’m amazed that you all are still listening. I hope that’s because the Holy
Spirit is speaking through me. Preaching isn’t my particular thoughts on a
topic, it is the living and active Word of God being spoken through one broken
and beloved person to a group of broken and beloved people. Preaching really is
a humbling art, and I thank you for your attentive listening, your merciful
grace, your helpful guidance, and your loving encouragement.
The
challenge in preaching, or any use of language, is, as James puts it, “All of
us make many mistakes.” How many times do we have backtrack and say “What I
really meant to say was…” If speaking was easy, we would always say what we
mean and mean what we say. But language is slippery and we are fickle. Sometimes
we aren’t as courageous as we ought to be and other times we are blunter than
we need to be. Sometimes we have the wrong information or draw the wrong conclusions.
Sometimes we can’t come up with the right word or we let our emotions get ahead
of us.
You
all know that we’ve been shifted some of the duties on staff over the past few
months and I’m leading our youth group. If you’ll let me brag about these youth
– they are such a wonderful and amazing group of young people. We’ve had two
youth group meetings so far, both with over a dozen middle and high schoolers
present. If you haven’t had a chance to interact with them, do. They’re such
interesting and compassionate people that I’m really excited to be ministering
with.
The
theme for our youth group this year is “All the Feels” – we’re exploring the
whole range of emotions. One of the analogies that we’ve discussed is how emotions
are something like the waves of an ocean – they come and they go; they ebb and
flow. Some emotions are great and allow us to relax, others knock us off our
feet and make us feel like we’re going to drown. Just as we can’t control the waves,
we can’t control our emotions. We have to learn how to ride the waves.
James
offers us similar wisdom – “For every species of beast and bird, of reptile and
sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by the human species, but no one
can tame the tongue.” The issue is that it’s not only our carefully considered
and constructed thoughts that come out of our mouths, but it’s also our snarky
comments, biting rebuttals, and gut reactions. This is why we are so duplicitous.
As James notes, with our words we both build up and tear down, bless and curse.
And “curse” means to speak negatively, not to use profanity. While it’s not
always the right time and place to use profanity, we don’t need to be puritanical
about what words we use. Profanity is sort of like habanero hot sauce – a little
goes a long way, but sometimes that spice is exactly what you need.
So
how do we responsibly use our language and avoid squandering the gift of
language? As a reminder, we’ve seen over the past few weeks how the major
themes of James are about lifting up the lowly, preserving in difficulties, and
living by godly wisdom. So when it comes to using our speech well, we might
consider whether our speech is building up or tearing down. Are we encouraging
or criticizing?
Two
Fridays ago, Will Willimon, a prolific preacher and author that we’ve had a few
times to St. Luke’s called me up and said “Let’s have lunch.” So I drove over
to Duke Divinity School and had a lovely two-hour lunch with him. I wondered if
there was going to be an ask or agenda – but there wasn’t. He just wanted to
catch up as friends and encourage me in ministry. He introduced me to some
professors and was lavish in building me up and complimenting me in front of
his colleagues. What an amazing gift and ministry that is – to reach out to
someone and encourage them. What a blessed way to use our language!
We
teach children in school to consider their words with three questions: is it true,
is it necessary, is it kind? Those are good questions for us all to consider.
Do we use our words to build up or tear down? Especially when politicians are
such lousy examples of this, we need to make sure that we are modeling holy
speech for our community.
The
other readings we heard give us some further wisdom about speech. The first
reading from the book of Wisdom speaks about the importance of seeking out
godly knowledge and reverence. We turn to so many places when we need information
– we ask Google, we read blogs, maybe ask some friends. But how often do we
turn to Scripture or sit in silence to hear what God might have to say? I also
find therapy to be an incredibly helpful tool in seeking godly wisdom. Our
lives are so fast and noisy, it can be so healthy to sit down with someone who
is trained at listening and can help us to reflect on our lives. And while I am
not a therapist, nor will I pretend to be, I am a pastor. So anytime you need
someone to listen and pray with, let me know. So often we find godly wisdom in
talking with others who help us to see what we are unwilling or unable to see
about ourselves.
In
Psalm 19 we are told that “the heavens declare the glory of God, and the
firmament shows his handiwork.” We don’t often think about how nature speaks –
but it does. Every sunrise is a reminder of God’s grace coming afresh each day.
Every bird song is a song of praise to our Creator. Every breeze that rustles
through the leaves is the movement of the Holy Spirit. And what’s helpful and
instructive about listening to nature is that we hear what our speech ought to
sound like. Nature is diverse, yet communal. Sometimes when I’m working and
trying to focus, I like to put on headphones and listen to nature sounds. The
variety of sounds don’t compete with one another – rather the babbling brook,
croaking frog, and singing bird, even though they are different noises, all
work together to create a soundscape. We don’t all need to be saying the same
thing. That wouldn’t be true and it would be boring. But our speech can work
together.
Furthermore,
Creation is a symphony of praise. The howling wolves, singing whales, and
chirping grasshoppers aren’t arguing, insulting, slandering, gossiping, or
lying. Just imagine what someone who listens to us from an outside perspective
might think about us. Would they say that our speech is pointing towards God’s
love, or going against it?
Then
in Mark, we heard the ultimate gift of human language – being able to know and declare
that Jesus is the Messiah. So, even when our speech fails, we rejoice that he
has declared “Father forgive” and so it is. God has called us beloved and that
is not up for debate.
In this passage, there is
much wisdom about how to speak. First, Jesus chides Peter when he speaks
wrongly about the Messiah. He says, “You are setting your mind on human things
instead of heavenly things.” What do we set our minds on? Studies have shown
that we are influenced by what we consume. You are what you eat. If we watch
divisive political speech, we will be divisive people. If children watch
violent shows, they are more likely to act violently towards others. What are
we setting our minds on?
Jesus
then tells us, “If any want to become my followers, let them deny themselves and
take up their cross and follow me.” Good and holy speech does as that great
hymn puts it, “Lift high the cross, the love of Christ proclaim till all the
world adore his sacred name.” Do we use our language as instruments for God’s
peace, drawing people towards the love of God?
Back
to preaching – my vision for what preaching is all about, and really, all of life
and ministry, is found in a painting. It’s known as the Isenheim Altarpiece
and was painted by Matthias Grünewald in the early 1500s. It’s a crucifixion
scene in which artistic license is used to have John the Baptist present at the
crucifixion. Obviously, he wasn’t there as he had been martyred before then.
But John is there and he’s pointing to Jesus as if to say “It’s about him –
there is the love of God in the flesh, the Lamb of God who makes all things
well.” And above John’s head is written in Latin, “He must increase and I must
decrease.” In other words, focus on divine things and less on human things. If
our speech does that, beloved community will flourish, mercy will abound, and
love will cover the face of the earth as waters cover the sea.
The hymn “God be in my head” is based on a prayer known as the Sarum Prayer. A few months ago, I shared a prayer that I use every morning when I get to the office before I start any work or check any messages. That prayer was about asking God to make us ready for whatever the day will bring. Well, there’s another prayer that I also use when I get to the office every morning and it’s the Sarum Prayer. I commend it to you as a spiritual practice to try this week. Use it each morning as a prayer for holy and love-affirming words: God be in my head, and in my understanding. God be in my eyes, and in my looking. God be in my mouth, and in my speaking. God be in my heart, and in my thinking. God be at my end, and at my departing. Amen.
