Armor of God Series – Cut to the Heart
Try to say this to the tune of Bon Jovi’s “Shot Through the Heart”.
“Cut to the heart, God’s word the blade. You give sin no real place.” Well, I’m no Bon Jovi, but I hope you get the point about the sword of the spirit (pun intended).
Ephesians 6:17 [ESV] “…and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God…”
You have probably heard it said many times that the word of God is the only offensive weapon in a Christian’s battle gear. It’s true. The Word of God cuts through all the falsehoods that Satan throws at us. This is true whether it is Satan trying, as he did in the Garden of Eden, to convince us that God is lying to us and cannot be trusted, or Satan is lying to us about who we are in Christ by feeding us negative self-talk, or Satan is using some methodology to try to divide the body of Christ.
But let’s be clear, sweet sisters, there is another very important area where we should be attacking with that sword – our own human nature.
Hebrews 4:12 [ESV] explains it this way “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.”
Can WE know the thoughts and intentions of someone else’s heart? No, we cannot. It seems clear to me that it is our own thoughts and intentions that the sword of the Spirit is intended to pierce.
It is our soul and spirit that the sword is to divide. What exactly is it that we are to be separating?
Ephesians 6:17 [ESV] “…and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God…”
The Greek word used for soul can mean breath, breath of life, life, that in which there is life, the seat of feelings, desires, affections, aversions. This seems to be a description of the things that make us living human beings – our human side.
But the number one meaning of Greek word translated spirit in this passage is the Holy Spirit.
To me, the use of these two words indicates that we should be using the sword of the Spirit to separate the human parts in us - human nature if you will – from the godly – the Holy Spirit in us. Consider, Isaiah 55:8 [ESV], which says, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the LORD” for proof that our thoughts and actions need to be changed. God, through the sword of the Spirit/the Word of God, is getting rid of the “old man” and making us a “new creature”. 2 Corinthians 5:17 [ESV] “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come.”
This is, in fact, the work that God is doing in each of us if we have committed our lives to Him. And in that sometimes hard and painful work of cutting away everything that is not Him, God is moving us toward His example of perfection. Matthew 5:48 [ESV] “You therefore must be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.”
The great Italian Renaissance artist, Michelangelo, said “The sculpture is already complete within the marble block, before I start my work. It is already there, I just have to chisel away the superfluous material,”
Likewise, sweet sisters, you already have God – have perfection – in you, if you have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. Let the sword of the Word cut away what is not of God.
I welcome your comments and questions. You can write me in the comment section or any time at Nancy@DynamicChristianMinistries.org