Ships are colossal vessels. An aircraft carrier can displace up to 100,000 tons. These vessels are truly some of the pinnacles of human ingenuity and design. Examining every instrument that enables a ship to function reveals a lot of meticulous calculations and engineering.
God actually records one mechanism of the ship with personal spiritual parallels. It steers the vessel through turbulent waters. The slightest adjustment of this mechanism can have major consequences for better or worse. Without this small component, the colossal 100,000-ton ship will never make it to its destination. That is the ship’s rudder.
James writes about the rudder of a ship in his epistle: “Behold also the ships, which though they be so great, and are driven of fierce winds, yet are they turned about with a very small helm, withersoever the governor listeth. Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasts great things…” (James 3:4-5).
The rudder of the ship is like our tongue. Let’s learn some vital lessons about steering our tongue from the ship’s rudder.
SMALL BUT EXTREMELY POWERFUL
A 100,000-ton aircraft carrier is steered by a rudder that weighs only 50 tons. That means the rudder accounts for only .05 percent of the mass of the vessel.
In his booklet The Epistle of James, Gerald Flurry writes:
“A whole ship can be guided through waves and storms with a little rudder. Our tongue expresses what is in our mind, and if we can just control our tongues, we actually guide our whole being and demonstrate a great deal of character.”
We can guide our whole being through great oceans and express a lot of character through the use of the tongue. Though small, it’s easy to use, and we use it all the time. But it can be very easy to misuse, even with just a few words. James says, the man who can control the words of his mouth is able to bridle the whole body (verse 2). The word “bridle” means “to guide, hold in check or restrain.” That is the kind of power your small tongue holds. We must be aware of how to control such a powerful tool.
MISUSE DOES GREAT DAMAGE
The ship’s rudder is very sensitive to the steering. Any slight misalignment can cause the ship to be off by miles in the long term.
A general rule used in aviation and maritime travel is the one and sixty rule. This rule means that by every one degree off course the ship travels as determined by the rudder and its position, the ship will diverge one nautical mile off course for every 60 nautical miles it travels forward. One mile is a long distance to go off course. Being off one degree in your steering of the rudder could mean the difference between reaching your destination or not, it could even mean the difference between traversing right into a rocky reef where catastrophe looms or through the safe deep water.
Our tongue can carry the same consequences if we misuse it in even the slightest of ways. One wrong word or phrase can have damaging effects on a person. In the James booklet, Mr. Flurry writes, “Just by the use of our tongue, we can talk our way into Gehenna fire.”
The Bible talks about some of the destructive uses of the tongue. “The words of his mouth are iniquity and deceit” (Psalm 36:3). “A lying tongue hateth those that are afflicted by it; and a flattering mouth worketh ruin” (Proverbs 26:28). “The beginning of the words of his mouth is foolishness: and the end of his talk is mischievous madness” (Ecclesiastes 10:13). “The tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity” (James 3:6). “But the tongue can no man tame; it is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison” (verse 8).
Proverbs 18:21 says: “Death and life are in the power of the tongue.” We can guide our being through the words we speak in two directions—life or death. God wants us to choose life (Deuteronomy 30:19) and we have to navigate our way with God’s help in that direction and our tongue is instrumental in that voyage. It’s a choice we need to make each day, and whether or not we go in the right direction can come down to the slightest degree of steering.
REVEALS OUR MINDS
Mr. Flurry says our use of our tongues is an expression of what’s on our minds. How do you navigate your ship?
For a captain or helmsman to steer the ship, he must use information to know how to control the rudder. What is the final destination? What are the coordinates? Which direction is he heading? How many degrees does he adjust the steering? The control of the rudder is just an expression of the captain’s overall objective.
For us what we put into our minds expresses itself through the little tongue. Christ stated: “O generation of vipers, how can you, being evil, speak good things? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks” (Mathew 12:34).
The abundance of the heart expresses itself through the tongue. What do you feed your mind? What we put in can have a dramatic impact on what we say through the small and powerful tongue.
Another important proverb shows us the power of the tongue: “A man hath joy by the answer of his mouth: and a word spoken in due season, how good is it!” (Proverbs 15:23). Sometimes we unknowingly may say something at the certain moment that could have a profound impact on another person. If you are reading good books, listening to edifying podcasts, studying the Bible, then you are more likely to say something in the right moment that could have a real impact on someone else.
HOW CAN WE USE THE TONGUE?
To know how to use this instrument, we have to know the destination. The captain steers the ship using the rudder to get to a specific location. When we converse with others, what are we trying to achieve? Where are we trying to go?
“Pleasant words are as an honeycomb, sweet to the soul, and health to the bones” (Proverbs 16:24). Do we see our words as something that can bring health to the bones? If our goal is to uplift, encourage and bring joy to another person, then that is a noble destination. You can ask yourself; can I compare what I just said to a honeycomb? Our words can even have healing power (Proverbs 12:18).
Maybe the destination is to help teach someone or pass on wisdom (Ecclesiastes 10:12). Or maybe to pass on some helpful correction (Proverbs 27:5). We must be mindful of God’s intended use of this powerful instrument. It can lead to a lot of damage but it can also accomplish so much positive fruits in your life and others.
Just like the captain of the ship using the rudder to steer this great vessel, we too need to steer our beings with God’s guidance. Your tongue holds great power. Don’t underestimate that. Think about the 100,000-ton ships that pass through the oceans and how they are steered by the tiny rudder, and remember the words of James 3:4-5: “Behold also the ships, which though they be so great, and are driven of fierce winds, yet are they turned about with a very small helm, withersoever the governor listeth. Even so the tongue is a little member, and boasts great things…”