Bridling the Beast in Your Body

Message Summary:

In this convicting message on James 3:1–12, Chuck Swindoll tackles the universal struggle of controlling the tongue. He opens with the creative imagery of “word catchers”—a fictional pound for stray, biting words—to illustrate how often our speech causes damage that we wish we could retrieve. Swindoll argues that while we often blame our words, the tongue is merely a “neutral messenger boy” delivering what is stored in the heart. Therefore, the problem is not just a loose tongue, but a heart that needs God’s cleansing.

Swindoll breaks down James’s teaching into three distinct sections. First, he issues a warning to teachers, noting that those who communicate truth face “stricter judgment” because their words affect many lives and they are expected to live the truth they teach. Second, he explores the power of the tongue using James’s analogies of the bit, the rudder, and the spark. Just as small mechanisms control powerful horses and massive ships, the small tongue determines the direction of a life, and a tiny spark can incinerate an entire forest [17–19].

Finally, Swindoll exposes the tongue as an “untamed beast” and a “deadly poison,” noting that while humans have tamed lions and whales, no human can tame the tongue on their own. He highlights the hypocrisy of the human condition, where the same mouth blesses God on Sunday and curses men on Monday—an inconsistency not found in nature. The message concludes with a call to honesty, urging believers to realize that the tongue defiles, defies human control, and displays the true character of the heart.

Message Key Facts:

• The “Word Catcher” Illustration: Swindoll imagines a service similar to a dog catcher that rounds up “stray words” that have been unleashed on others, describing harmful speech as “razor-toothed invectives”.
• The Root of the Problem: Drawing from Matthew 15, Swindoll clarifies that the tongue is simply a bucket dipping into the well of the heart. If the water is bitter, it is because the source is bitter. We cannot fix the speech without addressing the heart.
• The Teacher’s Burden: Swindoll explains why teachers face stricter judgment: they must teach truth rather than opinion, their words influence the destiny of families and listeners, and they must model their message in their own homes [12–15].
• Arabella Young: Swindoll quotes a humorous epitaph from an English graveyard: “Beneath this stone, a lump of clay lies Arabella Young, who on the 24th of May began to hold her tongue”.
• The Three Analogies of Control:
  1. The Bit: A small metal piece controls a powerful horse.
  2. The Rudder: A tiny mechanism steers a massive ship.
  3. The Spark: A single ember can destroy a vast forest. Insight: Small things determine the course of one’s life [17–19].
• Hitler and the Poison of Asps: To illustrate James’s description of the tongue as “full of deadly poison,” Swindoll recounts watching a documentary on the Holocaust. He realized that the devastating orders given by Adolf Hitler came from a human tongue—a sobering reminder of the potential for evil in every person.
• The Waiter and the Witness: Swindoll shares a personal story of dining at a restaurant where he prayed for patience with a hovering waiter. At the end of the meal, the waiter revealed he was a youth pastor who listened to Swindoll’s tapes. This moment reinforced the truth that believers are always “on display”.
• Inconsistency in Nature vs. Man: Swindoll notes that nature is consistent—a peach tree does not produce watermelons, and salt water does not produce fresh. Only humans are inconsistent enough to bless God and curse people from the same mouth.

Message References:

• James 3:1–12: The primary text regarding the power, danger, and inconsistency of the tongue.
• Matthew 15:10–20: Jesus’ teaching that what defiles a man comes out of the mouth because it proceeds from the heart.
• Psalm 39: Referenced as David’s attempt to muzzle his mouth, only to realize he needed God’s help.
• Romans 3:13: “Their throat is an open grave, with their tongues they keep deceiving,” referenced to describe the depravity of human speech.

Message Speaker:

Pastor Chuck Swindoll