,
The words of the Lord,
recorded in scripture,
have real power. They
guide our lives in this
world. They prepare us
for life in the spiritual
world. They are the
common bond that
draws angels into
communion with people
on earth.
for us to find the way to prepare for
spiritual life, so to deny that the Word
is anything more than a collection of
stories about long-dead people is to
turn away from the one thing that
can save your own spiritual life. We
can see, therefore, that the youths
were not punished by any outside
agency. Instead, through the imagery
of the bears, we see them suffering
the spiritual consequences of their
choices.
Because Elisha, as a prophet,
represents the Word, and because
hair represents external strength,
they were saying that the Word
does not have power to save. Their
punishment was that they were eaten
by bears. This describes the spiritual states of those today who deny the Word
has power to save.
Do we think that truth – that spoken or written words – have real power?
On the one hand, we tend to think along the lines of “sticks and stones will
break my bones, but names will never hurt me” — but that isn’t true at all.
• The pen is mightier than the sword.
• A casual, thoughtless comment can cut like a knife.
• A kind and thoughtful word that means little to the speaker can give
strength and courage to another for years to come.
• The power of saying to another, “I love you.”
If the words we speak to one another can have power to change lives, to
start (and end) wars, to touch the heart, imagine what power resides in the
words of God Himself, carefully chosen to suit our needs and states, and with
the intention of leading us to heaven.
The Word is the Lord saying to each one of us, “I love you.”
The words of the Lord, recorded in scripture, have real power. They guide
our lives in this world. They prepare us for life in the spiritual world. They are
the common bond that draws angels into communion with people on earth.
When we are tempted to think that the path set out for us is too hard, or
that we have found a better way, we are being like the youths of Jericho, long on
enthusiasm, but short on judgment. Let us look to Elisha and see, not the bald
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