The Warring Word & Spirit, Day 9

The benefits of the Word and the Spirit at work in our lives continue to grow. We are not left here to figure things out on our own. No! When it seems as though the enemy of our soul has us backed into the proverbial corner, the Word and the Spirit become actively engaged in our battles. Ephesians 6:17 tells us that when we go into spiritual warfare, we are to take "the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God." Nothing silences or circumvents the enemy's plans like God's Word properly wielded by His believing warrior, who has been trained by and yields to the Spirit! Jesus provided us an example as He faced temptation.

Take a moment to read Matthew, chapter four. The three temptations of Christ were regarding the Source of Life, the integrity of Scripture, and Christ's understanding of His purpose in coming. Christ's victory was based on understanding what the enemy was really seeking to undermine and applying Scripture properly. Jesus responded:

"Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God" (Deut. 8:3).

"You shall not tempt the LORD your God" (Deut. 6:16).

"You shall worship the LORD your God, and Him only you shall serve" (Deut. 6:13).

I find it interesting that all of Jesus' rebuttals are taken out of the law, mainly those that deal with how we interact with God. Successfully wielding the sword of the Spirit means we have learned to fall back on the person and character of the LORD, not necessarily His past actions. (Though His actions will always reflect His Person, He will not always answer the same way. For instance, in restoring sight to the blind, each instance was different, the result the same, Mark 8:24, 10:46-52, John 9:6). Understanding who God is, is of paramount importance to wielding the Word as an offensive versus defensive weapon, and the Word reveals the Father.

Jesus said, "If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our abode with him" (John 14:23). Simply put, if we keep the Word, the Word will keep us. Why? Because God has chosen to make us His dwelling place, and it's an eternal dwelling. Why? Because the Word does not die. It NEVER expires. God said, "So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth; it shall not return to Me void, but it shall accomplish what I please, and it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it" (Is. 55:11). Additionally, He watches over His Word to perform it (Jer. 1:12).

The mature believer will wield the Word of God with stunning accuracy, dealing blows to the enemy's machinations, rendering his methods void. Why? Because there is no higher power than the Word to which one can appeal. The Word gives the definitive word on anything concerning our lives. What would happen, then, if the Word of God were constantly on our lips? If nothing we said ever contradicted God's will as revealed through Scripture?

Revelation 12:11 states, "And they overcame him [the great dragon] by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death." Why? Because the overcomer's testimony aligns with God's word and the Spirit's work in their lives. I have a hunch (and admittedly, I'm not there yet) that when we fully enter into a mature understanding of the wonder-working power of Christ's blood at work in us, we will face every circumstance with a confidence that stares death in the face and laughs. By this, I mean that what God has done for us is extraordinary; we are no longer afraid of anything the enemy throws our way because victory is ours, even if we physically die. This is the power of the past and present martyrs: they know their God - the God of the Word. You don't need any other weapon to fight the enemy. You already have the best because you have God's Living, Eternal Word on the matter, and the Spirit who trains you to wield it. If you keep the Word, the Word will keep you!