There’s a reason we meet to hear God’s Word read and expounded upon. There is POWER in the spoken Word of God. Our speech is the same way in that when we speak, meanings become more clear and our convictions become more solidified.

2 From the fruit of their lips people enjoy good things [when they speak uprightly], but the unfaithful have an appetite for violence [both vocally and physically; in other words, they like to fight].

To emphasize the importance of speaking our faith, consider how we got saved. Let’s read it in Romans 10:8-10,

⁸ 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: ⁹ If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. ¹⁰ 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. NIV

In the spoken word:

There is power-God created the heavens and the earth with His spoken word.

There is concrete– Speaking something out loud solidifies it in our minds. Many people process out loud because it helps them get it out where they can “see” it.

There is connection– speaking how we feel is like pressing the “enable” button; we say, “I love you,” and–POW! We feel love for that person. Compassion works the same way.

The spoken word enables us to believe in our hearts. When we say, “I trust You, LORD,” we click the enable button in our hearts.

Jesus said, “For by your words you will be acquitted, and by your words you will be condemned.” Matthew 12:37. Yes, God looks at our hearts, but our mouths reveal what is in our hearts, so be careful! The next verse in today’s chapter says, 3 “He who guards his lips guards his life, but he who speaks rashly will come to ruin.”

Sometimes it helps us to read passages in other translations. Here is Romans 10:8-10 in the Nee Living Translation and the New Life Version:

⁸ In fact, it says,

And that message is the very message about faith that we preach: ⁹ If you openly declare that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. ¹⁰ For it is by believing in your heart that you are made right with God, and it is by openly declaring your faith that you are saved. NLT

⁸ This is what it says, “The Good News is near you. It is in your mouth and in your heart.” This Good News tells about putting your trust in Christ. This is what we preach to you. ⁹ If you say with your mouth that Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved from the punishment of sin. ¹⁰ When we believe in our hearts, we are made right with God. We tell with our mouth how we were saved from the punishment of sin. NLV

Let’s practice speaking God’s Word today along with professing our love for each other, having compassion on those who are our potential brothers and sisters in Christ by praying out loud for them. In doing so, we will experience God in a whole new and powerful way!

Abba, You speak to is in our spirits; it’s how we know You are real in our lives. May we pay close attention to You and what the Spirit is saying so that we can be obedient children and followers of the Way. “Speak to our hearts, LORD Jesus, speak that our souls may hear.” Amen.