Validation

To some people, words are significant. And for most people, the best kind of words are those that build them up. Compliments, words of love, encouragement, and even reprimands given with gentle wisdom can have positive, life-altering results.

The wisest man that ever lived writes in Proverbs 18:21 that "Death and life are in the power of the tongue" (ESV). This is a fact that Jesus knew well. Many of Jesus' miracles are surrounded by significant words--in fact for some of the people that interacted with Jesus, the words were more important than the physical healing.

Luke, Paul's personal physician, recorded the story of a particular paralyzed man in Luke 5. For whatever reason, this paralyzed man was plagued by a very deep guilt. This man was also blessed with some friends who wanted to help him move past his pain. So when his friends found out that Jesus was nearby, they put the paralyzed man on a stretcher and carried him to where Jesus was teaching--it's not like the paralyzed man could resist them anyways. When they got to the house that Jesus was in, they were unable to get inside because of the crowds, so in a moment of desperate genius, the friends managed to carry the paralyzed man up onto the roof of the house where they removed some of the roof tiles and lowered their friend down through the opening until he hung before Jesus. Such an act required a strong faith on the part of the paralyzed man's friends--they realized that Jesus was the only one who could heal the man. This is why they went to such incredible lengths to get him to Jesus. Taking all of this into account, Jesus recognized their belief in him. But when He looked at the paralyzed man before Him, He recognized not only his physical brokenness, but He saw the wreckage of the man's spirit. The man's real problem wasn't that he could no longer move, it was the fact that he was being eaten alive by his inner pain. It probably isn't a stretch to say that if the man had been able to move, he probably would've taken measures to end his own life. Jesus saw the deep sorrow in the paralyzed man's eyes and so this is why His next words were the ones that saved the man's life: "Young man, your sins are forgiven" (Luke 5:20 NLT). The religious leaders threw a fit because of Jesus' words--they were blasphemous, only God could forgive sins, after all. Jesus turned to look at these religious leaders and simply asked this question: "Why do you question this in your hearts? Is it easier to say ‘Your sins are forgiven,’ or ‘Stand up and walk’?" (Luke 5:23 NLT). Then to prove that He did have the right to heal the man's spirit, Jesus healed the man physically as well--a double miracle! But when it really comes down to it, which miracle do you think mattered more to that man?

In another case, the religious leaders framed a woman for adultery, arrested her, and brought her before Jesus to be judged for her crime. There are many things that Jesus could have done in this situation, but He chose to use words to defend her--perhaps this is because He knew that saying something that would plague the accusers would be much more powerful than any physical thing He could do to them. When they threw the woman at Jesus and demanded His permission to stone her according to the laws of Moses, Jesus said "All right, but let the one who has never sinned throw the first stone!" (John 8:7 NLT) The irony in this statement is that the only person there without sins was Jesus, but He didn't even do so much as pick up a pebble. Before long, all of the accusers had left and the exchange that then takes place between Jesus and the woman never ceases to give me goose bumps: "Then Jesus stood up again and said to the woman, “Where are your accusers? Didn’t even one of them condemn you?” “No, Lord,” she said. And Jesus said, “Neither do I. Go and sin no more”" (John 8:10-11 NLT). Again, Jesus shows the incredible power of words.

In both of these cases, Jesus validated the feelings of the person brought to Him. He saw their pain and their true needs, and simply by recognizing this through what He said to them, He brought incredible healing into their lives.

God is in the business of validating all of us. He has chosen to claim all of us has His blood family--consider this: We are the only beings in ALL of creation that are connect to God through blood. Jesus came down and was born of Mary, so somewhere in all of our genealogies we connect to Him in our DNA, but not only that, Jesus died so we could all be returned to our true status as princes and princesses of Heaven. I don't think there is a more incredible blood tie in the universe!

As far as I'm concerned, there is no greater validation than God's love for humanity. Take a moment and indulge in the profundity of God's validation of you:

"No, I will not abandon you as orphans—I will come to you" (John 14:18 NLT). "No one will be able to stand against you as long as you live. For I will be with you as I was with Moses. I will not fail you or abandon you" (Josh 1:5 NLT). "I will strengthen you and help you. I will hold you up with my victorious right hand" (Is 41:10 NLT). "See, I have written your name on the palms of my hands" (Is 49:16 NLT)"Ask me and I will tell you remarkable secrets you do not know about things to come" (Jeremiah 33:3 NLT). "For I know the plans I have for you,... plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future" (Jer 29:11 NLT). "Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest" (Matt 11:30 NLT). "Do not be afraid, for I have ransomed you. I have called you by name; you are mine. When you go through deep waters, I will be with you. When you go through rivers of difficulty, you will not drown. When you walk through the fire of oppression, you will not be burned up; the flames will not consume you. Others were given in exchange for you. I traded their lives for yours because you are precious to me. You are honored, and I love you" (Is 43:1-2,4 NLT).

God says to us: "You are great! You are beautiful! I love to see you smile, you have such a fantastic smile! You are significant. I see how hard you work,and I know that you aren't always shown the proper recognition, but I appreciate all you do! I am so proud of your accomplishments, and I know that you will make a difference!"

Feel validated yet???