Hebrews 4:12
"For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart."
One of the biggest reasons we, as Christians, have the word of God in our lives today is to use it as a weapon. Yes. The word of God; the holy Scriptures; the Bible is a Christian's greatest weapon. How come I can say this? It's because the Bible tells me so. In Arthurian legend written on Excalibur, the blade King Arthur wields, are the directions to take up the blade for a time and then cast it away at the end of that time. A Christian's sword, the Bible, also has directions written on it. In the book of Ephesians it's written that Christians should equip themselves with "the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God" (6:17). We, as believers in Christ Jesus, have access to a divine and powerful weapon that makes Excalibur, Narsil and even the Skywalker Blade look like dull knives in the back of a kitchen drawer. We also read in 2 Corinthians what we can do with this weapon, Scripture. Paul writes that the weapons Christians use "have divine power to demolish strongholds. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ" (2 Corinthians 10:4-5). The word of the LORD is a sword used to cut down any falsehood that tries to stand against our God.
Well, if the word of God is a sword to be used in battle, then who are we fighting? We are not fighting other humans with the word of God. They are not our enemy. Paul writes in Ephesians that "our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms" (6:12). That is who we are fighting; the devils; satan and his fallen angels. It is written that the devil wants to sift all of Jesus' desciples like wheat (Luke 22:31). The devils hate it when we preach the word of God, because they like, the non-believers of this world, hate God. The devil is "the father of lies" and he and his fallen angels hate the truth (John 8:44b). They hate that there is a God who reigns above them in truth and love. For it is written, even the demons believe there is one God, and they shudder at this fact (James 2:19). The devil and his angles want to destroy you and stop you from preaching the truth, but you, as a Christian, can stop him, when you fully trust in God's word. The apostle Peter tells his followers, "Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith" (1 Peter 5:8-9). You fight the devil, when you read God's word, trust it with your life and then pass it on to everyone so that they too may receive the truth.
Do we go into battle alone and uncertain of victory? No to all of the above. We go into this battle knowing "we are more than conquerors through Him who loved us" (Romans 8:37). We are not alone. God is with us, because we have put our trust in Him, and He has said that none of His followers will be lost to His enemies (John 6:39). A third question I have, though, is this: do we go into battle unprepared? The answer is up to you. If you don't know the word of God; the divine truths it reveals; the firm foundation on which you should build your life (Matthew 7:24), then you will not stand a chance against the devil's lies. If we don't know what the truth is, then how can we wield it? When we, as followers of Christ, face someone living under a wicked lie and we don't do anything to guide them to the truth, so we instead submit to their lies, we are like something filthy. The book of Proverbs says, "Like a muddied spring or a polluted well are the righteous who give way to the wicked" (25:26). We have to, as Paul says to Timothy, do our "best to present [ourselves] to God as one approved, a worker who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth" (2 Timothy 2:15). We need to study the word of God, and become great handlers of this valuable weapon. In the same way knights had to train with their swords for years, before they could effectively wield them in fierce battles for their king's honor, we do something similar. We, as Christians, have to study, interpret and put into practice the word of God, so we can wield it effectively against foolish ideas, false doctrines and wicked ways for our King's honor.
And it cuts like the sword through the darkness
With a message of life to the hopeless and the frail
Breathing life into all who believe
The word is alive
And the world and its glories will fade
But its truth, it will not pass away
It remains yesterday and forever the same
The word is alive
- The Bible (New International Version)
- 10 Bible Verses on Spiritual Warfare
- Casting Crowns: The Word is Alive
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