Dementia and Dignity - Pt 2

How great a forest is set ablaze by such a small fire! 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. For every kind of beast and bird, of reptile and sea creature, can be tamed and has been tamed by mankind, but no human being can tame the tongue. It is a restless evil, full of deadly poison. 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 3:5-10 ESV).

Yesterday we looked at the truth that we are all created in God’s image (cf. Genesis 1:27). We can hardly be reminded too often or go to deep into the staggering truth of this broad statement. However, when you add the additional truth that even after the fall into sin this great reality of image bearing is still true about all of the people we deal with and should affect our behavior. Our reading today declares this truth. James says, With it [the tongue] we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse people who are made in the likeness of God (v. 9). You see how James thinks that that fact should alter the way we use our tongues and talk about people. Every human being, everywhere in the world, of every race, every ethnicity, class, male and female, rich and poor, sick and well, is utterly distinct from all the other kinds of creatures on earth. Then, the Apostle Peter says (amazingly), “honor all” (cf. 1 Peter 2:17). He means honor all human beings. And the honor clearly does not flow from moral worthiness. All human beings are not worthy. A lot of them are wicked like Nero. He goes on to say, “Honor the Emperor.” Sometimes people are wicked. That does not exempt us from honoring them with our words. The honor is not flowing from their unique moral condition but from their unique standing in the image of God, different from all other creatures. That applies to an 80-pound, arthritic, diapered, drooling, glazed-eyed human being that we love, lying in bed and praying for death in the nursing home, or in the jungle hut. It applies to that brother or sister who has lost the capacity to remember who we are or what they last said to us. It is true toward that individual who has the body of an adult and the mental capacity of a child. This truth does not diminish the difficulty of being kind or showing kindness; however, it does give us the motivation to do so. Here’s how Solomon, in his great wisdom said it: Gracious words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the body. (Proverbs 16:24 ESV).