Why Words Matter to God

It’s a bit ironic that the human race’s descent into darkness began with the serpent’s own twisted misrepresentation of God’s words of instruction to His image-bearers. Words, after humanity’s fall into sin, can now be used either to injure or inspire.

This is why King David prayed that the words of his mouth be “acceptable” in the sight of God. In a fallen world, we often don’t even understand the weight of what we say or, in this age, what we type.

David’s son, Solomon, understood well the power of words. The wisest man in all the world often reflected on language in his proverbs:

There is one whose rash words are like sword thrusts,
but the tongue of the wise brings healing (Proverbs 12:18 ESV).

Death and life are in the power of the tongue,
and those who love it will eat its fruits (Proverbs 18:21 ESV).

Death and life are in the power of the tongue. And, we might say today, the power of the thumb.

Words can create or destroy; they can uplift or condemn. They can reflect the Word by which God has spoken, or they can echo the whispers of the serpent. So powerful are words, the Apostle James tells Christian leaders that “no person can tame” them (James 3:8).

If Solomon saw fit to warn the people of God in the Old Testament of the power of words, and if James saw fit to warn the early church of the power of words, how much more today should God’s people heed what God is speaking to us about how we speak?

We live in a world with a vast and seemingly unlimited economy of words. There are more ways to communicate today than at any time in human history.

It may seem at times that stewarding our communication, especially the easy and free way we communicate online, is next to impossible. We might say with James, “Who can tame this beast?” But we should remember that those destructive half-truths in the garden were not the final word.

Jesus, God’s Final Word, has spoken a word over those who have turned to Him in faith. He declares His word that we are justified and we are transformed. Jesus has conquered that unruly, death-dealing beast, and has given us God’s Holy Spirit to help us tame our tongues and our thumbs.

This originally posted at Facts and Trends and is an excerpt from my new book, A Way With Words, releasing in August and available now for pre-order.