In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God…..And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us us, and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth.
John 1:1-2,14
We all know the first word that gurgled out of our infant mouths. It’s been retold to us by our parents and grandparents, often in surprise if it was one that didn’t enter into the competition with mama or dada. We watch in wonder and entertainment as toddlers begin to collect words in their hungry minds and spit them out with a slightly different interpretation than the original. Stringing several words into a sentence, we are entertained by their unique methods of communication, yet we take for granted this ability, this amazing gift of words that we have been given.
Words are often the most specific way in which we can express something- a desire, a praise, an excitement, a hurt. We can use them with precision in order to pass on something stirring in our heart and mind to another human being who has their own set of ideas and thoughts churning. This is a constant cause of amazement to me. God gave us the gift of words.
Through words we can clearly communicate needs or tasks that build up to actions and changes. For instance, a man wants to build a house. First, he thinks through what he wants it to look like. Next he communicates his thoughts through words to an architect, who then communicates it to a contractor who then communicates it to a team of builders and eventually, through those words, a house is built. Words build. They build organizations, structures and relationships when used correctly. When used wrongly, they create chaos, wars and disputes.
Of what am I trying to persuade you? If words have the power to build things and words have the power to tear things down, we must take care in the manner which we use them. Learning to clearly communicate skillfully will help eliminate many misunderstandings. Yes, there is still sin and therefore there will still be disputes and wars and chaos, but we can use the defense weapon of our words to prevent many of these situations.
Christ Himself is identified as the Word. If one of God’s names is equated with Word and by the power of a single word from his mouth creation was birthed, we should seek to honor and reflect Him by using ours to the best of our ability. We do this by diligently studying His word and also humbly studying how to communicate. Writing and speaking well are skills that need to be cultivated and practiced, not neglected. Studying craftsmen like Shakespeare, Dickens, Lewis and White, among many others, will help us develop and ear for winsome and clear speech.
Most important to all who profess Christ is the ability to use our words to communicate the greatest truth and all other truth that springs from it: the gospel of Jesus Christ.