DESTRUCTIVE FIRE IS OF HELL
Wednesday – February 25, 2026
Video link: https://youtu.be/d7rllFBFNdc
Greetings precious saints of God and others and welcome to our study of the Bible Book of James. A very practical, informative, and corrective Book. It is corrective if we come with ears to hear and eyes to see. I must warn you that pretty much the whole third chapter of James has to do with our mouths and the great good or evil it produces. Concerning correction or chastening listen to the Holy Spirit through the writer of the Bible Book of Hebrews.
Hebrews 12:11 (KJV)
11 Now no chastening for the present seemeth to be joyous, but grievous: nevertheless afterward it yieldeth the peaceable fruit of righteousness unto them which are exercised thereby.
I want the fruit of righteousness, what about you? Now lets go to our primary text for today.
James 3:5-8 (ESV)
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, and set on fire by hell.
7 For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by mankind,
8 but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison.
James the Just by the unction of the Holy Spirit has just finished giving us instruction concerning our mouths but examples. The Holy Spirit told us that if we would bridle our tongues that would mark us as mature in the Lord and put us in perfect health. He reminded us that a bit in the mouth of a horse controlled the direction of the horse. He pointed out that a small rudder on a great ship controls its direction. And so, our mouth dictates the direction of our lives. Believe me, it is going to take effort to control our mouths. Generally, the greatest pressure to speak is when it is negative. Who do you suppose is behind that? Whose words do you want to be found speaking?
Next, we are told that like the bit in the horses mouth and the rudder of a ship so is our tongue small yet can wreak havoc. Did you notice the phrase “How great a forest is set ablaze by such a small fire!” I suspect we have all had the experience of saying something in the heat of the moment or without considering it carefully and all kinds of evil followed. Let’s carefully consider the sixth verse of our text.
James 3:6 (ESV)
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, and set on fire by hell.
This verse is emphasizing the negative side of what that tongue does but unfortunately that is where many in the body of Christ are. Many of us have seen the “smokey the bear” ads telling us that one match can burn a whole forest. Well, so it is with our tongues. The Holy Spirit goes on to tell us in this verse that our mouth defiles our whole body. That is to say the reason for the physical issues in our bodies is directly attributable to our tongues. Believe it or not, it’s all through the Bible. Not only are our bodies defiled in that we have sickness and disease, but our whole nature (character, personality, temperament, disposition) is defiled. That is to say we are more like Satan than our Father God. Then He tells us where this temptation this pressure not to control our mouth our words comes from. It comes from Hell, demons. Who are you obeying? God or demons?
TAKE HOME:
- The wrong words spoken can ignite a great destructive fire.
- Our mouth, the words we speak, determines not only the health of our bodies but the direction of our lives.
- The pressure to speak inappropriately is authored of Hell.
Lord willing, I will resume right here tomorrow. Remember, we love you, the Lord loves you, and there is nothing you can do about either one.
By: Dr. David R. Wood, Bible Teacher, and Prophetic Voice
REMINDERS
Please take a moment to share this teaching and prayerfully consideration becoming a financial partner with this ministry. Visit our store/shop on the website, register for our emails, and order the books, they also make great gifts.
CONTACT INFORMATION
CONTACT E-MAIL: pastordavidwood@gmail.com
BLOG: https://awakeariseandtriumphministries.org/
YOUTUBE: https://tinyurl.com/588t7343
RUMBLE: https://rumble.com/c/c-6530176
TIKTOK: https://www.tiktok.com/@drdavidrwood
FACEBOOK: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61581438181109
LINKEDIN: https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-r-wood-d-o-5ab7ba81/recent-activity/all/
TWITTER: https://twitter.com/PastorDavidWood
WEBSITE: https://www.awakeariseandtriumphministries.org
MY BOOKS: https://tinyurl.com/2s4mb9kk
INSTAGRAM: https://instagram.com/awakeariseandtriumphministries/
