Bridle

“If any one thinks himself to be religious, and yet does not bridle his tongue but deceives his own heart, this man’s religion is worthless.”  James 1:26

Bridle – Yesterday I heard another sad story about the double standard of the Christian community.  A close friend of mine was the victim of false rumor and gossip.  It cost him his job.  He stood for the truth of holy living but those “Christians” in his workplace were more concerned about the appearance of impropriety than they were about supporting their brother.  The Father of Lies bent their weak wills to his purposes.  They denied their pledge to stand up for their Lord no matter what the cost.  And it all began with an unbridled tongue.

The Greek work chalinagogon literally means, “to restrain, direct or govern with a bridle”.  Get the bit in the mouth and get control!  How many times we would rather not hear the words of James on this subject.  God hates liars!  Perhaps more than any other sin, lying insults God.  God is truth and in Him there is no shadow of lies.  But the Father of Lies opposes this truth at every possible occasion.  And what better way to undermine the witness of a shining example of Jesus than a rumor.  No facts.  No examination.  No confrontation.  Just innuendo.  Jesus knows all about this.  His trial was the trial of lies too.

When these things happen, it is so easy to become discouraged with the “Christian” community, those who think themselves religious but do not stand in the face of danger.  Where is God when we are battered by false accusations?  He is in the same place He was the night of Jesus trial, right there, testing the commitment of others through us.  We can complain, “Lord, why does this have to happen to me?  I am innocent.  It isn’t fair.”  All of that is true.  It was all the more true for Jesus.  Yet God allowed this suffering because it served a purpose no one could have imagined.  It still does.  To know Him, the power of His resurrection and the fellowship of His suffering.  There are those moments when God blesses us with the opportunity to stand in the shoes of His Son.  Those are the moments when all of life seems impossibly cruel; the moment before the God of all Life turns the impossibly cruel into the gloriously impossible. 

That doesn’t diminish James’ harsh warning.  Bridles are essential spiritual equipment.  What damage we have caused with unrestrained words!  God forgive us.