Becoming A Perfect Man - Easier Said Than Done

James talks a lot about talking. The Proverbs also talk a lot about talking and even about talking a lot.

This last week, a friend of mine and I were memorizing James 3:2 - We all stumble in many ways. If anyone is never at fault at what he says, he is a perfect man able to keep his whole body in check.

Like most people, my first thought was, "I know! If I could just keep a reign on what I said, I would be much better off!" We know the truth that controlling what we say is a very difficult task to master. Even when we think we are doing well, just wait ten minutes until the crowd changes and you say exactly what you were vowing you wouldn't say. We all do it.

But after a while, I got to thinking about this verse some more, and I started weaseling my way through it. I began to think, well, if all you have to do is never be at fault at what you say, then I guess my thought life is of no regard. Of course, I reasoned, if you think about good things, good things are bound to come out. But the self-justification wasn't aimed at how to improve, it was aimed at how to get by. I was thinking to myself, well if I think these terrible things, but then always say the right thing, then maybe I'm a perfect man. Maybe it's as easy as just saying it, and you don't have to do anything about it.

But then the words of Jesus come ringing in. In Matthew 12:34, Jesus reminds us that from the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks. You see the words that come out of my mouth are truly a reflection of what is really inside my heart. And the truly sobering fact is that though I'm thinking I'm saying the right things, the truth of the matter is that my words sound just as self-justifying as they truly are in my heart. Love does not hide, nor does it cover over insincerity.

There is hope, however. There is one who though he was curse, he held his tongue. He only spoke what he heard the Father say. His words are truth and life. Jesus the Word of God has come to dwell in us to not only make us innocent before the law, but perfect - men and women able to keep our whole body in check.