"For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart," (Hebrews 4:12).
* "sharper than any two-edged sword" In Ephesians 6, among the articles provided by our Lord for the spiritual warfare in which all believers must be engaged, is the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. Of the various pieces of armor, it is the one given for offense... the others are for defense.
When our Lord was attacked by Satan in the desert, it was the Word He used to counter Satan's strategies. We, too, must keep the edge of our sword keen, ready for use against our foe(s). How? Hearing the Word, reading it, studying it, memorizing, and meditating on it. It is then that we will be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
* The other aspect of this two-edged sword relates to the Word's use by the Spirit in the lives of the lost. For the unsaved one, the Word has a cutting work of conviction of sin, revealing God's standard of holiness, and the righteous requirements of the Law.
Regardless of intellectual objections, rationalizations, or stubborn resistance, the Holy Spirit can use the Word to cut through it all, forcing the unbeliever to face the fact of his/her lost and hell-bound condition.
Learning to answer objections from Scripture is a worthy endeavor, enabling us to "give an answer for the hope that is within us".... but equally needed is the reminder that our arguments are not promised power--- but God's Word has the power of the living God Himself behind it!
Wednesday, August 8, 2007
Tuesday, August 7, 2007
Bits & Pieces: The Bible (6)
"For the word of God is living and active and sharper than any two-edged sword, and piercing as far as the division of soul and spirit, of both joints and marrow, and able to judge the thoughts and intentions of the heart," (Hebrews 4:12).
* "living" What an amazing claim! Unique among any work penned by human hand, the Bible is living. How can this be? It is the word of the living God, Creator of heaven and earth.
Indeed, was this not the declaration of the prophets of Israel, which set them apart from all "prophets" of the surrounding pagan nations? "I serve the living God, Creator of heaven and earth." And since Scripture is the written expression and extension of who God is, it, too, must be living.
Implications? Since it is ever-living, the Word's impact and potency are ongoing and never-ceasing. Every scrap of Scripture can be used by the Holy Spirit Who inspired it to accomplish His perfect will.
Secondly, the more of the Word we have memorized, readied for release at the moment it is needed most, the greater His power will be manifest through our lives.
* "living" What an amazing claim! Unique among any work penned by human hand, the Bible is living. How can this be? It is the word of the living God, Creator of heaven and earth.
Indeed, was this not the declaration of the prophets of Israel, which set them apart from all "prophets" of the surrounding pagan nations? "I serve the living God, Creator of heaven and earth." And since Scripture is the written expression and extension of who God is, it, too, must be living.
Implications? Since it is ever-living, the Word's impact and potency are ongoing and never-ceasing. Every scrap of Scripture can be used by the Holy Spirit Who inspired it to accomplish His perfect will.
Secondly, the more of the Word we have memorized, readied for release at the moment it is needed most, the greater His power will be manifest through our lives.
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Bits & Pieces: The Bible (5)
"'Do not think that I came to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I did not come to abolish but to fulfill. For truly I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not the smallest letter or stroke shall pass from the Law until all is accomplished," (Matthew 5:17, 18).
* Someone has well said that God is as great in His minuteness as He is in His magnitude.
No detail of His Word, not the smallest stroke of the pen, will pass away without His fulfillment.
Even the heavens and earth are not beyond dissolution, but God's Word will stand forever.
*Years ago I came across a thought that has stayed with me as a life principle: The only things that will last are the Word of God and the souls of men... everything else will burn. The Lord brings that truth to mind on occasion, perfectly timed, of course, when I have begun spending my life instead of investing it. So much of what we do is exactly that. Needed is the reminder that if you can see it, it's temporal; it's the unseen which will endure. And the Word of God is forever settled in heaven (Psalm 119:89).
* Someone has well said that God is as great in His minuteness as He is in His magnitude.
No detail of His Word, not the smallest stroke of the pen, will pass away without His fulfillment.
Even the heavens and earth are not beyond dissolution, but God's Word will stand forever.
*Years ago I came across a thought that has stayed with me as a life principle: The only things that will last are the Word of God and the souls of men... everything else will burn. The Lord brings that truth to mind on occasion, perfectly timed, of course, when I have begun spending my life instead of investing it. So much of what we do is exactly that. Needed is the reminder that if you can see it, it's temporal; it's the unseen which will endure. And the Word of God is forever settled in heaven (Psalm 119:89).
Bits & Pieces: The Bible (4)
"... for you have been born again not of seed which is perishable but imperishable, that is, through the living and enduring word of God," (I Peter 1:23).
* The Word of God is the tool the Holy Spirit uses to produce regeneration in peoples' lives. And because the Word is imperishable, the life produced is also imperishable.
How grateful we ought to be that the eternal Spirit of God applied His imperishable Word to our hearts, so that we may live with our Lord forever.
* The apostle Peter describes the Word of God as living and abiding, likening it to imperishable seed, which produces eternal fruit.
Our salvation began with God's Word applied by the Holy Spirit, is sustained by His Word's power, and will be ever secure, made so by God's eternal promise.
* The Word of God is the tool the Holy Spirit uses to produce regeneration in peoples' lives. And because the Word is imperishable, the life produced is also imperishable.
How grateful we ought to be that the eternal Spirit of God applied His imperishable Word to our hearts, so that we may live with our Lord forever.
* The apostle Peter describes the Word of God as living and abiding, likening it to imperishable seed, which produces eternal fruit.
Our salvation began with God's Word applied by the Holy Spirit, is sustained by His Word's power, and will be ever secure, made so by God's eternal promise.
Bits & Pieces: The Bible (3)
"Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away," (Matthew 24:35).
* As dependable as we consider the day-in and day-out functions of our natural world and its laws to be, the Lord Jesus states that there will come a time when it will all pass away.
In II Peter 3:10, the apostle affirms that this will occur by fire.
But the point of our Lord's Word here is the invincible nature of His truth.
When all else fails, His Word endures.
* As dependable as we consider the day-in and day-out functions of our natural world and its laws to be, the Lord Jesus states that there will come a time when it will all pass away.
In II Peter 3:10, the apostle affirms that this will occur by fire.
But the point of our Lord's Word here is the invincible nature of His truth.
When all else fails, His Word endures.
Bits & Pieces: The Bible (2)
"The grass withers, the flower fades, But the word of our God stands forever," (Isaiah 40:8).
* Mirrored in the two images of grass and flower, are a perfect picture of temporary, vacillating humanity. Our lives are biblically portrayed as vapor-like, lasting only until burned off by the scorching sun.
The Word of the eternal God, by contrast, knows no limitations of time or eternity.
It will stand forever.
* What a graphic description of the durability of God's Word! Humanity, in its continual withering and fading, is aptly portrayed as grass and flower. When compared to eternity, we are exceedingly temporal.
Which brings us to the comforting truth that God's Word is eternal and unchanging. Why?
Because it is His Word.
* Mirrored in the two images of grass and flower, are a perfect picture of temporary, vacillating humanity. Our lives are biblically portrayed as vapor-like, lasting only until burned off by the scorching sun.
The Word of the eternal God, by contrast, knows no limitations of time or eternity.
It will stand forever.
* What a graphic description of the durability of God's Word! Humanity, in its continual withering and fading, is aptly portrayed as grass and flower. When compared to eternity, we are exceedingly temporal.
Which brings us to the comforting truth that God's Word is eternal and unchanging. Why?
Because it is His Word.
Bits & Pieces: The Bible
"Forever, O LORD, Your word is settled in heaven," (Psalm 119:89).
* What a contrast between the Lord's Word and the word of man! Men promise and then forget, or simply fail to keep their word.
God's Word, however, is stable, eternally firm, unchangeably fixed.
May we re-determine to anchor our lives to God's never-changing Word.
* Oh the depth of these five truths incorporated into one verse! Transcending the limitations of time's ceasing, the sovereign, omnipotent Ruler and Creator of all that has been, is, or will be... has established unshakably in unreachable realms, His absolute declaration of unvarnished truth. All that we may do (ignore or heed, obey or refuse, trust or doubt, love or despise, resent or embrace), does not alter His truth in the slightest.
All humanity's hammers are shattered by the anvil of His Word.
* What a contrast between the Lord's Word and the word of man! Men promise and then forget, or simply fail to keep their word.
God's Word, however, is stable, eternally firm, unchangeably fixed.
May we re-determine to anchor our lives to God's never-changing Word.
* Oh the depth of these five truths incorporated into one verse! Transcending the limitations of time's ceasing, the sovereign, omnipotent Ruler and Creator of all that has been, is, or will be... has established unshakably in unreachable realms, His absolute declaration of unvarnished truth. All that we may do (ignore or heed, obey or refuse, trust or doubt, love or despise, resent or embrace), does not alter His truth in the slightest.
All humanity's hammers are shattered by the anvil of His Word.
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