Journal Entry ~ 12/27/18

For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. - Hebrews 4:12

The word of God in the New Testament generally refers to the spoken word of God through man. For example, in Hebrews 13:7 it says, Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith. So, in this verse, it is most likely referring to the truth of God revealed in Scripture that we speak to each other with reliance on God's help to understand it and apply it.  

That was an interesting discovery for me because it changed the meaning of this verse slightly for me - I've always thought this verse referred only to the written Word of God. When His Word is spoken, it is living and active, and it has power. His Spirit is present when you call upon the Word of God in conversation with other people - it has the power to do what we cannot. There is something about speaking the Truth that connects it to God as a source of all life and power. It is alive and active. Because God loves His Word, He honors it with His presence and power. 

We hesitate to speak the Word of God to other people because we question our ability and our knowledge about scripture. Let’s be honest - sharing the Word with other people can be downright nerve-wracking, whether we’re sharing it with believers or non-believers. We don’t want people to question us on scripture we don’t know or understand, we don’t want people to judge us. We know many attack and mock the Bible and we don’t want the challenge, or we think the person in front of us is so shut down to the Word of God that they’ll never listen, so we don’t even try. The majority of us keep the Word of God to ourselves. 

That’s a tactic of the enemy - we question our power and our knowledge about the Word of God so we hesitate to share, forgetting that we are not the ones with the power. God is. His power is unleashed when we speak His Words. It’s our self righteousness and our self sufficiency to think it has anything to do with us. We don’t have the power to explain the Word of God, to make it be heard or understood. We don’t have the power to change people’s lives with the Truth. Only He does. And it’s pretty arrogant of us to get all wrapped up in the anxiety of sharing as if it matters what we say. It doesn’t because we don’t have the power. We are only called to be obedient and share His Word - we only need to open our mouths. Beyond that, the responsibility falls on God. 

But here’s the key to it all - if we want our words to others to have power or produce effects, then we need to stay in to the Word of God so that our words speak the Truth found in the Word of God. It is only through Him that we can see change in a situation or a person - we have no power to change the situation, but the spoken Word of God is living and active. It has the power to change people. 

Press on ~ you are loved 💗