God that He created us in His own image. He created us to be self-governing, thinking, feeling, and speaking beings with the capacity to mobilize our thoughts, feelings, and words into expressions and actions. We are constantly impacting our own lives, and it all begins with what is happening inside us. The thing that many of us miss is that our thoughts, feelings, and words have power. They are invisible, but they produce a tangible set of circumstances and consequences that we will either find enjoyable or regrettable. The universe started as a thought in our Heavenly Father’s mind. He then spoke the universe into existence, and all that was in existence when He spoke had no other choice but to respond to the authority of His Words and produce what He has spoken. He has given us this same authority.
The word ‘create’ is one that is commonly used, but in its truest sense in the realm of all things human, it doesn’t accurately portray our actions and ingenuity. To create is to bring into existence. Humans do not have the ability to bring anything into existence that God has not already created. We produce, design, generate, fabricate or manufacture based on what is already in existence. We cannot create life, we produce it through the mechanisms God created, which are included in the human body that He has made.
God said in Isaiah 55:9(KJV), “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts.” The heavens are further away than any human mind can measure, and in this verse, Heavenly Father is giving us some idea of the distance between our level of thought and intelligence and His; His thoughts are infinitely above ours. Although our arrogance causes us to erroneously believe differently, the truth is that there isn’t a thought any human being can have that is original. All intelligence belongs to God and originates from Him.
Understanding our “creative” ability in the context of God’s truth allows us to more clearly understand the authority God has given us through Jesus Christ. 1Corinthians 15:27(NLT) says, “For the Scriptures say, “God has put all things under his authority.” (Of course, when it says “all things are under his authority,” that does not include God himself, who gave Christ his authority.) God has placed all things under the authority of Jesus Christ, and Jesus Christ has given us his authority to demonstrate in the earth. In Luke 10:19(NLT), we learn a little bit about this authority Christ has given us. He taught the disciples, “Look, I have given you authority over all the power of the enemy, and you can walk among snakes and scorpions and crush them. Nothing will injure you.”
Our responsibility now is to take the authority of Christ, which is an invisible power, and cause it to manifest in the visible world. The way to do this is to speak what Christ spoke, think what Christ thought, feel about others the way Christ felt, and do what Christ did. Our God is sovereign. His power and authority are absolute. Part of what this means is that we must speak, think, feel, and do things that are in alignment with His Will and Word. Christ told us in John 14:6 that he is the way, the truth, and the life. He is the WAY to walk in the authority and power of God, and to live a more than abundant life. Jesus Christ always did the Father’s Will. He always followed the Father’s Word. If we are to walk in our calling, we must exercise God’s power and authority through Jesus Christ. We must follow his example.
In John 16:13(NLT), Jesus Christ told us, “When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own but will tell you what he has heard. He will tell you about the future.” Because of all that he accomplished through his life, sacrifice, and resurrection, the Holy Spirit dwells within us and teaches us the Word of God. When believers were gathered together to tarry for the Holy Spirit, Acts 2:2-4(NKJV) tells us, “2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven, as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. 3 Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance. Then there appeared to them divided tongues, as of fire, and one sat upon each of them.” Believers began to speak with other tongues as an outward demonstration of their inner reality. The manifestation of speaking in tongues is the way God chose to demonstrate His power through us. It is no coincidence He chose the utterance of words, because words are impactful. They can release life, or they can release death.
Speaking in tongues isn’t speaking randomly or speaking words we choose to speak. It is the Spirit speaking through us as we open our mouths and give utterance. The crowd that heard the believers speaking in tongues were astonished because the believers were speaking in the crowd’s various native tongues. And what were they saying? Acts 2:11(NLT) tells us “And we all hear these people speaking in our own languages about the wonderful things God has done!” In our modern society, we have many outlets that are geared to giving individuals a platform to be heard. People are expressing varied opinions about all manner of subjects, but much of what they are saying isn’t glorifying to God. They are not speaking about the wonderful things God has done, because they are not confessing His Word. As believers in the Lord Jesus Christ, we are commanded to confess God’s Word. It’s our responsibility and privilege to confess and witness the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
1Corinthians 1:24-31(NLT) says: “24 But to those called by God to salvation, both Jews and Gentiles, Christ is the power of God and the wisdom of God. 25 This foolish plan of God is wiser than the wisest of human plans, and God’s weakness is stronger than the greatest of human strength. 26 Remember, dear brothers and sisters, that few of you were wise in the world’s eyes or powerful or wealthy when God called you. 27 Instead, God chose things the world considers foolish in order to shame those who think they are wise. And he chose things that are powerless to shame those who are powerful. 28 God chose things despised by the world, things counted as nothing at all, and used them to bring to nothing what the world considers important. 29 As a result, no one can ever boast in the presence of God. 30 God has united you with Christ Jesus. For our benefit God made him to be wisdom itself. Christ made us right with God; he made us pure and holy, and he freed us from sin. 31Therefore, as the Scriptures say, “If you want to boast, boast only about the LORD.””
There are those who look down upon those who speak in tongues, but nothing the Lord provides can be looked down upon. The Spirit speaking through us speaks the truth. He speaks what he hears from Jesus Christ, and it is far more glorifying and perfect, because the Spirit was there from the beginning. He will only speak the truth! The Holy Spirit that indwells us speaks the wonderful works of God, and we should consider it the greatest honor of our lives that he would give us utterance so we can witness it. Most of us spend so little time confessing God’s Word and conversing about it. Our gracious God has given us many ways to use our mouths in obedience and give honor to Him. Speaking in tongues is one way, and we should be incredibly thankful that through it we can pray perfectly and speak the wonderful works of God.■
Scripture quotations marked (NLT) are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Inc., Wheaton, Illinois 60189. All rights reserved.
“As the Spirit Gave Utterance”, written by JMack, 4theChristianMan.com© 2022. All rights reserved. All praise and honor to God through Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.