Joseph Prince - What You Speak Could Change Your Life
Faith is very simple. In the greatest gift of our salvation, it says in Romans chapter 10, verse 8, «What does it say? The Word is near you». Where? «In your mouth and in your heart (that is the Word of faith which we preach): that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved». Now, «with the heart one believes unto righteousness». That’s how you becomes the righteousness of God in Christ. By believing with the heart, «And with the mouth confession is made unto salvation».
Friend, do you see the process of faith here? It’s very simple. It is in your mouth and it involves your mouth and your heart. Again, verse 9, your mouth and your heart. Again, verse 10, «With the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation». Now, if with the mouth confession is made unto salvation, but the greatest blessing of all, how about healing? With the mouth, you must believe in your heart that God wants you healed and he has done it with his stripes. By his stripes, we are healed.
It’s not enough just to know that or just to hear that, okay? You need to say it. With the mouth, confession is made unto healing. With the mouth, confession is made unto protection. With the mouth, confession is made unto overcoming that sinful habit in your life. With the mouth. It’s not enough to know what God is showing us about that subject or that particular topic that you are studying on. You need to speak out what you have learned from the Lord, hallelujah. So faith is simple. Believe in your heart. Speak with your mouth.
2 Corinthians 4:13. It says, «We having the same spirit of faith,» notice, spirit of faith. Oh, hallelujah! That’s the spirit of faith that got God’s attention out there in the wilderness when Joshua and Caleb stood up and said, «Let us go up at once and possess the land. And those enemies, they are bread for us». And God says, God loved the Spirit. He has another Spirit with him. God said, God was so pleased with the Spirit of Caleb and Joshua and the Bible says, «We having the same spirit of faith, according as it is written, I believed, and therefore have I spoken; we also believe, and therefore speak».
My friends, how does the spirit of faith operate? I believe, therefore have I spoken. We also believe and therefore speak. That same spirit of faith. That woman with the issue of blood had, amen. Just believe, if I can touch his clothes, I shall be well. Believe in your heart. Speak with your mouth, amen. Faith is an amazing thing. Sometimes I dread to teach on faith because people tend to make faith into a work when they study it. But faith is very simple. It’s very simple. It is actually seeing Jesus, seeing his generosity, seeing his love for you, seeing his grace, and then he turns around and he sees your faith.
The Lord said to me many years ago, «When you see Jesus in his grace, he sees you in your faith». And he said that to me when I was studying about the woman with the issue of blood that I alluded to just now. You know, she received from behind, when she touched Jesus, the hem of his garment. And the Bible says, «She received healing and Jesus turned around». And what did Jesus say to her? «Your faith has made you well». But it’s actually Jesus’s power. But Jesus gave her the credit. «Your faith made you well». So friend, she didn’t say, «I have faith, I have faith, I have faith». No, she wasn’t conscious of her faith. She was conscious of Jesus, amen. The more of Jesus you hear, the more faith you will have. Praise the Lord.
Faith comes by hearing and hearing the Word of Christ. So her focus was on Jesus. She was Christ-occupied. And it was Jesus who turned around and says, «Your faith». So when you see him in his grace, in his loveliness, in his generosity, amen, because he’s always dispensing. That’s the nature of grace, amen. You see him in his grace. He sees you in your faith. Hallelujah, isn’t he wonderful? God did not create by seeing first and then he created. God has to see then, no. God does not need to see. God spoke and then he saw. God saw darkness and God said, «Light be»! And he saw the light and it was good. We are created in the image of God. Faith operates like this. You speak it and you will see it.
So believe what God says in your heart and then speak it with your mouth. You must speak it. Knowing all these things in your heart is not enough. You must speak it out. Hallelujah, praise the Lord. If you believe that healing is your portion, it belongs to you, and healing has been given to you by Jesus’s work at the cross, amen. By his stripes, you are healed. Say it. «By his stripes, I am healed». Praise the Lord. I have the mind of Christ. The mind of Christ has perfect recall of every memory that’s needed. I have the mind of Christ. Confess it. Don’t say, «My mind is getting forgetful. I’m getting old» and all that. No friend, you be careful with that because Jesus taught them how to have the faith of God by saying this, «Whoever shall say unto the mountain, 'Be thou removed.'»
Now, say it to the mountain is what? Your mouth. «Whoever shall say to the mountain, 'Be removed and be thrown into the sea' and will not doubt,» where? «In your heart». So we have the mouth and the heart. Again, it’s that simple. Believe and speak. «Does not doubt in his heart, he will have whatever he says». Hallelujah, he will have whatever he says. So, believe in your heart and speak it with your mouth. Friend, this is crucial because in Proverbs 18, verse 21, it says, «Death and life are in the power of the tongue. And those who love it will eat its fruit».
Once again, death and life are in the power of the tongue. So, think about it. That God gave man a power that man is not even aware of when he first created him. And God had to bring him to all the animals and God brought the animals rather to him one by one to see what Adam would call them one by one. And whatever Adam called them, that’s their name. But you study carefully in the Hebrew, whatever Adam called them, that is their nature. That is their name, which means that’s their nature. That’s what they became. So God was teaching Adam, the power is in your mouth, amen. Because God told man, «Have dominion over the earth».
So imagine there were big dinosaurs in those days, huge mammoths and all that. I don’t think Adam was controlling them or having dominion over them with a small stick. No, Adam would just speak to them and they obeyed. God made Adam sovereign over all the creatures of the earth. Praise the Lord. Until man fell. Now, so man ruled by the words of his mouth. The Bible says, «Where the word of a king is, there is power». But how are we using our words today? Even now that you’re born again, amen, that power is restored so much more.
Have you noticed that the moment Adam sinned, when Adam sinned, okay, he died. Now, it took 930 years for that to take effect. But at that moment, his spirit died. So he was in the process of dying, okay. But this is what God said to them when they sinned. «In the sweat of your face you shall eat bread till you return to the ground, For out of it, you were taken; for dust you are, and to dust you shall return. Dust you are, and to dust you shall return». Look at Adam’s reaction. The moment God says, «'Dust you are and to dust you shall return,» the Bible says, «And Adam called his wife’s name Eve, ('Havvah'),» in Hebrew, «Because she was the mother of all living».
God just said, «Dust you are and to dust you shall return». Adam almost, I believe, right after he heard that, he turned to his wife and said, «Your name is life-giver». Living, amen. Actually, the word there is life-giver. Your name is life. And not only life, life-giver. There’s a compounding of words there. And what is interesting is this word, «Havvah,» which is Eve. We say Eve in English. In Hebrew, it’s «Havvah». «Havvah,» comes from the etymology that literally says, «Declare life, proclaim life».
Adam knew the sentence of death had been pronounced on both of them, but he loved his wife. He turned to her straight away and said, «But you’ll be the mother of all living. Your name will be 'Havvah', you’ll be living, not dying, and you will be imparting and proclaiming life,» amen. I believe to all the children, to all the descendants. Hallelujah, Adam learned the secret. That’s why it took a long time for him to die physically 'cause the devil cannot program that just yet. Adam was too conscious of the power he had. God just trained him just now. I mean, I said just now, but you know, some time before that, how to name all the animals, amen. God taught him, whatever you name, that will be the name of the animal and the nature of the animal.
So Adam realized his power as he named them one by one, all the species of animals. He realized that the power in his mouth. So when he saw a woman, he says, «Whoa-man». You know why? You are taken from man. So he saw woman and said, «Whoa-man, this is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh». He realized that whatever he called woman, all right, he called her, that is what she will be. You see, you might say, «Well Pastor Prince, he’s just naming her, that’s all». But friend, in the Bible, names have significance with God. And you think about it, God didn’t call Eve Eve. God called both Adam and Eve, Adam.
Let me show that to you. In Genesis 5:2, «Male and female created he them; and blessed them, and called their name Adam». Called both of them. Called their name Adam. Male and female. «Called their name Adam, in the day when they were created». So God called both husband and wife, Adam. It was Adam who called his wife, living and life giver, hallelujah. So both of them learned to put death at bay, even though they were sentenced already and it was gonna happen, okay. And we know, of course, a thousand years with the Lord, it’s like one day and all they can talk about that. But in essence, what they were doing was that they were practicing speaking life to each other, speaking life over their children, speaking life.
And of course, we know that the death has come in, so they will die one day and it went on. But I believe there’s something to this about the fact that he named her «Havvah». We come from the etymology «Havvah,» And «Havvah,» is to proclaim or declare life. Praise the Lord, praise the Lord. So friend, what are you doing with your words? What are you doing with your words? Are you speaking life over yourself? Are you speaking life over your spouse? Are you speaking life over your children? Are you ministering health to them? Are you ministering healing? Praise the Lord. Are you speaking death all the time over them? You know criticizing them is also death. You know, just now I talked about the cursing of the fig tree.
Notice that Jesus didn’t go to the fig tree and say, «I curse you». He didn’t say, «I curse you fig tree». He says, «No man eat fruit from you hereafter forever». That’s all he said. It’s a negative statement. «No man eats fruit from you hereafter forever». And sometimes we say to our spouse or our children, «You know, you are forever callous. You are forever untidy». You know we say something akin to that. «You know you are forever jumping the gun. You are always critical. You are this». Sometimes you say forever, sometimes you say, always. You are always like this. You are always like that. And that is tantamount to a curse because Peter says it’s a curse.
So friend, instead of that, let’s reverse that and speak blessings, amen. Speak positive words. You know, you even speak to a tree, you speak to a plant. If you speak positive words, we have some plants in our house and Justin is learning to speak blessings over the plants. And he’s saying the plants grow. You can try this experiment, amen. Just have a small potted plant and start cursing it. Another potted plant, start blessing it every day. See what happens in one month’s time, hallelujah.
So, you speak words and words have power because that power is from God. And it’s supposed to be for life, not for death. You know, the Bible says something about married life. Like what we see Adam did. The moment he realized that death was pronounced upon his wife as well, he says this, «Your name is now living» and as well as life-giver, «Havvah». Now why? Because he loved his wife. And that’s why the Bible says, «Husbands love your wives even as Christ also loved the church». Now, how did Jesus love the church? He gave himself for her at the cross. Why? «That He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the Word».
Now listen, Jesus loved us like this. Husband loved your wife just as Christ loved the church. He gave Himself for her at the cross. For what purpose? That he might make her special, set apart, sanctify her and cleanse her with the washing of water by the Word. Now at the cross, he saved us, he redeemed us by his blood. But then, now that we are saved by the blood, he wants to make us so special, amen. To the end that we’ll be without flaw, without blemish, and without wrinkle even. Okay, I’m getting ahead of myself, but he’s gonna sanctify you and cleanse you. How? With the washing of water by the Word. Not by the blood here, but by the Word.
So the spoken word is very important and the word here is «Rhema». Logos is the entire totality of God’s Word. It’s the mind of God, hallelujah. And the Logos was made flesh. And that’s our Lord Jesus. But there’s another word for God’s Word, the Word of God in Greek. And it’s «Rhema». «Rhema» is always the spoken word. Spoken word. That’s «Rhema». And the Bible says the way Jesus cleansed the church after he redeems her, many believers know about this cleansing. They are not very familiar with the other cleansing by the word. Friend, there’s a cleansing by the word. And he set us apart that he might cleanse us with the washing of water by the word. You know how He does it? Just like in the upper room. Jesus says, «I am the true vine. You are the branches».
Read the next 2 verses. It says this, «Now you are clean through the word which I have spoken unto you». Just by declaring, «I am the true vine and you are the branches». So when the Lord says to you, «You are now the righteousness of God in Christ,» amen, the gospel says that. It’s a cleansing, amen. Notice that all these cleansing words that Jesus talked about is actually affirmative of who he has made you to be. Praise the Lord. «I am the true vine and you are the branches» connected to me. The same life, the same sap that flows in me, flows in you. Not a different one, same, hallelujah.
Now you are clean through the Word which I have spoken unto you, hallelujah. «If any of you bear fruit, I will cleanse you even further, that you will bring forth more fruit». And the great word there is the same root word as the now you are clean to the word which I’ve spoken unto you. So how does Jesus cleanse us? With his Word. We need to expose ourselves to anointed preaching. We need to spend time in the Word, amen. To hear God’s Word. And also, you know, listen to the voice of the Spirit on the inside of us, leading us. He cleanses us with his spoken now word. That’s why when I prepare my messages, I always want a now word. I ask God for the «Rhema» word. I say, «God, what’s your word»? There’s a lot of good things to teach from, but what is your «Rhema» word? What is your spoken word for now? Jesus said in the wilderness temptation, right, Jesus says, «Men shall not live by bread alone, but by every 'Rhema.'»
Literally the word there is «Rhema» word that proceedeth and the word is in present tense, proceedeth, that is ever proceeding from the mouth of God. Man doesn’t just live by bread and by rice alone, friend. We must live by the ever proceeding, present tense, «Rhema» word of God. I believe that the Lord wants us to really walk in all these truths and to know these truths, but more than that, to confess them, to believe, «Yes, I am the righteousness of God in Christ». That’s why it’s so important to declare, «I am the righteousness of God in Christ». If you feel dirty, you feel like you came short of something, right, to confess that. And friend, I want to read to you a testimony in closing that I think will bless you. You need to confess, «I am the righteousness of God in Christ».
This is a testimony from a man called Eric from Florida.
I had been addicted to watching pornography for 28 years. Even as a child of God, I struggled with this regularly. In 2007, my wife discovered Joseph Prince Ministries and was deeply touched. At that point, I had completely lost control over my addiction. So I watched Pastor Prince’s sermons every day and would even study the Hebrew and Greek words taught in the messages. Within the year, the Lord’s grace became real to me. I began watching pornography less and less till the frequency became only once a year. I remember listening to a city sermon and Pastor Prince talked about how indulging in pornography makes one’s wife become less attractive in one’s mind. When I heard this, I fell to the ground weeping. In that moment, I heard the Lord speak to me, 'Every time you watched pornography, I was there and I love you more than you can imagine.' Knowing I was loved even in the midst of my addiction set me free. I have now been set free from pornography for eight years. Today, I mentor others who are currently struggling with pornography addictions in my church. Thank you, Pastor Prince, for all that you do.
Praise the Lord. To God be all the glory, amen. So confess, «I am the righteousness of God in Christ». There are so many testaments that came in of men, while they are watching, they will confess, «I am the righteousness of God in Christ». You say, «Pastor Prince, that sounds so wrong». They will still do it. You don’t tell them to confess. They will still be watching, okay. So you know what? Tell them, confess. Call those things that are not in the present, not yet in the present, as though they exist. «I am the righteousness of God in Christ».
Actually, you already are, but it’s not manifested in the present, amen. But God sees you in the Spirit. So call what is within, all right, until it is manifested without. Praise the Lord. «I am the righteousness of God in Christ» until it flows to the members of your body, amen, in your mind. You will feel it, amen. That’s why I say this, It’s not enough just to confess «I’m the right hand of God in Christ».
Remember, you must touch your soul until your soul feels it. Confess it until your soul feels it and then it will affect your body. And that’s from Romans 8. Praise the Lord. Have you been blessed? I trust that you have received God’s Word. And every time you receive God’s Word, something great happens to you. Grace and peace and shalom, well-being, is multiplied in your life. We tend to lean more towards death.
I was telling Justin, my son, the other day. Think about it. You know, as I was teaching him not to say death or dying words. I said that if you’re dying for the piece of cake, you can’t eat the cake. You’re dying, okay? You should say what? I’m living. Actually, it makes more sense. I know it doesn’t sound right, but it makes more sense. I’m living for the piece of cake. «Oh, Pastor Prince, it’s just an expression». That’s what the devil wants you to think. He has programmed that into the language that man is speaking more death in their vocabulary more than life. And you know what’s happening? They don’t realize that they are sabotaging themselves because the Bible says, «Death and life are in the power of the tongue».