Exploring God’s Sword of the Spirit
Exploring God’s Sword of the Spirit.
“O the depth of the riches and the wisdom and knowledge of God! What a deep wealth of wisdom and knowledge He has! How incomprehensible are His decisions, how unsearchable His judgments! How undiscoverable are His paths, how mysterious His ways, beyond finding out! Who has understood the mind of Yahweh? Who knows how the LORD thinks, or what His thoughts are? Can anyone discern the LORD’s intentions, His motivations? Who knows enough to give Him advice? Is there anyone qualified to be His counselor? Who has given Him so much that He needs to pay it back? Who could ever have a claim against Him? For everything was created by Him, everything lives through Him, and everything exists for Him; So to Him must be given the glory forever! Amen!” (Romans 11:33-36, also Isaiah 40:12-14).
WANTED: Adventurers who want to explore creation’s Final Frontier, the greatest Wonder of the World; must be extremely curious about the nature of God’s Being; motivated to know more about God than you know presently; inspired by the thrill of discovery; need to be challenged and changed in the process of exploration; have the courage to step into a safe unknown; able to invest considerable mental energy to pursue life inside God with a mustard seed of trust in Him; be comfortable with the certainty of endless exploring; have the patience to pursue the quest one step at a time for as long as it takes; must explore with the vision of C. S. Lewis in his Narnia tales, “Further Up and Further In!”
Contemporary Frontiers. What are the most compelling frontiers in our world that we could explore… Outer space with its 100 billion galaxies, each of them having 100 billion stars? Inner space where protons and electrons and all the subatomic particles seeming to be dancing in joy? The ocean floors across the earth, 80% of which are unexplored? Or perhaps land areas such as remote mountain ranges, untraveled deserts, impenetrable jungles and rainforests, the frozen tundra of the Arctic, isolated islands in the middle of nowhere, or virgin caverns and caves that are largely hidden from humanity? These are all worthy frontiers, but there is a final frontier that tops them all… God. And whatever might be discovered about the Person of God, it’s only the tip of the eternal iceberg.
Exploring God’s Sword of the Spirit.
“Finally, be strong in the Lord and in His mighty power. Put on the full armor of God so that you can take your stand against the devil’s schemes. For this 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. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. Stand firm, then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the saints.” (Ephesians 6:10-20).
Roman Battle Sword: (Greek, “machaira”); This is actually a short dagger, about 18” long, intended for hand-to-hand, person-to-person combat. Both edges were sharpened like a razor, and the point of the dagger could easily penetrate the armor of the enemy. It was not meant to be swung wildly or at random, or thrown into the air like a javelin. The machaira was intended to thrust and stab, not produce little cuts, but deep wounds that maimed, or at least harmed the enemy so they couldn’t fight effectively. The Roman soldiers were said to practice more with their daggers than any other weapon.
The Dagger of the Word. This offensive weapon, the Spirit-Sword, is our reference point of truth, so sharp that it can help us cut between truth and deception. It can help us separate the substantive meat of God’s message from the fatty distractions. The Sword can cut away the foolishness that the devil tries to feed us, from the true wisdom of the Lord. The Word-Sword can help us divide the eternal knowledge of God from the lies of that ignorant devil. The Spirit-Sword can go far in helping us distinguish the righteous mind of God from the warped mind of Satan. The Word can reveal to us what is life-giving and what is death-dealing. The Sword of the Spirit, the Word of the Lord, is truly a “weapon of righteousness.” (2 Cor. 6:7). Our holy weapon of God’s Word can penetrate any type of resistance in the demonic realm. The Word of the Lord stands forever.
Misusing the Sword of the Lord. Yes, the Spirit-Sword is a weapon against the enemy, but we need to be reminded of just who that enemy truly is. We fight not against flesh and blood, so therefore God’s Word is not meant to humiliate or shame any human person. No one should be disrespectfully hit over the head with Scripture as if the Word is a club. The Word is meant to inspire and enlighten others, not hurt or demean or harm in any way. The Lord doesn’t “dominate” or “control” anybody, so neither should His Word. Sharing the Word at the opportune time is not to be done in pride, self-righteousness, or competitively, as if to reveal who is more knowledgeable or saintly. The Christian believer wields the Word of God the same way as Jesus at His Temptation… logically, aptly, shrewdly, righteously, mightily in the power of the Holy Spirit.
The Violent Word of God. When we wield the word, we need to constantly be on guard against the enemy of our souls. In the spiritual warfare, having mercy on the demonic world is not in the battle plans of the Lord. The Spirit-Sword is an aggressive weapon against a merciless enemy in the demonic realms. We are instructed to “pull down strongholds” and ”cast down arguments” that are contrary to the knowledge of God. (2 Cor. 10:3-5). “Pulling down” is a violent action and “casting down arguments” means our minds need to be sharp, like the Sword of the Word. Jesus was not passive or uncertain or intimidated during His Temptation with the devil. He didn’t hesitate to thrust the Dagger of the Lord at the devil, the Scripture-Sword that can stand up to any kind of assault thrown at it. The devil didn’t stand a chance against the eternal Word of God. There is a righteous violence as we fight our evil and unseen enemy, as we repudiate their lies with the truth. When we refuse to accept the cruel deceptions of Satan, we are in effect pulling down strongholds and casting down arguments. In this spiritual warfare, it is good versus evil, and there is no room for compromise or passivity.
The Two Main New Testament Words for “Word:” Logos and Rhema. Jesus is the Living Word (Logos), the Scripture is the written Word (Logos), and the Holy Spirit is the spoken Word (Rhema).
LOGOS: “In the beginning was the Word (Logos), and the Word (Logos) was with God, and the Word (Logos) was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being by Him, for God created everything through Him; not one thing came into being except through Him. In Him was life, and the life was the light of mankind.” (John 1:1-4).
The Greek Logos. The Greek term for “word” was logos. Logos evidently started in the centuries before as a mathematical term, meaning to count up or give an accounting for, as in bookkeeping. It was still used occasionally in that way, such as in Matthew 12:26. For the most part, the term logos evolved into a Greek philosophical term. Using their famous Greek logical thinking, many Greek thinkers looked at our reasonable, well-ordered world and concluded that there must be a universal principle of Reason that is behind the running of the cosmos. They thought, mostly as a logical necessity, that there is an Intelligence somewhere, a transcendent source for this order that is beyond man’s understanding. There must be something that provides the world with this amazing form and coherence and exquisite design. They called this rather vague ideal “Logos.” This invisible force of Reason unifies the world into order from the chaos from before the world became reality. This logos is able to speak aloud, and whatever truth, goodness or beauty it speaks in fact exists the moment it is spoken. In a sense the Greek logos is able to create truth and reality. The Greeks never dreamed that their logos would become an actual person. The idea that logos would take on flesh would be laughable and unthinkable, and would actually defeat the whole purpose of this ideal of an impersonal, governing force in the world. The Greek logos had many hints of the true faith, though, and has been called a “bridge-word” because of the many Greeks who baptized the Greek logos into Christian belief after finding Christianity a logical step forward.
The Gospel Logos. The term Logos in John 1 has been the most debated and discussed term in all the Greek New Testament, according to the biblical scholars. It has been described and amplified and studied and defined in any number of ways. But for our purposes in the Christian faith, Jean Vanier’s definition of Logos is as good as any other: “Logos has come to mean the spoken Word, the thought and idea behind that Word, and the wisdom that inspired that Word.” The term logos was not a foreign word in that part of the world during the time of Jesus and the early Christians. The Greek version of the Hebrew Bible, the Septuagint, was widely used for biblical reading and considered the Bible of reference of that time. John decided to adopt that term and baptize the Greek version with a more complete understanding of it from the Christian viewpoint. In the New Testament era, logos meant the expression of a thought of the Father; an utterance or a word embodying a divine idea; a message through speech or in writing; or more generally, reasoning expressed by words. John’s logos would include these sorts of thoughts:
(1.) There is indeed a universal Reason that is behind the well-ordered and reasonable world. This powerful force of divine intelligence is the God of the holy Scriptures, Yahweh, the Sovereign God who put the cosmos together. This God is the Person who created the world with His spoken Word, and has sustained it ever since.
(2.) This personal Creator God, the eternal Lord of the cosmos, wanted to yet again use His spoken Word to start a new beginning. God’s Word would once again be in the act of creation, but this time would create salvation and renewal. God’s spoken Word was actually a divine Presence, His Son, Jesus Christ.
(3.) The Creator God expressed Himself with His spoken Word, and His ultimate self-expression was when He revealed Himself to the world in the form of His Son. In this way, God revealed His divine Reason and Wisdom, and His desire to personally share His presence in this world He created. So God, the invisible Source of Reason and Wisdom, sent forth His Son as His visible, eternal spoken Word. Jesus, the spoken Word, is thus the Voice of God.
(4.) Jesus Christ is the Logos, the living Word of God, the Word who once said, “Let there be light!” That creative Word has taken on flesh and is the visible image of the invisible God. Jesus is the physical representative of God’s existence, heaven’s Ambassador of the Godhead to bring messages from His home. Jesus is the Co-Creator of the cosmos and has been face-to-face with the almighty God for all eternity. The Word that spoke light into the world has now become the Light of that world.
(5.) So John declares that Jesus, the Son of God, is in fact the Logos…not only the spoken Word of God in the flesh in a new creation, not only God’s thought behind that living Word, but also the embodiment of the Wisdom that inspired God’s spoken Word. John presents Jesus as the absolute revelation and self-expression of God. Jesus is Yahweh spoken into flesh, the holy Scripture in the form of a Person. If we want to read God’s mind, we read Jesus.
The Hebrew Logos as the Ancient Sword of the Spirit. The Bible used during the time of Jesus and the early Christians was usually the Septuagint, which is the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible. The original Old Testament was written in Hebrew, but Greek was the prominent language used during Jesus’ time. The Septuagint had been translated several centuries before Christ, and so it was commonplace for New Testament writers to quote the Greek version and not the Hebrew version of Scripture. For the most part, when we see a quote from the Hebrew Bible in the New Testament, it is from the Septuagint. The Greek term logos was used literally hundreds of times in the Greek Bible, and was often used to highlight the Word of God. Logos was also used to translate “truth,” and implied thought, meaning, planning and design. It’s interesting that the Hebrew Bible’s logos was so similar to the Greek understanding. In many ways, the Greek Old Testament laid the groundwork for John’s use of logos. The Word of God in the Hebrew Bible (logos), as with John, signified the presence of the Lord. Logos suggested God’s self-expression, whether in creation, in the prophet’s message, or in the Torah itself. When a prophet declared “the word of the Lord,” the prophet’s words were considered coming from the mind and mouth of Yahweh Himself.
The Logos of Moses. A fascinating use of logos in the Hebrew Bible is found in Deuteronomy 32:45-47. Moses had just finished delivering the truth of the Torah to the Chosen People ready to enter the Promised Land. And logos was used a number of times in his final words to his people. Moses declared that logos is life itself, with supernatural power. “When Moses finished reciting all the words (logos) to all Israel, he said to them… ‘Take to heart all the words (logos) I have solemnly declared to you in this day, so that you may command your children to obey carefully all the words (logos) of this instruction. They are not just idle words (logos) for you – They are your life. By them, you will live long in the land you are crossing the Jordan to possess.” When Jesus declared that He was “the Life” (John 14:6), I wonder if there were many listeners who made the connection to Moses’ reference to logos being life. Did any listeners of Jesus believe that with these and so many of His other words, He was the embodiment of the Hebrew Bible… not just its fulfillment, but its embodiment. The Greek Bible translated the term “the Ten Commandments” (Deut. 5, Ex. 20) into “the Ten Logos,” the Ten Words.” That’s why so many refer to the “Decalogue” when referring to the Ten Commandments. As outrageous as this might sound, Jesus wasn’t merely fulfilling the Word of God, He was embodying it. He wasn’t merely living in light of the Ten Commandments, He was a living, breathing version of them. Jesus was not merely unpacking the Torah in His teachings, He was the Torah. Jesus the living Word, Scripture in the flesh, Torah with a pulse.
RHEMA: … “Take the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word (rhema) of God.” (Eph. 6:17). The Greek term Paul used for “word” in this spiritual warfare passage was “rhema,” and we need to take a close look at this word in order to understand Paul. Rhema literally means “a word uttered by a living voice, a thing spoken that has a definite meaning,” and is used seventy times in the New Testament. The rhema word is different than logos, and in fact is based on logos. Rhema is the word that is inspired by the Holy Spirit that speaks to a specific situation. Rhema is a written or spoken word taken from Scripture by the Holy Spirit that speaks to a particular time. Rhema is a passage from the written Word that speaks truth that needs to be said at that time. Rhema is an inspired word from the Holy Spirit that is intended to be directly applied to a situation or a person. The rhema word is a wise and timely passage from the Bible that has special relevance at that moment. Paul is instructing us to be so familiar with Scripture that the Spirit can inspire us at any opportune time to apply a passage at just the right moment. If we don’t have the Word “dwelling richly” in us, then we won’t have the raw material that the Spirit can use for a rhema word. As unpacked by Rev. Bill Johnson, the word “nothing” in Luke 1:37 (“For nothing is impossible with God”) is actually the Greek words “no-rhema.” One translation puts the verse this way… “No word of God shall be devoid of power.” In other words, Rev. Johnson preaches, rhema words, the freshly spoken words from the Holy Spirit, will have the power to fulfill what the word says, and has the ability to accomplish God’s intention with that word. “No freshly spoken word is impossible. God equips us, as we ask Him, to wield the fruitful rhema word, which itself is based on the inspired logos Word.” Paul tells us in Romans 10:17 that “Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the rhema word of God.” General biblical knowledge, Logos, is foundational, but the rhema words inspired by the Spirit of God are vital, because it is what God is telling us personally from Scripture. The rhema word is the Holy Spirit whispering to us an important application of the logos word.
LOGOS and RHEMA: Contrasting the two Greek words might be helpful at this point. We live by Logos (Scripture), we speak by Rhema. Logos is the foundation of Rhema, so without logos, we would have no rhema. The Holy Spirit inspired Logos Scripture for our general benefit, and the Holy Spirit continues to inspire rhema for application. The Spirit-Sword is double-edged: the first sharp edge is Logos, and that is followed up by the second sharp edge, Rhema. When the two edges are wielded together, the devil is helpless. The Holy Spirit is the One who turns the logos word into a rhema word. The logos has potential application, the rhema has specific application. One anonymous writer put it this way: “Logos is speaking the Word of God, and rhema is speaking a Word from God.” It’s interesting that John uses both words, logos and rhema, in his passage here in Ephesians 6:17, ”the rhema word of God;” and in verse 19, “that logos utterance may be given to me.”
Thoughts on Scripture from an Amazing Bible Teacher. “The Bible is holiness in words. The words of the Bible are like dwellings made with rock. The Bible is the light of God given in the form of language. How is it conceivable that the Divine should be contained in such brittle vessels as consonants and vowels? It is as if God took these Hebrew words and breathed into them of His power, and the words became a live wire charged with His Spirit. Just as it is impossible to conceive of God without the world, so is it impossible to conceive of His concern without the Bible. If God is alive, then the Bible is His voice.” (Abraham Joshua Heschel, God In Search Of Man, 1955).