The Long And The Short Of Things
“I tell you the truth,”
Jesus answered, ‘before Abraham was, I AM!’” John 8:59
Pneuno-ultra-micro-scopic-silico-volcano-conosis! Mary Poppins might say that the very sound of
it is “really quite atrocious!”
Actually, at 42 letters, it is the longest word in the English
language. (And no,
“supercalifragilistic-expialidocious” does not fit the bill though its 34
letters would still be a distant second).
Our championship word has been defined as a “respiratory reaction caused
by volcanic exposure.” While you may not
have to worry about sudden symptoms occurring, pronouncing it in one breath
could bring bouts of lung fatigue with occasional dizziness and
light-heartedness. Whatever the case,
it’s a helpful bit of information in the world of big words.
Tim Harrower, a noted
wordsmith, gave his thoughts on some other words that might come in handy:
1. Long Word Department:
a. The longest word you can spell without
repeating a letter…
uncopyrightable.
b. The longest words with just one
vowel…strengths.
c. The longest word with no letter appearing
more than once…
ambidextriously.
d. The longest word with letters appearing in
alphabetical order…Aegillops
(an ulcer
in the eye-I’d never heard of it either).
2. Strange Words Department
a. The worst sounding words: cacophony, crunch, gripe, jazz, phlegmatic,
plump,
plutocrat, sap, and treachery.
b.
Maybe you didn’t know you can pronounce “ough”
eight different ways: “A rough-coated, dough-faced,
thoughtful ploughman strode the streets of Scarborough; after falling into a
slough, he coughed and hiccoughed!”
One other word-note came to my attention some time back was that the
shortest sentence in the English language is “I am.” The basis of the sentence really has to do
with identity or owning up to a question or claim from another. It’s an easy answer if you’re asked “Who is
going to the store?” or “Who is going to eat that meal?”
In Exodus 3:11-14,
God had just called Moses to his new assignment as leader of Israel’s Exodus
from Egypt. After hesitating about his
own skills, at the prospect of facing Pharoah he asks God, “Who should I say
sent me?” God replied, “I AM.” (v. 14) Biblical scholars refer to it as the
“tetragrammatan” which is a long word in itself. Leave it to those scholars to complicate an
otherwise uncomplicated idea. His
statement shortly and succinctly reminds us that He is Jehovah and God and no
other description is necessary in all His glory.
Fast-forward to the book of John and you come upon the antagonistic
Pharisees questioning Jesus as to whom He claimed to be. John 8:57-59 says, “You are
not yet fifty years old,” the Jews said to Him, ‘and you have seen Abraham!’ ‘I
tell you the truth,’ Jesus answered, ‘before Abraham was, I AM!’ At this, they picked up stones to stone Him,
but Jesus hid Himself, slipping away from the temple grounds.”
C.S. Lewis once
wrote, “Jesus left no room to doubt who He claimed to be…the God of Abraham,
Isaac, and Jacob.” In the book of
John, Jesus went on to say, “I AM…The Bread, The Vine, The Door, The Shepherd, The
Light, The Way, The Resurrection And The Life.”
In short, He is The Hope And Answer For The Fullness Of Life. It doesn’t get any simpler than that.
Terry Risser
Reflections:
1) Though the Messiah was
prophecied, why did the leaders struggle to make the connections with Jesus?
2) Which of the great “I AM’s”
in the book of John speaks to you and your situation today?
Consider reading the Word today:
Copyright 2014- Terry Risser
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