Power to Delight: The Fountain and the Tree (James 3:9-12)

Spiritual Diary For 09-20-03

 

My Worship Time                         Focus:  Power to delight:  The Fountain and the Tree

 

Bible Reading & Meditation                                     Reference:  James 3:9-12

 

            Message of the verse: “With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God’s likeness.  Out of the same mouth come praise and cursing. My brothers, this should not be.  Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring?  My brothers, can a fig-tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water.”  (NIV)

            Proverbs 18:4 “The words of a man’s mouth are as deep waters, and the wellspring of wisdom as a flowing brook.  Proverbs 10:11 “The mouth of the righteous is a fountain of life, But the mouth of the wicked conceals violence.”  Proverbs 13:14 “The teaching of the wise is a fountain of life, To turn aside from the snares of death.”

            Proverbs 18:21 gives another similarity between water and the tongue, for if water is not controlled it will cause much damage, and if the tongue is not controlled it too can cause great damage.  “Death and life are in the power of the tongue, And those who love it will eat its fruit.”  Water can also be refreshing to us, and we need it to sustain life. Proverbs 18:12 speaks of the health that can come from the tongue of a person.  “There is one who speaks rashly like the thrusts of a sword, But the tongue of the wise brings healing.”  As believers we too can bring refreshment to others with our kind and encouraging words that can help to heal someone who is hurting. 

            Water not only is life giving and refreshment, but it also cleanses us when we are dirty.  The Bible gives us some pictures of how this works spiritually:  (See John 13:5-10)  The OT also gives us a picture of the importance of being clean, and in the examples is shown water to illustrate spiritual cleansing from sin.  John 15:3 given an illustration of being cleansed by words:  “You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you.” This is truly amazing if you stop and think about the power that the Lord Jesus has in His Words, and the Bible teaches in other places the power that is in the Word of God.  Hebrews 4:12 “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”  Ephesians 5:26 & 27 tells us more about being cleansed by Christ’s Words:  “That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, that he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish.”  The Bible teaches us that all believers are cleansed by the blood of Jesus Christ, for His death satisfied the wrath of God, but the Bible also teaches us that we are made clean by His Words, for that is how we find out about His death for our sins.  Think about the power that we as believers have with the words that are formed on our tongues, for if we speak the Words of Christ to tell others about His provision for their sins then the Lord can use those words to bring life to a spiritual dead person, or we can use our words to hurt someone.  It is no wonder that James writes about controlling the tongue in relationship to a mature believer. 

            The tongue and the tree:  Trees can shelter us from the heat; they provide beauty to look at, such as in the fall when the leaves turn into beautiful colors.  Trees also produce fruit that we may eat and be nourished by.  In the same way the tongue, or words from the tongue can do this in a spiritual way if, like the trees, it has a good root system.  Psalm one is a wonderful example of this.  “How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, Nor stand in the path of sinners, Nor sit in the seat of scoffers!  But his delight is in the law of the LORD, And in His law he meditates day and night.  And he will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, Which yields its fruit in its season, And its leaf does not wither; And in whatever he does, he prospers. The wicked are not so, But they are like chaff which the wind drives away.  Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, Nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. For the LORD knows the way of the righteous, But the way of the wicked will perish.” 

            A warning from James:  James has written in these verses warnings that believers need to learn from.  Two kinds of fruit cannot come from the same tree, and two kinds of water cannot come from the same spring.  Now if a tree has a bad root system and cannot get the proper nourishment to produce good fruit then that can be a problem.  Again our spiritual roots need to be in the Word of God so that it can work in our hearts, for out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.  “The tongue that blesses the Father, and then turns around and curses men made in God’s image, is in desperate need of spiritual medicine.”  “Keep thy heart with all diligence, for out of it are the issues of life.”  (Proverbs 4:23)  “As we fill our hearts with God’s Word, and yield to the Holy Spirit, He can use us to bring delight to others, and we will be refreshing fountains and trees.”

Twelve words that, if you use them sincerely, can make a lot of difference.

“Please” and “Thank you.”  This helps to show that we are treating people like people and not things.

“I’m sorry.”  These words break down wall and build bridges.

“I love you.”  For husbands and wives and brethren in the Lord.

“I’m praying for you.”  When we speak to God about people then He will give us the confidence to speak to them about the Lord.

 

Spiritual meaning for my life today:  Every time that I read this section in James I get my toes stepped on, and this shows me that I certainly need the help of the Lord in order to guard the words that are formed by my tongue and come out of my mouth.  Trials can help give me more endurance and this will help remind me of speaking words that are medicine.

 

The Word of God has once again convicted my heart that there are too many times when the words that I speak are not godly words, or helpful words, or selfish words.

 

My Steps of Faith Today:  I want to make a commitment to the Lord that I will be led by His Holy Spirit to speak words that are helpful, and not hurtful.  I would pray that He would give me the courage to often speak those twelve words that are helpful in the right situations, and that these words would come from a grateful heart, also that I would not speak words when it is not necessary.