If you missed parts one and two, be sure to check out the recaps here:
Christianity is a war. Some battles in the war are fought just once, some are constantly re-fought. The battle for the tongue and for what we say is one that must be won over and over again. You should probably already know by now that the theme verse for this series is found in 1 Timothy 6:11-12:
But you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance and gentleness. Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses.
Indeed, we all make many mistakes. For if we could control our tongues, we would be perfect and could also control ourselves in every other way.
We can make a large horse go wherever we want by means of a small bit in its mouth. And a small rudder makes a huge ship turn wherever the pilot chooses to go, even though the winds are strong. In the same way, the tongue is a small thing that makes grand speeches.
But a tiny spark can set a great forest on fire. And the tongue is a flame of fire. It is a whole world of wickedness, corrupting your entire body. It can set your whole life on fire, for it is set on fire by hell itself.
Also check out Proverbs 18:21: Death and life are in the power of the tongue, and those who love it will eat its fruit.
Tonight we are covering the subject of speaking by faith. What does it mean to speak life?
Ephesian 4:29 says: Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.
Is what you say building others up? What does speaking life sound like? How do we create good things through our words?
2 Corinthians 4:8-13 covers this: We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus’ sake, so that his life may also be revealed in our mortal body. So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you.
It is written: “I believed; therefore I have spoken.” Since we have that same spirit of faith, we also believe and therefore speak.
Instead of negativity, complaining about how tough it is or predicting doom and gloom, what if we spoke by faith? What if we spoke the words that God is speaking?
It's easy, fun and popular to criticize. People like to listen to criticism – there is always an audience for negativity.
But there is another option - speak faith and life in the midst of those difficult circumstances! Believe and therefore speak!
Our lives are steered by our words. Sometimes you can change your heart by changing what you say. By practicing saying the right things instead of the wrong things, you can change your perspective, change your attitude, and change your heart!
How does faith work? It starts at salvation.
Romans 10:8-10 says, But what does it say? “The word is near you; it is in your mouth and in your heart,” that is, the message concerning faith that we proclaim: f you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved.
You first step into faith was when you first believed that God sent His Son to save you, and spoke it out by praying the sinners prayer. The way we receive salvation is the same way we receive every other Spiritual gift. You believed and you spoke. Faith always follows that same pattern. It's not good enough to merely believe. We believe with our heart, but we also use our words!
Two important things to remember about faith:
1. Faith faces facts. You don't have to life in a state of denial to be in faith. Paul and Abraham both faced the facts about their situations, but didn't let them define who they were or dictate the future. Faith speaks in spite of the facts of the circumstances you find yourself in.
Romans 4:18-21 says, Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead—since he was about a hundred years old—and that Sarah’s womb was also dead. Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised.
2. Faith starts with obedience. Before God even made a promise to Abraham about his descendants, He gave him instructions. And Abraham followed them. Abraham didn't just randomly start believing for whatever he happened to want at that moment. He didn't just start speaking whatever he wanted over and over again and expect God to appease Him. We speak in obedience to what God has promised us. You need to fill your heart with the word God has spoken to you until it overflows out of your mouth.
Philippians 4:13 promises that God will supply all of your needs. But if you are not being obedient to God, you can confess that verse all you want and it won't mean anything.
For instance, if you're not tithing, God has said that you are under a curse. So if you are not tithing yet you're praying to God for blessing, it's pointless; it goes against His word. Similarly, if you are praying for healing from your lung cancer while smoking 4 packs a day, it's probably not gonna work. God has called us to be smart, to take good care of ourselves and to obey the commandments He's already given.
We speak the words God has spoken to us.
Reinhardt Bonke said, “God's word in your mouth is just as powerful as God's word in God's mouth.” Woah. That is saying that if you were somehow present when God created light, and he leaned over and said to you, “Hey, why don't you try this one,” and you said, “Let there be light,” it would be. Get it? When you put God's word in your mouth, it carries just as much power as it does in His own mouth!
Find out what God is saying about you, about your future, about your destiny and get it into you. Make it a part of you. Speak it, repeat it! Speak what God says about you!
Jeremiah 29:11 and Philippians 4:13 are good places to start. When you read the Bible regularly you will find that God speaks to you through other verses that pop out at you. Take the time to find out what God's word is, speak it, and you will see it come to pass!
0 ,:
Post a Comment