Words: Unimaginable Power
Of the four Gospels, John is my favorite because it takes away the ambiguities of the Godhead and our relationship with each member. Great thinkers and theologians seem baffled about how to describe God, but the words of Jesus found in John’s gospel are unambiguous. If I have to choose between centuries of religious tradition and philosophy and Jesus, I choose to believe Jesus.
The very first verse sets the tone for the whole book. When John refers to Jesus as the Word, he conveys that Christ’s gospel is the power of God unto salvation. The Joseph Smith translation further clarifies this idea, “In the beginning was the gospel preached through the Son. And the gospel was the word, and the word was with the Son, and the Son was with God, and the Son was of God.”
Because eternal life is the ultimate prize, whatever makes it happen has to be the ultimate power. So, words are the prime element in our return to God in his kingdom of heaven. The words of Christ, or the gospel, give us light, life, and truth. They are not flowery or manipulative; they are straightforward and clear.
To further demonstrate the power of words, look at the accounts of the creation in scripture. The key phrase is, “And God said…”. When God says things, others obey, and it is not just other beings; it includes primary elements and forces that conform to His Word. When God is obeyed, he declares it “good.”
So what has any of this got to do with us? I will try to explain. We have to begin with thoughts because that is where words originate. Proverbs 23:7 starts with, “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he.” What this implies to me is that our thoughts are what control us. Thoughts are limited in power to control only the person who has them. Our behaviors stem from our ability to process and act on our ideas. When our cognitive abilities diminish, our actions and skills go with them.
When our thoughts manifest themselves as words, the power to influence others comes into play. Those who are skilled with words can build or destroy others. This fact was made manifest to me within the past month. I have always been confident and sane, at least as far as I can tell. However, an attorney I had interactions with made me less sure and somewhat unstable in my mind.
In contrast, the only thing that reassures me that I am okay is the words of the ordinances of the temple. This experience with the attorney makes me despise those who use the power of words to control, manipulate, and destroy others. I am more convinced than ever that whoever controls the language controls the world. BE WARY to whom you are listening. Maybe that is why we have been invited to “hear Him”, (meaning God).
Now that we have established the unimaginable power of words, we need to increase our ability to use them for good. As individuals, we have objectives that we hope will help us reach our goals. Thinking about goals will only get us so far. It is only when we speak or write our intentions that things begin to happen. When we speak out loud, everything becomes more real in a sense. Verbal prayers are an example. Think of the results of Joseph Smith’s first vocal prayer. If you can call down God and his Son with deliberate, heart-felt words, imagine what else you could do.
I encourage you to increase your verbal and written skills with language. Turn your ideas into descriptive, concise, deliberate, and articulate words—practice explaining complex thoughts and feelings to your closest confidants and friends. Have them repeat back to you what they heard so you can evaluate and hone your verbal abilities. When you become a master of speech, start writing with the same objectives, as the written word has even more power. Then learn how to speak in parables, metaphors, and abstractions because sometimes they are even more fundamental forms of speech, or at least more relatable to others.
If we were to think of why and how things happen as an equation, it would be this; t + w = a. Thought plus Words equals Action. Nothing happens without these elements. Thoughts control you, and words influence others. Actions are the results. Good happens when the truth is spoken. Bad happens when evil is spoken. As history shows, good and evil are nearly identical in terms of power. However, spoken truth will prevail, and the reason is that when we apply truth and light in exercising our agency, we grow; otherwise, we diminish to nothing.
So, when John says, “In the beginning was the Word… And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth.”, what he is really saying is that Jesus Christ is the Way to eternal life, and that following his word gives us unimaginable power.