November 30, 2022

Growing up around cattle, I know how powerful they can be, but even as big as they are, if you start training them young, you can control them with a halter. Yesterday, I watched the cattleman who keeps his Brangus cows on our property lead a new mother with a rope and her calf to the feed trough so he could care for them, and she is enormous!

In the book of James, it says it is easier to tame animals than it is to tame the human tongue. 

For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by mankind, but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. James 3:7-8

I’m sure most people believe this portion of scripture is referring to your choice of expletives, but it’s referring to false teaching. Indeed your reputation as a Christ-follower will become sullied if you use cuss words, but God is mainly concerned with you spreading lies and false teachings. It is easy to take the Bible out of context and highly important to consider when it comes to biblical interpretation. An important lesson I learned in Bible Training is to read the entire chapter and sometimes the chapter before to determine the context of the scripture. A teacher will face severe scrutiny and judgment for their teachings. So be careful of the messages you share.

Notice that the following scriptures come before the first ones I shared.

Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. 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 3:1-2