If you have been following this ministry, you are familiar with the overemphasis on scripture. The scriptures are the inspired word spoken by God himself through men that were under the influence of the Holy Spirit. It is not merely true, it is truth personified. It is such a dangerous place to be when you have little to no acquaintance with His Word as a professed Christian because this puts into question what informs the quality of your life.
That is why religions that do not encourage believers to have a personal relationship and devotion with scripture are dangerous in that they deprive the human soul the very essence of its being. Psalm138:2 emphasizes further the weight of this by telling us that God has exalted His word even above His name. It is not going to be said of us that we have altered the order of things to produce the expected results only God’s order can produce.
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. Hebrews 4:12 NIV
A few verses above our theme scripture, the writer of Hebrews tells us of a story of the Israelites failing to enter God’s rest because of unbelief then provides in verse 12 the antidote to this unbelief that prevents rest from the people of God: a quick, active and sharp word! The activeness of the word of God is to the end that it may seize our souls, purge and uproot the thoughts of our carnal minds and renew us from the inside out. It is the direct spoken instruction from the Creator of your spirit, soul and body.
It is like the required maintenance for what men create, except that instead of merely repairing what has been broken, it renews. It is sharp and it penetrates because it convicts, it converts and it comforts those that believe it to be true and for those who work at aligning with what it instructs. Some may argue it was written by men and should be questioned as such but that is only evidence of the unregenerate spirit. Historically, God is known to use men to accomplish His purpose on earth and writing scripture is no different than that.
We engage the word of God by firstly believing what it says. If the Lord says “of the inhabitants of Zion, none will say I am sick (Isaiah 33:24)”, trust the counsel of this scripture. It does not negate that your body can feel abated by an ailment at this very moment but the power of the tongue, carrying life or death, does not cease to be in action because your body does feel the feelings of sickness. When you confess it with your mouth, you come into agreement with the bait Satan has put on you.
Believers often don’t always understand the power they have been given through Christ, that of authority over evil and its works of darkness. Satan on the other hand knows this and he knows he cannot take anything from you. He proposes to trick you into breaking the hedges of protection God has put around you therefore access to what he never could have reached otherwise. Some of these hedges are the confession of your lips, holding captive of your thoughts, and refusal to physically expose yourself to unnecessary dangers through what you watch, consume or do.
I could go on and on with examples of scriptures that may seem contradictory to many of the circumstances we consider a reality for us in the world, but they do not cancel the effectiveness of God’s word. Those who believe the Word surely eat of its fruit. It is important for me to mention that such messages are not to encourage confessing what is wrong with hopes to turn it into right, you can and should see your caregivers, take your prescriptions seriously while also maintaining the confession of health in your mouth. This is simply about performing maintenance for your spirit even as you do the same for your ailing body.
Finally, as we accustom our minds and align our hearts to these basic kingdom practices, let us be encouraged to know and lean on the person of the Holy Spirit. His gentle nature does not allow Him to do or go against your will and the stronger your will the more the resistance to His lead. Let us seek the help of the Lord in all meekness to help us by bringing to remembrance these words that are both spirit and life, that our joy may be complete. Praise Him!
If you have never given your life to Jesus Christ, and you feel that this is the perfect time, pray this prayer:
“Lord Jesus, I thank you because you died for my sins and you were raised for my glory. Today, I receive you as my Lord and Savior. I am born again. Amen.”
