"Key Little Words"

“Key Little Words”

I while back I posted some thoughts (“All?”) about apologist Ravi Zacharias’ assertion, “Words have meaning”. While many terms have multiple definitions in the dictionary and thus we can understand them differently we’re not being honest if we arbitrarily change them to fit our own purposes. This prompted me to look into some three letter words in Scripture and explore their significance. But it also made me think about the other extreme: some jawbreaker ones which have specific focuses.

The longest word in our language is pneunonoultramisroscopicsilicovolcanoconiosis (45 letters), a lung disease caused by inhaling volcanic dust. This is followed by the more familiar one from “Mary Poppins” supercalifragilisticexpialidocious (34 letters) meaning fabulous. Then follows antidisestablishmentarianism (28 characters) from my school days defined as opposition to withdrawal of state recognition from an established church. These, however, can’t hold a candle to the chemical name for titin, the largest known protein, at a whopping 189,819 letters (enough for a 35,000+ word book). (FYI, the longest word in the Bible is the name of the son of Isaiah Mahershalalhashbaz, mentioned in Isaiah 8:1,3, translated “quick to the plunder, swift to the spoil”.)

Now let’s set our sights on three common words in Scripture, the brevity of which belies their importance:

“Yet” (appearing 404 times), meaning despite the circumstances (“Though the fig tree does not bud and there are no grapes on the vines; though the olive crop fails and the fields produce no food, though there are no sheep in the pen and no cattle in the stalls, yet I will rejoice in the Lord, I will be joyful in God my Savior.”—Habakkuk 3:17-18).

“One” (found 2485 times), suggesting undivided or united (“…A man will leave his father and mother and be united to his wife, and the two will become one flesh….”—Mark 10:7-8; “…In Christ we who are many form one body….”—Romans 12:5).

“But” (3983 occurrences), showing a contrast between statements (“There is a way that seems right to a {person}, but in the end it leads to death.”—Proverbs 14:12; “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”—Romans 6:23).

The last passage is the most crucial because it tells us we can have our sin debt forgiven and enjoy life forever with God by trusting in Jesus, the one way to God (see John 14:6). But each must decide for him/herself. Have you done this yet?

Grace and Blessings!

Jim McMillan