USE YOUR WORDS TO CHANGE YOUR LIFE Pt.2

If we are going to start seeing the power of God manifest in our lives, we will have to start paying attention to what we say. Words have power—more than any of us realize, but we often speak them as though they are meaningless. Because of that, most believers at one time or another have been hung by their tongue.

Matthew 12:36-37 says, “But I say unto you, That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment. For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned.”

“Every idle word” simply means nonproductive. These are words that you speak but don’t believe. For example, you might say, “I’m dying to see my grandchildren.” You really don’t mean you’re dying, but you say it anyway to emphasize the importance of the relationship.

Every time you say things that you don’t really mean, it begins to numb your heart. Unconsciously, each idle word is making it just a little bit harder to believe what you say will actually come to pass when you mean it and it really counts.

Jesus certainly understood the power of words, and He used them to change the natural things around him.

Mark 11:13-14 and 20-24 say,

“And seeing a fig tree afar off having leaves, he came, if haply he might find any thing thereon: and when he came to it, he found nothing but leaves; for the time of figs was not yet. And Jesus answered and said unto it, No man eat fruit of thee hereafter for ever. And his disciples heard it…. And in the morning, as they passed by, they saw the fig tree dried up from the roots. And Peter calling to remembrance saith unto him, Master, behold, the fig tree which thou cursedst is withered away. And Jesus answering saith unto them, Have faith in God. For verily I say unto you, That whosoever shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; and shall not doubt in his heart, but shall believe that those things which he saith shall come to pass; he shall have whatsoever he saith. Therefore I say unto you, What things soever ye desire, when ye pray, believe that ye receive them, and ye shall have them.”

I can almost hear the inflections in Peter’s voice when he said, “The fig tree You cursed is withered away.” I am sure it communicated surprise and disbelief. And when Jesus replied to Peter, it probably was not in a monotone voice. It was more like, “PETER! WHAT’S WRONG WITH YOU?” Jesus was amazed at his unbelief. He was saying, “It shouldn’t shock you to see this tree withered. Have faith in God.”