8/27/23 Sermon
It seems funny that in a society where words are thrown at us so quickly, in such quantity, and so thoughtlessly, we can still make the claim that words have power. Maybe we don't claim that anymore. Maybe we don’t think that words have any power. I mean it seems like throughout our lives we're told that words SHOULDN’T have power. At least not over us.
I remember as a kid I was taught phrases like "Sticks and Stones may break my bones. but WORDS will never hurt me." Or one of my favorites was "I'm rubber and you're glue. Whatever you say bounces off me and sticks on you." They were basically sayings that we used to deflect the fact that cruel words can actually have the power to hurt our feelings. That’s a reality maybe more real and more true than I suspect we'd care to admit. Words have the power sometimes to really ruin our day. Words really do have power. Even though we try to downplay that power.
We try not to give them so much power and we try to devalue words, don’t we? I mean we say things like talk is cheap. Or put your money where your mouth is. Or you can talk the talk, but can you walk the walk? We seem to value people’s actions more than what they say. And often times rightfully so. But that’s only because we don’t take words seriously. If we took the words we spoke seriously or held people to their words or if we realized the power that words really have, I think we would be more careful with what we say and how we say it.
I think that a lot of the hurt that is caused in this world comes through words. Things like gossip, or talking behind someone’s back, or the names we call each other. Sometimes it’s just in how we say the words. I mean, I could say to my wife “those are slimming pants” and it’s fine. Or I can say “Those are slimming pants” and spend the next few nights on the couch. So, words have power. It matters what we say and how we say it.
If we look at the very beginning of the Bible, we see this reality; the power of words. It starts with God creating Heaven and Earth. And in most traditional translations it tells us that the earth was formless and void in the English. Now, these words are taken from the Greek Septulengent. See, the way we get our English translations of our Old Testament is they translate the Hebrew into the Greek which is called the Septulegent- The Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible. And then they translate that Greek into the English.
And when they translate the Greek to English, it sounds kind of passive. The Earth was just this kind of blob. But if we look at the Hebrew, the words aren't as passive. They aren't as neutral sounding. The Hebrew words are Tohu Vavohu. So, Genesis here reads, "and the earth, she was Tohu Vavohu." And many scholars have done a whole bunch of research on what exactly Tohu Vavohu actually means or what it actually is. There's a strong suggestion that it's actually a reference to an ancient Mesopotanian dragon of Chaos. Which raises the question of what in the world it's doing here in the creation story. The main emphasis scholars suggest is that the words point to chaos. It isn't important that the DRAGON was named Tohu Vavohu but that Tohu Vavohu basically means pure chaos. So, the earth may have been formless and void like the Greek language suggests, but more importantly is was pure Chaos as the Hebrew language suggests.
And the language that the Hebrew employs really begins to develop this powerful imagery. The Earth is pure chaos and pitch black with waters whose depths go on and on. I picture it like this:
You are on your back. It is so dark that you can't even tell if your eyes are open or shut. What you can tell is that you seem to be in the ocean with what feels like tsunami going on all around you. It's pretty frightening. You are in pure chaos and feel complete terror. You have no idea what is happening. But then, something happens. From nowhere, but all around you comes a voice. For some reason I picture it more as a whisper than some big booming voice, and it simply says "Be, light." And suddenly your eyes are open, and you can see all around you. You're still on your back, but everything seems to have changed. You aren't in a stormy ocean of Chaos, but you're in your backyard or one of your favorite places. "Be, Light."
The Chaos, and the darkness, and the depths are gone. Words have power.
You know, it makes me wonder... We’re created in God’s image and the Bible tells us shortly after this that God gave us the ability to name everything that lives on earth. And that, in a sense, is an act of creation Right? I mean to name something is a profound example of how our words have power. You give something Identity. And so it seems to me that we have the power, in some extent, to create the world we live in. I mean, we can choose whether or not we live in a dark world of chaos or a world of light, a world of peace, a world of happiness. We create that world in every moment with every thought that we put into word and every word we put into action.
In a very real sense, what we say creates the world around us. And it can change life for people. We have the power to live in whatever world we choose in that sense. We can tear people down or we can build them up. I’ll give you an example.
I remember this one-time years ago I was having this really bad day. I don’t even remember what caused it, but it just was one of those days where nothing was going right. They happen from time to time. It probably was something somebody said to me, you never know. But it felt like darkness. Now, it wasn’t bad. But everything felt jumbled and out of sort because of it. Maybe a minor chaos and an overcast day rather than the depths that Genesis here is explaining. And I had to pick up the kids from school.
At this time Isaac and Olivia were both in pre-school. They were like 3 and 4. And when you have four kids, there’s an order you have to do things in. You need a game plan in order for it to go smoothly. And I remember this like it was yesterday for some reason. I would go get Isaac first and wake him up from nap time, and if you time it right, Olivia would be just finishing snack time, and you’d have just enough time to get the older two from their school without them waiting too long. So, I got to the day care.. In a foul mood. And I woke up Isaac. Who also was in a foul mood. Which, you know, it’s awesome fighting with a tired 4 year old when you’re already in a great mood. So then I get Olivia.
And Olivia was finished with snack, and she ran up to me and gave me this big hug like she still does today. but then she stepped back and looked at me and got this very concerned look on her face. And she said to me, “Daddy, are you having a bad day?” And for some reason I was just completely honest, and I told her that yes, in fact I am having a bad day. And she looked at me and shook her head and said, “Oh no, Daddy. Bad days are no fun. And you need to have more fun.” And boom.
With that one sentence from a three-year-old little girl, the chaos, and the darkness, and the depths were gone. Words have power. And Olivia, being way smarter than her father, created a new world for me to live in with her words.
I know that’s a small and not very serious example. But the fact is we have the amazing ability to make the world around us what we want it to be. And many times, we speak the world around us into existence. If we walk around miserable and say miserable things, the world around us is going to be miserable. If we walk around with joy and say upbeat things, we’re going to live in a joyous world. If we gossip and talk behind people’s backs, we’ll live in a suspicious and critical world. If we see how we can help people and attempt to encourage people, we’re going to live in a world where things get better. If we speak hatefully or if we speak lovingly, we create the world we live in. Because words have power.
And if you think it isn’t true, try it out. Say angry things to people for one day. And say loving things the next. See which way is better. Just don’t tell them your pastor gave you permission to be a jerk for a day… And the truth is if you lift someone up, they’re going to pass it on, and then it goes on to the next person. And to the next person. The same thing is true if you tear them down. You create and contribute to the world you live in. And I don’t want to live in a hateful and miserable world. And I don’t want my children to live in that world. Because I think Olivia is right: Bad days are no fun, and we all need to have more fun.
Words have power. And we have a choice. We get to choose what we do with God’s Creation. Do we keep it a dark and scary and suspicious place? OR do we keep creating a world of light, a world of peace and a world of order? Do we tear people down or do we build each other up? I mean really with the words we speak, there’s a very simple notion behind them: Do we build God’s kingdom or not? Because our words have the power to begin that process.
So may you speak words of light into a dark and chaotic world.
May you hear God’s Word create the world around you.
And may you use your own words to continue building God’s Kingdom here on earth.