Words of

Life
Speaking
life giving
words
Death and life are in
the power of the
tongue, And those who
love it will eat its fruit.
Proverbs 18:21
In many places God
tells us that what we
say has extreme
consequences.
He tells us in this
passage that there are
two outcomes of our
words:
LIFE or DEATH
He then tells us that
which ever we love we
will eat the fruit of it…..
Life or Death.
Those we speak to will
also eat of the fruit of
our lips – Life or Death.
The Apostle James
seeks to press upon us
how vital this area of
our life is:
For we all stumble in
many ways. If anyone
does not stumble in what
he says, he is a perfect
man, able to bridle the
whole body as well.
James 3:2
Now if we put the bits
into the horses' mouths so
that they will obey us, we
direct their entire body as
well.

James 3:3
Look at the ships also,
though they are so great and
are driven by strong winds,
are still directed by a very
small rudder wherever the
inclination of the pilot
desires.
James 3:4
So also the tongue is a small
part of the body, and yet it
boasts of great things. See
how great a forest is set
aflame by such a small fire!

James 3:5
And the tongue is a fire, the
very world of iniquity; the
tongue is set among our
members as that which
defiles the entire body, and
sets on fire the course of our
life, and is set on fire by hell.
James 3:6
For every species of beasts
and birds, of reptiles and
creatures of the sea, is
tamed and has been tamed
by the human race.
James 3:7
But no one can tame the
tongue; it is a restless evil
and full of deadly poison.

James 3:8
With it we bless our Lord and
Father, and with it we curse
men, who have been made in
the likeness of God;

James 3:9
from the same mouth come
both blessing and cursing. My
brethren, these things ought
not to be this way.

James 3:10
Does a fountain send out
from the same opening both
fresh and bitter water?

James 3:11
Can a fig tree, my brethren,
produce olives, or a vine
produce figs? Nor can salt
water produce fresh.

James 3:12
Can a fig tree, my brethren,
produce olives, or a vine
produce figs? Nor can salt
water produce fresh.

James 3:12
Jesus tells us clearly that
what we say is vital to our
relationship with him.
"Either make the tree good
and its fruit good, or make
the tree bad and its fruit bad;
for the tree is known by its
fruit.
Matthew 12:33
. . . . the mouth speaks out
of that which fills the heart.
Matthew 12:34
"The good man brings out of
his good treasure what is
good; and the evil man
brings out of his evil treasure
what is evil.
Matthew 12:35
"But I tell you that every
careless word that people
speak, they shall give an
accounting for it in the day of
judgment.
Matthew 12:36
"For by your words you will
be justified, and by your
words you will be
condemned.“

Matthew 12:37
It is clear that our words
are one of the most
important aspects of our
lives to bring about good
or evil.
And it is also clear that we
must choose which force
we will let our words be a
part of – Life or Death.
The rest of this talk is for
those who desire to give
life giving words.
Go, stand and
speak in the
temple to the
people all the
words of this life.
Acts 5:20 (KJS)
There are words that
are specifically
related to “this life.”
“This life” is the life
of God being
worked out within
us, and in the
World.
When we speak the
“words of this life”
we give
opportunities to
others to receive
life.
I remember perfectly a
moment over thirty four
years ago when I was
pulling out of a driveway
at my sweetheart’s home.
She spoke a few words
that have made me a
better driver ever since.
She had watched me
pulling out and noticed
me looking over my
shoulder on both sides of
the driveway.
She said, “You just looked
over your shoulder both
ways before you pulled
out. You are a good
driver. I feel safe driving
with you.”
Those words made me
want to be the best driver
I could be for her.
While the things she said
were true at that
moment, her saying them
made me want to make
them true forever.
Since that day I have
been a better driver. She
spoke a life giving word
into my heart that
remained to build me into
a more responsible
person.
Life giving words have
power.
Life giving words are filled
with hope.
Life giving words change
people for good.
When I first went to Oral
Roberts University I was
sure I could not ever
finish my course because
they required you to take
and pass a Phys Ed class
every semester.
They also required you to do
enough aerobic exercise for
30 aerobic points every
week. We had to fill out a
form every week telling how
many points we got and how
we got them.
30 aerobic points was the
equivalent of running three
miles every other day at
eight miles an hour.
I did well to walk a block
without fainting when I came
to campus.
I was a true nerd with no
desire or skill in physical
things. I was also an
asthmatic. I had spent most
of my life indoors reading
books.
But God intended for me to
be educated as whole man –
body, soul and spirit so I
would have to start moving.
I began to go to the track
where we all did our running.
Within a few weeks a guy
named Charlie had noticed
me and made it one of his
goals to help me.
He would join me as I – LOL
– ran! It was more like a
crawl!
But every time he joined me
his words were full of
encouragement. He would
tell me he believed I was
becoming a better runner
with every day – and under
his encouragement I did.
By the end of the year I did
in fact run three miles at
eight minutes a mile. It was
only because of Charlie’s
encouragement.
He spoke life-giving words to
me. Though I don’t run to
many eight minute miles
today I still run almost every
day. He also opened up to
me the art of mentoring
others.
Sometimes in the meanness
of spirit that religion can
inculcate in people we lose
the very beauty of Christ’s
message.
We can become negative a
shrill people who only relate
to others in a condemning
way. But that is not the way
Jesus would have us be.
He tells us all of our
communication is to bring
grace to the hearers.
Let no unwholesome word
proceed from your mouth,
but only such a word as is
good for edification according
to the need of the moment,
so that it will give grace to
those who hear.
Ephesians 4:29
Before you think that I am
simply saying only say nice
things to people – Life Giving
words are always the place
where Grace and Truth meet
each other.
Lovingkindness and
truth have met
together;
Righteousness and
peace have kissed
each other.
Psalm 85:10
Lovingkindness and
truth have met
together;
Righteousness and
peace have kissed
each other.
Psalm 85:10
If our words are only
mercy they end up as
shallow flattery and
set a snare for those
who hear.
A man who flatters his
neighbor Is spreading
a net for his steps.
Psalm 29:5
On the other hand
words that have
nothing but truth
become legalistic and
result in
condemnation.
For the Law was given
through Moses; grace
and truth were
realized through Jesus
Christ.
John 1:17
Life giving words
reflect the truth of
God and the Grace of
God in full measure.
Life giving words
never ultimately tear
down a person though
they often tear them
away from wrong
behaviour.
They always give
grace to others
without sacrificing
truth.
They are the voice
of Jesus through us,
drawing out of
others what God
sees in them.
Drawing out of others
what God sees in
them.
The whole business of
truth telling is a bit
tricky.
We often see others
through our own eyes
and not God’s.
I have learned to ask
God what He wants
me to see in others
and speak that into
them.
Sometime it is very
hard to see the person
God sees for all the
outward stuff that
blocks our vision.
Some have said that I
was just lying or
deceived when I have
spoken words of
encouragement to
others.
They knew them so
well that they could
see clearly that my
vision of who they
were was false.
Unfortunately what
they saw of them was
their sin.
If all we look at in a
person is their sin we
will only have satan’s
view of them. He is
the accuser of the
saints not God.
Then I heard a loud
voice in heaven,
saying,

Revelation 12:10a
"Now the salvation,
and the power, and
the kingdom of our
God and the authority
of His Christ have
come,
Revelation 12:10b
for the accuser of our
brethren has been
thrown down, he who
accuses them before
our God day and
night.
Revelation 12:10c
"And they overcame him
because of the blood of the
Lamb and because of the
word of their testimony, and
they did not love their life
even when faced with
death.
Revelation 12:11
I love the answer
Michelangelo gave
concerning his sculptures
when asked how he could
do such amazing work.
“Michelangelo said that he didn’t
sculpt figures into marble: he
liberated them out of it. He
quarried his own marble in
Carrara, seeing the figures in the
living rock before driving in the
first nail that would split it off the
rockface.”  http://www.freethought-forum.com/forum/showthread.php?t=11589
This is the power of
life giving words. They
see the person
trapped inside and
seek to liberate them.
This must be our goal
if we are to give life-
giving words.
To give words of life
our hearts must be
free from the fear or
self advancement that
would keep us from
speaking the truth.
They must also be free
from envy, bitterness,
criticism, judgment and
other such motives that
would keep us from
speaking in love.
but speaking the truth in
love, we are to grow up
in all aspects into Him
who is the head, even
Christ,
Ephesians 4:15
Our heart’s motive must
be to see others become
who God sees them to
be.
To do that we need to spend
much prayer asking God who
He sees them to be. We need
to find the person God is
seeking to liberate from the
stone tomb of their own
flawed view of themselves and
from their sin lives.
I understood this when I
read the story of Gideon in
the Old Testament.
Then the angel of the LORD
came and sat under the oak
that was in Ophrah, which
belonged to Joash the
Abiezrite as his son Gideon
was beating out wheat in the
wine press in order to save it
from the Midianites.
Judges 6:11
The angel of the LORD
appeared to him and said to
him, "The LORD is with you, O
valiant warrior.“
Judges 6:12
Then Gideon said to him, "O my lord,
if the LORD is with us, why then has
all this happened to us? And where
are all His miracles which our fathers
told us about, saying, 'Did not the
LORD bring us up from Egypt?' But
now the LORD has abandoned us and
given us into the hand of Midian.“

Judges 6:13
The LORD looked at him
and said, "Go in this your
strength and deliver
Israel from the hand of
Midian. Have I not sent
you?"
Judges 6:14
He said to Him, "O Lord,
how shall I deliver
Israel? Behold, my family
is the least in Manasseh,
and I am the youngest in
my father's house.“
Judges 6:15
But the LORD said to
him, "Surely I will be
with you, and you shall
defeat Midian as one
man.“

Judges 6:15
If I had been looking at
Gideon I would not have
seen a mighty man of
valour.
I would have seen a
cowardly man who held
a deep sense anger
towards God.
I would have seen a man
who was full of fear.
I would have seen a man
who was dogged by a
message of rejection of
him and his family that
most likely had followed
him all his life.
But the angel spoke what
God saw – a mighty man
of valour.
God saw the mighty man
trapped inside and spoke
the word of destiny that
freed Gideon to become
exactly what God saw
and believed of him.
We first must let God
liberate the man or
woman He sees in us
just like He did Gideon –
through His life giving
word.
Then we can go about
bearing that same word
to liberate others.
The last thing I want to
share is that a primary
aspect of spiritual
warfare is defeating
death giving words that
have lodged in our souls.
The worst thing a
Christian can do is to fall
into self pity because of
the words of death that
have been spoken over
them by others or
themselves.
The proper response to
those words is to counter
them with what God says
about us.
They have no power unless
we give them power. To live
as if they are true, or in
bitterness and self loathing
because we have been
given them enforces their
reality on us.
To take the sword of the
Spirit – the Word of God
and defeat them is the way
we overcome them.
This is a crucial aspect of
finding our purpose in God.
It is an essential and
constant aspect of our
warfare in the Spirit.