Speak Life Part I

      Speak Life

     There are two words that I want to talk about that will set a foundation for this message and they are the words "speak" and "life". We need to understand the power of words and there ability to create or destroy and the consequences of the words that we speak. 

     Let's start with the word "speak".  In the Greek language it means:  To command, call, grant and is an action word.  The dictionary says that when we speak we express, voice, declare and communicate words with sound that express feelings. These words  and the statements we speak forth from our mouth can either be good or bad and bring life or death.

     When we speak it causes a chain reaction that can either create or destroy in the physical realm as well as in the spiritual realm. Have you ever noticed how just one word can change the atmosphere in a room or how it can affect a persons mood and their countenance can change from happy to sad in an instant?

     The bible tells us in Proverbs 15:4 - A soothing tongue is a tree of life, but perversion in it crushes the Spirit.

     Our second word is the word "life".  In the Greek language it means:  "Zoe" which is life as God has in Himself that he gave to Jesus, and that life, Jesus has given unto us.  It is life in its highest and best.

     This word "Zoe" comes from a combination if two Greek words.

          1.  "Zao" which means:  To live
          2.  And "Psuche" meaning:  Breath of life.

     In Genesis 2:7 we can see the results of what "speaking life" does.

          Verse 7:  And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and man became a living soul.

     Let's now go to Genesis 1:3 and talk about the creative process of the first day.

          Verse 3:  And "God said".

     The Hebrew word for "said" in this verse is "amar-aw-mar" and means:  To say, to speak, command and demand with great freedom of not being restricted to distance, choice or action.

     So when God was creating the earth and everything in it, He would just "speak "and "life" would be created.  There was an action that took place, a coming together of His creative power as He spoke. Wow! if you'll stop for a moment and think about what I just said I think you will find that it is hard for us to comprehend this in it's totality and the magnitude of power it took to cause atoms and all the chemical elements to come together to accomplish life.  This simply blows my mind and I can't take it all in at once.  When you think about the universe, the galaxy's, the planets, the plants, animals and human life that He created by just simply opening His mouth, forming the right words and sounds of life  were herd throughout eternity and out of nothingness everything was formed and life was birthed.  What a mighty God He is and how could we ever not trust the one who gave us this life and the beautiful world we can enjoy.

     At the beginning of each day, the bible tells us that "God said".  These two words were spoken 10 times within the 7 days of creation and always at the beginning of each day.  This is an interesting side note and that is what the number 10 means scripturally and that is "perfection in order".

     There is a great example of Jesus speaking life in John 11:43,44 and this is what it says.

          Verse 43:  And when He thus had spoken, He cried with a loud voice, Lazarus, come forth.

          Verse 44:  And he that was dead came forth.

     When God speaks, everything He has created has to stop, listen and obey.  I'm reminded of the time when Jesus said to His disciple's let us go over to the other side.  Leaving the multitude they all got into the boat and a  strong wind came up and the waves were breaking over the boat so much that the boat was filling up with water.  The disciple's by this time were fearing for their lives but Jesus was asleep in the stern of the boat so the disciple's woke Him up and said to Him, Teacher, do you not care that we are perishing?  And immediately seeing what was going on He rebuked the wind and said to the sea, hush, be still. 

     Getting back to our scripture John 11:43,44;  it wasn't because Jesus spoke out loud so all of those around Him could hear what He was saying, but it was so Jesus could "speak life"into Lazarus through the power of His Word. In John 6:63 Jesus said:

          Verse 63:  It is the spirit that quickeneth, the flesh profiteth nothing; the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit and they are life.

     All through the scriptures, Jesus but spoke only a few words and life was restored and created.  And a good example is John 4:50  that tells us about the nobleman's son that was dieing and Jesus said to him, go thy way, thy son liveth.  And the man believed the word that Jesus had spoken unto him, and he went his way. 

     Where ever Jesus went, he "spoke life". He "created life" out of what was called dead; dead not only physically, but emotionally and spiritually.  Remember when Jesus met the Samaritan woman at the well and how He spoke of everlasting life to her heart.  He did not speak words of condemnation or words to make her feel guilty, but He spoke words of love and life that penetrated to her very heart and soul. 

     In Luke 6:45 it tells us:

          Verse 45:  A good man out of the good (valuable) treasure of his heart, bringeth forth that which is good.  And an evil (hurtful) man out of the evil (hurtful) treasure of his heart, bringeth forth that which is evil (hurtful).  For out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.

     It's interesting that the word "heart" in this verse means:  The thoughts or feelings in the middle and refers to the broken hearted as Proverbs 18:8 says:

          Verse 8:  The words of a talebearer are as wounds, and they go down into the innermost parts of the belly.

     Many people speak out of their own hurts because they have been wounded and rejected by people they thought loved them and I'm sad to say even by Christian's. All of us have been hurt through past experiences and suffered times and degrees of verbal, emotional, psychological and physical abuse from someone.  Some of us have carried these hurts into our adult lives that have affected us at a very deep level and so we find ourselves speaking out from that hurt that wounds others. 

     God has given us a powerful tool that we can use to "speak life" with or "speak death" with as Proverbs 18:21 tells us:

          Verse 21:  Death and life are in the power of the tongue; and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.

    I know that part of the process of healing is understanding why we say, respond, react and act when under pressure.  Even in these times of uncertainty in the world, the economy and what the next few years are going to unveil, please know that God is always working behind the scenes and seeing to every small detail of our lives.  He has, is and will continue to take us through sanctification and deliverance as long as we are on this earth. One of the important things on His heart is that you live an abundant life and that you walk in joy, peace and experience His love in all that you see and do.  There is a life beyond the limitations that we walk in today and His desire is for you to experience so much more of Him. It is a life knowing with assurance that no matter what happens in the world today that God has a plan and a purpose for you and that He has, is and always will "speak life" into your future.  He is just a breath away and "HE SPEAKS LIFE TO YOU".

Next week part II

Blessings,

Elma Garlock