Sharing Jesus
“Our words carry to those around us the weight of our inward selves.”
Romans 10:9-15 (NLT)
If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. As Scripture says, “Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.” For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”
Reflection
My husband John has taught me many valuable lessons over our years of dating, engagement, and marriage, but none comes up more frequently than the verse, “Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks” (Matthew 12:34, KJV). The fact that my mouth will speak out what I am filling my heart with is one that he needs to remind his wife of often... sometimes with mixed results! When I cultivate self-focus or negativity in my heart, my inward feelings inevitably tumble out of my mouth in complaints and frustration, affecting everyone around me. But when I fill my heart with gratitude to God, my words become filled with joy and I spread the news of the goodness of God to my children, friends, and everyone around me. It’s a night and day difference!
It’s no wonder that the scriptures link our beliefs about God with our hearts and with our mouths (verses 9-10). As humans, our hearts and our mouths are inevitably interconnected! Our salvation is complete when we accept in our hearts the gift of salvation that Jesus Christ offers us. I love how the Believer’s Bible Commentary puts it: “it is not a mere intellectual assent but a genuine acceptance with one’s whole inward being.” And when we accept Christ with our inward being, we will be filled with the hope of God, and the inevitable result will be an outward expression of that through our words.
Words are so important. They are the stamp we use to imprint our surroundings with our feelings, our thoughts, our priorities, and our beliefs. Our words carry to those around us the weight of our inward selves. Throughout our World Changers series, we have met so many biblical characters through their recorded words: their fears, their pasts, their questions, their struggles, but ultimately, their willingness to be used by God. The woman at the well is no different. Her words at first communicated her stereotypes, her limitations, and her traditions, but her encounter with the Living Word pulled forth her heart-longing for God, and ultimately resulted in her sharing with the whole village her testimony of salvation!
What have your words been imparting to others lately? Your mouth will inevitably speak out what your heart is filled with. Cultivate the joy of God in your heart, intentionally encounter the Living Water and His word on a daily basis... and you will always be ready to share the joy of Jesus with those around you and give a reason for the hope that is in you!
Action Steps
Prayer
Lord God, thank You for gifting us with words to connect and communicate with others. Thank You that our hearts and our words flow together. Give me life in my heart and on my tongue, Lord, for those around me! Help my words to draw others out, and to share with them the hope and joy I’ve found in You. I love You, Jesus, and in Your name I pray, amen.
If you declare with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you profess your faith and are saved. As Scripture says, “Anyone who believes in him will never be put to shame.” For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, for, “Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”
How, then, can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!”
Reflection
My husband John has taught me many valuable lessons over our years of dating, engagement, and marriage, but none comes up more frequently than the verse, “Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks” (Matthew 12:34, KJV). The fact that my mouth will speak out what I am filling my heart with is one that he needs to remind his wife of often... sometimes with mixed results! When I cultivate self-focus or negativity in my heart, my inward feelings inevitably tumble out of my mouth in complaints and frustration, affecting everyone around me. But when I fill my heart with gratitude to God, my words become filled with joy and I spread the news of the goodness of God to my children, friends, and everyone around me. It’s a night and day difference!
It’s no wonder that the scriptures link our beliefs about God with our hearts and with our mouths (verses 9-10). As humans, our hearts and our mouths are inevitably interconnected! Our salvation is complete when we accept in our hearts the gift of salvation that Jesus Christ offers us. I love how the Believer’s Bible Commentary puts it: “it is not a mere intellectual assent but a genuine acceptance with one’s whole inward being.” And when we accept Christ with our inward being, we will be filled with the hope of God, and the inevitable result will be an outward expression of that through our words.
Words are so important. They are the stamp we use to imprint our surroundings with our feelings, our thoughts, our priorities, and our beliefs. Our words carry to those around us the weight of our inward selves. Throughout our World Changers series, we have met so many biblical characters through their recorded words: their fears, their pasts, their questions, their struggles, but ultimately, their willingness to be used by God. The woman at the well is no different. Her words at first communicated her stereotypes, her limitations, and her traditions, but her encounter with the Living Word pulled forth her heart-longing for God, and ultimately resulted in her sharing with the whole village her testimony of salvation!
What have your words been imparting to others lately? Your mouth will inevitably speak out what your heart is filled with. Cultivate the joy of God in your heart, intentionally encounter the Living Water and His word on a daily basis... and you will always be ready to share the joy of Jesus with those around you and give a reason for the hope that is in you!
Action Steps
- Be intentional to listen to yourself throughout today. What are your words imparting to those around you? How do your words change when you are with certain people, and why?
- Be intentional in allowing your heart to flow through your words to everyone around you this week... and watch the results!
Prayer
Lord God, thank You for gifting us with words to connect and communicate with others. Thank You that our hearts and our words flow together. Give me life in my heart and on my tongue, Lord, for those around me! Help my words to draw others out, and to share with them the hope and joy I’ve found in You. I love You, Jesus, and in Your name I pray, amen.
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