The power of the Word of God is revealed in itself, for it is written on stone and is eternal. His grace and His justice are both as per His word only. The one who understands and believes this truth is then blessed to keenly study, understand, and live in obedience. Lord Jesus is the Living Word of God sent to reveal God the Father to us. His Holy Spirit is our teacher to teach and help us live as per His Word.
Why is it difficult to understand the meaning of God’s word? God revealed His glory to Prophet Isaiah in His Temple and then assigned him the task of proclaiming His Word to the Israelites. Since God was well aware of the hardness of the hearts of the people, the command to the Prophet was, ‘Go and tell this people: ‘Keep on hearing but do not understand; keep on seeing but do not perceive. Make the heart of this people dull and their ears heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and return and be healed’ (Isaiah 6:9–10). Prophets Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and many others received the Word of God with a prior warning that they would not be heard. Many even suffered at the hands of the people they preached to.
The command is clear: ‘Go make disciples of all the nations’ (Matthew 28:19). But how can one succeed with such an audience? Lord Jesus declared to all believers, ‘You did not choose Me, but I chose you and appointed you that you should bear fruit and that your fruit should remain’. If we look back on our lives before being blessed by the Lord, we can all see the deep darkness that enveloped us. The message of the gospel, as per Apostle Paul, is not visible to ‘those who are perishing’ (2 Corinthians 4:3-4). The reason for this is that their minds ‘the god of this age has blinded’. No one can see clearly when darkness surrounds him, but when the ‘Light of the World’ shines, our spiritual eyes are opened, and we answer the call that was made much before one could even understand the meaning. God chooses from before birth, and it takes us many years as human beings to turn to Him.
The purpose of being chosen by Him is to bear lasting fruit, thus impacting lives of others for time to come. The fruit of the work of the Prophets or the Apostles, especially Peter, John, and Paul, will never perish, for it is rooted in the Spirit of God. As a believer, I am supposed to reach out to everyone, for I do not know who may have been called and may turn to Him by our message.
Terah Abram’s father took him, his wife Sarai, and Lot, his brother’s son, and ‘went out with them from Ur of the Chaledeans to go to the land of Canaan, and they came to Haran and dwelt there’ (Genesis 11:31). As per Jewish legend, Terah used to make idols of the Chaldeans in Ur and Abram. In his absence, one day, he broke all the idols and placed the rod in the hands of the biggest idol. He was seeking God from an early age. But did the call to move came to Terah or Abram? Probably Terah did receive the call to move to Canaan, the Promised Land, but after he reached Haran, a place established by his son, he stayed there only. The comforts and prosperity of the place were too much of an attraction for Terah to stay there. Abram moved onwards from Haran to Canaan. Like Terah many hear the call but the ‘lust of the flesh’ for worldly comforts hinders their move forward.
The command to Abram was to move ‘to a land that I will show you’ and he moved without any defined destination (Genesis 12:1-3). Abraham is called the’man of faith’ for he ‘believed God’ (Galatians 3:6). The promises to him were also not very clear, especially to a man whose wife was barren. God promised to make him ‘a great nation’ with protection from the curses of others and that in him ‘all the families of the earth shall be blessed’. It is his move of obedience in faith in the One who promised that the Jews, Muslims, and Christians all claim to be his descendents.
Prophet Isaiah’s call to preach the Word of God to people who were known to not respond was a call to declare their move to hell. The effect of the Word of God on those whose eyes, ears, and hearts are aligned right will be benefited to ‘understand with their heart and return and be healed’ (Isaiah 6:10). Along with understanding, the blessing makes us turn to God, which then brings healing to every sphere of our lives. If this blessing is far away from you, then ask God to work with your eyes, ears, and heart.
The disciples asked Lord Jesus, ‘Why do You speak to them in parables?’ His answer was clear: ‘Because it has not been given to you to know the mysteries of heaven, but to them it has not been given’ (Matthew 13:10–11). Almost everyone who reads the Scripture for the first time is unable to fathom out the deep secrets contained therein. The call does not guarantee to turn the heart of someone. for God tests each and everyone,counted righteous by God Himself, yet he was tested for his faith. andthing,one who perseveres is blessed. Entry to heaven is not a small thing and one cannot just barge in without being tested. Job was counted righteous by God Himself, ylanguage,s tested for his faith. The Scripture is written in simple language but not everyone is given understanding.
Why do people stumble in faith? The Word of God is ‘living and powerful, and sharper than any two edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart’ (Hebrews 4:12). God desires only those to follow Him who will remain steadfast to the end. It is said that when you are reading the Scripture, you are also being read by the Word. God’s written Word is ‘living and powerful’ to cause effect deep within the reader, for the effect is on the thoughts and desires of the person to transform him into holy and righteous living. The Jewish people have suffered extreme persecution yet remained strong in their faith. However, when they were preached about salvation, through forgiveness of sins, through faith in the sacrifice of Lord Jesus on the cross, ‘three thousand souls’ joined the disciples (Acts 2:41).
The Word of God is like the therapy for cancer, where precision treatment focuses on the exact spot in the body that is affected, though certain side effects are also seen. The message of the Word is precise, touching the specific aspects of one’s life for everyone to hear, and without any side effects. The soul and the spirit are separated, thus the will and emotions in the soul are changed. The spirit of man is about the supernatural and power deep inside. Many never reach that level and are excited in the worship and prayer but are not changed inside. Apostle Paul has provided a clue: ‘You have need of endurance, so that after you have done the will of God, you may receive the promise’ (Hebrews 10:36).
Abraham did not see any of the promises fulfilled during his lifetime but did not waver from doing good and obeying God. God tested Abraham’s faith by calling him to offer his son ‘your only son Isaac, whom you love’ as a sacrifice on Mount Moriah (Genesis 22:2; 5). He did not waver and told the servants to stay there with the donkey and that ‘the lad and I will go yonder and worship, and we will come back to you’. Abraham received the Word of God deep within and could obey God with faith that He would not let Isaac perish to ensure fulfillment of His promise.
Lord Jesus’ call is to open the door and invite Him into our hearts, and he will then share a meal with him (Revelation 3:20). He is the Provider of everything but desires to bless us like the disciples. The Risen Lord had seen the weakness of the disciples and to ensure that they remain strong in the faith, breathed on them, and said to them, ‘Receive the Holy Spirit’ (John 20:22). Just before finally ascending to heaven, however, He cautioned them not to ‘depart from Jerusalem, but to wait for the Promise of the Father’ (Acts 1:4). The fulfillment of this was the coming of the Holy Spirit on them on the Day of Pentecost. God discerns the hearts and minds and reaches out to the real followers to strengthen them in faith.
I received a call from someone for prayer for healing of his particular situation and a statement that he has been very regular in church attendance every Sunday. Despite that, his problem persisted. He, however, admitted that he is not baptized and does follow all the customs of his old faith. His old faith was actually what he believed in, and church was more like an ATM card to receive the blessings. Is God obliged to answer the prayers of anyone with that attitude? God is perfect in every aspect, and He created everything as an expression of His love. The Redeemer Lord is also His love for the whole world, to save those who believe and turn to Him (John 3:16).
His written word is the guidebook to living a life in line with the way our Creator desires. Anyone who wants to live without trying to understand God through His Word is living and walking in darkness and will definitely fall. The Psalmist understood the truth and lived it, saying, ‘Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path’ (Psalm 119:105). Everyone born into this world is a stranger to the ways of the world, and the Holy Bible is the GPS provided by the LORD God to find our way.
Prophet Ezekiel was told by God about those who come to hear the Word of God from him. ‘So they come to you as people do, sit before you as My people, and they hear your words, but they do not do them; for with their mouth they show much love, but their hearts pursue their own gain’ (Ezekiel 33:31-32). We see many who fall in this category, and to such the preaching is ‘a very lovely song of one who has a pleasant voice and can play well on an instrument; for they hear words, but they do not do them’.
Many people say that the Old Testament is no longer relevant to a believer, for the Saviour Lord has fulfilled every aspect of that. Lord Jesus used the’sword of the Spirit, the Word of God’ to counter all temptations of the devil (Matthew 4:3–10). He quoted the Book of Deuteronomy every time, though He could have used His own authority to counter the devil. The two disciples traveling from Jerusalem to Emaus on the first Sunday after the crucifiction of the Lord were met by the Risen Lord. While walking with them, He quoted the entire Old Testament to them: ‘Beginning at Moses and all the Prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself’ (Luke 24:27). The New Testament is the visible manifestation of the Savior and His work, but the Old Testament does not become irrelevant.
The Jews, like others, obey God to seek salvation while we do so to express our thanks for His work for us. At the Transfiguration of the Lord, a cloud overshadowed them on the mount, and a voice of God the Father was heard out of the cloud, saying, ‘This is My beloved Son. Hear Him’ (Luke 9:35). He is the Word, and in Him is life, and without knowing Him, one is far away from life or a relationship with God. God is revealed in His Word, and one has to continuously study the Scriptures to grow. God will definitely reward your diligence by giving you understanding through His Spirit.
Living in the power of God’s Word: Two Greek words are used in the Scripture for the Word of God. First is ‘logos’ about Lord Jesus as in (John 1:1) and also other places (Hebrews 4:12) to term the Word as ‘living and powerful’. This is the inspired Word of God as written in the Scripture. The second is ‘rhema’ which is the spoken word (Luke 5:5). It is said that logos is rhema under the urging of the Holy Spirit as spoken over a particular situation. Lord Jesus spoke to the fig tree that had no fruit but only leaves, and it dried up by next morning (MMark 11:14; 23-24). The disciples were astonished at this, but not the Lord. Again, He taught, ‘Whoever says to this mountain’ as a command. For fulfillment of the command, He said, ‘Whatever things you ask when you pray, believe that you receive them, and you will have them’. The Word of God is living and powerful, but in its written form as Scripture, it is non-effective in a situation. When we claim the promise of Logos and declare that in faith over the problem (the mountain), the situation must and will obey.
Apostle Paul has revealed the only weapon that is used for attack over the enemy as the’sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God’ (Ephesians 6:17). The written word is like the sword in its sheath and not effective till it is pulled out and used. When the Lord Jesus was tempted in the wilderness, He did not tell the devil to wait till He could look for the right word to answer him. Mary, His mother, was a woman well versed in the Word, and she taught all her children to study and meditate on the Word. Apostle James and Judah are the two in the Scripture, and James presided over the first Council meeting of the Church to resolve the issue of circumcision for non-Jews before they could be baptized as Christians.
God Himself commanded Joshua, the leader of Israel who led them into the Promised Land, to study and meditate on the Word of God always (Joshua 1:8). The promised result was, ‘then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success’. We can know God only through His Word and then claim what He has promised through prayer and declaring over the forces of evil to be victorious. His word is powerful, but the power must be released through the mouth, and then His power works in our lives.
Only a believer who understands the power and authority of the Word of God and lets that power work in his life is successful. Abraham, King David, or others in faith were filled with the Word of God and succeeded in every situation. Studying, meditating upon, and adapting the Word in one’s life is the only way to walk and live triumphantly!
