"For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do. Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. For we have not an high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need."
I would like you to underline four words in Hebrews 4:12 and that is "the word of God." Most Bible scholars agree that Paul wrote the book of Hebrews. And Paul is writing to the Jewish believers about the importance and power of the Word of God.
Story:
Many years ago in a Moscow Theater, matinee idol Alexander Rostovzev was converted while playing the role of Jesus in a sacrilegious play entitled Christ in a Tuxedo. In the play, Rostovzev was supposed to read two verses from the Sermon on the Mount, remove his gown, and cry out, "Give me my tuxedo and top hat!" But as he read the words, "Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are they that mourn, for they shall be comforted," he began to tremble. Instead of following the script, he kept reading from Matthew 5, ignoring the coughs, calls, and foot-stamping of his fellow actors.
Finally, recalling a verse he had learned in his childhood in a Russian Orthodox Church, he cried, "Lord, remember me when Thou comest into Thy kingdom!" Before the curtain could be lowered, Rostovzev had trusted Jesus Christ as his personal Savior.
God’s word is very powerful indeed! Romans 10:17 says that, "Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God." There is supernatural power in God’s word that has a part in the lost sinner coming to Christ!
In Hebrews chapter eleven, the great chapter of faith, the writer mentions that the Word of God was the only thing necessary to create something from nothing. In Hebrews 11:3, the Bible says,
"Through faith we understand that the worlds were framed by the word of God, so that things which are seen were not made of things which do appear."
In Genesis chapter one the Bible says, "And God said" ten times! Showing the almighty creative power of God’s word!
As believers today, we need to see the importance of the Word of God! We need to read it, to study it, to meditate upon it, to memorize it, and to love it!
I want to look at a couple of things from this passage of Scripture that will help us in 2007 to make the study of God’s Word a priority in our lives. I want to look at four reasons why in an age of less and less Bible reading and devotion time, that we as Bible believing Christians should never neglect the Word of God in our daily lives.
#1) The Word of God is a living Word.
Hebrews 4:12 says,
"For the word of God is quick." The word "quick" used here is not the opposite of slow, but rather means "alive". Paul is saying that the Word of God is alive, it’s a living Word.
Isaiah 55:8-11 says this about the Word of God,
"For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, saith the LORD. For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways, and my thoughts than your thoughts. For as the rain cometh down, and the snow from heaven, and returneth not thither, but watereth the earth, and maketh it bring forth and bud, that it may give seed to the sower, and bread to the eater: So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it."
You and I have all heard good speakers and very articulate men and women speak but no one’s words are as alive and have the promises attached to them as God’s words. God says that His Words are always doing something wherever He sends it. He guarantees it!
The Bible, the word of God, is unlike any other book you have in your home or in the library. The Library of Congress lays claims to being the largest library in the world, with more than 130 million items on approximately 530 miles of bookshelves. The collections include more than 29 million books and other printed materials, 2.7 million recordings, 12 million photographs, 4.8 million maps, and 58 million manuscripts. Yet among all these volumes the only ones that can lay claims to being alive and powerful are copies of the Bible. This places the Bible in a unique category all by itself.
Story:
Evangelist Gipsy Smith told of a man who said he had received no inspiration from the Bible although he had "gone through it several times." Smith replied, "Let it go through you," replied Smith, "then you will tell a different story!" "Let it go through you, let God’s word get in you, and be thorough with you, and you will indeed never be the same, amen!
#1) The Word of God is a living Word, and
#2) The Word of God is Powerful:
Look again at Hebrews 4:12,
"For the word of God is quick, and powerful.
The word translated "powerful" is (energes, pronounced energace). It is the word from which we get energy and energetic. The word literally means "at work." It’s active, it’s working in us and on us!
Someone once said, "News articles may inform us. Novels may inspire us. Poetry may enrapture us, and music may comfort us, But only the living, active Word of God can transform us."
Story:
"One of the most dramatic examples of the Bible’s divine ability to transform men and women involved the famous story of mutiny on the "Bounty."
Following their rebellion against the notorious Captain Bligh, nine mutineers, along with the Tahitian men and women who accompanied them, found their way to Pitcairn Island, a tiny dot in the South Pacific only two miles long and a mile wide. Ten years later, drunkenness and fighting had left only one man out of the original nine mutineers alive—John Adams. Eleven women and 23 children made up the rest of the Island’s population.
So far this is the familiar story made famous in the book and motion picture. But the rest of the story is even more remarkable. About this time, Adams came across the "Bounty’s" Bible in the bottom of an old chest. He began to read it, and the divine power of God’s Word reached into the heart of that hardened murderer on a tiny volcanic speck in the vast Pacific Ocean—and changed his life forever. The peace and love that Adams found in the Bible entirely replaced the old life of quarreling, brawling, and liquor. He began to teach the children from the Bible until every person on the island had experienced the same amazing change that he had found. Today, with a population of slightly less than 100, nearly every person on Pitcairn Island is a Christian.
God’s word is active and it’s powerful in the lives of those who come to believe it and trust what it says to be saved.
Have you believed the Word of God and trusted in Christ as your personal Savior? You can do it today, in a little while when we have our invitation, you can come and see what the Word of God says about heaven and trusting Christ as your savior. You can be saved today!
God’s word is alive, it’s quick and it’s also very powerful, and active, and
#3) God’s Word is penetrating:
Hebrews 4:12 again says,
"For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow."
Like a sharp sword which can lay open the human body with one slashing blow, so the sword of the Scripture can open our inner life and expose it to ourselves and to others.
In the Roman world there were two distinctly different swords. There was the large sword, it was long, heavy and destructive. And there was a short sword (machaira, pronounced makh'-ahee-rah), it was lightweight and double-edged and deadly because it cut both ways. This is what Peter used to cut off the ear of the servant (Malchus) of the High priest in the garden of Gethsemane on the night of Jesus’ arrest.
What the author is saying is that God’s Word can reach into the innermost recesses of our being! No heart is too tough and no soul is too dark.
Story:
"When God wills it, his word can pierce anyone as Mr. Thorpe in 18th century Bristol found out. Thorpe was a part of a band of men who called themselves, the ‘Hell Fire Club.’ Their reason for existence was to mock and ridicule the work of the famed evangelist, George Whitefield. On one occasion, the ‘Hell-Fire Club’ gathered at a pub for such mockery. Mr. Thorpe offered his brilliant imitation of Whitefield, whom he and his friends called, ‘Mr Squintum’ because of Whitefield eyes. He delivered Whitfield’s sermon with brilliant accuracy, perfectly imitating his tone and facial expressions as he quoted Scripture and Whitefield’s exposition. Suddenly amidst the laughter, he stopped and had to sit down, for he was pierced through by the Word of God and was converted on the spot.
Mr. Thorpe was a nasty man, engaged in a nasty action, yet the Word of God pierced his heart and changed him in an instant. Mr. Thorpe went on to be a prominent Christian leader in the city of Bristol
God’s word can get right to the heart of a sinner. It can penetrate and cleanse the heart, as it says in Psalm 119:9-11,
"Wherewithal shall a young man cleanse his way? by taking heed thereto according to thy word. With my whole heart have I sought thee: O let me not wander from thy commandments. Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee."
Have you allowed the Word of God to be thorough with you and cleanse your soul? If you will allow the Word of God to examine you, and search your heart, and pierce you, it will help you in your battle with sin, the flesh, the world, and the devil. Jesus had to use the Word when He was tempted by Satan in the wilderness after fasting for 40 days. Jesus quoted from the Word of God over and over saying to Satan, "It is written!" "It is written!" "It is written!"
What do you use in your battle over temptation? What or whose words are you using to defeat Satan? I can guarantee that if you are using anything other than the Quick, powerful, and penetrating Word of God, than you are failing in your spiritual battle. We need to use the Word of God, but we must know it and memorize it and hide it in our hearts.
#1) The Word of God is a living Word, and
#2) The Word of God is Powerful, and
#3) God’s Word is penetrating, and
#4) The Word of God is Discerning:
Look at Hebrews 4:12 & 13,
|
"For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. |
||
|
Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do." Discernment means the power or faculty of the mind, by which it distinguishes one thing from another, as truth from falsehood, virtue from vice; acuteness of judgment; power of perceiving differences of things or ideas, and their relations and tendencies. The errors of youth often proceed from the lack of discernment. |
I want you to look at three things about discernment from this verse:
We want God to see us when we are hurting and when we are going through difficult times. We want Him to see and come to our aid. But when it comes to our sin and wrongdoing we would rather that God looked the other way. Verse twelve concludes by saying that the Word of God "… is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart." The word "discerner" (kritikos, where we get the word "critic"). As the word of God penetrates into the innermost recesses of man’s being, it does so as his critic or judge.
Proverbs 15:3 says,
"The eyes of the LORD are in every place, beholding the evil and the good." God sees everything. There’s no escape. You can’t get away from Him.
B) God Sees Everything, There Is No Hiding,
Only the Word of God is capable of exposing the thoughts and attitudes of a single human heart. There really is no use in hiding. Why is it when we fear that something is not quite right physically we tend to put off going to the doctor because we fear we will hear bad news? The same is true spiritually.
Verse thirteen says that before God "all things are naked" or literally "laid bare." The word (tetrachelismena) literally refers to bending someone’s neck backward so their face is looking upwards. It is a vivid term describing either the grip of a wrestler on the neck of his opponent or the grip on the neck of a sacrificial victim prepared for sacrifice.
Sometimes it was used to describe how a man being led to execution had a knife placed beneath his chin so that he could not hang his head in shame and avoid the gaze of the onlookers. Whatever the exact nature of the picture that is being drawn here it means that to be in the grip of an all powerful God is to be vulnerable, helpless and to have all our secrets known.
The Word of God possesses the diagnostic perception that picks up inconsistency even in motivation. With God we cannot smooth over with outward actions the real intentions of our hearts. We may appear to be sincere to others, but God knows if there is an ulterior motive.
I Samuel 16:7 says,
"for the LORD seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the LORD looketh on the heart."
There’s no escape and there’s no hiding, and lastly,
C) God Sees Everything, There Is No Excuse:
The last part of verse thirteen says, all things are "…naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do."
This verse plainly tells us that there is a coming day of reckoning upon which we will each give an account for our lives. The day of excuses will be over, the book of Romans tells us there is coming a time "when every mouth will be stopped" (Rom 3:19), there will be no more excuses.
The Apostle Paul warns in II Corinthians 5:10,
"For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad."
Story:
Let me share something written many years ago by Samuel Chadwick. He said,
"I have guided my life by the Bible for more than sixty years, and I tell you there is no book like it. It is a miracle of literature, a perennial spring of wisdom, a wonder of surprises, a revelation of mystery, an infallible guide of conduct, and an unspeakable source of comfort. Pay no attention to people who discredit it, for I tell you that they speak without knowledge. It is the Word of God itself. Study it according to its own direction. Live by its principles. Believe its message. Follow its precepts. No man is uneducated who knows the Bible, and no one is wise who is ignorant of its teachings."
Once again, The Four Reasons That We Should Not Disregard The Word of God.
First, It is a living Word, it’s alive.
"For the word of God is quick…"
Secondly, It is powerful and active Word
"For the word of God is quick and powerful."
Third, It is a penetrating Word
"…sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow …"
Fourth, It is a discerning Word
"…, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do."
•God Sees everything there is no Escape, no Hiding, no Excuse.
What about you today? What are you going to do with the Word of God?
Have you heard the Word and trusted Christ as your Savior?
Ephesians 1:13 says,
"In whom ye also trusted, after that ye heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation: in whom also after that ye believed, ye were sealed with that holy Spirit of promise."
Maybe you’re saved here this morning and you have been neglecting the Word of God. You need to get back to it. Let it be alive, active, penetrating, and discerning in your life today.
An unknown writer said,
"This Book is the mind of God, the state of man, the way of salvation, the doom of sinners, and the happiness of believers. Its doctrines are holy, its precepts are binding; its histories are true, and its decisions are immutable. Read it to be wise, believe it to be safe, practice it to be holy. It contains light to direct you, food to support you, and comfort to cheer you. It is the traveler's map, the pilgrim's staff, the pilot's compass, the soldier's sword, and the Christian's character. Here paradise is restored, heaven opened, and the gates of hell disclosed. Christ is its grand subject, our good its design, and the glory of God its end. It should fill the memory, rule the heart, and guide the feet. Read it slowly, frequently, prayerfully. It is a mine of wealth, a paradise of glory, and a river of pleasure. Follow its precepts and it will lead you to Calvary, to the empty tomb, and to a resurrected life in Christ."
We are in the first week of a New Year and I wonder this morning how many of us have even read our Bibles one time? Take the calendar or whatever else you need and read the Word of God through for the New Year. Make the commitment, take the time. God will speak to your heart through His Word.