“Not many of you should become teachers, my fellow believers, because you know that we who teach will be judged more strictly. We all stumble in many ways. Anyone who is never at fault in what they say is perfect, able to keep their whole body in check.” (NIV James 3:1-2)

As a young ministerial trainee in 1985 and then later on as a young pastor more than 25 years ago, our leaders used to remind us of this verse. Since pastors are in preaching and teaching positions, we were always reminded that we will be judged more strictly. We therefore had to make sure that we were preaching and teaching faithfully according to God’s Word in the Bible. We were constantly reminded to be careful with whatever we preach and teach. Words can either edify or destroy the hearers.

Preaching & Teaching Responsibility

This is always a good reminder to all pastors and teachers and to all of us. With the advent of social media like Facebook for example, a lot of people can now express their views openly and we can be careless with what we share. The apostle James’ words should remind us constantly to be careful with whatever thoughts or views we share to others online.

When you want to share something, first ask: Is it according to God’s Word? Does it edify and build up others? Or does it destroy others and it only exalts your own ego? Those who presume to be teachers, those who would-be-pastors, and those who think they know better than others, should think twice before they say anything because those “who teach will be judged more strictly.”