Spoken words deeply matter. The person who utters a harsh criticism or slander or false accusation is connected to his victim personally. Words can be more damaging, more destructive, cause more fallout and harm than a natural disaster. Cities can be rebuilt with brick and mortar. Hearts and lives are not so easily restored once they have been torn down.
A fiery tongue is a tool in the hands of Beelzebub. When he wants to do the most damage, he taps on the loosest tongue. He cracks the fiery tongue on the humble, gentle, lowly people of God. Venom vomits forth and stings the hearts of the “little ones.” James makes it clear that the fire of a fiery tongue comes straight from the fires of Hell!
One of the most subtle, sly deceptions of the fiery tongue is that it most often continues uninterrupted, unchanged, with no real repentance under the guise of “forgiveness.” A venomous tongue can spew as much as it wants as long as it soon follows with a false recognition of guilt. The one who has been burned by the fire cannot hold a grudge, so the fiery tongue is acquitted (or so he thinks) while the burn victim enters the burn unit for months of therapy. And when the next occasion arises, Satan’s most dependable whip is ready for the cracking!
This should not be! The mouth that can issue blessing and cursing is a visible indicator of how dark and evil is the heart. A tongue of fire is a faithless tongue. Only God can drown the flames of Hell! Fiery tongues must be submitted to the Holy Spirit. Our words can issue flames or our words can issue fountains! The difference is who is in charge of our tongues, us or the Holy Spirit?
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