The Healing Word

Guest (Male): Faith comes by hearing. Someone said we don't need more preaching, but by the grace of God, if we have ever needed positive words through the Word of God that is inspired and infallible, it's today. Psalm 107, verse 20: "He sent his word and healed them." Welcome to The Healing Word, a radio ministry of the Largo Community Church. Here's Pastor Jack Morris with today's message that will grow your faith in God and lead you to a closer walk with Jesus.

Pastor Jack Morris: There's a psychologist at the University of California who said this, that we are living in a big incubator. You know an incubator, you put these little eggs from chickens in an incubator and they hatch out little chickens. Well, it's almost like we're living in an incubator that is hatching out anger, even among God's people. Now, I would expect that destructive anger from the unsaved, but not from the saved.

We are to be angry, but that anger as a Christian is to motivate us to do something good. We are to be provoked. Like Minister Hooper mentioned yesterday, we had all of these cars and we were giving out bags of food. We're angry at the economic fallout and we're going to do something about it. We got out there on the parking lot, all of us, and we had a great time praying with people, giving them bags of food. Some Christians are angry and they're involving themselves in demonstrations or marches, but non-violent and non-destructive.

We are people with that capacity and God has given it to us. Now there's a psychiatrist who said this, and I'm going to read it to you, quoting, "The country is now dealing with three superimposed on top of one another: the pandemic, on top of that, the economic fallout, and on top of that, civil unrest. We're not dealing with one thing at a time, but it's like a bunch of grapes. All of these things just converged on us at once and we are reacting in various ways. Some reactions are constructive and some are destructive."

I was going to prepare for and get the churches together to try to have a march out here in this area, but I was talked out of it after I'd called the police and the Sheriff's department. And that this has been way back there, that some people felt that I wasn't doing anything. I was working trying to get it together, but it just didn't come together. But we need to love one another, support one another, do constructive things, and get involved wherever we need to get involved to help one another.

We are God's people and we need to rediscover who we are in Christ. Now, this psychiatrist, Dr. Joshua Morganstein, said this: "Pandemic, this economic fallout, this civil unrest is displaying itself in a common way of responding to it. This pandemic, economic fallout, civil unrest, a common way of responding to it is anger." We're in a big incubator. We're going to see something on television, we're going to get a telephone call, we're going to get an email from a friend, or we're going to hear something in a sermon. There's going to be a lot of things that are going to make you angry. Respond to it in a Christ-like way, but in a very definite way.

It's coming at us and it's not over in a long way. God help us. We need to direct this anger as God would have us to direct it. The most common way of expressing anger that we feel, the most common way is to direct it. We have to get rid of this anger that comes into us. We're all going to be angry from time to time. God created us with that capacity. A person that is healthy has the capacity to be angry, and if a person is never angry, they are less than human.

Anger is there to motivate us to do something right and constructive, to say nice things, to love one another, and to be good to one another. Anybody can be good when they're good to you. Anybody can say nice things when people are saying nice things to you. But Jesus was led to the slaughter as a lamb before her shearers is dumb, so he opened not his mouth. I'm going to talk about our mouth today. When Christians become angry, generally speaking, we manifest and respond to that anger with words. That's the general way we do it. We lash out if it's destructive, or we pray. But you can't pray and lash out at the same time.

It doesn't work that way. The prayers go unanswered and we only release poison into our own system. Now, the reason I'm talking about anger today is because Jesus said a whole lot about it. The Apostles talked about it, and in the Old Testament, God talked about it. You see, God wants all of us to be well and healthy physically as well as spiritually. But if we're not healthy spiritually, we're not going to be healthy physically. And anger releases a poison into the system. Hear the word of God and be blessed. You see, God's looking out for you and me, body, soul, and spirit.

He cares for us. He wants us to be well and to be happy. You see, our words can hurt or heal, build up or tear down, curse or bless. We do that with our words all the time, not only with our tongue but on the keyboard also. The scripture says in Proverbs 18:21: "Life and death are in the power of the tongue." You see, I have to preach on this if I'm a Bible preacher. Life and death. You have the power of life and death. I have it. It's on our tongues.

How did God create the world and the universe? He did it with words. There is power, supernatural power, in words. God said in Genesis chapter one, eight times, no less than eight times, it says, "And God said, 'Let there be light,' and there was light." And God said, and God said, and God kept saying and wonderful things began happening. God created the universe in words. The devil came along and tore it down. How? With words. Words can build up or words can tear down. Satan slithered into the garden as the serpent and the scripture says the serpent said to Eve words. What God built up, the paradise he built up, Satan came along and tore it down.

And we lost paradise, and from then on, there's been thorns and thistles and unrest in the earth, and sin until that sin is confessed and repented of and God moves it out of our hearts. Words. God builds up with words. The word of God is manna to the soul, and God is building up. Faith comes by hearing. Someone said we don't need more preaching, but by the grace of God, if we have ever needed positive words through the word of God that is inspired and infallible, it's today. God help us.

That's why I've called out to you. Pray for me. I'm the one that's preaching the word. It's his word. It's his word that's going to bless and build up, and this will bless you and build you up today also. God said, Satan said. The power that's in the tongue is unimaginable, and our tongue is just like it's loose, flapping. Whatever we feel, out it goes. We're not going to get into riots and we're not going to break out windows and rob stores and pillage houses. We're not going to do that. We're not going to release our anger in that way.

We're going to release our anger all dressed up in nice clothes, sitting before our computer, typing out email addresses to friends or on the phone or talking to one another. It's words that Christians use. Let's use words as God used words to us. God brought us into the kingdom of God. Now, let me say one more thing. Do you know that not only can you build a person up with words or tear them down with words, but you can build yourself up or tear yourself down with words? Words have a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Sometimes, have you ever gotten angry at yourself and you said something like, "Boy, you're stupid"? Or you thought that. We think with words and we think with imagination. But words and imagination go together. Or we do something and we'll think, "Oh my, I wish I were dead. I wish I had never been born. I'm a loser." Something happens in our life. These words have self-fulfilling prophecies. You're a child of God and God loves you, and you're to love yourself. You're to love one another and you're to love yourself. And the person that doesn't love another, that person does not love himself or herself.

There's something wrong. Hear the word of God, dear friends. Turn to the Lord and be blessed. Let's praise the Lord with all of our hearts. Let's ask God for his mercy and grace to control what we cannot get. We can control animals. We go to the circus, or back when they used to have the circus under the big top, we can control the lions and all how we used to enjoy seeing that and the elephants and the horses and the dogs. Oh, we can control a lot of things, but that little thing in our mouth.

But God will help us. As he took away our sins when he saved us, he will give us control over our tongues. So ask God for help. First, recognize you need help, then ask God. Don't excuse yourself. That would be just like a sinner excusing himself from sinning. Well, God can't save a person under those conditions. If we confess with our mouth the Lord Jesus, that God raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved, for with the mouth, with the mouth, with the mouth. Friend, there's so much you can do that is good with your mouth, with your tongue, for yourself, with God, for the church, for the kingdom of God.

Yes, let's get angry, good and mad at some of the injustice that has been going on for hundreds of years. Yes, and then get out there and do something very positive. Feed the hungry, clothe the naked, give drink to the thirsty, help with finances, whatever is needed. Do something in Jesus' name that is good. Now, what you sow, you're going to reap. The blessing of God will turn around and come right back to you and will bless you. Ask God to help you. Number two, praise God more. And number three, ask God for a new heart. He gave you a new heart when you got saved, when Jesus came into your heart.

The scripture says in Psalm 51, verse 10, hear me now, friend: "Create in me a clean heart, O God, and renew a right spirit within me." This is a believer praying with a dirty heart, and now we know he has a dirty heart because he has a dirty mouth. He has said things he shouldn't say, and that needs repentance. That needs confession. Ezekiel chapter 18, verse 31: "Rid yourselves of all offenses you have committed and get a new heart and a new spirit." Now notice it says this: Ezekiel 18:31, notice it said, "Rid yourselves."

Rid yourselves. Nobody can shut your tongue but you. Nobody can open your mouth but you, me. This is something we have to do. Like the sinner, he has to confess. I can't confess for him. I have to say, "Lord, I have sinned, even with my language, with my words." Rid yourselves of all offenses. You need to go back and even confess to the person you hurt. Ask God for forgiveness. Ask the person for forgiveness. God will give you a new heart, a new spirit, a new life. Your Christianity will become alive and it will become so well.

The Bible directly links the mouth and the heart. They're linked together. They're hooked together. So what's on your tongue is coming out of your mouth. You want to know what's in your heart? Just listen to what you're saying, the words you're using, who you're talking to. Listen to it. If you want to know what's in another person's heart, just listen to what that person is saying. You'll know what's in their heart. They say, "Only God knows my heart." No, God knows your heart fully, completely, and he knows it all. But there's a certain amount that you and I can know.

Listen to this: "For out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaketh." What's coming out has already been in there. Someone said, "Oh, I wish I could control my temper." You can if you ask God. You can if you pray more. Words. Here it is. Read some of these holy inspired infallible words that came from the heart of God, and watch your heart begin to change. And every time you say something wrong, go back and say, "God, I shouldn't have said that." Talk it over with the Lord. Pretty soon you will gain control because God will have given you the power over that.

Listen, "For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaketh. A good man out of the good treasure of the heart bringeth forth good things, and an evil man out of the evil treasure bringeth forth evil things." You're bringing forth one or the other. There's no grey matter here. But I say unto you, if you want to hear what God is saying, here it is: "That every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give an account thereof in the day of judgment." Man, God's going to play it back to me like on a tape recorder. And I'm going to say, "God, did I say that about that person?"

Heaven has it all recorded. Oh, I might get away with it in this life, but I'm going to face it someday. Every idle word that a person, I'm going to face it in the day of judgment. "For by thy words thou shalt be justified, and by thy words thou shalt be condemned." Thus saith the Lord. Friend, God loves you and he wants you to have a wonderful ongoing living Christian experience. And you will, as you turn to the Lord, talk to God about these matters. There are some areas in our life that have not been crucified.

Oh, there are times that we act sweet and beautiful, but it's because others are acting sweet and beautiful. That doesn't count. Sinners could do that and they do it all the time. But there are times when we can't or we won't. But we can rid ourselves by going to the Lord for help, praising him more, and asking God, "Give me a new heart, a clean heart." So today and tomorrow and in the days to come, look out for that email that you're going to type to somebody. I have a feeling I'm going to get some emails on this sermon. But that's all right, because I have talked to God before coming here.

Last night I was praying, "Lord, is this truly the sermon you want me to preach to the people?" And the Lord impressed it upon me. I want to help my people, but only as they hear the truth. The truth will make them free. And when they justify what they have done, that's not truth. But God comes today to bless us and to help us. And I'm not going to ask anybody to stand. I don't want to embarrass anybody at all, but stay right where you are. Begin to talk to God and say, "God, something like this: I'm asking you for your help. I'm out of control, not my habits, but my mouth is out of control. I'm saying things that I didn't even know was inside of me."

I heard an old preacher years ago. He told this illustration and I've told it so many times and I think it's so accurate. He talked about this farm boy who went to the barn and milked the cow. The bucket, right up to the rim almost, was filled with milk and he was carrying it. It was so heavy, carrying it to the house. And they had a big shepherd dog. And that big dog loved that boy. That dog came running out of the house and just put his paws up on the shoulder, bang, and the dog greeted him. And the little boy jumped like that and knocked him backwards, and when the bucket went like that, milk spilled out, splashed out all around.

Do you know why milk splashed out of that bucket? Because milk was in the bucket. And something came along that jolted him. Friend, you're going to get a whole lot more jolts in your life as long as you're here. You're going to get jolts and whatever splashes out is in there. Some of us may be very shocked at what we have said or what we may say. But talk to the Lord about it. Ask him for his help. He will fill you with love and love will start splashing out. Goodness will splash out. Wholesome statements will splash out. People will be blessed by your life. Can you say Amen? Let's love God with all our heart, with all our mind, with all our soul, with every word we speak, every action we perform, and love our neighbor as ourself. Amen.

Guest (Male): We hope that today's message has been a blessing and has strengthened your faith in God. But before we go, here is Pastor Jack Morris with a special invitation.

Pastor Jack Morris: Have you ever asked God why? Why this sickness? Why this divorce, this disappointment? Why these troubles and problems? Why, God? Friend, I've just completed an ebook entitled, "From Asking 'Why God?' to Trusting Him: A Faith Journey." I'll be glad to send it to you free of charge simply for asking. Some of the life situations addressed in the ebook are God's timing in answering prayer, a journey of faith through suffering, reasons for unanswered prayer, and more. For your free copy, go to thehealingword.com and sign up. That's thehealingword.com and I'll send you a free copy of "From Asking 'Why God?' to Trusting Him." I'm Pastor Jack Morris.

Guest (Male): Join us tomorrow for another Healing Word message. Until then, blessings on you.