When I was in college I dated a girl of a different faith(Sanjay, Brad, I'm sure you know who I'm talking about.) I even went to church with her and partook in communion with her. However, after my accident I invited her to go to church with me. Partly because I wanted her to meet my mentor, military brats are military brats for life. But mainly because, God had given me a second chance to be a godly man and leader. When I asked her, she defiantly refused, saying, "I am perfectly content with my faith and church." I wasn't trying to convert her to my beliefs, but she was so wrapped up in her family traditions and religion, the thought of going to a Protestant church repulsed her(maybe it was her red hair.) Her father was from Italy and had joined the Air Force. While he was stationed in Germany he met her mother. For this girl her faith, church and beliefs were part of her heritage. During the four years we dated, she hid behind the faith of her family. The last I heard, she had moved to Atlanta and had a little girl out of wedlock. This is why I hate religion and tradition, it doesn't help us in life, but hurts us.
While working on this blog I had a devotion based on Jesus' parable of the good Samaritan. After studying the passage I realized that Jesus hates religion also. According to Matthew Jesus really had a problem with the traditions of men. Because He told the Pharisees in speaking about His disciples and tradition, "you nullify the word of God for the sake of your tradition. You hypocrites! Isaiah was right when he prophesied about you: 'these people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me. They worship me in vain; their teachings are merely human rules."
According to Luke, "on one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. 'Teacher, he asked, 'what must I do to inherit eternal life?' 'What is written in the law?' He replied. 'How do you read it?' He answered, 'love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, 'love your neighbor as yourself.' 'You've answered correctly,'Jesus replied. Do this and you will live.' But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, and who is my neighbor?' In reply Jesus said: 'a man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he fell into the hands of robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an open Inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. Look after him,'he said, 'and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.' 'Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?' Expert in the law applied, 'the one who had mercy on him.' Jesus told him, 'go and do likewise.' Here Luke shows us what religion does. Notice how the expert in the law wanted to "test" Jesus. Which is absurd when you think about it, isn't it?
Then the expert wanted to "justify himself." That's what religion does, it is the way for man to justify himself before God. This is why we call it self-righteousness. But it doesn't work does it? Jesus' parable is so in-your-face, it hurts! First, Jesus thumbs his nose at the priests( the religious leaders), then He goes even farther by mentioning a Levite. In case you have forgotten the Levites became responsible for "the service of the work of the Tent of Meeting", the Tabernacle (Numbers 4:3). The Hebrew word translated service also means warfare. Therefore, their service in the Tabernacle was a figure of spiritual warfare; as at the golden calf incident (Exodus 32), the Levites were on the Lord's side. This took place about 1400 years before Jesus arrived on the scene, talk about heritage and tradition. Still the Levite in the parable missed the mark, didn't he? I think it's ironic that for centuries the religious leaders added to the law and made it that much more difficult to live by. Then Jesus shows up and gives them a taste of their own medicine. Love your neighbor as yourself? How about, "love your enemies" or better yet, "I say to you any man who looks at a woman lustfully is guilty of adultery." Jesus raised the bar to show everyone that's why GRACE AMAZING.
From the time God set Israel free from Egypt, He commanded them through the prophet Moses to, "these commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children." The great psalmist David(a.k.a. the man after God's own heart) wrote, "Blessed are those who do not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but who delight in the law of the Lord and meditate on His law day and night. They are like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in in season and whose leaf does not wither-- whatever they do prospers. The mouths of the righteous utter wisdom, and their tongues speak what is just. The law of their God is on their hearts; their feet do not slip. Your word I have treasured in my heart, That I may not sin against You. I will delight in your decrees and not forget your word."
For David the law was full of MERCY AND GRACE which are beautiful things , it is a sweet symphony of love and IT'S PERFECT. The prophet Isaiah wrote, "listen to Me, you who know righteousness, A people in whose heart is My law; Do not fear the reproach of man, Nor be dismayed at their revelings." While Jeremiah pleaded with Israel, " But this is the covenant which I will make with the house of Israel after those days," declares the LORD, 'I will put My law within them and on their heart I will write it; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people."
In his book Dug Down Deep Joshua Harris explains, "King Josiah was a contemporary of the prophet Jeremiah. People called Jeremiah the weeping prophet, and there was a lot to weep about in those days. 'A horrible and shocking thing has happened in the land,' Jeremiah said. 'The prophets prophecy lies, the priests ruled by their own authority, and my people love it this way'(Jeremiah 5;30-31, NIV.) As people learned to love their lies about God, they lost their ability to recognize His voice. 'To whom can I speak and give warning?' God asked. 'Who will LISTEN to me? Their ears are closed so they cannot hear. The word of the Lord is offensive to them; they find no pleasure in it'(Jeremiah 6:10NIV.) People forgot God. They lost their taste for His words. They forgot what He had done for them, what He commanded of them, and what he threatened if they disobeyed." The modern church hasn't done much better, have we?
ONLY IN AMERICA do Christians have free reign to hundreds of Bibles(which I'll discuss later), yet have such APATHY towards it. We have taken for granted for too long that the Bible is YOURS TO OWN. Perhaps like me you have more than one copy in your home. What are you doing with them? Are you getting into it, is it getting into you? Or is it sitting on a shelf like that treadmill sitting in the corner of your bedroom or the elliptical down in the basement that is only being used to hang clothes on. One of my pet peeves is when people come to the gym and just sit on the equipment. Some even go as far as putting weight on the machine and then just sit there talking on their cell phone saying, “yes, I'm at the gym getting my flex on so I'll be ready for the beach this summer.” Knowing the entire time HE'S LYING.
Sadly this is how most Christians view Christianity. As long as we go to church, carry a Bible, then put on our church “work out” clothes we think we will have the VICTORY and become an OVERCOMER! But then again we do live in a WORLD OF LIES. Are you going through the motions of religion? This is why I am losing my religion! James Madison once declared, "We have staked the whole future of American civilization, not upon the power of government, far from it. We have staked the future ...upon the capacity of each and all of us to govern ourselves, to sustain ourselves, according to the Ten Commandments of God."
The prophet Hosea warned us, “my people are destroyed for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I also reject you as my priests; because you have ignored the law of your God, I will also ignore your children. The more the priests increased, the more they sinned against me; they exchange their glorious God for something disgraceful. They fed on the sins of my people and relish their wickedness. And it will be: like people, like priests. I will punish both of them for their ways to pay them for their deeds. They will eat but not have enough; they will engage in prostitution but not increase, because they have deserted the Lord to give themselves to prostitution; old wine and new wine take away their understanding... The spirit of prostitution leads them astray; they are unfaithful to their God.”
I'm sure you've heard pastors quote this verse many times saying, “my people are destroyed for the lack of knowledge.” And that is where they stop, but it is only part of the truth isn't it? But when you look at it within the context of the Bible it gives the phrase a whole new meaning doesn't it? Maybe these pastors and teachers stop where they do because within the context of the passage the prophet is talking bout them. When I was little boy my parents always ordered supreme pizzas and gave it to me to eat. However, since I don't like mushrooms, I would pick off all the mushrooms and throw them away. Then I could eat with them because it was no longer a supreme pizza anymore was it? I had made it into what I wanted a meat lover's pizza! Sadly that is how most Christians treat the Bible. We pick and choose the parts of the Bible we like and want to believe and live by, then disregard the rest. But when we do that, like the pizza it becomes something different, not what it's maker intended to be.
As Larry Stockstill explains in his book The Remnant, "many American churches have become a mile wide and an inch deep when it comes to Bible knowledge. Sadly the Scriptures are moving more and more to the bottom of the shelf in our priorities. What has happened to the line upon line exposition of the Scriptures? What is happening to produce an entire generation of American Christians who do not know even the most basic Bible stories and elementary doctrine? Many of us, unfortunately, have 'progressed' past a reliance on the Scriptures and have substituted motivational relevance for Bible knowledge. Pastors preach it, and believers eagerly lap it up. The physical body will crave that which you feed it. If high-calorie, high fat items are on the daily menu, the body soon loses its appetite for the more nutritious whole grains, fruits, vegetables. If believers constantly gorge on spiritual junk food with little spiritual value, they soon lose their hunger for the eternal, life-changing word of God."
TELL ME SOMETHING I DIDN’T KNOW! Matthew tells us that when Jesus was tempted by Satan in the wilderness to turn a stone into bread, Jesus replied it is written: people do not live on bread alone, but on every word that comes from the mouth of God."
Stockstill continues, "when I was an associate chaplain in college, a mouse kept getting into our office at night. The chapel maintenance worker brought in a small box of what I thought was rat poison. I was concerned about having poison in our office, but he told me that the substance was not at all harmful. He explained that it was so simple non-nutritive substance that rats crave. In fact, they love it so much that once they taste it, they will eat nothing else. They eat it and eat it, since the 'food' has no nutritional value, the rats slowly starve to death, even though he is eating. What a picture of how the enemy deceives Christian disciples! He slyly sends clever thoughts, good advice, funny stories, and interesting documents to tickle their ears, and they love it. They cannot get enough of this 'food,' yet do not understand why they are sick, anemic, and perhaps even spiritually dead. The Devil's 'rat poison is a lack of knowledge of the true word of God and the lack of application and transformation from the word. Many Christians have huge amounts of Bible knowledge at their fingertips, but their lifestyles show application of none of it."Howard Hendricks once said, "The Bible was written not to … fill your head with a collection of biblical facts but to transform your life." Do you see the religion here? The insanity of it?
The same principle applies to our battle to get into shape. You need to change your reason for eating. Most people eat what they crave regardless of the benefit or lack thereof. Personally, I look at food as a source of energy and nutrition, not something I crave because I can't control myself. As Shawn Phillips explains in his book absolution, "let's start with the fundamentals: food plays a prominent role in the development of every cell in our bodies(and there are trillions of them.) And that's where the popular saying 'you are what you eat' originates. These nutrients include proteins, carbohydrates, fats, vitamins, minerals, and water. The key is learning how much of these nutrients you need to eat and when to eat them to feed your muscles and starve the fat."
Food is good, not bad. The Bible is good, not bad. The problem is how you look at it and what we do with it. A. W. Tozer once stated, “to expose our hearts to truth and consistently refuse or neglect to obey the impulse it arouses is to stymie the motions of life within us and, if persisted in, to grieve the Holy Spirit into silence.” Which brings me to another tradition , "the good old boy" men's breakfast which is supposed to be a time of discipleship. But tends to be a time of eating of "food that will not last." Do you see how religion is BROKEN? The apostle Paul warned the young Timothy in his first letter, "the Spirit clearly says that in the later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits and things taught by demons. Such teachings come through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot iron. They forbid people to marry and order them to abstain from certain foods, which God created to be received with thanksgiving by those who believe and know the truth."
With more urgency, Paul writes in his second letter to Timothy, "preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage-- with great patience and careful instruction. For the time will come people will not put up with sound doctrine. Instead, to suit their own desires, they will gather around a great number of teachers who say what their itching ears want to hear. They will turn their ears away from the truth and turn aside to myths."
Patrick Henry once said, "It cannot be emphasized too strongly or too often that this great nation was founded, not by religionists, but by Christians; not on religions, but on the gospel of Jesus Christ! For this very reason peoples of other faiths have been afforded asylum, prosperity, and freedom of worship here. " I'm sure this point, you are saying, "isn't Christianity a religion?" It is if we make it. However, in it's purest form, Christianity is not a religion. But a relationship with God and I plan to show you throughout this blog how to nurture that relationship. First, we must spend time with God. Which, if you know me, you know how passionate I am about reading my Bible. Not so much as so I can have it in my head, but in my heart.
Every man knows that you never go into a battle without your sword. Which is why I am amazed by how many Christians neglect studying their Bibles, then again people crazy aren't they Aaron? After all, when the apostle Paul told us to put on the full(whole) armor of God. He only gave us one offensive piece(or did he?) And that is what this blog will be about, the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. What the apostle Paul meant by this and how to use it correctly in spiritual warfare.
BREATHE?
Josh McDowell continued at promise keepers in 2008, “to know and understand truth, we must go to the Scriptures, that's God's final revelation to us. If you don't get into the Scriptures you cannot testify about Him. It's when the Holy Spirit will reveal truth to you.” The word "Spirit" translates the Hebrew word ruah, which, in its primary sense, means breath, air, wind. The prophet Moses uses the first occurrences of this breath, in the book of Genesis he writes, "in the beginning God created the heavens and the air. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the SPIRIT OF GOD(ruah) was hovering over the waters." In the very next chapter prophet Moses tells us, "then the Lord God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath(ruah) of life, and the man became a living being. Later after God flooded the Earth, Moses tells us that, "everything on dry land that had the breath(ruah) of life in its nostrils died." The picture here is the Spirit gives life, God gives life. No wonder the psalmist tells us, "let everything that has breath praise the Lord."
Moreover, the Greek word pneuma(which is where we get the word pneumonia from), the primary meaning of which is "breath," "breeze" or "wind," is rendered "spirit". Pneuma is the only word used to refer to the Spirit of God or of a man in the New Testament. Rob Bell uses the English phonetic spelling of pneuma "Nooma" as the title of his short teaching videos about God. Luke tells us that a violent pneuma blew at Pentecost. The apostle John tells story of when Jesus had a conversation with the Samaritan woman(another Samaritan) to whom Jesus explained, "yet the time is coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in the spirit(pneuma) and in truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and His worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth." Many so-called "charismatic"believers would say this is speaking in tongues and getting caught up in some frantic state of being. But in reading it in its context, John is saying true worshipers will worship with the very breath.
EVERY BREATH YOU TAKE, your whole life will be an act of worship to God. It won't be compartmentalized like most Christians live today. We do our spiritual acts of worship on Sundays, Wednesdays or whenever we are at church. It's not going down to the alter every time an invitation is given, it's not throwing your hands up when you get a "feeling". Whenever others can see how "spiritual" we are. It's not just about how you live in front of others, but how you live when no one is around. Men this is where our integrity comes in. The Indian missionary Sadhu Sundar Singh once said, "Salt, when dissolved in water, may disappear, but … we can be sure of its presence by tasting the water. Likewise, the indwelling Christ, though unseen, will be made evident to others from the love which He imparts to us."
In fact, according to Matthew's letter to the church Jesus warned His followers, "Be careful not to do your acts of righteousness' in front of others, to be seen by them. If you do, you will have no reward from your Father in heaven. So when you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues(churches) and on the streets, to be honored by others. When you give, don't even let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be in secret. And when you pray, do not be like the hypocrites, for they love to pray standing in the synagogues and on the streets, to be seen by others....But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen." Oouch I bet that hurt the Pharisees. To worship in YOUR SPIRIT, is to worship with your whole heart, your whole life your very breath. Which as Jesus explained to Nicodemus, "the wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit." Maybe this is why St. Francis of Assisi says to , "preach the gospel everyday; if necessary, use words." Furthermore, G. Campbell Morgan once stated wisely, "we cannot organize revival, but we can set our sails to catch the wind from heaven when God chooses to blow upon his people once again."
I'm sure know most of you are wondering, what this has to do with the Bible. There is a theme throughout Scripture that this breath/Spirit gives life. While I was working on this blog I hurt myself at the gym and had to get stitches in my finger and I was so scared that I might lose it. Even the doctor told me that it was too late to put stitches in and I may lose part of my finger. Every few days I had to take the bandages off to let the wound "breath", if its covered then air can't procure it and heal it. My finger didn't need to stay UNDER PRESSURE. After a week I went back to the doctor for a checkup. Even with all of her knowledge and education she was amazed at how fast my finger had healed. It was then with my hope was restored and I realized what Solomon meant when he wrote, "trust in the LORD with all your heart; and lean not to your own understanding." It was then that I remembered God is God. He does what He wants.
No man can close a door if it is not God's will! So, I've learned to forget the word never and let God be God. The apostle John goes on to tell us that Jesus said, "the Spirit gives life; the flesh counts for nothing. The words I have spoken to you--- they are full of the Spirit and life. Yet there are some of you who do not believe.' Jesus had known from beginning which of them did not believe and who would betray Him. He went on to say, 'this is why I told you that no one can come to me unless the father has enabled them.' From this time many of His disciples turned back and no longer followed Him. 'You do not want to leave me to, do you?' Jesus asked the Twelve. Simon Peter answered Him, 'Lord to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life." Furthermore, in his second letter to his protégé Timothy the apostle Paul wrote, "all Scripture is God-breathed it is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that all God's people may be thoroughly equipped for every good work." Albert Einstein once said, “As a child I received instruction both in the Bible and in the Talmud. I am a Jew, but I am enthralled by the luminous figure of the Nazarene.... No one can read the Gospels without feeling the actual presence of Jesus. His personality pulsates in every word. No myth is filled with such life.” I don't know about you but I need God to breathe into me or else I'm just breathing to death !
C.H. Spurgeon once wrote, "beloved, the Spirit of God has war with the Amalek of evil and error from generation to generation. He will spare none of the evils which now pollute the nations; his sword will never be quiet till all these Canaanites are destroyed. The Holy Spirit glorifies Christ not only by what he reveals, but also by what he overturns. The strife may be weary, but it will be carried on from age to age, till the Lord Jesus shall appear; forever shall the Spirit of God espouse the cause of love against hate, of truth against error, of holiness against sin, of Christ against Satan. He will win the day, and those who are with Him shall in His might be more than conquerors. The Holy Spirit has proclaimed war, and wields a two-edged sword.
SWORD?
There are over 200 references to swords throughout the Bible, the prophet Moses gives the first occurrence in the book of Genesis after God banished Adam and Eve from the garden. We are told, "after He drove them out, He placed on the east side of the garden of Eden cherubim and a flaming sword flashing back and forth to guard the way to the tree of life." Later God gave Moses the law at Mount Horeb. The name Horeb is identical to the Hebrew word for sword: Horeb (hereb 732a) derived from Horeb (harab 732) to slay, fight. This may shed some light on the figurative usage of swords in the Bible, especially such enigmatic scenes as Rev 19:15, where the White Rider known as the Word Of God appears with a sword protruding from His mouth.
But for the purpose of this blog I want to concentrate on the passage in Ephesians. First, let me explain the context. The apostle Paul wrote his letter to the church in Ephesus while he was imprisoned in Rome. Ephesus was the "highway to Rome". In later times, when the Christians were brought from Asia to be flung to the lions in the arena in Rome, Ignatius called Ephesus the Highway of the Martyrs. The Ephesians were well aware of how the Roman soldiers fought. It was different from how other kingdoms fought and this is were the symbolism of a double-edged sword is often misinterpreted.
A Roman soldier was trained in certain sword maneuvers such as not to cut with the sword but to thrust instead. This type of fighting enabled the Romans to easily defeat their enemies who cut with their swords aimlessly instead of stabbing. The Romans' logic on this manner of sword fighting was that a hit with the edge of the sword rarely killed whereas a sharp stab will almost always be fatal. Another reason they fought this way was that when stabbing, the arm and ribs are not exposed. However, when striking or cutting, the arm and ribs are exposed making the soldier more vulnerable to his enemy. After what happened to Adam I want to protect my ribs! Here is were the double-edged sword comparison is crucial. The Roman short sword was noted for its short double edge 20" blade with a diamond point tip, this magnificent sword is known as "the sword that conquered the world." Combined with a soldier's training to thrust instead of cut, a soldier could pierce the enemies armor, even their heart. But before a soldier was ready for battle he must be trained in how to accurately use the sword, whether to deliver a fatal blow or to defend himself.
This is where the church and so many Christians have failed. The Great Commission Jesus gave us is to, " go and make disciples of all nations, baptize them in the name of the Father and Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.." Jesus told us to make disciples first, then baptize. For too long the church has been more concerned about the buildings and religious temples it worships in. For far too long the church has been more concerned about adding numbers to its ranks, than about making true disciples. And because of this many warriors are losing the battle. Because of this we have so many Christians that can't discern the voice of God. We are creating an army of unprepared, untrained and unled soldiers that don't know how to use the sword correctly.
Matthew gives us an example of how this can hurt even the most faithful disciple. Matthew tells us that when the crowd tried to seize and arrest Jesus, "one of Jesus' companions reached for his sword, drew back and struck the servant of the high priest, cutting off his ear. 'Put your sword back in its place,' Jesus said to him, 'for all who draw the sword will die by the sword." Do you realize how prophetic that statement is? The sword of the Spirit is a double-edged sword, not a double standard!
I wonder if God isn't looking down from heaven and asking HOW LONG will my children keep playing swords and having scriptural peeing contests? Which is what we do isn't it? Throw Scripture back and forth at each other trying to make ourselves look more spiritual and SHOW OFF. Again, welcome to religion. In his first letter to the church in Corinth the apostle Paul warned, "we know that 'we all possess knowledge.' But knowledge puffs up, while love builds up. Those who think they know something do not yet know as they ought to know. But whoever loves God is known by God." Robert C. Chapman once said, "humility is the secret of fellowship, and pride the secret of division." The word of God is a MESSAGE OF LOVE. It is HOW THE LOST GET FOUND. Yet, we spend more time Regurgitating Scripture that we "heard" from someone else and beating each other up with Scripture than we are taking it to the streets to the LOST ONES and getting it done! We spend more time arguing over what translation and version is correct instead of digging in to the Bible. Don't try to analyze it(I'm not mentioning any names) or figure it out, just believe it! That's called faith. Because, "His ways are higher than our ways." Its like you said brother Steve, "the world tells us, 'do good, get good. Do bad get bad." That's religion. Christianity says, "do bad, get grace." The point is in the end love wins and I WON'T LOSE!
In his book your Bible and You Arthur Maxwell explains, "when the scholars who prepared the King James version had completed the task added these very wise words in the preface, now alas, no longer included in modern editions: 'we do not deny, nay we affirm and avow, that the very meanest translation of the Bible in English set forth by men of our profession... containeth the word of God, nay, is the word of God though it be not interpreted by every translator with like grace, nor so peradventure fitly for phrase, nor expressly for sense, everywhere... no cause therefore why the word translated should be denied to be the word, or forbidden to be current, notwithstanding that some imperfections and blemishes may be noted in this setting forth of it.' As happens so often, God's richest treasures are found in earthen vessels. The vessel may be marred by human frailties, but the treasure is divinely perfect." The word is alive. Soren Kierkegaard once said, "When you read God's Word, you must constantly be saying to yourself, "It is talking to me, and about me."It shows us how to be REBORN, RENEWED, REINVENTED!
At their January men's breakfast, New life church's pastor Brady Boyd explained that when Jesus said, 'very truly I tell you Pharisees, anyone who does not enter the sheep pen by my gate, but climbs in by some other way, is a thief and a robber. The one who enters by the gate is the shepherd of the sheep. The gatekeeper opens the gate for him, as they listen to His voice. He calls His own sheep by name and leads them out. When He has brought out all His own, He goes on ahead of them, and His sheep follow Him because they know His voice. But they will never follow a stranger; in fact, they will run away from him because they do not recognize a stranger's voice.' Jesus is our shepherd and leader, His is the only voice we must follow.' But it's up to the church to give the training, the discipleship to help the sheep hear What the Shepard is saying to them individually. Only then can they fight their individual battles with the devil successfully. The Greek word Paul used for "word" when he talked about the armor of God is hrema, which means utterance or in English "saying." The key point Paul is trying to share is that each particular, relevant individual Scripture is a sword unto itself and very effective in battling Satan and temptation! Think about it, it's not one sword but thousands of swords! When Satan tempted Jesus in the wilderness, Jesus used a different Scripture in response to each attack by Satan.
I recently pulled out a New Testament "short sword" the Gideon Bible that a friend gave me when I was in the hospital after my accident. On the first three pages it explains, "the Bible contains the mind of God, the state of man, the way of salvation, the doom of sinners, and the happiness of all 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 and practice it to be holy. It contains light to direct you, food to support you, and comfort to cheer you. It is the travelers map, the pilgrim's staff, pilot's compass, soldier's sword, and the Christian's charter. Here paradise is restored, heaven opened, and the gates of hell disclosed. Christ is its grand subject, our good the design, and the glory of God is its end. It should fill the memory, rule our heart, and guide the feet. Read it slowly, frequently, and personally. It is a mine of wealth, a paradise of glory, and a river of pleasure. It is given you in life, will be opened at the judgment, and be remembered forever. It involves the highest responsibility, will reward the greatest labor, and will condemn all who trifle with its sacred contents."
In closing this blog, we must realize that the Jerusalem countdown has begun. The great war is at hand and we need soldiers who are prepared and trained how to use the sword correctly. The apostle Paul warned the church in Rome, "This is all the more urgent, for you know how late it is; time is running out. Wake up, for our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed." We can't HIDE behind the sword. It's time to get personal with it. We can't keep hiding behind the word of God like we do our Facebook profiles and cell phones(again, I'm not calling any names.) As the apostle Paul reminded Timothy in his second letter, "for the Spirit God gave us does not make us timid, but gives us POWER, love and self discipline. So do not be ashamed of the testimony about our Lord or of me His prisoner. But join with me in suffering for the gospel, by the power of God, who has saved us and called us to a holy life--- not because of anything we have done but because of His own purpose and grace. This GRACE was given us in Christ Jesus before the beginning of time."
Ellen G. White warns us, "The last great delusion is soon to open before us. Antichrist is to perform his marvelous works in our sight. So closely will the counterfeit resemble the true that it will be impossible to distinguish between them except by the Holy Scriptures." If Rome could conquer the world with its "short sword", what could the church do if it trained its disciples to use its "short sword"correctly? What would our world be like? Men's ministry leader and author Steve Sonderman explains, "to work with men, the Lord has given us the greatest tool—the Bible. [It] reveals God's purposes for our lives, promises to live by, and principles to order our lives by." Do you see how important it is for us as disciples of Jesus to get to know THE WORD(our sword) in SPIRITUAL WARFARE?
