Blessing and Cursing | James 3:1-12

James continues his sober teaching on the tongue with a piercing reality: “With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God. From the same mouth come blessing and cursing. My brothers, these things ought not to be so” (James 3:9–10).

This is more than a call to watch our mouths. It is a test of whether our hearts are truly transformed. The tongue simply reveals what is rooted in the heart.


The Tongue’s Contradiction
Imagine Sunday morning worship: hands raised, songs sung, words of praise lifted to God. Yet by Monday afternoon, the same tongue is sharp with gossip, sarcasm, or insult. James says this should not exist in the Christian life. To praise God while cursing His image-bearers is hypocrisy.

Jesus tied the two together: “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you” (John 15:12). To love God while hating others is a contradiction. John writes plainly: “If anyone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar” (1 John 4:20).


Inconsistency Exposed
James presses the point with vivid illustrations:

• “Does a spring pour forth from the same opening both fresh and salt water?” (James 3:11).
• “Can a fig tree, my brothers, bear olives, or a grapevine produce figs?” (James 3:12).

The Heart of the Matter
This is why James’ rebuke stings. Words are not neutral. To bless God and then curse His image-bearers is to reveal a divided heart. Jesus said, “Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks” (Matthew 12:34). A heart that loves God will speak accordingly. A heart still enslaved to pride will lash out in anger, gossip, and bitterness.

The true test is not found in moments of religious speech but in the consistency of daily words. As William Perkins wrote, “The tongue is the messenger of the heart.” If the message is one of contradiction—praise and curse—it proves a heart in need of repentance.


Not Silence, But Surrender
The solution is not to muzzle ourselves into silence. God gave us tongues to praise Him, to encourage the saints, and to proclaim the gospel. The solution is surrender. A heart given fully to Christ will produce words consistent with His Spirit.

Paul exhorts, “Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear” (Ephesians 4:29). The Spirit reshapes both desire and speech.


A Call to Repentance
Perhaps your words have been sharp toward family, careless in gossip, or harsh in judgment. James says plainly, “These things ought not to be so.” The answer is not to try harder but to repent. Seek forgiveness, both from the Lord and those you have hurt. And ask the Spirit to align your heart with God’s, so that blessing becomes the consistent fruit of your speech.


Hope for the Divided
The gospel offers hope even for divided hearts. Christ bore every sinful word we’ve spoken. His righteousness covers our hypocrisy. And His Spirit empowers us to use our tongues not for cursing but for blessing.

J. Vernon McGee once said, “The tongue is the most dangerous member of the whole church.” But in Christ, that same tongue can become the most powerful tool for worship, encouragement, and witness.

Let us examine our words. Do they reveal a divided heart? If so, let us surrender anew to Christ. For only a heart transformed by Him will consistently produce words of life.