WHY DO WE SAY "AMEN"? 4 TRUTHS TO REMEMBER TODAY.
“All the promises of God find their Yes in him [Christ]. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory.” -- 2 Corinthians 1:20
"Amen" is one of the most well-known and powerful words in the world today. It transcends languages, cultures, and people groups. But why is it such an important word?
Here are four thing you may not know about the word "amen"….
1. “Amen” is a way for all of us to participate in prayer or preaching.
Amen is a very old Hebrew term that means “so be it,” “indeed” or “truly.” Numerous times in the Bible, individuals or a whole group of people would say “Amen” in response to a prayer, a blessing, or a curse uttered by someone else (Deuteronomy 27:15-26; 1 Chronicles 1636; Nehemiah 8:5-6; Jeremiah 11:5; 1 Corinthians 14:16).
When you say or whisper “Amen” after someone has just said a prayer or spoken a great promise from the Bible, it is letting others know you agree with what was just said. When you are paying close attention to what people pray or preach, saying “Amen” is a way you can join them, even if you aren’t the one speaking.
2. “Amen” is the most widely known word in the world.
On occasion, when ideas are moving from one culture to another, one language to another, words are transliterated instead of translated. This happened in the Greek-speaking world of the early church, for instance, with the word "Amen." Instead of finding a suitable Greek word, New Testament authors chose to keep the sound of the original Hebrew word "Amen" intact.
Find any culture where Christianity has taken root and you’ll likely find the same pattern: churches in China, Nigeria, Spain, Japan, Brazil, and nearly any other place in the world all say “Amen” at the end of their prayers. Some believe the word Amen is the most widely known word in the world.
3. Jesus used the word "Amen" unlike anyone before Him.
We typically say "Amen" at the end of our prayers. But in the Gospels, Jesus often used the word "Amen" before He spoke. Sometimes it is translated, “Truly, I tell you,” or “Verily, I say to you.” What He is saying is, “Amen, I tell you.”
No other Jewish teachers did this before Jesus. He could say “Amen” before He said something because everything Jesus ever said was 100% true. He didn’t need anyone to say “Amen” after He spoke. He spoke the very words of God, so He began His statements with a strong “Amen.”
4. Jesus is the reason we can say "Amen" to all of God’s promises.
Paul writes, “All the promises of God find their Yes in him [Christ]. That is why it is through him that we utter our Amen to God for his glory” (2 Corinthians 1:20). God has made many, many promises in the Bible—so many, it would be hard to count them all. In this passage, Paul says that every promise from God, no matter what it is, is fulfilled by Jesus. When we hear a promise from the Bible, we can say “Amen,” because we know Jesus is the ultimate answer to that promise.
Every time we say Amen after hearing a truth from the Bible, in the back of our minds this should mean: “Yes! I believe this is true because of Jesus.” Every promise of blessing, peace, provision, comfort, forgiveness, life, and holiness is fulfilled because of the work and person of Christ. He is the great Amen (Revelation 3:14).
Thoughts taken from Luke Gilkerson's article, "Why Do We Say 'Amen'? 4 Truths to Teach Your Kids" on Intoxicated on Life with Luke & Trisha. The full article can be found at https://www.intoxicatedonlife.com/5-things-teach-child-word-amen.
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