Since I wrote my last blog entry where I talked about my longing for a local manifestation of the body of Christ, the Lord led me to a gathering of older men in our area that have a Bible study once a week. The leader is younger than most of us, but he leads from weakness and allows each man in the group to speak, one at a time, as they feel led. According to 1 Corinthians chapter 14, this is how a gathering of the ekklesia (translated in KJV as “church”) is supposed to be conducted. The leader is there to keep the discussion moving along in an orderly way (1 Cor. 14:26). I was amazed at how often the Spirit speaks through one of these men in the group as they functioned in the freedom of the Spirit.

As we were going over chapter one of Revelation this week we read this:

In his [the ascended Christ’s] right hand he held seven stars, from his mouth came a sharp two-edged sword, and his face was like the sun shining in full strength. (Rev 1:16, ESV2011 – emphasis added)

I was intrigued by this one verse more than the others. We know that in John chapter one Jesus is referred to as the Word of God and “in the beginning was the Word.” This same Word said, “Let there be light and there was light” for “without Him nothing was made that was made.” We also have heard the Bible referred to as “the word of God.” This is true as long as the meaning of the scriptures is being taught us by the Holy Spirit whom Jesus sent to lead us into all truth (See John 16:13 and Luke 24:32). The Spirit does use teachers who speak by the power of the Spirit as well.

When I first started reading the scriptures without the enlightenment of the Spirit, it was a collection of thoughts and stories that had no depth of meaning to me. It wasn’t until two years later that the Spirit of Christ came into me and what a difference that made! The Word of God became alive in me and not just something external. His Spirit was bearing witness with my spirit as I read it.

So as I contemplated why in this verse in Revelation Jesus is depicted as having a two-edged sword coming from His mouth? I was led to these verses,

…The words of him who has the sharp two-edged sword. (Rev 2:12b, ESV2011)

… the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, (Eph 6:17b, ESV2011)

For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account. (Heb 4:12-13, ESV2011 – emphasis added)

The Word of God is living and it is He by His Spirit that gives us spiritual light and sight. Like the man who was born blind who Jesus healed, we are born into this world spiritually blind. But when He makes our spirits alive and shines His light into us, we finally begin to see as God sees. Just as it was with the two disciples that walked with Jesus along the road to Emmaus, He still opens our understanding to see how all the scriptures point to and speak of Him, and when He does this our hearts truly burn within us (see Luke 24:13-32).

In him was life; and the life was the light of men. And the light shines in darkness; and the darkness overcame it not. (John 1:3-5, KJ2000 – emphasis added)

Thank God that our spiritual darkness is overcome as He shines His light into our hearts! He came that we might have life and that more abundantly.

That [Jesus Christ] was the true Light, that lights every man that comes into the world… as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the children of God, even to them that believe on his name: Who were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God. (John 1:9-13, KJ2000 )

The Word of God, through His Spirit working in and speaking to us, often does so as we prayerfully read the scriptures. He knows that I have a concordance so He often gives me a few words from the Bible to get me to go there and look it up and see the context of what He is saying. I thank God that He also speaks through our fellow believers in Christ.

This LIVING Word is that same two-edged sword that comes forth from the mouth of the ascended Christ John saw. It is HE that discerns the thoughts and intentions of our hearts. It is He that divides our soulish inclinations (also spoken of in Paul’s letters as our “old man,” “the flesh” or “the outer man”) from ruling over our spirits (the “new man,” “the spiritual man,” or the “inner man”) within us. I am so glad that He has come into us and that “greater is He that is in us than he (our old Adamic nature) that is in the world.”

Like Jesus told Nicodemus, we must be born of the Spirit if we are to enter the kingdom of heaven. Salvation means more than just having our sins taken way by the death of Christ on the cross. Way more! A dear old saint in this men’s group pointed out the following verse to me:

For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. (Rom 5:10, KJ2000)

MUCH MORE, we are saved by His Life! There is so much more to our salvation than the simple blotting out of our sins and being reconciled to the Father. It is Christ’s life in us that is our guiding light and saves us from ourselves. His life becomes our life. We go from living on the negative side of the ledger over to the positive side when HE is our Life. Having our sins removed only brings up to the “zero line.”

I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ lives in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me. (Gal 2:20, KJ2000)

We are called not just to be saved, but to become sons and daughters of God to shine forth with His glorious life within us (Romans 8:14-18). Wow! What shall we say if we neglect so great a salvation?

Arise, shine; for your light has come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon you. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon you, and his glory shall be seen upon you. And the Gentiles shall come to your light, and kings to the brightness of your rising. (Isa 60:1-3, KJ2000)