Your words are powerful.

​And in the words of Spider-Man’s mentors, “with great power comes great responsibility.”

​The Bible has a lot to say about our words. You could say it has a lot of words about our words. But no matter what author, book, letter, or timeframe you’re reading from, you cannot argue that the Biblical authors all agree that our words are powerful. That what we choose to say (or not say) actually has a lot to say about us.

​And when it comes to the Bible, one of its favorite pictures for the power of our words, is fire. And this is a very powerful picture.

​What do we know about fire?

​It has a lot of good uses (food, heat, light, memories with friends around a bonfire).

​And it has plenty of negative uses (wildfires, injuries, damaged homes and communities).

​And regardless of if it gets used for good or bad, it always starts the same way, doesn’t it? Fire always starts with a spark. Fire always starts small. Fire always begins when a spark comes in contact with something flammable. And then with some oxygen, friction, and care, it can grow from there.

​Fire, whether positively or negatively, starts the same way. And what determines whether the spark will grow and whether it will be used for good or bad, is what the environment or person decides to do with it.

​I mean come on… do I even need to connect the dots to our words? It’s a no brainer!

​You hold so much power in your words. Power to create incredible things and power to destroy. And the deciding factor between what you do with your words is what you decide to do with them. How you will choose to steward this power.

​So… what will you do with it?

​In Luke chapter 6, Jesus has some powerful things to say about our words. Let’s read a few verses together.

43 “No good tree bears bad fruit, nor does a bad tree bear good fruit. 44 Each tree is recognized by its own fruit. People do not pick figs from thornbushes, or grapes from briers. 45 A good man brings good things out of the good stored up in his heart, and an evil man brings evil things out of the evil stored up in his heart. For the mouth speaks what the heart is full of.

Luke 6:43-45

Wow… that’s good. And convicting. Jesus is saying our words are never random, they’re overflow. Jesus wants us to get the picture that whatever our words are full of is actually what our hearts are full of.

​The problem actually isn’t that you cuss. The problem actually isn’t that you gossip. The problem actually isn’t that you lie. The problem actually isn’t that you talk horribly about yourself. All of those things are symptoms of a much bigger problem… your heart is full of those things, and they’re simply flowing from your heart, to your words.

When someone is truly captivated and changed by the love and grace of Jesus, do you know what will come out of them in their words towards others and themselves? Yep. You guessed it. Love and grace. This is what the fruit of the Spirit is all about. Supernatural fruit that is produced inside of us once we begin to walk in step with the Spirit. It’s not something that we fake or put on at certain times, but rather it’s something that naturally begins to grow out of us (and is seen by those around us).

Your words are powerful, and they reveal more about you than you may think.

They may seem small, like the tiny flame from a matchstick, but they are much more powerful, and much more revealing than you may think. And once they are spoken, they can set forests on fire and destroy communities, or they can create incredible memories with community that last a lifetime.

So what do your words reveal about you?