Through the Bible with Les Feldick
LESSON 3 * PART 2 * BOOK 48
The All Powerful Word of God – Part 2
Hebrews 4:12-16
As we teach we just simply open the Scriptures so that whatever your background you can go into the Word of God and understand what it’s talking about. And I guess the compensation that Iris and I have gotten for our effort is to receive all the letters and the phone calls stating that for the first time in people’s lives they’re understanding and they are able to read and study their Bible. Okay, now this is a Bible study and we’re going to get right back in where we left off a couple of programs ago in Hebrews chapter 4 and verse 12. It’s a verse, I suppose that most of you have probably memorized at some time in your youth. But, what a loaded verse! Of course, I say that about all of them, don’t I? Every verse I come to is just loaded! And it’s just hard to skip over any of them. Alright, verse 12 of Hebrews 4. What’s the first word?
Hebrews 12:4a
“For…”
Is that word there just to fill space? No! It’s an important word because you see, for the last several verses all the way back up, in fact to chapter 3, we have been dealing with a subject that the Bible probably refers to more often than any other one thing that I can put my finger on. And that was when Israel refused to go in and take the Promised Land at Kadesh-barnea. That was just unbelievable wasn’t it? God had promised they wouldn’t have to lift a sword, there wouldn’t be a drop of Jewish blood lost, and that everything was ready for them. God had given the Canaanites 400 years to get the land ready and to come to the end of God’s patience with them.
And so that’s what He told Abraham, that when the cup of iniquity of the Canaanites was full then the children of Israel would be able to come in and enjoy the land. But, after God had told them to go in and take it, it’s waiting for you, then Israel with only a few exceptions (Moses and Aaron and Joshua and Caleb and maybe a few others), the vast majority of the nation wept and cried. And said, “We can’t do it, there’s no way we can beat those Canaanites.” The spies came back and said “There’s giants in the land, and the cities are walled and so forth.” Well, so what! But the fact of the matter was, they just couldn’t believe what God said.
And when you can’t believe what God says, what does the Book call it? Unbelief! That is the most horrible sin that a man commits. Unbelief is far worse than any act of immorality. Unbelief is worse than anything you can think of, because it is in so many words, simply put, calling the Holy, Righteous, Almighty God a liar. When you don’t believe somebody, you simply tell them ‘you’re a liar.’
And to consequently this is something that God just cannot get off His mind. And the Scripture is reminding us they did not go in because of unbelief. The Word of God had told them, it’s there, so go in and take it. Alright, so what does the word ‘f-o-r’ refer to? The very same thing. This unbelief we’ve been looking at was a turning against the Word of God. And why is that such a disaster? Because. I suppose that’s another word for ‘for.’ ‘Because’ the Word of God.
Now don’t lose that! It doesn’t say, because God is quick, because that’s a given. But what most people don’t realize is that the Word of God, this Book, is alive! Now, I’m going to digress for just a second here. There are two ways we could look at the Word of God. Number one, we could look at all the times that God spoke and something happened. For example, at Creation. Let’s just go ahead to Hebrews chapter 11. This is one aspect of the Word of God.
Hebrews 11:3a
“Through faith (in other words again, by taking God at His Word) we understand that the worlds (that is the universe and all that’s in it) were framed (brought together) by (what?) the Word of God,….”
See? God didn’t have to commission legions of angels to go out and mix mortar and light fuses and put together energy. No! God spoke the Word and the universe came into being!Now that’s one aspect of the Word of God and it is powerful.
Now let’s come back to Hebrews chapter 4 again. I think a simpler illustration would be when they were on the Sea of Galilee and the storm was raging and the disciples were about scared to death and what did the Lord do? He stepped out on the deck of that little boat and said “Peace be still.” And the disciples were amazed, and they said, “What kind of a man is this that all He has to do is speak and the wind obeys His voice?” He didn’t have to do anything, but rather He just spoke it.
Well, the same way back in the Garden of Eden. He didn’t have to bring out a pile of dirt and funnel it all up and pat it in place and do all this. No, He spoke the Word, and Adam appeared. Over and over throughout Scripture we have instances where God spoke and things happened, and, He’s not through speaking. The day is coming where once again He will speak and things are going to happen. But, that’s what I call the ‘other’ aspect of the Word of God. The one I think we should be looking at here in regard to our study of the book of Hebrews is this Book. Always remember that this Book, from cover to cover, is the inspired Word of God.
He used men to write it, but every writer of Scripture, as Peter puts it in his little epistle, “Were holy men of God who were moved by the Holy Spirit to write what they wrote.” So, this part of the Word of God, which most people will cast aside, and let it collect dust, they’ll scorn it, and they’ll ridicule it, but I’ve got news for them. This Book is one day going to stand in total judgment of their unbelief. Now reading on in verse 12.
Hebrews 4:12a
“For the word of God is quick, and powerful,…”
Now the word quick normally coming out of the Greek in our King James speaks of “alive,” but now listen, this goes a lot further than that. The Word of God is alive. And as I was looking at this, I couldn’t help but think of some zoo experiences. Especially when you go to the cage of the huge serpents and the snakes – where are they usually? All coiled up in a corner, not even an eye blinking. For all practical purposes we think they’re what? They’re dead! But are they? No, they’re alive. But, they’re not active, but you see the Word of God is not like that! The Word of God is not something that’s just asleep on the shelf, or something that is defunct. The Word of God is not only alive and living; it is active! The Word of God is still permeating hearts and lives of people. It is still convicting lost people of their need, and it is still encouraging believers.
In fact, we did a short commercial advertising our television program just before we began our taping today telling believers how they should react to the days in which we are living. So what can I honestly say in that commercial? We don’t have to live in fear! We knew all these things were coming. I’ve been telling my classes in Oklahoma for years that these things were coming and this isn’t the last. So, do we run and hide? Do we go and build bunkers and live in some mountain someplace? No, because the Living Word tells us that God is in total control. He has promised never to leave us nor forsake us and we have that hope of Glory out in front of us that is beyond human imagination. And so, the Word indeed is living, and it’s active. And so, as we move on, the Word of God is not only actively living, it is what?
Hebrews 4:12a
For the word of God is quick, and powerful,…”
Now, I had to go and look up the Greek word for powerful. I thought it was going to be dynamos from which we get dynamics and so forth, but it wasn’t! It was ‘energy’! The Greek word is ‘e-n-e-r-g-e-s.’ It’s energes from which we get the word energy. What do you do with energy? Hey, you get things done!
In fact, way back in Genesis chapter 2, where it says that God rested from all the work which He had done. Again, you know what the original word was? “All the energy that He had compiled.” Now just look at the sun, and at the energy that it puts out every moment of every day, and has for as long as it’s been up there and will into the future. Now that’s power! We think of power in terms of electricity or even in terms of nuclear power and so forth, but listen none of that can compare to the power of this Book.
This Book is beyond, again, human comprehension. What little we understand and it’s only a particle, we take by faith. Yes, we believe it but there’s no way that we can comprehend it. As I’d said over and over on this program, can you (I can’t) comprehend how that the Creator of the universe, the One Who spoke the Word and everything fell into place, that that same Person took on human flesh. Born as baby in Bethlehem. Lived a lowly life of a carpenter’s son in Nazareth. And then went the way of the Cross and purchased man’s redemption. I can’t comprehend that. I believe it. But, it is so far beyond human comprehension.
Why would a God with such power and such authority, go to such depths of suffering and death for the sake of His created beings? But Christ did, see? Alright and so the Word of God is alive, and it’s powerful; it is beyond human comprehension.
Hebrews 4:12a
“…and sharper than any two edged sword,…”
Now of course, Paul, I’m sure, wrote Hebrews. I’ve stressed that often enough, and I think Paul was only too well aware of Roman soldiers. Oh, he was aware of them! And the Romans soldiers not only carried their large swords but they carried that hand to hand weapon which was the short ten-inch blade. I’ve been looking it up in the encyclopedia, usually made of brass and intensely razor sharp. And so Paul, by inspiration, of course, but also from his physical appreciation of the thing, refers to the Bible as that intensely sharpened two-edged sword.
Again, beyond our comprehension, because you see I’ve put it back on the board as we did back in Genesis. When God created man, He created us a three-part being. He created us (and I’m going to come from the inside out). He created us a spirit being with whom God Himself could communicate. He put within the physical body of the five senses, the personality, the mind, the will and the emotion. And all three of these are part and parcel.
Now let’s prove this from Scripture so that we don’t say well that’s just one man’s idea. Come back to I Thessalonians chapter 5, where the Scripture itself, gives us the whole three-part being of the human make-up. As Paul now winds down this letter to the Thessalonians he says:
I Thessalonians 5:23
“And the very God of peace sanctify you wholly; (or completely. And here it comes, and he says) and I pray God your whole spirit and soul and body (all three as one unit) be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Now back to Hebrews chapter 4 again. I’ve also stressed over the years in my teaching, that humanly speaking, it is impossible for us to separate the soul and the spirit. They sort of blend in to one and I guess that’s the way most of us comprehend it. Because they are both the invisible part of us. The body of course, we can see, but the soul and spirit are both invisible and they were both placed within man at creation but God alone can separate them.
And the Word of God also is able to draw a distinction then between the spirit of man and his soul. I suppose the best way to explain soul and spirit is that, the soul is that which makes up our personality. You’ve seen me do this many, many times. The mind, the will and the seat of our emotions. That’s our personality. That’s the real you. This is the real me. The real person. The spirit on the other hand, is that part of us that can have fellowship with the Creator Himself.
As we remember from our Genesis study, when Adam fell, when Adam disobeyed God, his spirit became inoperative. It lost fellowship with God and consequently the lost person has no concept of God, and has no communication with God. His spirit is defunct and so the soul then became a sin-natured part of man until salvation would regenerate the spirit and give a new nature opposite the old nature.
Now, the only thing I want to point out here then is that the soul and spirit are discernable so far as God is concerned. The spirit is inoperative until God comes in with the power of Salvation and regenerates it. And then when His Holy Spirit comes and dwells opposite our spirit, that in turn has control over the new divine nature (as we’ve explained this so often.) And then these two now as a composite will have an effect on the body. The life that we live and the things that we enjoy and so on and so forth.
Alright now, I want to move on to the next part of the verse because here’s where I feel that the Word of God is so intrinsic. It is so past man’s ordinary comprehension. In other words, men couldn’t have written something like this. Who would have ever thought to compare? Now look what I’m talking about. That the soul and spirit is compared to the joints and marrow.
Hebrews 4:12a
“…and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow,…”
Unless you really stop and close your eyes and contemplate, what connection do the joints have with the marrow? See this shows you how far ahead of medical science the Word of God was. I’ve lost you haven’t I? Alright, stop and think. What happens in the marrow of especially our large bones? The red blood cells are manufactured! We all know that now, especially with leukemia and bone marrow transplants and so forth. The marrow is the manufacturing plant for the red blood cells, which are basically the very root of our whole being. Our blood system.
But, it doesn’t do you any good to have a blood system if you don’t have the joints. So as I was mulling this over, I just sort of put it into two categories. Now, this may not make sense to a lot of people but it did to me. You know, with the joints, our fingers and all of that, how much could be accomplished if we didn’t have joints? Or if they were all stiff? How much could you do if you couldn’t bend your fingers? Nothing! How could you walk if your knees didn’t bend? How could our athletes perform if it weren’t for their joints? That’s why knee injuries just take a football player right out of the picture.
Okay, so I’m going to put it this way. The joints are that which make us functional, and this is what makes us operate, but the marrow is what produces the energy to make the joints function. Does that make sense? I hope so.
So the Scripture then is saying that the soul and spirit is likened unto the joints and the marrow. The soul (the mind, the will and the emotion), that’s what makes us operative. This is what makes us function as a human being, but, just like our joints would be useless without the blood supply that is coming from the marrow, so also, our soul (our personality) is defunct until the spirit can energize it.
This is why then a lost person is just like we saw in that first half-hour. I didn’t probably make the point, but when Israel was out of the land, and was spiritually defunct, the Scripture called them what? Dead people! And they had been out there for so long, that it was like bones that had turned white in a Texas sun. See? Well it’s the same way with a lost person. The lost person, until that spirit is energized, is like someone who is functioning without any real energy. They are spiritually dead. Now, I didn’t intend to do this but here’s a verse that comes to mind. Come back to Ephesians chapter 2, and I guess it will all fit. I sure hope it does! I think most of you know this verse or you’re at least aware of it.
Ephesians 2:1
“And you (I always have to remind people, who does Paul always write to? Believers! Paul doesn’t write to the unbelieving world. So to the believer look what Paul says: And you)hath he quickened, (or made alive, actively) who were (before we were saved, what?) dead in trespasses and sins:”
Oh, we were living, yes, but spiritually we were dead, and that’s the vast majority of the world out there. They are spiritually dead. A world full of dead people. And they cannot function in its entirety until they get back into fellowship with their Creator. Until their spirit has been energized and that energized spirit in turn can work on that personality. And the personality and the spirit in turn influence the body.
That’s the whole idea of the Christian experience. See, that’s why we’re different. Now, when I say different, I always say, we’re not a bunch of oddballs. I don’t expect Christians to be oddballs. We are just somebody different, and we have different values. We have different hopes, and different desires. Why? Because the spirit has been energized and it now is influencing all of that. Now coming back to Hebrews let’s look at that verse again.
Hebrews 4:12a
“For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two edge sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow,…”
I just had a thought! Do you suppose that’s why the unbelieving world doesn’t want to open this Book? They’re afraid of what it’s going to do to them. I know they are! They’re scared to death of what it’s going to do to them.
And you know what always thrills me, that people even in my classes in Oklahoma, some of you have said it, and many in our audience have said it. “Now that I’ve got a grip on what the Word of God is all about, I don’t have any trouble witnessing.” I just had somebody tell me the other night, “Les, I was always scared to death to open my mouth because I knew if they asked me something I wouldn’t be able to answer it. And I didn’t want to be embarrassed, but now I can give them an answer. Now I can turn to the Scriptures and show them what it says.” See! And this is where we have to be, but for the average lost person, no, they’re scared to death of this Book, because it is that sharp two-edged sword that divides asunder soul and spirit, the joint and marrow. Now then, the last part of the verse and that will wind up the half-hour.
Hebrews 4:12b
“…and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”
The heart, the very most inner-being of everyone of us. The Word of God is able to tell us what we’re thinking. Now that’s hard to comprehend isn’t it? But you see, as you feed on the Word of God and you meditate on it, on those verses that I trust you learned as a kid, and you meditate on those verses, what does it do? It convicts. It convicts us of every evil thought. It convicts of everything that we do contrary to the Word of God because that’s its purpose. It is to reveal to us where we are missing the mark. It’s to reveal to us how far we are falling short and it’s only by God’s Grace, that He lets us get away with it.
We don’t deserve to continue on day after day being less than what God would have us to be, but see God doesn’t give up on us. God doesn’t say I’ve had it with you. Never! But the Grace of God continues to work and speak through the powerful Word!