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Speak: To utter with the mouth; to pronounce; to declare; to proclaim; to celebrate; to talk or converse in; to address; to accost; to exhibit; to make known; to express silently or by signs; to communicate.
Greek: laleo [lal-eh’-o] = speak [244], say [15], tell [[12], talk [11], preach [6], utter [4]. a prolonged form of an otherwise obsolete verb; to talk, i.e. utter words: - preach, say, speak (after), talk, tell, utter. Strong's Greek & Hebrew Dictionary. Usage Notes: for which see SAY is used several times in 1 Cor. 14; the command prohibiting women from speaking in a church gathering, 1 Cor. 14:34, 35, is regarded by some as an injunction against chattering, a meaning which is absent from the use of the verb everywhere else in the NT; it is to be understood in the same sense as in 1 Cor. 14:2, 3-6, 9, 11, 13, 18, 19, 21, 23, 27-29, 39. Vine's Expository Dictionary of Old Testament and New Testament Words.
One of the most notable times this word is mentioned is in the discourse with the Centurion, commander of hundreds of men in the Roman army. He recognized authority and followed Jesus’s ministry to the point he understood what was going on and how it works. He stated that he was a man under authority and that it was not necessary to have Jesus come to his house, but a greater alternative was available. Matthew 8:6-9 (AMP) And saying, Lord, my servant boy is lying at the house paralyzed and distressed with intense pains [tormenting KJV]. And Jesus said to him, I will come and restore him. But the centurion replied to Him, Lord, I am not worthy or fit to have You come under my roof; but only speak the word, and my servant boy will be cured. 9 For I also am a man subject to authority, with soldiers subject to me. And I say to one, Go, and he goes; and to another, Come, and he comes; and to my slave, do this, and he does it.
This is the message in a ‘nutshell’ and the Word of this encounter spread far and wide. The Greek word here is not laleo but epo and lego which are all in the same category and represent the saying and speaking of the Word. The message is very clear, and this is the truth of declaring the Word to a lost and dying world and walking in the kind of faith the Centurion walk in, just from his understanding of authority. There is a demon world out there and they must be spoken to in removing them from their engagements on the body of Christ. We know that all bad comes from the manifestation of these beings and the Lord has given us authority over them and their practices.
I am amazed at the lack of knowledge there is in the body of Christ where the activity of these demons is concerned. This centurion realized who his enemy was and knew the command necessary to take control of the problem. He had been doing it on the battlefields of life and he recognized no difference. The tormenting spirit had to be removed and only a spoken word from Jesus could accomplish such a task. We must realize that this authority has been passed onto us and it is our responsibility to use it.
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