In this article we need to understand that the mouth of God also has power. The “battle of the great day of God Almighty” (Revelation 16:14) does not fare well with those who engage in this conflict with the Master of the universe. Those who follow the beast—whether willingly or through deception—shall be consumed with the mouth of God. “And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming” (2 Thessalonians 2:8). The presence of God has the power to consume because “our God is a consuming fire” (Hebrews 12:29). Life comes from God who is our Creator—and when we separate from Him, we separate from life. And what is it that separates a being from God? “But your iniquities have separated between you and your God, and your sins have hid his face from you, that he will not hear” (Isaiah 59:2). Sin, “transgression of the law,” makes a disconnect from the Source of life (1 John 3:4).

How does this operate? Is God looking with eager intensity to punish someone? “The Lord is not slack concerning his promise, as some men count slackness; but is longsuffering to us-ward, not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9). This is why God has given us so much time to prepare. He wants every human being to become intelligent as to the issues of the conflict and decide in favor of life. “We are not to regard God as waiting to punish the sinner for his sin. The sinner brings the punishment upon himself. His own actions start a train of circumstances that bring the sure result. Every act of transgression reacts upon the sinner, works in him a change of character, and makes it more easy for him to transgress again. By choosing to sin, men separate themselves from God, cut themselves off from the channel of blessing, and the sure result is ruin and death.”1

This is why it is natural for our God to be a consuming fire. “In all who submit to His power the Spirit of God will consume sin. But if men cling to sin, they become identified with it. Then the glory of God, which destroys sin, must destroy them.” 2

The power of God is found in His actions as a Creator. This is how He shows that there is no other God besides Himself. “For thus saith the Lord that created the heavens; God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it, he created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited: I am the Lord; and there is none else” (Isaiah 45:18). This is why the Sabbath, a memorial of creation, is the only sign of our allegiance to God as the Creator.

The way that He creates is through the power of the Word. “By the word of the Lord were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth” (Psalm 33:6). For that reason Jesus (Creator and Redeemer) is called the Word of God. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. In him was life; and the life was the light of men” (John 1:1–4). This life is not speaking of the short span of time that we exist in this sinful world. It is speaking of a timeframe that cannot be comprehended by sinful human beings. It is speaking of a length of time that measures with the life of God. “These things have I written unto you that believe on the name of the Son of God; that ye may know that ye have eternal life, and that ye may believe on the name of the Son of God” (1 John 5:13). The consciousness of having eternal life gives a totally different perspective on the things of this world and even life itself.

If we want to have that kind of life, that kind of power that is omnipotent, we need to be related to God. This only comes by inheritance and inheritance is given to family—passed from one generation to another. There is only one way to be family with God. “But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name” (John 1:12). By accepting Jesus as our personal Saviour we become a part of that infinite family. We are so close that we have a “Daddy” (Abba) relationship with God. “For ye have not received the spirit of bondage again to fear; but ye have received the Spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father” (Romans 8:15). When you are family you don’t have to go through the normal channel and procedures to gain access. For that reason we are able “come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need” (Hebrews 4:16). We are family—actually a son or a daughter of God.

This is what we refer to as the new birth—to be born again into the family of Jesus. But how is one born again of the Spirit so that we have a familiar (family) relation with the great Emperor of the universe? “Being born again, not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, by the word of God, which liveth and abideth for ever” (1 Peter 1:23). We are back to words . . . words that come from the mouth of God, words that have power. We are created anew (born again) through the powerful word of God. But more than that. God does not just create and then leave it be. He maintains everything and keeps it running. As the apostle Paul brings out, He is “upholding all things by the word of his power” (Hebrews 1:3). That means that everything is running through the power of the word of God. So if we want to live, what do we need to be doing? Jesus made that clear in answer to Satan on what a person needs to survive. “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4). This is how a believer lives. This is the power of one who is dependent on the words from the mouth of God.

For this reason the Word of God is more important than anything else in this world. “I have esteemed the words of his mouth more than my necessary food” (Job 23:12). This is not just a requirement—I must eat or else I will die. No! It is where we derive our pleasure. “How sweet are thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth!” (Psalm 119:103). “As our physical life is sustained by food, so our spiritual life is sustained by the word of God. And every soul is to receive life from God’s word for himself. As we must eat for ourselves in order to receive nourishment, so we must receive the word for ourselves. We are not to obtain it merely through the medium of another’s mind. We should carefully study the Bible, asking God for the aid of the Holy Spirit, that we may understand His word. We should take one verse, and concentrate the mind on the task of ascertaining the thought which God has put in that verse for us. We should dwell upon the thought until it becomes our own, and we know ‘what saith the Lord.’ ”3

How does the Bible show that there is a corresponding change in one who genuinely accepts the words from the mouth of God into their life? “Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee” (Psalm 119:11). When the powerful word of God enters the human life, that same power which consumes the sinner attached to sin, burns the sin itself in the soul of one who yields to the pure words coming from the mouth of God. It is true that first it reveals the sin to us—but then it has the power to change! “That word which reveals the guilt of sin has a power upon the human heart to make man right and keep him so.”4

But first the mind must have the truth stored in it for there is no time to look for it when the temptation actually arrives. “The heart that is stored with the precious truths of God’s Word is fortified against the temptation of Satan, against impure thoughts and unholy actions.”5 How is this done? “Temptations often appear irresistible because, through neglect of prayer and the study of the Bible, the tempted one cannot readily remember God’s promises and meet Satan with the Scripture weapons.”6

What happens when we truly feed upon the precious words that come from the mouth of God? “As they feed upon His word, they find that it is spirit and life. The word destroys the natural, earthly nature, and imparts a new life in Christ Jesus. The Holy Spirit comes to the soul as a Comforter. By the transforming agency of His grace, the image of God is reproduced in the disciple; he becomes a new creature. Love takes the place of hatred, and the heart receives the divine similitude.”7 We are born again.

And what is the result in the life of such a person? The Psalmist put these thoughts in song so that Israel could more easily remember them. “Lord, who shall abide in thy tabernacle? who shall dwell in thy holy hill? He that walketh uprightly, and worketh righteousness, and speaketh the truth in his heart. He that backbiteth not with his tongue, nor doeth evil to his neighbour, nor taketh up a reproach against his neighbour. In whose eyes a vile person is contemned; but he honoureth them that fear the Lord. He that sweareth to his own hurt, and changeth not” (Psalm 15:1–4). A lot of this has to do with the mouth and the words that come out of it.

No matter how much easier God has made salvation available, only a few will accept the invitation to have life. “Fear not, little flock; for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom” (Luke 12:32). Another word for this little flock is called throughout the Bible as the remnant. “Esaias also crieth concerning Israel, Though the number of the children of Israel be as the sand of the sea, a remnant shall be saved” (Romans 9:27). There were times in the history of this world that it was hard to identify such a people. However, “Even in the darkest hours some would remain true to their divine Ruler and in the midst of idolatry would live blameless in the sight of a holy God. These faithful ones were numbered among the goodly remnant through whom the eternal purpose of Jehovah was finally to be fulfilled.”8

Although it is very small, if it was not for this godly remnant, the world would have long ago been ripe for destruction. Often we do not see the power of a godly example but it is there working in the background preserving this world from the abyss into which it would naturally fall. “Except the Lord of hosts had left unto us a very small remnant, we should have been as Sodom, and we should have been like unto Gomorrah” (Isaiah 1:9). The effect that they have on the world is the same as dew or showers of rain upon a wilderness. “And the remnant of Jacob shall be in the midst of many people as a dew from the Lord, as the showers upon the grass, that tarrieth not for man, nor waiteth for the sons of men” (Micah 5:7). “God had chosen Israel. He had called them to preserve among men the knowledge of His law, and of the symbols and prophecies that pointed to the Saviour. He desired them to be as wells of salvation to the world. What Abraham was in the land of his sojourn, what Joseph was in Egypt, and Daniel in the courts of Babylon, the Hebrew people were to be among the nations. They were to reveal God to men.”9 And this He did through this remnant throughout all the ages of this world’s history. Imagine what would have happened if Israel as a nation, or if the majority of Christendom had truly lived the life of God among men instead of just a small remnant doing so.

Even the remnant, who is still composed of sinful human beings, need a transformation in order to accomplish this—in order to be genuine representatives of the true God. “Who is a God like unto thee, that pardoneth iniquity, and passeth by the transgression of the remnant of his heritage? he retaineth not his anger for ever, because he delighteth in mercy. He will turn again, he will have compassion upon us; he will subdue our iniquities; and thou wilt cast all their sins into the depths of the sea” (Micah 7:18, 19). It is not just to be forgiven. They need to have their sins cast into the depths of the sea.

Keep in mind that the power of God is found in His word. It is true that the words of the remnant combined with the blood of Jesus give them power to overcome the dragon. “And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death” (Revelation 12:11). “The remnant are to overcome by the blood of the Lamb and the word of their testimony. Some expect to overcome alone by the blood of the Lamb, without making any special effort of their own. I saw that God has been merciful in giving us the power of speech. He has given us a tongue, and we are accountable to Him for its use. We should glorify God with our mouth, speaking in honor of the truth and of His unbounded mercy, and overcome by the word of our testimony through the blood of the Lamb.”10

This means that there is an effect upon the mouth of this remnant when they are born again and this is what gives them power to be a witness to the world held captive in darkness. We often speak of the commandments as being the identifying marker of the remnant people of God and this is true. “And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ” (Revelation 12:17). But which commandment is it that they are identified with? Which commandment shows truly who the remnant is in this dark world? Those who have truly placed their trust in God will have their mouths changed. “I will also leave in the midst of thee an afflicted and poor people, and they shall trust in the name of the Lord. The remnant of Israel shall not do iniquity, nor speak lies; neither shall a deceitful tongue be found in their mouth: for they shall feed and lie down, and none shall make them afraid” (Zephaniah 3:12, 13).

Looking down to the last days during the sealing of the 144,000 the prophet sees the identifying mark of the last remnant. “And in their mouth was found no guile: for they are without fault before the throne of God” (Revelation 14:5). It goes back to the mouth. Why the mouth? What does the mouth reveal that no other action can? “For in many things we offend all. If any man offend not in word, the same is a perfect man, and able also to bridle the whole body” (James 3:2). The mouth reveals character—and character is power. The power of God is found in His character and that is why His mouth has such power to destroy sin (and naturally those who are so attached to sin), and also to change a sinner into a saint. The same happens when a person’s character is changed. It reflects in their words. When a person’s words reflect that change, we know that they have the character of God. “Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect” (Matthew 5:48).

And this is what God is waiting for because when Christ comes, He comes for a people that are fit for the heavenly kingdom. “Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is” (1 John 3:2). We must be like Him, we, not just as individuals but also as a church, must have His character BEFORE the second coming. “Christ is waiting with longing desire for the manifestation of Himself in His church. When the character of Christ shall be perfectly reproduced in His people, then He will come to claim them as His own.”11

When we look at the Ten Commandments, they speak of our relation to God and to our neighbor—things that we do or think. There is only one commandment that actually has to do with our words, our mouth. It is the ninth commandment: “Thou shalt not bear false witness against thy neighbour” (Exodus 20:16). We may think that we are not lying but in the repetition of these commandments it identifies a serious problem that needs to be corrected in order for the remnant to have that power to move the world. “Thou shalt not go up and down as a talebearer among thy people” (Leviticus 19:16). Yes, evil speaking, gossip is an open violation of the law of God and that remnant that is ready for the coming of Christ will have conquered this defect of character. It is this flaw that destroys the unity and prosperity of a church. “The hasty, reckless use of the faculty of speech lies at the foundation of nearly all the church troubles that exist. Evilspeaking should be dealt with as a misdemeanor that is subject to church trial and separation from church membership if persisted in; for the church cannot be set in order in any other way.”12

Are we truly waiting for the second advent of our Lord and Saviour? Are we the people preparing for the eternal home with our Lord and Saviour? Does our mouth reflect that we belong to a different world? Right now it is our opportunity to submit to the power of the Divine Word and have such a change made in our character during the time when the words of the dragon, beast and false prophet have their effect on the rest of the world. “Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city” (Revelation 22:14).