Hebrews 4:12 - Power Greater Than Nuclear.
Hebrews 4:12: Power Greater Than Nuclear.
Hebrews 4:12 (ESV) 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 (NLT) For the word of God is alive and powerful. It
is sharper than the sharpest two-edged sword, cutting between soul
and spirit, between joint and marrow. It exposes our innermost
thoughts and desires.
The Bible is not dead but living. It lives both because God
brought it into existence and because the Spirit of God brings its
message to life in our hearts. It has Gods power to provoke change
in our lives. [Life Principles SB By Charles Stanley]
The Word of God is not simply a collection of words from God, a
vehicle for communicating ideas; it is living, life-changing, and
dynamic as it works in us. With the incisiveness of a surgeon's knife,
God's Word reveals who we are and what we are not. It penetrates the
core of our moral and spiritual life. It discerns what is within us,
both good and evil. The demands of God's Word require decisions. We
must not only listen to the Word; we must also let it shape our
lives. [Life Application SB]
The creative energy that called the worlds into existence is in
the word of God. This word imparts power; it begets life. Every
command is a promise; accepted by the will, received into the soul, it
brings with it the life of the Infinite One. It transforms the nature
and re-creates the soul in the image of God. ED126
The Bible has been banned, burned, scoffed, and ridiculed.
Scholars have mocked it as foolish. Kings have branded it as illegal. A
thousand times over it the grave has been dug, and the dirge has begun,
but somehow the Bible never stays in the grave. Not only has it
survived, it has thrived. It is the single most popular book in all of
history. It has been the best-selling book in the world for years!
There is no way on earth to explain it. Which perhaps is the
only explanation. The answer? The Bible's durability is not found on
earth; it is found in heaven. For the millions who have tested its
claims and claimed its promises there is but one answer - the Bible is
God's book and God's voice...
The purpose of the Bible is to proclaim God's plan and
passion to save his children. That is the reason this book has endured
through the centuries... It is the treasure map that leads us to God's
highest treasure, eternal life. [Grace For The Moment SB By Max Lucado]
Anyone who has ever had surgery knows how scary it can be.
The fact that surgeons cut and stitch every day does not help,
either. We still feel anxious and frightened about having our bodies
opened up, even in the simplest procedures. If not for anesthesia, the
operation would be indescribably painful, but even with the help of
unconsciousness we know that we will be vulnerable and helpless during the
procedure. And afterward, some kind of painful recovery will follow. No one
can blame anyone for feeling nervous about all that.
As scary as surgery is, there is a nonphysical operation that
scares some people even more. The writer of Hebrews clues us in as to
who the doctor is, as well as what instrument he will be using to
perform this surgery. No anesthesia is needed here, only a humble and
willing heart. Are you open to spiritual surgery by the divine Surgeon?
God uses his Word to work on our lives as a surgeon uses a
scalpel (Hebrews 4:12). It cuts through our pretender's skin. It goes
after the cancerous sinful growths that infect our character. It
attacks our spiritually diseased condition.
For this very reason, many people fear the Bible. They fear
the discomfort and pain in confronting and dealing with their
spiritual problems. They fear the changes that will take place in their
character and life. But changes for good should not be feared, for God
removes from our character only what harms us - our sinful attitudes and
behaviors.
Do not be afraid to read the Bible. Let God do corrective
surgery on your thoughts, attitudes, and behaviors. Although it may be
painful now, the end results will be well worth the discomfort you may
experience. [The One Year Through the Bible Devotional by Dave Veerman re
Heb. 4:9-13]
There is power in God's Word. When we search the Scriptures
to find words to wrap around our disappointments, hurts, and worry,
we are speaking God's language. And God answers. Jesus sets the
example. When it comes to heartfelt questions and emotional pain, Jesus
experienced both like no human ever has or will. He didn't linger in the
damp fog of Gethsemane; He moved in the direction of His Father and
proceeded to the cross. There He aimed His cries Godward, not choosing His
own words to wrap around His agony, but the words of a psalm: "My
God, my God, why have you forsaken me (Psa. 22:1)? Praying words
of Scripture doesn't mean all of our questions get answered, or
that the pain immediately fades away. But God will respond to His
Word. Instead of answers, we find the Answer. When we turn toward God
in our heartache, He promises our anguished hearts will find Jesus.
And He is the One who holds all the answers - and all the questions
- in His hands.
Lord Jesus, I especially love to wrap my prayers in the words
of the psalms, just as You did on the day You gave Your life for me
on the cross. Thank You for listening to me. Thank You for moving
in my life. [A Spectacle of Glory by Joni Eareckson Tada and Larry
Libby]
PRACTICAL APPLICATIONS
My word is living and powerful; it is a discerner of the
thoughts and intents of the heart. Because Scripture is alive, active,
and full of Power, it can touch hearts deeply and transform lives
thoroughly. I have changed your life through the wonders of biblical truth.
My Word is continually at work in you, transforming you in the
depths of your being. The more Scripture you have in your mind and
heart, the more readily I can mold you.
Growing in grace is all about transformation - becoming more
like Me. I never change: I am the same yesterday, today, and forever.
So you are the one who needs to change - to be molded increasingly
into My likeness. This is a glorious adventure and an awesome
privilege! Yet it is also painful at times. Change always involves some
loss, and it can trigger anxiety. The remedy is to cling to My hand -
walking with Me in trusting dependence along the path I've prepared for
you. My Word is a lamp to your feet and a light for your path. (Heb.
4:12; 13:8; Rom. 8:29; Psa. 119:105) [Jesus Today by Sarah Young]
Whatever we do, we must not let any lurking doubts go
unchallenged. Pascal said: "Doubt is an unhappy state, but there is an
indispensable duty to seek when we are in doubt, and thus anyone who doubts
and does not seek is at once unhappy and in the wrong."
How do we go about resolving doubts? One way is to bring them
to the Lord in prayer and ask Him to help us overcome them. If
prayer does not dissolve them, apply the tactic which Nehemiah adopted:
"So we prayed to our God and stationed a guard" (Neh 4:9). Take a
verse of Scripture that is the opposite of your doubt and hold it in
the center of your mind, repeating it to yourself many times
throughout the day. Dr. Martin Lloyd-Jones once said: "Have you realized
that most of your unhappiness in life is due to the fact that you are
listening to yourself instead of talking to yourself? We must talk to
ourselves instead of allowing ourselves to talk to us!"
In listening to our doubts instead of talking to them, we
fall prey to the same temptation that caught Adam and Eve off guard
in the garden of Eden. The order of creation was stood on its head
when the first human pair allowed themselves to be dictated to by the
animal world (in the form of the serpent), when, in fact, they had been
put in a position to dictate to it.
Don't let your doubts dictate to you. Turn the tables and
dictate to them. Talk to them with words from the Word of God.
Father, help me never to be nonplussed, for in You there are
ways to overcome every problem. Drive the truth I have learned today
deeply into my spirit so that I may apply it whenever I am faced with
doubt. In Jesus' name. Amen. [Every Day With Jesus Bible with Selwyn
Hughes devotional]
ILLUSTRATIONS
I woke up in one of those dreadful moods, already prejudiced
against the day ahead. I spoke to the Lord about it - asked Him to
jump-start my spirit and help my attitude shift. Nothing. I still felt like
the day was out to get me.
Sometime later, I decided to pull out some index cards with
Scripture verses on them, words that God had used to speak encouragement
to me at critical moments in various situations. I read through
each one, remembering the power I felt when they impacted me at those
moments. Little by little, my attitude shifted. The day wasn't out to get
me; I was sent into the day by a powerful God who had already
ordained my steps. Whatever happened on this day, I would overcome.
The Spirit of God is always with us and in us, but sometimes
we can sense His practical Presence only in the Word He inspired.
God is present when we read His Word and affirm its truth, when we
let the living power of the Word sink into us and shape us. It's
entirely possible to read and study the Bible without experiencing this
living power - plenty of Pharisees, philosophers, and skeptics have
done so throughout history, and so have we at times. But when the
Word lands in the fertile ground of faith in our hearts, things
change. God goes to work. He inhabits the words He has spoken, and they
take on a vitality that transforms.
If you're in need of God's Presence, you can always find it
one way or another in His revelation. Don't just read His words; let
them speak. Let them change your day - and your life.
Lord, I need to experience the living power of Your Word.
Whenever I thirst for You, lead me to the verses that reveal Your voice
for that moment. Use them to shape me from within. [The One Year
Experiencing Gods Presence Devotional by Chris Tiegreen]
There was once a Shakespearian actor who was known everywhere
for his one-man show of readings and recitations from the classics.
He would always end his performance with a dramatic reading of
Psalm 23. Each night, without exception, as the actor began his
recitation - "The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want" - the crowd would
listen attentively. And then, at the conclusion of the psalm, they
would rise in thunderous applause in appreciation of the actor's
incredible ability to bring the verse to life.
But one night, just before the actor was to offer his
customary recital of Psalm 23, a young man from the audience spoke up.
"Sir do you mind if tonight I recite Psalm 23?"
The actor was quite taken back by this unusual request, but
he allowed the young man to come forward and stand front and centre
on the stage to recite the psalm, knowing that the ability of this
unskilled youth would be no match for his own talent.
With a soft voice, the young man began to recite the words of
the psalm. When he was finished, there was no applause. There was no
standing ovation as on other nights. All that could be heard was the
sound of weeping. The audience had been so moved by the young man's
recitation that every eye was full of tears.
Amazed by what he had heard, the actor said to the youth, "I
don't understand. I have been performing Psalm 23 for years. I have a
lifetime of experience and training - but I have never been able to move
an audience as you have tonight. Tell me, what is your secret?"
The young man humbly replied, "Well sir, you know the
psalm... but I know the shepherd."
It's not enough to just know the content of the Bible - its
stories, its sayings, and its teachings. Unless you know the author, the
Bible is nothing more than just another book. But when you put your
faith in Jesus Christ and have entered into a personal relationship
with God the Father, the Bible truly becomes "living and active -
sharper than any double-edged sword" (Hebrews 4:12). Williams-RD-MG
[Williams-RD-MG@micmac.redstone.army.mil]
A young woman was packing a suitcase for a long trip. She
said to a woman who was watching her, "I'm just about finished. I
only have to put in a guidebook, a lamp, a mirror, my favorite love
letters, a microscope, a telescope, a volume of fine poetry, a song book,
a few biographies, a package of old letters, a sword, and a set of
books I have been studying." The onlooker gasped, "How do you intend
to get all that in your suitcase? It's almost full now!"
The young woman replied, "Oh, all that won't take much room."
She then walked over to a table, picked up her Bible, placed it in
the corner of her suitcase, and closed the lid. Winking at her
friend, she said, "And I even got in a loaf of living bread."
The Bible says of itself that it is "fresh" with every
reading - it never grows stale. The Bible is always applicable to life,
no matter where one lives. The truths of the Bible are unshakable -
they will last forever and never go out of style. Voltaire once said
that in a hundred years, the Bible would be a forgotten book, found
only in museums. When the hundred years were up, however, Voltaire's
home was occupied by the Geneva Bible Society! Feed your children a
healthy portion of the Bible today. Consider it "heavenly food." [God's
Little Devotional Bible re Lev.22:31]
CLOSING THOUGHTS
It's been pointed out that just as sitting in a garage
doesn't make you a car, sitting in church doesn't make you a Christian.
In the same vein, listening to solidly biblical sermons doesn't
make you a follower of Jesus. Neither does reading God's Word
religiously. After all, as James pointed out, knowledge without action is
useless. Knowing who God is and how much He loves you without loving Him
and obeying Him in return is empty. Knowing what God demands and
desires from His people but not doing any of those things is
meaningless. Knowing calls for a practical response. The person who truly
believes God's Word is not the one who studies it the longest or who
argues most eloquently on its behalf. The person who truly believes
God's Word is the one who incorporates it into his or her life.
We are to do what God's Word tells us to do, and we are to
shun all that His Word designates as sin. That is how we express our
faith. We deceive ourselves when we merely nod along in agreement with
God's truth but do nothing in response. [Being Still With God Every
Day by Henry Blackaby re James 1:22]
As we minister to others, the Bible must be central to all we
say and do. Our own insights and perspectives may be helpful, but
the Word has the power to change lives. [NIV Once A Day Bible]
LINKS WORTH CHECKING OUT
Most Important Decision in Life:
http://www.youtube.com/embed/WGnEuGwvXqU?rel=0
Seeking God Made Real: http://vimeo.com/31489782
Prayer Made Real: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tc8VdMV26VE
LINKS FOR BIBLE STUDIES AND SEMINARS
Restoring The Power by John Bradshaw:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLRogO1SxoZN15Boa7BMon4BouVMdteVaq
Glow Tract Video Bible Studies: http://www.bibleresearch.info/
ABible.com: http://www.aBible.com
