James 3:
First, James charges that those who teach will be judged with a more strict judgment. Wow. It is not lightly that I started this blog, yet the magnitude of this is hitting home hard. These are words of warning to me. It is no small thing that God holds those who speak accountable. Consider Jesus' words:3:1 Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness. 2 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. 3 If we put bits into the mouths of horses so that they obey us, we guide their whole bodies as well. 4 Look at the ships also: though they are so large and are driven by strong winds, they are guided by a very small rudder wherever the will of the pilot directs. 5 So also the tongue is a small member, yet it boasts of great things.
How great a forest is set ablaze by such a small fire! 6 And the tongue is a fire, a world of unrighteousness. The tongue is set among our members, staining the whole body, setting on fire the entire course of life, [1] and set on fire by hell. [2]
Matthew 12:
36 I tell you, on the day of judgment people will give account for every careless word they speak, 37 for by your words you will be justified, and by your words you will be condemned.
As I write blog posts (especially considering anyone in the world can read them) I need to be sure that I am speaking the truth. Concerning my readers, if I have any, do you consider my words in light of James 3:1-6? Do I steer the ship or control the horse? Both of these are positive in that they bring a large body under control. The last words are those that I want my readers to take as a warning: I may be the one who sets a forest ablaze.
How do I know if what I am saying is true? How would someone who reads my words know the same? I consider Jesus again:
John 5:
30 I can do nothing on my own. As I hear, I judge, and my judgment is just, because I seek not my own will but the will of him who sent me. 31 If I alone bear witness about myself, my testimony is not deemed true. 32 There is another who bears witness about me, and I know that the testimony that he bears about me is true. ... 36 .... For the works that the Father has given me to accomplish, the very works that I am doing, bear witness about me that the Father has sent me. 37 And the Father who sent me has himself borne witness about me. His voice you have never heard, his form you have never seen, 38 and you do not have his word abiding in you, for you do not believe the one whom he has sent. 39 You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, 40 yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life. ... 46 For if you believed Moses, you would believe me; for he wrote of me. 47 But if you do not believe his writings, how will you believe my words?Jesus himself recognizes that his words aren't to be taken on only his own authority. He draws his audience to consider three witnesses: His Works, His Father, and The Scriptures. These three witnesses are connected. His works are those his Father has given Him to do. His Father has borne witness, and has sent the prophets and revealed in the Scriptures that Jesus is the Messiah. The last line is a serious charge to Jesus' audience, the Pharisees: "If you do not believe Moses' writings, how will you believe my words?". We should take seriously that if we do not believe the scriptures, we cannot believe Jesus. If we do not believe Jesus, we should have no hope of eternal life.
This is where I stake my authority: I have none in myself. The only authority I have is the degree to which what I say agrees with scripture. Hold me accountable. Search the scriptures, for these have eternal life as they bear witness to Jesus Christ.
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