The Power Of The Word

THE POWER OF THE WORD

The story’s told of a South Sea Islander who rescued a wounded G.I. during WWII. While the G.I. was recovering, the Islander proudly displayed his Bible to the G.I. He explained how he’d received it as a present from a missionary just a few years before. The soldier said, “O, I’ve outgrown that sort of thing.”

The native smiled curiously and said, “Well, it’s a good thing we haven’t, because if it weren’t for this book, you’d be our dinner.”

The power of God’s Word to change lives goes far beyond anything we can imagine. It has changed lives and civilizations for thousands of years, and yet, every generation gives rise to those who deny its truth even while multitudes can’t resist it.

Today we come to the classic text on the power of the Word of God found in Hebrews 4:12-13. Our scripture begins, “For the word of God is living and powerful.” Now is a fitting time to reflect again on what it says and means.

Hebrews 4:12 begins with “for” or “therefore” which ties what follows with what the author said previously about the consequences of Israel’s disobedience. The author wants us to get it through our thick heads that Israel’s awful tragedy can strike us as well.

Today I want you to see with me Four Reasons Why We Should Not Disregard the Word of God!

First, It is a Living Word (v. 12a)

“For the word of God is living…”

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 claim 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 claim to being alive and powerful are copies of the Bible. This places the Bible in a unique category all to itself.

The Greek word “zon” means “living”, and as it’s written, it’s meant to be emphasized. The word of God is not a dead letter, but as the word of the living God, it cannot fail to be living.

As the living word, it continues through each age with compelling relevance. “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, “It’s good that you’ve gone through the Word. Now if you’ll allow the Word to go through you just once “then you will tell a different story!” [source unknown - www.bible.org/illus/Bible (application)]

The Word of God is not only a living word but,

Secondly, It is a Powerful Word.¬ Verse 12 says, “For the word of God is living and powerful.” The word translated “powerful” (energes) is the word from which we get energy and energetic. The word literally means “at work.”

Charles Swindoll commented, “News articles may inform us. Novels may inspire us. Poetry may enrapture us. But only the living, active Word of God can transform us.”

Have you ever wondered at the many Christians who are “pew-potatoes”. Have you ever heard of a pew-potato? It’s like a couch-potato, who is content to sit in front of a television, never doing anything. A pew-potato is content to attend church each week, sit for a few minutes and listen to a sermon, soak it all up, but they never transform what they learn into action. If the Word of God is not really alive within you, then at the end of time, if you’re a pew-potato, you’re going to end up baked. To avoid being “baked”, you need to allow that Word to come alive in you.

Richard Foster, in his book Celebration of Discipline, says, “To pray is to change. Prayer is the central avenue God uses to transform us. If we are unwilling to change, we will abandon prayer as a noticeable characteristic of our lives. The closer we come to the heartbeat of God the more we see our need and the more we desire to be conformed to Christ….”

“…James says: ‘You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions’ (James 4:3). To ask ‘rightly’ involves transformation, total renewal. By studying God’s Word and giving ourselves to prayer, real prayer, we begin to think God’s thoughts; to desire the things He desires; to love the things He loves. Progressively we are taught to see things from His point of view.”

The Bible is living and active, and so when we read its words, they reach out and touch the needs of our lives in a tangible way. Isaiah 55:11 describes scripture as being a living agent or messenger that God sends to touch our lives. Listen to what God says in this passage: “ ....My word will not return to me empty, but will accomplish what I desire and achieve the purpose for which I sent it.” The Bible is living and powerful and…