Apr 12 - "The Spoken Word"

"...because if you confess with your lips that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. For one believes with his heart and so is justified, and one confesses with the mouth and so is saved." --- Romans 10:1-13

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Have you ever thought about the power you have with the spoken word? Do any of us realize how much good or damage we can do just by saying something to others, or to ourselves?

In today's scripture, Paul is speaking to the Romans about the continuing confusion early Christians had around how they were to obtain salvation (2000 years later, are we any different?!?). Having been a Jew, Paul recognized the complexities of Hebrew law and how following all of the rituals and rules which were supposed to justify a person's faith. Many of the early Christians believed that they had the ability to "earn" there way to salvation by their works and gain righteousness through simply having a passion for the teachings of Christ.

To clear things up, Paul makes it really simple. He puts aside any misconceptions on things we have to do to be saved: believe it and speak it. By truly having a heart which believes that Jesus was the Son of God who came to earth to die so that we might have eternal life with God, and by saying it out loud, we are saved. That's it. What power in those words!

One of the rules with our family is that there are certain words we don't use. Yes, the standard ones apply that I won't even write here, but there are also other words which, though seemingly less profane or taboo, can be just as sharp. Words like "stupid", "hate", "ugly", "shut up"...these words when directed at someone, are very hurtful and mean. Even as our daughters have grown up, and they hear these words at school every day, they still get a cross look from us or a scolding when one of these words slips from their mouth by accident.

Similarly, we need to think about the words we use to speak to ourselves. When we say things to ourselves such as, "I can't do it", "I'm a failure", "I'm miserable", "I hate myself", do they hold any less strength to do harm than when we say them to others? What about supportive words? When we say "I know I can do it", "Stay strong", or "I'm not going to let it get me down", are we also not unleashing the power of the positive? In either situation, the positive or the negative, repeated enough times, these words can become the truth. The can shape how we view ourselves and those around us.

Paul realized this when writing his letter to the Romans: words have power. When we confess with our lips, say out loud, that Jesus is our Lord, it becomes the truth.

So, speak the words which you want to become the truth. Know that in speaking with your heart, you have tremendous strength. Recognize the power you have to do good things, simply by saying them, to others, but most importantly, to yourself.