Speaking Words Of Faith Series

Spoken words program your heart either to success or defeat. Words . . . carry faith or fear, and they produce after their kind. - Charles Capps(1)

To get started this morning, I want to talk about the power of words; and a good example of words can be seen in the news media. You hear a lot of talk today about promoting and controlling the narrative. The term “narrative” is defined as “a story that connects and explains a carefully selected set of supposedly true events, experiences, or the like, intended to support a particular viewpoint or thesis.”(2) It’s becoming more and more obvious that whoever controls the narrative controls how people act. So, how is this possible? It’s because words can program the mind in specific behaviors.

Words are very powerful; more powerful than even an atomic bomb! You see, I’ve heard it said that any invading military wouldn’t have to launch a single nuclear warhead at America in order to take over this nation. All they would have to do is influence the media and control the narrative, and then we would just hand it all over willingly. But let me apply this to daily life. You’ve heard the old saying, “Sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” Actually, words can hurt far worse than sticks and stones, because of their powerful and lasting effect. We often allow the words that people say to change how we think, how we act, or how we dress; and even determine what we do with our life. This morning we’re going to look at what the Bible has to say about taking control of our thoughts and speaking words of faith and words of life.

God Created by His Word (Hebrews 11:3)

3 By faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that the things which are seen were not made of things which are visible.

If we turn back a number of pages, and look at the creation account in the book of Genesis, we learn that God created everything there is. This includes the world and the entire universe! Right here, in Hebrews 11:3, we are shown how God created, or “framed,” everything. He created everything by His spoken Word. In 2 Peter 3:5, we read, “By the Word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of water,” and then in Hebrews 1:2-3, we read that “He made the worlds . . . upholding all things by the word of His power.” So, once again, the Bible teaches us that God created everything by His Word. So, what exactly does this mean?

If we go back and look at the creation account, in Genesis 1:3, we read this: “Then God said, ‘Let there be light;’ and there was light.” So, when did the light appear? It appeared after “God said,” or rather, after He spoke the words “let there be light.” So, God created by speaking; and this particular phrase – “then God said” – is mentioned nine times in the very first chapter of Genesis. This tells us that every single time God made something, that He spoke it into existence.

In Genesis 2:19, we read, “Out of the ground the LORD God formed every beast of the field and every bird of the air, and brought them to Adam to see what he would call them. And whatever Adam called each living creature, that was its name.” God created the animals of the earth, but He didn’t name them Himself. He brought them to the man to be named. In Genesis 2:22, we see that He also brought the woman to the man to be named. So, why did God do this? I believe that God brought the animals to Adam in order to give him a small part in the creative process. As we would say in the business world, God was giving the man some ownership in the project.

In Genesis 1:26-28, we read how all human beings are created in the very image and likeness of God, and that we have been given dominion over the earth. Being made in the image and likeness of God, you might say that our words have a spark of creative power in them – but nothing like God’s. The Lord created matter out of nothing. We can’t do anything of the sorts, and I’m not even suggesting something like this. But we do have a certain creative nature and ability within us. That’s the reason why the world is filled with such beautiful works of art and music. So, let me ask, “What power – or how much power – do we have with our words?” Well, turn with me to Matthew 12:34-35, and we’ll find out! We’re going to start with Matthew 34b and stop after verse 35a.