Self-Talk: Same Word, Same Life

I work on my computer a lot. And while I work, I listen to music. Spotify. There's something we listen to more than anything else on earth. What do you think that is? It's not Spotify. It's not your favorite podcast. It's not even your best friend. 

It's the running conversation going on… inside our own heads. Our own self-talk. From morning to night, that voice, in our heads, never stops. We are the most listened-to voice in our lives. 

So the question is, “What’s that voice saying?” Let’s learn more about that. Please turn to Romans.

There’s one thing I know for sure: When the words coming out of my mouth… match the Words… coming from God (the spiritual truths in the Bible), then my life… starts to look like… the life God says I have. When my mouth says what God says, my life… starts to look like… the life God says I have.

So, let’s talk about 4 things:

• Romans 10.

• What Paul says about the connection between our mouths and our hearts.

• We'll dig into one Greek word about confessing. 

• We'll look at a woman in Mark 5.

Please turn to Romans 10.

The Word Is in Your Mouth and in Your Heart

A couple thousand years ago, Paul wrote a letter to some born-again believers - like us. And he's describing… what we tell ourselves. That is… how we believe, how we receive, and how we walk… in the more abundant life that God has made available to us.

Let’s start with Romans 10:8.

Romans 10:8 But what saith it? The word is nigh thee, even in thy mouth, and in thy heart: that is, the word of faith, which we preach.

So, where is the Word? “The word is nigh thee.” Nigh is an old-school KJV word that just means near or close. How close? Even in thy mouth. It's in your mouth. And in your heart. 

And Paul puts these in order. Mouth is first, then heart. He said "in thy mouth, and in thy heart." Because there is a connection between what comes out of your mouth and what's in your heart, and Paul is about to spell it out for us in the next two verses.

• Romans 10:9 That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved.

• Romans 10:10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

Paul puts confessing with the mouth… and believing in the heart… together. They work as a team. Mouth and heart. Heart and mouth. 

It’s impossible to believe something… while your mouth says the opposite. 

Here’s an example. Have you ever tried to believe… the verse… that says "God shall supply all my needs" while your mouth keeps saying, "I'm broke, I can't afford that, I'll never get ahead"? It does not work. 

My mouth and my heart have to be on the same page. When my mouth confesses (says) what God says, my heart starts to catch up with what I’m saying. That is how this works. Same Word in my mouth. Same Word in my heart. Same Word manifested in my life. Same Word, Same Life.

Greek Word Study: Homologeo

Let's look into one word here in Romans 10:9. The word "confess" — "if thou shalt confess with thy mouth". That is the Greek word homo-lo-geo. Homologeo is built from two Greek words. Homuo (hom ew), which means "the same" and logos which means “the word."

That word “confess” (in Romans 10:9) means… Same Word. 

So when Paul writes in Romans 10:9, "confess with thy mouth," what he's literally saying is "say the same word." Same word as what? Same as God’s Word. 

In the world, the word "confess" usually means admitting you did something wrong. Confess to the priest. Confess to your friend that you ate the last donut. 

But that's not what biblical confession means. Biblical confession means saying the same thing God says. Confess: homo-lo-geo. I’ll give you some examples of confession. 

• When God says you are righteous in Christ Jesus (2 Corinthians 5:21 KJV), your confession is saying, "I’m righteous in Christ Jesus."

• When God says you are more than a conqueror (Romans 8:37 KJV), your confession is saying, "I’m more than a conqueror."

• When God says by his stripes you were healed (1 Peter 2:24 KJV), your confession is saying, "By his stripes I was healed."

That's homo-lo-geo. Same word as God's Word.

Now, here is where self-talk comes in. Many people out there… walk around all day… saying things… that are NOT the same… as what God says. I’ll give you some examples. 

• Someone might say, "I'm such a mess. I'm not good enough." But God says if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature — old things are passed away, behold all things are become new (2 Corinthians 5:17 KJV).

• Someone might say, "Boy, I really f’d up." But God says there is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus (Romans 8:1 KJV).

• Someone might say, "I can't do this. I'll never get past this." But God says you are more than a conqueror through him that loved you (Romans 8:37 KJV).

• Someone might say, "I'm just sick all the time." But God says by his stripes ye were healed (1 Peter 2:24 KJV).

• Someone might be looking at a big exam result coming back from a not-so-great professor and say, "Oh, man, this is not going to be good." But God says all things work together for good to them that love God (Romans 8:28 KJV).

• Someone might say, "This whole finding-an-apartment-and-a-roommate thing stinks." But the Bible says that my God shall supply all my need. (Philippians 4:19 KJV).

• Someone might say, "This is way too much for me to handle. I can’t do it." But God says greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world (1 John 4:4 KJV).

Every word that comes out of your mouth is either “same-word” or “different-word.” It's either lining up… with what God says about you, or it's lining up... with something else — your feelings, your circumstances, what somebody told you when you were eight years old, what the doctor said, what the bank said, what the news said.

Paul says (in Romans 10) when you say the same thing as God… with your mouth… and you believe it in your heart… things move. Things change. Life becomes abundant. Blessings happen. 

Same word, same life.

Whosoever Calls

Let's stay right here in Romans 10 and keep reading.

• Romans 10:11 For the scripture saith, Whosoever believeth on him shall not be ashamed.

• Romans 10:12 For there is no difference between the Jew and the Greek: for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him.

• Romans 10:13 For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

Whosoever in verse 13. That word includes me and you. For whosoever calls.

And that's a mouth thing.

Then in verse 14 Paul shifts gears.

• Romans 10:14 How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?

• Romans 10:15 And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!

Paul gives us a chain right here. A chain of events - connected things. Somebody has to be sent. People walk out. They talk, confess, and preach. People hear. Hearing leads to believing. Believing leads to calling out. Calling on the name of the Lord. It’s a sequence.

And then verse 17 gives us the key to the whole thing.

• Romans 10:17 So then faith (believing) cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

Faith — that's believing — comes by hearing. Hearing the word. 

When you say words out loud, you are hearing it. When you confess God's Word with your own mouth, you hear it. Your brain processes it. And your believing grows. Believing comes by hearing (verse 17). And hearing… the word. 

It's a beautiful loop. You speak God's Word. You hear yourself speak it. And your believing grows. You speak it again with even more conviction. Believing grows more. And on it goes.

That's how I can build my mind. That’s how the renewing of the mind actually works in practice. As your mouth says what God says, day after day, and your heart follows. That’s what’s written in Romans.

The Woman Who Kept Saying It

Turn to Mark 5. We're going outside Romans 10 for one quick stop, because this story is pretty good. You may have heard it already. 

There was a woman who'd had an issue with her blood for twelve years. The Word says she had spent everything she had on doctors, and she actually got worse… instead of better. She was at the end of her rope.

Then she heard about Jesus. And she was walking through a crowd of people coming to see Jesus. And here's what she did.

Mark 5:28 For she said, If I may touch but his clothes, I shall be whole.

She said. Now, the word "said" in that verse is in what's called the imperfect tense in Greek. The imperfect tense means continuous action in the past. It's not a one-and-done. It means she was saying it. And saying it. And saying it. To herself. Over and over. That word “said” in verse 28. 

The word “said” means in Greek - harangue: a long, loud, and aggressive speech delivered in public assemblies. It serves as a intense verbal attack or rant, intended to persuade through intense emotion. Ever do that during an intense workout or a run. “Keep going.” “Come on.” “Let’s go.” 

She kept saying it, all the way through that crowd. "If I may touch his clothes, I shall be whole. If I may touch his clothes, I shall be whole.”

Same words. Same words. 

And by the time she actually got close enough to reach her hand out and touch the hem of his garment, what do you think was in her heart? Whatever she had been saying. 

She had been preaching to herself the whole way there. Mouth and heart, lining up. And when her fingers brushed that garment, she was made whole.

That's homologeo. Greek words that mean "the same word."

Summary

We saw in Romans 10 that the Word is near you — in our mouths, and in our hearts. Paul put those two things together on purpose. With the heart you believe. With the mouth you confess. Mouth and heart, work as a team.

We learned the Greek word for confess is homologeo, which literally means "same word." Saying the same thing God says. 

We saw that faith comes by hearing — and when you say God's Word out loud, you hear it. Your own voice preaching to your own ears. That's how believing grows.

And we saw a woman who kept saying what she expected to receive, And she walked away whole.

Same word, same life. When you start saying… what God says about you, your life starts to look like… what God says about you.

Do the Word

This week, let’s pick one promise from God's Word. Maybe it's, "My God shall supply all my need." 

Then, write it down. 

Then, say it out loud. 

And repeat. 

This is the renewing of the mind. This is how we can live the more abundant life Jesus came to make available.

Let’s say what God says. 

Amen?