Likewise, the tongue is a small part of the body,
but it makes great boasts. Consider what
a great forest is set on fire by a small spark.
The tongue also is a fire, a world of evil among the parts of the
body. It corrupts the whole body, sets
the whole course of one’s life on fire, and is itself set on fire by hell.
–Jas 3:5-6
Then one of the seraphim flew to me with a live coal
in his hand, which he had taken with tongs from the altar. With it he touched my mouth and said, “See,
this has touched your lips; your guilt is taken away and your sin atoned for.”
–Isa 6:6-7
A Hong Kong and American actor Bruce Lee (1940–1973)
wrote, “Love is like a friendship caught on fire. In the beginning a flame, very pretty, often
hot and fierce, but still only light and flickering. As love grows older, our hearts mature and
our love becomes as coals, deep burning and unquenchable.” Who among us live with this consuming
fire? Who can live with this continual
burning? (Isa 33:14). Such a gift is from
God.
Albert Schweitzer (1875–1965), a French-German
theologian remarked, “In everyone’s life, at some time, our inner fire goes
out. It is then burst into flame by an
encounter with another human being. We
should all be thankful for those people who rekindle the inner spirit.” These won’t be like worthless people who dig
up evil with words that scorch the ground (Prov 16:27). They are unlike the light of the wicked that
goes out (Job 18:5), instead, their flames give light.
A Brilliant Flame
How should men and women live? Boris Yeltsin (1931–2007), president of the
Russian Federation, said, “A man must live like a great brilliant flame and
burn as brightly as he can. In the ends
he burns out. But this is far better
than a mean little flame.” While Nikola
Tesla (1856–1943), a Serbian-American inventor amplified Yeltsin’s view further
when he stated: “The spread of civilization may be likened to a fire; first, a
feeble spark, then a mighty blaze, ever increasing in speed and power.”
Undoubtedly, a simple spark can have far-reaching effects. Johan Lehrer (b. 1981), an author captured this
phenomenon: “Creativity is a spark. It
can be excruciating when we’re rubbing two rocks together and getting
nothing. And it can be intensely satisfying
when the flame catches and a new idea sweeps around the world.”
Success in Life
The Lord assures us that when we pass through waters,
he’ll be with us. Rivers won’t overflow.
When we walk through fire, we won’t be scorched, nor, the flames burn us (Isa
43:2). That’s how we’ll be successful in
life. Walter Peter (1839–1894), an
English essayist showed us: “To burn always with this hard, gem-like flame, to
maintain this ecstasy, is success in life.”
And, Bernard Williams (1929–2003), an English philosopher recognized:
“Talent is a flame. Genius is a fire.”
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