Death and Life: Speech for Growth

The Prescription for A Creative Life: Speak Truth

The book of Proverbs shows the importance of speech for both the Christian in their own lives, and also for the non-Christian.

Provers 18:21 “Death and life are in the power of the tongue and those who love it will eat its fruit."

More specifically it shows the value of righteous pronouncements and positive speech. Why is this exactly? How is it that our words have such an impact on the direction of our life? It’s not fair if we’re having a bad day and happen to get down on ourselves. But not acknowledging our part in the direction of life is the same as ignoring gravity. It’s a natural law of the universe that exists, whether we acknowledge it or not.

 The words we speak contain the seeds that become our future.

The Natural World

Apple seeds create apple trees; it’s the same for all fruits. Plant, water and wait. The soil in which the seeds mature contains nutrients necessary for growth. It’s such a natural part of the earth we live in we don’t think about it often. Our natural world contains the perfect amount of water, air and soil for life to thrive. You can’t grow grapes in the Sahara Desert or expect fescue grass to cover the alps, but it’s a life giving place just the same. It exits to increase, fulfilling the mission of God in Genesis to “Be fruitful and multiply.”

That command isn’t just for people, it’s how our world is designed to function.

Language is the spark of life. God spoke, and it was. He put everything necessary for growth here on earth in the beginning. We shouldn’t be surprised that He calls us to use our speech for creation. How do we do this exactly?

We do this in our own lives through positive (biblical) confession and in the lives of others through scripture.

If God filled words are the spark of life, then negative words are the poison that destroys life. Both natural laws exist in the same environment, death and life. It’s the same with our words. We uplift and show people to Christ or we put them down and cause death in them.

“A wholesome tongue is a tree of life, but perverseness in it breaks the spirit.” Proverbs 15:4

The Spiritual World

There were a couple of famous trees on the University of Auburn campus until about 10 years ago. If you ever watched an Auburn home football game the TV cameras always panned the iconic Oaks that stood for over 150 years. A hostile Alabama (tide) fan spiked the trees after a tough Iron Bowl loss in 2010. He called the Paul Finebaum show in 2011 to brag about it. The trees didn’t die all at once, that’s not how poison works. It moves slowly and penetrates all the way through the bark. You might not notice it for years.

A tree can look quite strong and rugged for years but be dead inside. First the leaves dry up and stop producing. Then the bark peels off in sheets while the wood softens inside and stops fighting off infection. It doesn’t fall over though. It stands there for years, taking up space. It’s quite easy to kill a tree. You could drill holes in just one or two roots and pour in an herbicide. No one would even know.

There are countless people walking around struggling with wounds from poisonous words spoken over their lives. The same growth that comes from life giving speech, can turn into death with negative speech. We don’t shrivel up and die when someone wounds us, we die over time because the poison works slowly. As Christians we have the ability to speak biblical truths over those around us. But it isn’t just truth the way that something is truthful.

The Ideal World

Oklahoma is much hotter in the summer than Illinois. That’s a true statement. But it doesn’t contain any creative power. It’s an observational truth and nothing more. It might make you prepare a little differently for a trip. You’re body will need to adapt to a steamier climate if you live in Illinois. But facts about the weather can’t help us grow spiritually or encourage growth in others.

But biblical truths are both facts and seeds. They contain the nutrients necessary to build the Kingdom of God in this world. The Creator uses us to reach others. We provide medicine or we provide poison. It’s never too late to turn poisonous words into Godly truth.

 There’s also good news for those who’ve been poisoned by a boss, a friend or even family.

We have an antidote. We have the words of life and the creative force that restores. Death can’t hold us because it couldn’t hold Him.

What’s the prescription for a creative life?

“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct your paths.” (Proverbs 3:5-6)

We acknowledge the Creator when we speak life and create growth.