Tuesday, August 16th, 2022

Have you ever noticed that the power of words typically rests what we think of the speaker? For instance, many enshrine the words of business icons, sports stars, and celebrities, but ignore others, even family members, when they say the same thing. When it comes to God's Word, because God said it, it is true, it is powerful, and it is final. It needs no qualification, addition or subtraction, or any set circumstances for it to wield power. It is the same Word by which the world was created that new life can be born within each of us in Jesus Christ. Jesus took major issue with the Rabbinical traditions of his day. The Pharisees, a group of Jewish priests that controlled the population, created what they called an "oral law" to lay on top of the written word of Scripture. It took the form of adding new laws, customs, and expectations on the Jewish people and, by following the "oral law," a person could be righteous before God. That "oral law" is what Jesus refuted in the Sermon on the Mount, showing, among other things, that the Kingdom of God is not ruled by man's interpretation of Scripture, but on solely the Word of God itself. Thus, while study and exposition of God's Word is good for understanding Scripture, it serves us no good to quote each other -- whether great sermons or celebrity quotes -- and expect God to step into what we're going through. We're called to speak the Word of God over our lives and others because that is what holds the power in this world. Today, commit to learning God's Word so that you can speak it into a world that so desperately needs it.

"But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves." -- James 1:22 NLT