Luke 1:67

Luke 1:67 – His (John’s) father Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit and prophesied.

       John’s birth, similar to Jesus, was nothing short of a miracle. His parents were well beyond child bearing age and they had tried their whole married life to have a child, but were unsuccessful. Then Zechariah was ministering in the house of the Lord and an angel appeared to him.

       This angel brought the promise of a child, but Zechariah found it hard to believe. He was looking at the natural circumstances of His life and questioned the message that came from God. Because of his doubt his voice was taken from him and he was unable to speak.

       From the time of the vision all the way until his miracle baby was born, Zechariah was unable to utter a word. It wasn't until he named his child John that his tongue was loosened. This verse in Luke comes right after he is given the ability to speak again.

       There are a lot of things that Zechariah could have said, but what he did was prophecy. First his praises went to God, and then he prophesied over his son. That speaks a lot to those of us who are fathers. I think this is one of the things that is missing in today’s families. It is a tough world to grow up in and our kids need to help. They need encouragement and life spoken into them.

Prophecy is not just about speaking the future. It can come in many forms. Basically it is a word from God; sometimes it is a scripture or just an encouraging word. Children need this. As fathers it is our responsibility to give this to them. Seek God for your children. Pray for them every day and then in turn prophesy over them.

James 3:9-10

James 3:9-10 – With the tongue we praise our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in God’s likeness. Out of the same of same mouth come praise and cursing – my brothers, this should not be.

           Our words are powerful. Sometimes we don’t understand just how powerful they are. We like to quote the old saying, “sticks and stones may break my bones, but words will never hurt me.” But the truth of it is that words do hurt.

           We hold the power of life and death in our tongues and it is our choice which power we release. In this passage James is pointing out how we will go both ways. One moment we will be speaking life and the next moment death comes out.

           Think about how many times you’ve gone to church on a Sunday and all through service you are praising God. Then you leave and someone cuts you off coming out of the parking lot. All of a sudden you hear someone yell “idiot”. As you look around to find out where it came from you realize it was you. Praise and cursing out of the same mouth; this should not be.

           Examine yourself and you will realize that you have been guilty of this at some point. It is time to take control of our tongues. Proverbs tells us, “When words are many, sin is not absent, but he who holds his tongue is wise.” Sometimes the best thing to do is to say nothing. At least then you will have a chance to think before you speak something you may regret.

           Speak Life in all situations. It won’t be easy at first. You must make a habit of it. You’ve spent years practicing saying the wrong thing, it might take a little time to change it, but make a conscious effort to do so. Learn to control your tongue and you will be able to control your whole body.

Colossians 4:6

Colossians 4:6 – Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.

       How would you describe your conversations? Are they full of grace? Are they seasoned with salt? What does it mean for our conversations to be seasoned with salt? There are a couple different ways to look at that. In order to answer that question we must first look at what salt is used for.

       First let’s look at salt as a preservative. In years past people would use salt to preserve meat and make it last longer. It would keep it from rotting so that it could be eaten at a later date. Today you will find salt in many things to prolong shelf life. In this sense salt prolongs the life of whatever it is put into. To look at the salt in our speech from this perspective would mean that our words bring life to people. Our words will prolong their life and keep them from “rotting” away.

       We also see salt used as a seasoning. It enhances the natural taste in foods so that they taste better and we want to eat more. Salt also makes us thirsty. In looking at it this way we see that our speech ought to be fresh and inviting, bringing out the natural flavor of Christ that is within us. Thus, our words will cause others to desire more. They will be hungry and thirsty to hear more of the Truth that you have within you.

As for being full of grace, you speech should not be judgmental or condemning. You must show Love to all and it should be evident through what you say. It is not your job to convict people, that job belongs to the Spirit. Your job is to represent Christ in all you do and let your words be full of life.