WORDS ARE FULL OF POWER
"Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof." (Proverbs 18:21)
“.....The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life..” (John 6:63)
Words are full of power, both to wound and to heal, to break and to bind up, to grieve and to comfort. Words have the power to make or break relationships. As the word of God has an Almighty power to break the heart, so the word of man has a mighty power to do it. Some are more troubled with what is said to them, than with anything that is done to them: unfriendly and reproachful speeches have lain upon them, than the heaviest of other pressures.
David had many hands against him, but he was most afflicted with the tongues which were against him; "As with a sword in my bones, mine enemies reproached me while they say daily unto me, where is your God" (Psalm 42:10).
God works on man's heart with two kinds of words:
1. SOFT WORDS - These are His Promises.
"Blessed are they that are persecuted for righteousness sake. Blessed are you when men revile you, and persecute you, say all manner of evil against you falsely, for my sake" (Matthew 5:10-11). The blessing is promised not only to those who suffer evil done to them, but to those who suffer evil spoken against them.
2. HARD WORDS - These are His threatening.
Pharaoh refused to let the Israelites go, "and the Lord spoke unto Moses, Go unto Pharaoh, and say unto him, Thus says the Lord, Let my people go, that they may serve me and if you refuse to let them go, behold, I will smite all your borders with frogs: and the river shall bring forth frogs abundantly, which shall go up and come into your house, and into your bedchamber, and upon your bed, and into the house of your servants, and upon your people, and into your ovens, and into your kneading troughs. And the frogs shall come up both on you, and upon your people, and upon all your servants" ( Exodus 8:1-4).
"Be warned, O Jerusalem, or I shall be alienated from you, and make you a desolation, A land not inhabited.” (Jeremiah 6:8)
While God definitely warns people that the judicial sentence of suffering awaits them if they spurn Him as their treasure, He does not lead with warning but with wooing. And this is more than a matter of sequence. It has to do with the very essence of what He demands.
3. HARD WORDS from His Servants -
"Hear, all ye people; hearken, O earth, and all that therein is: and let the Lord God be witness against you, the Lord from his holy temple." (Micah 1:2). The people of God committed the sin of Idolatry, Prophet Micah had to warn them of God's judgment. The people began valuing creation, especially the creations of their own hands above the Creator. This led to them covet what others had (Micah 2:1-2) to the point of laying in bed figuring out ways to get more things, even if it included fraud and violence.
Seeing these people, whom God chose as His special nation dive headlong into these sins, without care, remorse or repentance broke Micah’s heart (Micah 1:8-9). He saw the damage their actions were causing in their own lives and in the lives of others, and so he spoke out against them, warning them that their actions would bring judgment from God.
Do you know how the people reacted? They demanded that Micah stop preaching. They didn’t what to hear the truth, they didn’t believe that their actions would have any real consequences, and they certainly didn’t want to change. (Micah 2:6)
Idolatry is not just carving a god out of stone or wood and bowing down to it. We don’t do this. Instead we carve our gods out of thoughts and ideas. Maybe we worship our time, our intellectual abilities, our moral standing, or our material possessions.
Idolatry is a dethroning of God and, often, we try to place ourselves on that throne. Any time we sin we place ourselves and our desires above God, His word, and His ways. This is idolatry and this deserves judgment.
But like the people of Israel during the time of Micah, we don’t want to hear this message, do we?
What are some of your idols? Is it collecting degrees or accolades in order to hear the praise of men? Is it filling your head with knowledge so you can feel superior to others? What takes the place of worship? What keeps you from praying and studying your Bible regularly? What do you spend your money on and why?
If you are brutally honest with yourself, what do you love more than God? We are not much different than the people during the time of Micah, but we have a Savior who paid for those crimes so that we do not have to experience the judgment of God.
Also Man has two sorts of words:
1. SOFT WORDS - These can be friendly words or flattering words, which insinuate and soak into the spirit of man. " Pleasant words are as an honeycomb, sweet to the soul, and health to the bones." (Proverbs 16:24). A soft tongue can break the bone(Proverbs 25:15) while a gentle answer will turn away wrath (Proverbs 15:1).
2. HARD AND BITTER WORDS - These words vex and break the heart of a man, and are written upon (as I may say) on the broken pieces and splinters of it as with a pen of iron, and the point of a diamond, there's no getting them out again except by God's grace; holy patience can also wear them out.
Hard words are numbered among our hardest trials. Apostle Paul exhorts the saints (Hebrew 10:32-33) to call to remembrance the former days in which after they were illuminated ( after they have received the light of the knowledge of Jesus Christ), they endured a great fight of affliction, the Prince of darkness stirred up a war against them." Partly while you were made a gazing stock both by reproaches and afflictions; and partly while you became companions of them that were so used. He called the bearing of reproaches, a great fight of affliction.
The person that endures hard words, fight with numerous hosts. The man who contends with many enemies at once, is usually afflicted with reproaches. Whoever is able to stand these assaults ,or receive these charges and not be broken, is a strong man. Job was a strong man both in faith and patience, yet he was broken, his peace was much broken, his spirit was broken as well, "You have vexed my soul and broken me in pieces with words"(Job 19:2)
Also, Patience makes one to endure reproach, but when we endure many reproaches, then patience has a perfect work. "I say unto you that you resist not evil, but whosoever shall smite you on the right cheek, turn to him the other also"(Matthew 5:39), that is when you have received one wrong , don't meditate how to revenge that but be prepared how to receive a second.
IMPACT OF WORDS
What we say matters. The unkind things we communicate can soil the best of relationships; even with the deepest of regrets. What lingers is a stain of hurt that may fade but will never truly go away. The wounding words we say are like feathers released in a harsh wind, once said; we will never get them back. (Quote by Jason Versey)
It is not necessarily physical blows that are the most harmful. Words can reduce a person’s self-esteem to next to nothing in an instant. Bitter speech or hurtful words come forth because one has negative opinions for that person. When the underlying opinions are washed and cleared, the speech improves and becomes sweet.
“Dogs bite sometimes, people bite at all times, with their hurtful words”? (Mehmet Murat ildan).
Keep the inner intent that you do not want to hurt anybody with your words. You should say things that you would like to hear yourself. Project on to the world, as you would like. Whatever words you throw at others will eventually come back at you. You should speak such that when the words are returned to you, they are not harmful.
"Let no corrupt communication proceed out of your mouth, but that which is good to the use of edifying, that it may minister grace unto the hearers."(Ephesians 4:29)
Words do not disappear. They continue to exist from the moment you say them or send that message. They exist in the thoughts and mind of the recipient, and also in God’s memory. This applies to good and evil, because God is a righteous judge. "For by thy words you shall be justified, and by your words you shall be condemned" (Matthew 12:37). Let us not say or write anything we wouldn’t repeat, but stop and think again before we laugh at someone or make sarcastic comments.
When you speak, heaven begins to work because there is power in the words you declare. Every word that comes out of your mouth should be a word of life, to edify, motivate, and bring comfort. Never pronounce words that destroy, discourage or bring affliction. Your mouth becomes the mouthpiece of Jesus.
The best thing we can do to regretful/hurting word is to make it right. Ask for forgiveness. Asking for forgiveness can be hard, and requires courage. We all need forgiveness, especially from God Himself. "And be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, even as God in Christ forgave you." (Ephesians 4:32). When we pray for forgiveness from a true and honest heart, then God is good and forgives us of all kinds of sin, even thoughtless words. But we also need to make it right with those we have hurt. Then we can pray that God gives us a new mind, and pray to start over so that the same thing doesn’t happen again. The intention is that we become so transformed that those kinds of words no longer come out of us.
Your Words Have Impact, So Think Before You Speak.
We need to guard our tongue so that our words don’t bring darkness to anyone, but instead bring light. In this we must always be alert and aware.
"Set a watch, O Lord, before my mouth; keep the door of my lips." (Psalm 141:3)
WORK CITED.
1. "An Exposition with Practical Observations upon the Book of Job" by JOSEPH CARYL.
2. "Declarations of Power for 365 Days of the Year: Volume Two" by Pastor Cesar Castellanos.
3. Several sources from the Internet.
James Dina
jodina5@gmail.com
5th October 2020
https://www.blessministries.org/james-dina
