Connection Between Words and Faith

Have you ever considered how powerful words are? Words are one of the most powerful traits of being human. The ability to speak words is exclusively a human quality that we acquired from God Himself. We have found that there are animals who can communicate in limited ways through a grunt or a squeal or a whistle, and they can warn their kind of danger, or there's food nearby, or send other messages of communication to one another. But the ability to speak words is exclusively a human quality that we acquired from the Creator Himself because we were made in His image. We're even reminded in John 1 that the Word, who later became known as Jesus Christ, literally spoke the world into existence. Through His spoken Word, material was fashioned to become the earth and the sky and everything that we know of in this world. Words are powerful because they reflect or they reveal what are in our hearts. As Jesus said in Matthew 12, out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks. Jesus also said that we're in danger of judgment for every idle word that comes out of our mouth. So today I think it would be helpful and beneficial for us as God's people to remind ourselves of the powerful impact that words have in each and every one of us. How they can even affect our faith, how they can affect the next generation, how they can affect virtually every area of our lives. So let's begin by going to James 1 and beginning in verse 2.

We're going to see a correlation here between words and between faith. This is very important because we live by faith. We hold on to our beliefs in spite of obstacles that confront us in this world. We maintain our faith in spite of the fact that we may be mocked, or in spite of the fact that others are the exact opposite of the way that we believe, and because of that we receive ridicule, or we receive persecution, or we're denied opportunities because of our religious beliefs, yet we maintain and hold on to the faith that we have through Jesus Christ. James chapter 1 beginning in verse 2, here's what James wrote. He said, And indeed, that's part of God's plan. And as I've said in the past, all of us have our own cross to bear. Some of us are bearing the cross of job issues. Some are bearing the cross of financial issues. Some of us are bearing the cross of relationships have gone bad. Some of us are bearing the cross of seeing loved ones suffering. Each and every one of us has our own cross to bear. But there's a reason behind that. It's because God is testing our faith. He wants to produce one of the fruits of His Holy Spirit, which is patience. Verse 4, How many here believe that they lack wisdom?

Certainly. We all need more wisdom. But here's what James continues to write.

This is for wisdom.

Now, what James says here is very profound, because we all face trials and we all face tests in life. And we all need wisdom to walk through the minefields of life successfully. But James is telling us here very clearly and very pointedly that wisdom is a gift that comes from God that comes by faith. So what is faith? Well, turn to Hebrews 11, verse 1. We'll take a look at a scripture we're all very familiar with. If you'll begin turning to Hebrews 11, verse 1. And I'll give you a modern translation of it here. Faith is the firm belief in something we can't detect with our five senses. It's the mental expectation of something that hasn't happened yet, that isn't there. Aside from what we believe in our minds, there is no physical evidence that it's available, that it's happened, that it's there. If there was one shred of physical evidence, then you would no longer have faith, because it would be a reality. Hebrews 11, verse 1, it says, Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen. I'll read this verse from the New Century version of the Bible. Faith means being sure of the things we hope for and knowing that something is real, even if we do not see it. So the key of faith is that there's no evidence, aside from what's in our minds, the hope and the expectation and the desires that are in our hearts, there is no physical evidence at all that it is coming to pass or that it has happened. In contrast, if we can see something, if we can hear it, if we can feel it, smell it, or taste something, it's no longer faith, because it's become a reality. Do you realize that we not only can have a positive faith that can do wonderful things in our lives, but we can also have a negative faith? Let me give you some examples. We might pray, Oh, God, Lord, please help me with my finances. But then we get up and we say, I'll never get out of debt. I've been poor all my life. My parents were poor. Everyone that I know is poor. It just isn't going to happen. You see, that's a contradiction. That's the double-mindedness that James is talking about. We are praying for one thing, but the words that's coming out of our mouth is something else altogether. We might say, Oh, Lord, please help me to find a job or a better job. But then we get up and we make statements like, Who's going to hire me? I don't have the skills or the talents to get a better job. There are 11 million people looking for jobs right now. What chance do I have of getting a better job or getting a job? You see, brethren, when we talk like this, we are being double-minded, as the phrase James used, and we're putting limits on ourselves. With our words, we can prophesy our own future. And sadly, many people pray for good things, pray for right things, pray for wonderful things, but then, with what comes out of their mouth, they predict and act out stagnation in their lives. They predict and they act out by words lacking in their life instead of abundance, instead of good things. Let's continue to explore the power behind words, because the power behind words, in some ways, is mysterious, even in ways that are beyond man-knowing. Let's go to James now, back to the book of James, chapter 3, and we'll begin in verse 1, as James talks about the tremendous power of the human tongue and the words that come out of our mouths. I hope today that we can explore a little bit of the mystery, the powerful mystery behind the words that come out of our mouths, because I don't think that we fully realize or appreciate them. James, chapter 3, beginning in verse 1. James continues here, he says, My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment.

You know, when I sit in sermonette class and I look at all of these eager men giving sermonettes, saying to themselves, Wow, it would be wonderful to give a sermonette in front of the congregation, I oftentimes ask myself if they've ever considered James, chapter 3, in verse 1. Because there's an incredible judgment that comes, a stricter judgment when God has called you to teach people. You're held accountable for the words that come out of your mouth. Verse 2, For we all stumble in many things. If anyone does not stumble in word, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle the whole body. Indeed, we put bits in horses' mouths that they may obey us, and we may turn their whole body. Look also at ships, although they are so large and are driven by fierce winds, they are turned by a very great rudder, wherever the pilot desires. Even so, the tongue is a little member and boasts great things. See how a forest, see how great a forest a little fire kindles. We all grew up in the United States, well, people my age did, ancient people my age, with Smokey the Bear, who said only you can prevent forest fires. Why did Smokey say that? Because just one little spark can cause thousands and thousands and thousands of acres of a forest to go up in flames and be destroyed. And that's exactly what James is saying here. How great a forest a little fire kindles. Huge forest fire. Verse 6. And the tongue is a fire, a world of iniquity. The tongue is so set among our members that it defiles the whole body. How does it defile the whole body? Have you ever said something, and as soon as the words came out of your mouth, you said, Oh, that was really stupid. Have you ever said something, and you were so humiliated that your heart sank? You immediately thought, Oh, I wish I hadn't said that. That's something that came out of your mouth and affected your entire body. You probably, your heart sank. Your mind said, Oh, why did you say that? You probably physically slumped and said, I wish I could take that back, but we can't take it back. That's the difficult thing about words. They're very, very difficult to take back. So continuing, the tongue is so set among our members that it defiles the whole body and sets on fire the course of nature and is set on fire by hell. It can produce very terrible things. The words that come out of our mouths can create hell in people's lives. Both physically and in a spiritual way, it can produce very negative results. Verse 7, For every kind of beast and bird of reptile, of creature of the sea, is tamed and has been tamed by mankind, but no man can tame the tongue. It is an unruly evil, full of deadly poison. With it we bless our God and Father, and with it we curse men who have been made in the similitude or the image of God.

Verse 10, Out of the same mouth proceed blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be. Does the spring send forth fresh water and bitter from the same opening? Can a fig tree, my brethren, bear olives or a grapevine bear figs? Thus no spring yields both salt water and fresh. Oftentimes, brethren, we don't make the powerful connection between faith and the words that come out of our mouths.

The words we speak are very powerful in ways that we don't even completely comprehend or understand. Let me give you a few examples. If a small child grows up in an environment where they're repeatedly told by mom and or dad that they're stupid or they're ugly or they'll never achieve anything, if you took a hundred children and said that to them, there will be the rare few who out of spite and determination just to prove you wrong will pull themselves out of their bootstraps and become highly successful. But the overwhelming majority of children who grow up in that environment, sadly, will become a fulfilled prophecy of what the parents told them they were.

If they're repeatedly told that, there's an excellent chance that they will believe it, that that negative faith will deepen in their minds and their hearts, and they'll accept that and that they'll live up to, or in this case, live down to those expectations. Within our marriages, if a spouse lives in a household where they're constantly tormented by nagging or humiliating comments, it will have a negative effect on them and they'll throw a switch and turn themselves off emotionally, and then you're living with a stranger. We should never underestimate the power of the spoken word to eventually produce either good or produce bad. In my life, I've been involved with a lot of leadership seminars and presentations, and one of the things that I've learned, whether it's a company or a department, is if an employer or a manager tells those people that work for them that they're lazy or stupid or incompetent or they can't do their job right, guess what?

They're going to live up to or live down to the words that are constantly harangued and spoken to them as they're humiliated, hearing that over and over and over again. So we need to understand that there is a powerful connection between the words that come out of our mouths and what occurs in our lives and in the lives of others. So for the sermon today, I would like to take some time to discover how powerful the spoken word actually is. Let's begin by going to Genesis 1, and we'll see a situation here about how words, powerfully a word, is connected to our faith.

Just before we're going to pick this up, in Genesis 15, verse 1, in context, Abram had just rescued Lot from the king of Sodom, and he had met Melchizedek, and he had tied the Melchizedek, and now the Scripture picks up another event in Abram's life. Again, Genesis 15, beginning in verse 1. We're going to see the powerful, mysterious connection between faith and words. After these things, the word of the Lord came to Abram in a saying, saying, Do not be afraid, Abram.

I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward. But Abram said, Lord God, what will you give me, seeing that I go childless? He said, I don't have an heir of my own. I don't have a fruit of my body to become an heir, to fulfill all of these good things that you say you're going to give me, God. He says, And the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus, not a relative, not a blood relationship, just a very good and dedicated servant was Eliezer. And he would inherit everything that Abraham had if Abraham had no physical children. Then Abram said, Look, you have given me no offspring.

Indeed, one born in my house is my heir. No one born, or indeed, one born in my house is my heir. And behold, the word of the Lord came to him, saying, This one shall not be your heir, but one who will come from your own body shall be your heir. And he brought him outside and said, Look now toward heaven and count the stars if you were able to number them. And he said to him, So shall your descendants be.

And he believed the Lord, and he accounted it to him for righteousness. So in this story, Abram says to God, These blessings can't be fulfilled because no one who's come out of my body can inherit these things. Everything's going to go to my trusted and loyal servant. And God says, No, that's not true. I'm telling you that out of your own body, out of your own DNA, is going to come your heir. He says, And that heir, look up into the sky, and do you see all those stars?

That's how you'll be able to number your descendants. Now, what does Abram do? Well, Abram attempted to fulfill God's promise his way. Not the way God intended, but his way. What he does is he decides that he should have a son by having a relationship with his wife's servant, Hagar. This was not what God intended. But at this point in time, Abram isn't Abraham. And he doesn't get the picture, and he doesn't totally understand the powerful connection between God's promises, which are words, and what his fates should be.

Now let's go to Genesis 16, verse 15. It says, So Hagar bore Abram a son, and Abram named his son, whom Hagar bore Ishmael. Abram was 86 years old when Hagar bore Ishmael to Abraham. Now that's getting quite up there for a man, isn't it? 86 years old to be a father. But that's not all. Now in Genesis, chapter 17, verse 1, it says, When Abram was 99 years old, the Lord appeared to Abram and said to him, I am Almighty God, walk before me and be blameless, and I will make a covenant between me and you, and will multiply you exceedingly.

Then Abraham fell on his face, and God talked with him, saying, As for me, behold, my covenant is with you, and you shall be a father of many nations. No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be called Abraham. And Abraham literally means father of many nations. He says, for I have made you a father of many nations. That's a promise from God. I will make you exceedingly fruitful, and I will make nations of you, and kings shall come from you. Verse 15 now, then God said to Abraham, As for Sarai, your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name.

Sarah means princess. And I will bless her, and will also give you a son by her. Then I will bless her, and she shall be a mother of nations. Kings and peoples shall come from her, shall be from her. And verse 17, then Abraham fell on his face, and laughed, and said in his heart, Shall a child be born to a man who is a hundred years old? And shall Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child? And Abraham said to God, Oh, that Ishmael might live before you. Now, the better way that that's translated is from the New Century version that says, Then Abraham said to God, Please let Ishmael be the son that you promised. Abraham is saying, God, I'm not sure that I get this picture. You really mean Ishmael, don't you? You don't mean someone who is almost a hundred years old is going to have a son. You're not serious. You don't really mean that a ninety-year-old lady, who perhaps is decades beyond the natural human processes of even being able to have a child, is going to have a child? Surely, Lord, you must mean Ishmael. So right now, Abraham is actually being the father of the faithless. Right? Not father of the faithful. He hears God. Yes, indeed, it is God speaking to him. He knows it's God, but the words that come out of Abraham's mouth reveal that he doesn't really believe this will happen. Now, let's go to verse 19. Then God said, No, Sarah, your wife shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him for an everlasting covenant and with his descendants after him. As for Ishmael, I have heard you. Behold, I have blessed him and will make him fruitful and will multiply him exceedingly. He shall beget twelve princes, and it will make him a great nation. But by covenant, my covenant, I will establish with Isaac, whom Sarah shall bear to you at this set time next year. Then he finished talking with him, and God went up from Abraham. Now, God knows the power of words, and he knows the incredible effect the words that come out of our mouths can have on our own faith and on the faith of others. To help Abraham get the vision, to help him realize the incredible connection there is between faith and the words that come out of our mouths, to catch the vision of the promise, he even changed Abraham's and Sarah's names to emphasize this essential point. Now, even though he may have lacked a little bit of faith, from that point on, when someone says, hey, Father of many nations, how are you doing today? That was his new name. Those are words that are coming out of people's mouths. That's a new name that God gave him. Father of many nations, meaning you're going to have all kinds of descendants. How about Sarah, which is now Sarah, a 90-year-old barren woman? No. Hey, Princess! How are you doing today? What is a princess? A princess is someone who is young and vibrant, still able to bear children, youthful, vigorous, and that became her name. So God himself, knowing the powerful connection between the words that come out of people's mouths and faith, even changes the names of Abraham and Sarah so that they can catch the vision and the connection between the words that are said and God's promises coming true. And indeed, that's exactly what happened. Let's take a look at another example of the almost mysterious power of words by going to Genesis 27 and verse 22. This is a story that many of us are familiar with. Isaac was ready to give the blessing, firstborn blessing. It was intended for Esau.

But Jacob's mother, Jacob was Esau's brother, his mother got word that Dad was ready to give the blessing. And she sets up a situation so that Jacob can get there first, deceive his father, and receive the blessing of the firstborn. And that's exactly what Jacob did. He went out, he found the meat that his father loved, usually that Esau prepared.

His mother made it because Jacob probably couldn't even open a can of Campbell Soup. So Mom makes his favorite meal for him to take to his dad. He puts on the clothes of his brother. It smells earthy. It smells farm-like animals, which I guess was attractive to Isaac. They didn't have Old Spice back then, so in place of having Old Spice, Isaac appreciated those farm smells.

So Jacob comes to his dad, pretending to be his brother so he can deceive his father and get the blessing of the firstborn. So let's pick it up here in Genesis, chapter 27, verse 22. So Jacob went near to Isaac, his father, and he felt him and said, The voice is Jacob's voice, but the hands are the hands of Esau. That's always a maze, but if you're going to go to all that trouble for the seat, wouldn't you at least try to pretend like your voice was your brother's? Something I'll have to ask him someday.

Verse 23. And he did not recognize him because his hands were hairy like his brother Esau's hands, so he blessed him. And he said, Are you really my son Esau? And he said, I am. And he said, Bring it near to me, and I will eat of my son's game, so that my soul may bless you. So he brought it near to him, and he ate, and he brought him wine, and he drank. And his father Isaac said to him, here's the blessing, He says, Come near now and kiss me, my son.

And he came near and kissed him, and smelled the smell of his clothing, and blessed him, and said, Surely the smell of my son is like the smell of a field which the Lord has blessed. Therefore, may God give you, notice the connection between God. He's speaking now. These are words coming out of his mouth, the connection between God and this prophecy, this faith. May God give you of the dew of heaven, of the fatness of the earth, and plenty of grain and wine.

Verse 29, Let people serve you, and nations bow down to you. Be master over your brethren, and let your mother's sons bow down to you. Cursed be everyone who curses you, and blessed be those who bless you. So, brethren, notice here that the words of Isaac, that he speaks them in God's name.

And even though he's been deceived, he gives this blessing to Jacob, saying, May God give you these things. Now, let's pick it up in chapter 27, verse 30. Now, it happened as soon as Isaac had finished blessing Jacob, and Jacob had scarcely gone out from the presence of his father, that he saw his brother came in from hunting. We'll stop right there for a second. So what do you think is going to happen? Do you think that the father's going to say, I've been deceived, I take it all back?

Can't happen because it was a lie. No. He can't take it back. Can't? The words. There's a powerful meaning behind them. He can't reverse them. He can't take them back as much as he might want to. Just can't do it. Let's read this. Verse 31, speaking of Esau, he also made savory food, brought it to his father, and said to his father, that my father arise and eat of his son's game, that your soul may bless me. And his father Isaac said to him, who are you?

He said, I am your son, your firstborn. Esau. Then Isaac trembled exceedingly. That trembling came from anger. That trembling came from a sense of being deceived and lied to by his beloved son Jacob. And said, who, where is the one who hunted game and brought it to me?

I ate all of it before you came, and I have blessed him, and indeed he shall be blessed. Can't take it back. The words have been spoken. Verse 34, when Esau heard the words of his father, he cried with an exceedingly great and bitter cry. And said to his father, bless me, also my father. But he said, your brother came with deceit, and has taken away your blessing. And Esau said, is he not rightly named Jacob, which of course we know means deceiver. For he has supplanted me these two times. He took away my birthright, and now look, he has taken away my blessing.

And he said, have not you reserved a blessing for me? Then Isaac answered and said to Esau, indeed, I have made him your master. And all his brethren I have given to him as servants, with grain and wine I have sustained him. What shall I do now for you, my son? Verse 38, and Esau said to his father, have you only one blessing, my father? Bless me, me also, O my father. And Esau lifted up his voice, and he wept. Brethren, again, I want you to notice the power behind words, especially when they're spoken within the context of the name of God.

Even though Jacob was deceived, and Jacob had deceived his father to receive the firstborn's blessing, it can't be taken back. It can't be reversed. If we have children in our household, and from ages 1 to 16 we tell them they're stupid, they're ugly, they'll never amount to anything, you know what? You can't take those words back either. You can't reverse those words either.

If you refer to your spouse as stupid or an airhead or whatever terms that you may have for your spouse, you can't take those words back. They hurt. You can't reverse them. They're there. And ultimately they have an effect. Let's take a look at another example that's related to this in Genesis chapter 30 and verse 25. In time, Jacob, of course, has to flee home because his brother Esau wants to kill him.

I wonder why that is. But because his brother Esau wants to kill him for two times, snaking blessings away from him, he flees. And eventually, I'm not going to go through the whole story, but one of his wives becomes Rachel. And an interesting thing about God is what a great sense of humor God has. That's the thing that always is remarkable to me. Jacob's name means deceiver, and he thought he was really hot stuff until he met Uncle Laban.

Uncle Laban makes him look like an elementary school student up against a PhD in deception. And for years he gets hosed by Uncle Laban. I gave a sermon a few years ago. It's an interesting contrast how when they first meet, in a period of time, Jacob grows from being the deceiver to one who becomes very converted and eventually gives himself to God. Where in contrast, when they first meet, Laban has a knowledge of God and appears to be a religious man. But as time goes on, he grows more and more deceitful and unconverted in the ways that he treats his entire family.

So here's a situation that after a while, after Jacob had spent all the time paying off his wives by working for his father-in-law, he decides that he wants to leave. So let's pick up the story here, Genesis 30, verse 25, because there's an incredible spiritual principle that goes beyond what we're reading in the pages of the Bible.

And it came to pass when Rachel had born Joseph, that Jacob said to Laban, Send me away that I may go to my own place, to my own country, in other words, I want to go home. Give me my wives and my children from whom I have served you, and let me go, for you know my service which I have done before you. And Laban said to him, Please stay if I found favor in your eyes, for I have learned by experience. Now that's a tactful way of saying it. If you look closely at that Hebrew word, it's not experience, it's divination. As a matter of fact, that Hebrew word says and implies, by observing a serpent's slither.

So what he's basically saying here is, by observing snakes, I have determined that the Lord has blessed you for my sake. This is how degenerate Laban had come over a period of time. Verse 28, and he said, Name your wages and I will giveth. So Jacob said to him, You know how I have served you and how your livestock had been with me, for what you had before I came was little, and it has increased to a great amount. The Lord has blessed you since my coming, and now when shall I also provide for my own house?

So he said, What shall I give you? And Jacob said, You shall not give me anything. If you will do this thing for me, I will again feed and keep your flocks. Let me pass through all your flock today, removing from there all the speckled and spotted sheep and the brown ones among the lambs, and the spotted and speckled among the goats, and these shall be my wages.

So just stop right there. He says, Let me go through the herd. Laban, you keep the white ones, and I keep those that are spotted and speckled and have brown splotches on them, and I'm going to separate them, and you get to keep all the white ones. Verse 33, So my righteousness will answer for me in time to come.

When the subject of my wages comes before you, every one that is not speckled or spotted among the goats and brown ones among the lambs will be considered stolen if it is with me. In other words, if you look at my herd, and there are a lot of little white ones running around, then you know that I've stolen those sheep from you.

Verse 34, And Laban said, O, that they were according to your words. In other words, great idea! I like that! So he removed that day the male goats that were speckled and spotted, all the female goats that were speckled and spotted, every one that had some white in it, but obviously wasn't all white, and all the brown ones among the lambs, and gave them to the hand of his sons, and he put three days' journey between himself and Jacob, and Jacob fed the rest of Laban's flocks.

Okay, so here's the deal. Laban now owns all the spotted and speckled dark-colored sheep and goats. Laban owns all the white-colored ones. They're separated by three days' distance. Jacob's sons watch his own little flock, and Jacob continues to watch Laban's flock. Now, verse 37. Jacob has something up his sleeves. He's actually going to do something here that doesn't make sense biologically. It had to be a blessing from God. It had to be God's way of saying, you've been hosed over so long by Uncle Lab that now I'm going to teach him a lesson, and I'm going to turn the tide on him.

This is a miracle, but we're going to read. Again, biologically it doesn't make sense how you could take branches and just peel them back so that the branches show brown and white, and that animals mating in front of those branches, you know, who are genetic DNA of being white for 100 generations, suddenly produce spotted lambs and goats, doesn't make sense.

Biologically, this is actually a miracle that's going to occur, but there's a very powerful and important message for us to get behind this understanding from Scripture. Again, now, verse 37. Here's what he does. Jacob took for himself rods of green poplar and of the almond and chestnut trees, peeled white strips in them, and exposed the white which was on the rods. Now, the peeling means that when he peels them back, you're going to have some white pithy exposure, and it's going to be striped because there are going to be areas where the bark remains.

So these branches are going to be a combination of stripey colors, right? Bark and the white pith in areas that are peeled back. Verse 38, and the rods which had peeled, he set before the flocks and the gutters in the watering troughs where the flocks came to drink, so that they should conceive when they came to drink. So the flocks conceived before the rods, and the flocks brought forth streaked, speckled, and spotted. Remember, these flocks are all white. This is Laban's flocks that it's talking about. Verse 40, then Jacob separated the lambs and made the flocks face towards the streaked and brown in the flock of Laban, those that had been born within the flock of Laban, but he put his own flocks by themselves and did not put them with Jacob's or Laban's flock.

Verse 41, and it came to pass whenever the stronger livestock conceived, that Jacob placed the rods before the eyes of the livestock in the gutters that they might conceive among the rods. So here's the second phase of this little trick. When a couple of strong, healthy white sheep came up, white female or goat, big, healthy, obviously, then he would put the branches in front of them.

When they would drink out of the water, they would see the branches, they would mate. When a couple of Laban's goats or sheep came up and they're limping, they're obviously sickly, they're diseased, he would take the branches away, he would let them mate, and sickly white sheep and goats would be born, the Laban's flocks.

So this is what's going on here. Verse 42, but when the flocks were feeble, he did not put them in, so the feebler were Laban's, and the stronger were Jacob's, thus the man became exceedingly prosperous and had large flocks, female and male servants and camels and donkeys. So here's in a nutshell again what Laban does, or I'm sorry, what Jacob does. He takes branches and he peels strips of bark off the branches so that they're streaked with darker bark and white pith, and he places them in the watering troughs where their herds come to drink and where they also mate in their appointed season. And even though the herd is Laban's white flock, they give birth to streaked or spotted animals which become Jacob's.

Don't belong to Laban. Now what Jacob did to gain advantage over his father-in-law isn't a trick. This doesn't make sense biologically. If you're a farmer, do not cut branches off your trees next year and try this, because the cows are going to be born probably the same color that their parents or their grandparent cows, if I can use that phrase, were.

This isn't going to work. I'm not sure why you'd want to do it anyway, but biologically speaking, this is a miracle. But what I need us to understand is that there's a deeper underlying spiritual principle from this story, and it's this. Just like the lambs produced what was in front of them, so we, brethren, also produce what we put in front of our hearts and in front of our minds.

If we focus on negative or critical ideas, if we allow negative words to leave our mouths, that's exactly what we will reproduce. If we focus on positive or uplifting thoughts in life, that is what we will reproduce. We produce what we put in front of us, and if that is negative, if it's condemning, if it's self-absorbed, the results of that will be the reproduction of the same attitudes and the same effects in our lives.

If, on the other hand, what we put in front of us is good and wholesome and positive, what we will reproduce in our lives will be good and wholesome and positive. And that's a very important lesson for us to learn through this story. They reflect. Our lives reflect what we're focusing on. We reproduce what comes out of our mouths, whether it's good things or whether they're bad things. Now let's go to the New Testament and look at some examples, Luke 8 and verse 41.

This is an incredible example by Jesus that's good for all of us to relate to because Jesus Christ was a man of faith. His words were in harmony with his belief system. What he prayed for was in complete harmony with the words that came out of his mouth. And he's going to be in a situation where he's surrounded by negative people. Can't happen. Won't happen. Can't be done. It's too late. He's going to be ridiculed. He's going to be laughed at because the words that come out of his mouth are in harmony completely with what he believes and the faith that he has. Luke 8 and verse 41. It says, And immediately her flow of blood stopped, and Jesus said, Who touched me? When all denied it, Peter and those with him, said, Master, the multitude throng impress you. And you say, Who touched me? They're saying, Everyone touched you, Jesus. Everyone around you. And they're bumping your elbows and they're hitting your side. Everyone wants to shake your hand and touch you. But Jesus said here in verse 46, Somebody touched me, for I perceived power going out from me. And that's the way God's Spirit works. It has to be renewed day by day. And the reason that we need prayer every day and we need to study God's word is just like a big tank. We need to be refilled with God's Spirit each and every day because during the course of a day that tank is depleted. Somebody says something that irritates us, a little oil goes out of that tank. We face an unusual trial or we're stressed out with traffic or something at work, a little bit of oil comes out of that tank. Maybe our spouse says something or our children do something or we have a worry or something going on each day, a little more of that oil goes out of that tank. And it needs to be refilled constantly.

And Jesus said, I perceive power. That is a touch of the Holy Spirit in my life, just being touched and reduced a little bit. Verse 47, now when the woman saw that she was not hidden, she came trembling and falling down before Him. And she declared to Him the presence and the presence of all the people, the reason she had touched Him and how she was healed immediately. And He said to her, daughter, be of good cheer. Your faith has made you well.

Go in peace. Now back to the original story and the reason we're reading this. Verse 49, while He was still speaking, someone came from the ruler of the synagogue's house saying to Him, Your daughter is dead. Don't trouble the teacher. But when Jesus heard it, He answered them, words coming out of His mouth, do not be afraid, only believe, and she will be made well.

When He came to the house, He permitted no one to go in except Peter, James, and John, and the father and mother, the girl. Now all wept and mourned for her, but He said words coming out of His mouth. Now He believes wholeheartedly, I mean, He's the Christ, He believes He has faith, that He's going to be able to raise this girl from the dead.

But what's in harmony with that belief is exactly the words that are coming out of His mouth. Do not weep, she is not dead, but sleeping. And they ridiculed Him. So much like we face every day, we have a belief system, we have faith, but the world around us ridicules what we believe.

They may ridicule our faith. They may do everything they can to make sure that the words that come out of our mouths are contrary to the faith that we believe. It says they ridiculed Him, knowing that she was dead. And they're saying to themselves, look, I saw the little girl, you know, Rigam Mortis has set in, she is dead. She is capital D-E-A-D.

She's gone, she ain't coming back, she's not sleeping, she's not in a coma, she's not resting peacefully, she is dead. But, verse 54, He put them all outside, get rid of the noise, took her by the hand and called, saying, little girl, arise. Then her spirit returned and she arose immediately and He commanded that she be given something to eat. And her parents were astonished, but He charged them to tell no one what had happened.

So in this example, Jesus is surrounded by people who are trying hard to destroy His faith. And you know what? You and I are surrounded by a culture and by an environment that's trying very hard every day to destroy our faith. They want us to pray and believe one thing, but to have words that come out of our mouths that are contrary to what we are asking for, what we are praying for, what we are hoping for. Jesus is told, don't bother, she's dead. And then He's mocked. But Jesus patiently ignored the negative and limited faith of others.

He just went right on doing what He knew was right. He went right on doing what He knew He should do. And that is having the things that He was praying for in harmony with the words that came out of His mouth.

He knew that just like a power had healed the woman who touched Him, who had an issue of blood, words also have power for good or for evil. And like Jesus, we often also need to ignore a negative report. We need to ignore people and situations that are trying to destroy our faith.

There are spirits in this world and there are people influenced in a negative way by the prince of the power of the air that are faith killers. They're faith busters. They want the words that come out of our mouths. They want to get us so depressed, discouraged, impatient that we begin to say things and believe things that are contrary to what we're asking for. They're contrary to what we're actually praying about.

We might be praying about good and wonderful and wholesome things to occur in our lives, in the lives of our loved ones, or yet for the future of this world. Yet we're so frustrated we get off of our knees and we start speaking negatively. We start making negative comments contrary to what we believe, contrary to what we really want, the changes that need to be made in our lives or in this world. Let's now go to Matthew 12 and verse 35. Matthew 12 and verse 35. Here Jesus says, Now the Greek word here used for idol is the word argos, meaning a word that produces no good effect. It's not calculated to produce anything positive or good.

Other definitions of this word include useless, a word that's useless or a word that's barren of value. And Jesus said we need to be careful of saying words like that. Now that doesn't mean in a Calvinistic or an appearance in a way that every word that comes out of our mouth has to be spiritual or religious.

But what he is saying here is that words have a mysterious power that we don't even understand and comprehend. And when we just take that for granted and don't appreciate it and we allow useless or valueless or hurtful words that come out of our mouths that we potentially can bring ourselves into judgment. And we need to repent of that. When we do that, I won't say if we've done that because we're all guilty of doing that. When we do that, that's what repentance is for, asking God to forgive us.

But to get the impact of what Jesus meant here, I think it's good to go to another Scripture with something that he stated in Matthew 5, verse 21. Let's go there just a few chapters before where we were at. Matthew 5, verse 21.

Jesus said, You have heard that it was said to those of old, You shall not murder, and whoever murders will be in danger of judgment. But I say to you that whoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in anger of the judgment, and whoever says to his brother, Raka, shall be in danger of the counsel. But whoever says, You fool, shall be in danger of hellfire. Therefore, if you bring your gift to the altar, and there remember that your brother has something against you, leave your gift there before the altar and go your way. First, be reconciled to your brother, and then come and offer your gift.

So he says, if you say something that has offended your brother, if a word has come out of your mouth that's negative or hurtful or derogatory before you come to worship God, make sure that you've reconciled with your brother. Certainly something we should always keep in mind before each and every Passover service. Now the word Raka is from the Aramaic word Raka. That was pretty deep, wasn't it? And it simply means empty or worthless. So he says, if you say to your brother that you're empty or worthless, you'll be in danger of being drugged before the Jewish counsel and being reprimanded for saying that.

On the other hand, the word Fool is from the Greek word Moros, in which we get the modern word Moron.

That's where we get the word Moron from. He says, if you call your brother a moron, then this attitude goes beyond anger and you've just pushed up a notch. You've gone beyond anger and now you're to the point where you're showing hostility and contempt for someone who was created in God's image. He says, and then you're in danger of serious judgment. Remember what James said earlier? He said, out of our mouth, it's interesting that we bless God, but on the other hand, we curse someone who was made in the similitude of God, someone a child of God made in his image. He said, what a contradiction. And Jesus is reinforcing this here, saying it's one thing to be angry, but when you even take it up a notch, and in your heart you have disdain, you have contempt for another human being, it's as if you murdered them. That's just like murdering them as far as I'm concerned, Jesus says, and you're in danger of hellfire. So go get your life in order, be reconciled with your brother if you felt that way towards your brother or sister, and then come and worship God. The Believer's Study Bible says, although there is a progression in the evil attitude cited, Jesus intends to show that behind the overt act of murder is the disposition of anger, hostility, or contempt. As Jesus did with all parts of the law, he said the letter of the law isn't good enough. In old times it said, you shall not murder. Now I'm telling you, if you hold someone in contempt, if you despise them, and after all they were created in the image of God, then you are potentially guilty of being thrown into the lake of fire, and you need to repent. You need to get that thought out. You need to ask for God's forgiveness, and you need to ask for the forgiveness of your brother if you've said something that is certainly hurt them. Brethren, what I'd like to do to tie some of these loose ends together is I'd like to give all of us some important things to remember about the power of our words, and particularly how our words have to be in harmony with our faith and not in contradiction to it. I have just seven sentences that I'm going to read. If you want to number them fine, if you don't, that's fine as well. I'd suggest more for my benefit than anyone else's. Number one is if we want to see good things to pass and want to have our prayers heard, we need to get our mouth moving in the right direction and speaking words that reinforce what we are praying about. If we pray for one thing and we act out something different, if we're praying for something that happened in our lives, but we get up and we say negative things that are contrary to that prayer that we've asked, then we are double-minded. We are not reinforcing our words with our prayers or the other way around. Sometimes faith means not talking about the way we are, but about the way we want to be. We may be praying about qualities that we don't even have yet, and that's fine. That's good. That's what faith is all about. It's the evidence of things not yet seen. But then we need to get up off our knees and make sure that the words that we speak are in harmony with that.

Number two, when you combine faith with the right words that endorse what you're praying for, you create expectation. Expectation means that we step out in faith and we act like it's going to happen. We believe that it's going to happen.

Sometimes that's hard for us because what we see with our five senses is contrary to what we believe. Contrary to what we want to happen. But we have to step out on faith. We need to get up off of our knees and we need to act like it's going to happen. This kind of expectation goes beyond believing. It puts right action along with our faith.

Now, you might say, well, Mr. Thomas, what happens if it doesn't come to pass? What happens if I believe in something and I have prayers for things to happen and I get off of my knees and I act like they're going to happen, but it still doesn't happen?

Well, my answer to anyone who would ask me that is this. I would rather believe in something positive and encouraging in life and get only some of it than to believe in nothing and get all of it.

Let me say that again. I would rather believe. I would rather believe in something positive and encouraging in life and get only some of it than to believe in nothing and get all of it. And most people in the world believe in nothing and they're getting all of it. That's an important principle.

If it doesn't happen, the next day get on your knees and ask the same thing over again and get off your knees with an expectation and a belief.

And the words that come out of your mouth should reinforce what you've been praying for. I believe that's very important for good things to happen in our lives.

And in the meanwhile, as a day goes by or those days turn into months or years, we're developing the kind of patience that James talked about in the very first scripture that we read today. Here's point number three. Have faith that Christ has saved you from your sins and talk like it. I believe within the Church of God this is a serious issue.

Brethren, you'll never rise above the image that you have of yourself, your own self-image. Satan doesn't want you to understand that you've been made righteous. He wants you to live every day feeling like you're guilty and feeling like you're worthless. And that is not biblical. When Paul said, I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me, that sounds to me like a man who had a pretty positive faith.

A man who had a can-do spirit. Why? Because he was so great? Well, no, he knew he was carnal and he knew that without God's spirit he was nothing more than a pile of trash. But when he received God's spirit, he became a child of God, he became reconciled to God, and because of the power of God's spirit in him, nothing could be hindered. Nothing could be held back.

Understand that you can't give away what you don't have. I can't give you a gift that I don't have. And if you don't respect yourself, as God does, and if you don't have a healthy self-image of your worth, like God does, then you're going to find it very hard to respect and love others. Almost impossible to respect and love others because you can't give a gift that you don't possess yourself.

Number four. If you're negative towards yourself or others, it's not only affecting your own life, but it's influencing every relationship you have. If negative words are coming out of our mouths, it's not just hurting us. It would be one thing if we were the only recipients of negative self-talk and negative talk that comes out of our mouths. Unfortunately, it affects our spouses, our children, our co-workers, our brethren, and everyone who comes in contact with us. And as James reminded us, if we are negative towards ourselves, if we're double-minded, it can also affect our relationship with God.

Because if we're praying for one thing, but the words coming out reveal the exact opposite, then that is, as James again would say, is double-minded, and he should expect to receive nothing from the Lord. That's exactly what James said. Number five. Changing how we think and what we say is the first step towards solving a serious problem. Do you have a serious problem in your life? One that's plagued you for years? Well, let me repeat you the words of Albert Einstein. He said once, You can't solve a problem by using the same thinking that created the problem in the first place. Let me read that again. I think it's pretty profound. You can't solve a problem by using the same thinking that created the problem in the first place. So if the words that are coming out of our mouths, or our attitudes, or our approaches, or our mindset, created this problem in the first place, then you know what? We need to change that attitude, or the words coming out of our mouths, or our mindset. Because, as I'll say for one more time, you can't solve a problem by using the same thinking that created the problem in the first place. Number six. Faith is meant to be a foretaste of the things we pray for. It's a foretaste that usually requires a vision. If you need financial help, then think about those things. Think about how good it would be not to have a financial burden. Think about the ways that you would give to others if you suddenly received a financial blessing you were not expecting. Rather than just saying all about me, I'd pay off all my bills, and I'd all do these things for me, think about the fact that, well, I could give a nice offering to the church. I could help so-and-so family because, man, I think I've got it worse, but they're even worse off financially than I am, and they would appreciate a little help. So faith means, is meant to be a foretaste of the things that we pray for. That means our hopes and our words have to always be in harmony for faith the blossom, and it has to be outgoing. It has to be not only for our benefit, but for the benefit of others. And number seven, faith means that we stop trying to do everything ourselves and trust in God's providence. This is really hard for many of us who come from an American heritage, because the American heritage is self-reliance.

Independence. Pull myself up by my bootstraps. Solve every problem with my incredibly gifted logic.

Conquer! Slay lions because of the skills that I've been given. And we need to get beyond that, because I can assure you what I've learned the hard way are there are a lot of problems that are impossible for us to solve. Lots and lots of them. You can only go so far with self-reliance and independence. And if we have that attitude, I can promise you that God will bring some opportunities in your path to help you to get beyond thinking that we can do it all by ourselves. Now, that doesn't mean we don't do our part. As I like to say, we need to do all we can in the natural and then rely on God to do the supernatural. But remember that we have to be very careful not to try to do everything ourselves and to leave God out of the picture.

Don't forget that it was Abram who tried to force God's promise by having a relationship with Hagar rather than patiently waiting for God to do what God intended to do all along. He tried to force God's hand. He tried to do it his way. He left God out of the picture and tried to do it through sheer physical means, if you know what I mean, and put God to the sideline and didn't trust God to keep his promise or do what God promised. And we have to, you know, there's an old saying that we need to let go and let God. And there comes times, particularly in difficult problems, when we need to do what we can do. And say and admit, honestly, I've done everything I can do, Father. There's no more that I can do. I'm at a crossroads. It's only going to take your divine intervention to make this happen because I can't do it. And I admit that I'm incomplete. I admit that I need your spirit. I admit that I need you to leave your throne and to give me just one touch of your favor in my life that can change everything. And I ask you to do that. I think that's very important. Author Thomas Williams said this, There is really no way to experience joy until you decide to take that leap and plunge into God's hands just like a child jumping into a swimming pool. And that means that we let go and we stop trying to do everything ourselves. That means that we understand what faith is and we get down on our knees and we ask God to make those changes in our lives, to intervene in those trials and problems and tests that we have, and then we get up and we let God do it. And we make sure that the words, that the attitudes and the actions that come from us are in complete harmony. No negativity, no second guessing, no yeah buts, but are in complete harmony with what we've just prayed. I think, brethren, for all of us, that could get us to another level of spiritual understanding if we believe and understand the impact behind words. In a way so mysterious that maybe we don't even yet comprehend the power of the spoken word. But it is very powerful. And used rightly, it literally will change our lives.