… and every tongue acknowledge that Jesus Christ is Lord,
Summary: Verbal acknowledgement is powerful.
Part of exalting Jesus to the highest place is proclaiming his name … out loud. The “out loud” part is important.
“Why?” you ask. Well, let’s explore …
First of all, we have to consider the difference between a thought and a word. A thought is something we keep in our heads. Thoughts come and go. Fortunately, nothing happens as long as a thought remains a thought. Only when we turn a thought into speech or ideas into action do things begin to change.
I can’t claim to know this, but it seems obvious to me from the context of Scripture that the same is true in the spiritual realm as well. Consider for a moment the first “thing” that was created: light:
“And God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.” (Genesis 1:3)
God didn’t just think about wanting light; he spoke it into existence. The same is true for every aspect of creation except for the living things, including man. Both man and animals were made “out of the ground” (Genesis 2:7, 29). Creating living things required action.
Of course, man is created in God’s image (Genesis 1:27). It makes sense, then, that our thoughts would take form in the same way. When we speak, certain things come into being. When we “do,” physical changes are made.
Because we are not God, our words do not create physical reality out of nothing. Yet, words matter. Just ask Peter. Even though he had been warned, Peter’s world was changed radically when he uttered the words, “I don’t know the man!” (Matthew 26:74). Those five words changed all of history and have echoed down through time as a warning that words matter.
We might be tempted to think that there is no value in proclaiming the name of Jesus when we are alone. After all, God hears our thoughts as well as our words (Psalm 139:2), but the spoken word matters. God hears us when we speak. Others might, too.
In his historical newsletter, “An American Minute,” by Bill Federer, he notes, “A farmer reportedly observed General Washington kneeling in prayer in the snow.”* He goes on to quote several historical references to this event and credits Washington’s faith and reliance on God with holding the Continental Army together.
Acknowledging that Jesus Christ is Lord is a powerful affirmation of faith. Go ahead, try it!
Application: Pray out loud when possible to give substance to your words.
Food for Thought: How does hearing ourselves speak impact our thoughts?
*American Minute with Bill Federer, “1777 Freezing Valley Forge & Starving Ships ‘If those few thousand men endured that long winter of suffering … what right have we to be of little faith?’” December 28, 2023
Good meditation this morning.
I had to learn this “the hard way,” I say this a little in jest but not really so much. There was a time, at the beginning of my walk with Jesus, that I only prayed “in my heart.” Even when I was alone. I learned though that when praying out loud the Spirit seemed to move in my request and on my behalf more directly (I don’t even know if that is the right word to express it). I actually learned this in asking others to pray for me. Going up to a brother or sister in Christ and speaking my heart out loud, it was more of a commitment and step in faith than praying in my head. Like what was in my head was a possibility but what was coming out of my mouth became reality.
2 Corinthians 4:13-15 Since we have the same spirit of faith according to what has been written, “I believed, and so I spoke,” we also believe, and so we also speak, knowing that he who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us also with Jesus and bring us with you into his presence. For it is all for your sake, so that as grace extends to more and more people it may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God.
Also too, praying out loud forces us to be more deliberate in our thoughts. Sometimes in our mind (or at least mine) we can get easily side-tracked or lost in thought.
Thank you, Chris.
Your point about being more “deliberate in our thoughts” is important. It is easy to fall into bad habits when we only pray in thoughts. We lose the distinction between sitting in our living room in our PJ’s and dressing up to appear before the King.
I agree – good meditation this morning. I like the George Washington reference too. And good comments CH.
My simplistic and short answer is: Hearing ourselves speak uses more of our senses and I think it solidifies our thoughts. When I studied for tests in college I would often use several methods including writing it down and saying things out loud to solidify my thoughts and prepare for the test. There are other types of tests that we face daily, so anything to solidify truth in preparation for those tests is a good idea.
Thank you, Rich!
I like the point about using more of our senses. Otherwise, praying could become “senseless.” 🙂