This week's scriptures: Numbers 30:1-32:42; Jeremiah 1:1-2:3; Matthew 5:33-37

Amidst the myriad different modes of communication God has created, the spoken word has been given a unique place and power. By God's spoken word the entire world was created. By His spoken word were His desires and standards for our living unveiled.

Through the Old Testament God chose to reach out to His people Israel – and to other nations surrounding them – primarily through the spoken word of His prophets, empowered by the Holy Spirit.

When the Lord walked the earth in the person of Jesus, His words transformed lives with forgiveness, healing, freedom and true life – and sent out his followers to do the same, taking the good news of the Kingdom to the ends of the earth.

Faithfulness in Our Speech

The power of words – for good or ill – means that God takes our speech very seriously - and so should we. This week's Torah portion picks up on this theme, following Moses as he outlines to the Israelites the importance of keeping the vows and pledges they make, including any 'rash promises' they might utter (Num 30:6).

Later in the passage we read of the promise made by the Reubenites and the Gadites to help the other Tribes take the Promised Land, even though they had made a special request to dwell ultimately in land outside of its boundaries. God held them to their word.

In the same chapter we are also reminded of God's faithfulness to His own promises, including the oath He swore in anger to the generation of Israel who feared to enter the Promised Land (Num 32:10-11; Ps 95:11). God desires us to be a people faithful to our words because He is faithful to His.

This week's scriptures take this faithfulness beyond the matter of oaths and vows, however. This week's Haftarah portion is the calling of Jeremiah, who was given the very words of God in order "to uproot and tear down, to destroy and overthrow, to build and to plant" (Jer 1:10). What a responsibility! Numbers 30 also reveals how seriously God takes the words we do not speak – our very silence has power, actively confirming and condoning the actions of others.

And in Matthew 5, Jesus goes even further, suggesting that the people of God should flee from oaths and vows entirely – simply letting our "yes be yes" and our "no be no". If your heart is in the right place, there should be no need to swear, vow or pledge by anything – your word alone is powerful and should be completely reliable.

The Power of the Tongue

The Bible brims full of verses about the fearsome power of the tongue. The Lord has ordained that "the tongue has the power of life and death" (Prov 18:21), of blessing and of cursing (Rom 12:14). In as much as it can bear encouragement, grace, healing and good admonishment, so it can also corrupt, divide and harm (e.g. Eph 4:29; Prov 12:18, 17:9). Whilst "gracious words are like a honeycomb, sweetness to the soul and health to the body" (Prov 16:24), foolish and rash words bring ruin and corruption (Prov 13:3; also James 3:1-12).

Ultimately, our speech will justify or condemn us eternally, for salvation involves both inner belief and outward confession (Rom 10:9-10). And at the end of time, all men will be held to account for every word they have spoken (Matt 12:36-37).

A People of Pure Speech

Why does God place such a high premium on the spoken word? Scripture tells us that "out of the overflow of the heart, the mouth speaks" (Luke 6:45; Matt 12:33-37; also Matt 15:18). God has created a special relationship between the mouth and the heart, such that our words (including our silences) indicate something of what is going on inside of us.

This is a scary prospect, but there is also incredible opportunity here. By our words, we can give others a window in on the light and hope of the Kingdom of Heaven which dwells inside of us. Only Christians have access to the Spirit of God, who stands ready to fill our mouths with His words if we are prepared to allow Him. Believers alone have access to the wisdom of Heaven that teaches us when to declare God's truth out loud, and when to "let [our] words be few" (Ecc 5:2-3).

In a babbling world of constant media noise, where we are all on information overload, by what kind of words will we be known? Believers alone have the power to speak words that refresh, revive and bring life to the soul, that are consistently and powerfully trustworthy, honourable and pure. How dry and parched the world is, how thirsty for the Living Word of God, whose ambassadors we are and who dwells in us.

How vital it is to hand over our tongues to the Lord, to be controlled by the Holy Spirit and given words from Heaven to speak. God can, of course, turn the tongues of men and animals to His own ends at any time (as the example of Balaam and his donkey shows) – but more often than not, He waits to be invited. What a beautiful mandate awaits our words if we yield to His control - to be used to glorify His name and declare wonderful truths about His character and deeds, to refresh and speak life to others, to set people free from enemy oppression and to serve the Body of Jesus with prophecy, wisdom, encouragement, prayer, discipline and love.

Only God's Power

The closer we get to God - the more aware we become of His holiness – the more aware we become of how unclean our own lips are (see Isaiah 6:5-7). No power of our own can cleanse, tame and empower the "fire" of the tongue (James 3:6) to Kingdom ends. This process is a work of the Holy Spirit of the Living God, through the way made by the atoning work of Jesus on the Cross. It begins not in the mouth, but in the heart.

Let the words of my mouth and the meditation of my heart be acceptable in your sight, O Lord, my rock and my redeemer. (Ps 19:14)

Author : Frances Rabbitts