A TWO EDGED SWORD

“For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.” (Hebrews 4:12)

“The word of God”

Our hearts should constantly overflow with thanksgiving to our Creator God because He has chosen to so graciously speak to us sinners. Upon creating Adam and Eve, God spoke to them, clearly forbidding them to eat of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil and also plainly warning them that death would be their punishment if they disobeyed that Divine command. When that first human pair disobeyed their Creator, I do not believe that Almighty God was duty bound to say anything more to them. Had He chosen to turn His Back upon them in silence from then on, let them produce a human race of sinners, everyone of whom would live, die, and then plunge into an eternal Hell, I believe that God would have been Just in doing so.

But praise be to God that He is not only Just, Holy, and Upright. He also is rich in Love, Mercy, and Grace. And being so, He has chosen to speak to us rebellious sinners in love, mercy, and grace. How thankful we should always be in return for His abundant mercy and grace that He bestows upon us unworthy sinners. He did not turn His Back upon us sinners in angry silence when we sinned against Him. Instead, He comes to us, speaking to us in love, kindness, and tender grace and mercy, offering us salvation and eternal life. How Gracious He is to speak words of life and hope to us rebellious sinners, graciousness that we do not deserve and could never merit. Be sure to thank Him daily and constantly for that. Also, always bear in mind that nothing is more important for you to do than to listen to Almighty God when He speaks to you. “The word of God.”

“Heavenly Father, thank Thee for being so gracious so as to speak to us rebellious sinners in loving kindness. Help me to constantly be grateful to Thee for that. Please cause us all to be most desirous to listen to Thee and to hear what Thou hast to say to us. Amen.”

Take your Holy Bible and hold it up in your hand. Almighty God high up on His Great Throne in the Third Heaven has spoken all those words in the Bible, just to you. That Bible is a personal letter from God in Heaven to you. From the beginning of Genesis to the end of Revelation, all of those words in the Bible are God’s Eternal, Inerrant, and Inspired Truth to you as a individual. Each word is to you personally and what a Great Treasure that Holy Bible is, far, far greater in value than any other thing you possess. Only in Almighty God’s Holy Bible can you find eternal hope for your eternal being.

“Almighty God, impress upon me the importance of the fact that the words of the Holy Bible are all words from The One True, Living, Almighty Creator God and that those words are essential to my eternal welfare. Help me to understand that there is no help, hope, salvation, or eternal life for me outside of the words of the Holy Bible. I pray this for all other people also. Amen.”

Some Christians remark that they do not read the Old Testament much because it doesn’t pertain to them in this church age. But the New Testament tells us in II Timothy 3:16-17 that “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.” The writings in the Old Testament are so rich and are most pertinent to us present-day Christian believers. They show in much detail God’s most patient longsuffering toward rebellious sinners. Old Testament scriptures also stand as a solemn warning to us, showing God’s terrible wrath and punishment upon sinners when His patience with them runs out. All of the Bible’s teachings pertain to you now in this present day. You should diligently read and study all the Holy Bible.

How dear is your Holy Bible to you? How much do you treasure it? How thankful are you to God for speaking all those words to you? “Seven times a day do I praise thee because of thy righteous judgments.” (Psalms 119:164) Read all 176 verses of Psalms 119 to see just how greatly King David treasured God’s words. That is one reason God used David to pen many of the words in the Holy Bible. “Consider how I love thy precepts: quicken me, O Lord, according to thy lovingkindness.” (119:159)

Compare your own self to King David. Just how much do you love God’s words in His Holy Bible? How often do you read any of them? Do you meditate in them day and night? Or does your Bible lie closed and unread much of the time while you are constantly looking at a newspaper, an endless array of books, magazines, etc., and all kinds of moving picture devices? If that is true of you, then you are a big loser. Also honestly compare just how much more time you spend daily communicating and conversing with other people, compared with the time you spend reading the Holy Bible and communicating with Almighty God. Listen to me, my friend! Almighty God in Heaven has spoken to you. Thus nothing is more important to you than to listen to what God has to say to you. Just think how prone you are to listen to any person of high standing in life when he or she speaks to you. When such a great person speaks favorably to you, think how honoured that makes you feel. Then think seriously on the fact that the Greatest Being in existence, Almighty God Himself, has chosen to speak to you. He has spoken to you of eternal life in Jesus Christ. No other person’s speech can be nearly that favorable to you. So wise up, and listen long and well to what Almighty God says to you.

“O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of the Lord.” (Jeremiah 22:29) The prophet Jeremiah’s spirit became one with Almighty’s God’s Spirit as God used that prophet to pen these eternal words that show God’s Earnest Desire for us human creatures to listen to the many important things He has to say to us. Let us Christian believers do just as Jeremiah did and call on everyone we can to listen to the words of God. The words of the Holy Bible contain mankind’s one and only hope. If you have entered into that hope by believing on Christ, God commands you to not keep silent about it. He commands you not to hide your light, but to let it shine forth so that all may see it.

“Heavenly Father, help me to make all the words of the Holy Bible as important to my own self as I should. Help me to proclaim those words to other people as Thou wouldest have me to do. Help me to be as the prophet Jeremiah and call on everyone to listen to and to hear the words of Thy Holy Bible. I pray this for all other people also. Amen.”

“Is quick”

In this passage, the word “quick” does not mean “fast.” It is an old English word meaning “alive.” The word of God is alive. It is a living entity. It imparts life to us human creatures. God so ordained that it be.

Furthermore, God created you as a living being, composed of a body, soul, and spirit. You can readily understand that your body needs air to breathe, water to drink, and food to eat and drink in order to maintain its life. If your body ceases to receive these 3 necessary items to fuel and nourish it, it will soon die. Likewise, your soul and spirit require fuel and nourishment in order to maintain their life. Without the proper fuel and nourishment the soul and spirit will wither away and cease to function properly. God’s living word is the essential nourishment He has provided for your living soul and spirit.

After our Lord fasted 40 days and nights, the tempter came to Him enticing Christ to work a miracle by turning stones into bread in order to have food to eat. “But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.” (Matthew 4:4)

“Heavenly Father, please help me to fully come to know, believe, and acknowledge that Thy living word is absolutely essential to me to nourish my living soul and spirit. Please help me to feast on Thy word daily, constantly, in order to properly nourish my soul and spirit on this heavenly food. Help me to fully believe that every word in Thy Holy Bible has proceeded from Thy Mouth and that each and every word in the Bible is essential to the nourishment of my soul and spirit. Therefore help me to study each word and meditate on all the words in Thy Holy Scriptures. I pray this for all other people also. Amen.”

We human creatures feed our souls with our thoughts. Our thought life is what fuels and nourishes our souls. God forbid that you feed your soul with thoughts that are detrimental to it. The Book of Psalms is a great treasure inside God’s Holy Bible. The first 4 words in the book of Psalms decree, “Blessed is the man…” It is of necessity that you be blessed by your Creator God, otherwise you will perish. Psalms 1:1-3 describes a righteous man who is thus blessed by God. Read those 3 verses carefully while praying that God will help you to do and to be each and everything that is described in those 3 verses. Verse 2 says, “But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night.” A righteous person feeds his soul day and night (constantly) on thoughts pertaining to God’s words in the Bible. Look at what kind of person that results in him becoming. “And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper.” (Psalms 1:3) Think of the masses of people you have observed near and far during your lifetime who failed miserably in what they attempted to do with their lives here on this earth. Thinking on a highly visible world full of human failures should cause you to cleave to this absolute promise in the Holy Bible; Almighty God Himself promising you that whatsoever you do shall prosper if only you are the person described in these 3 verses. There is no true prosperity outside of obeying God’s words in the Holy Bible. You must come to believe that Truth. Then ask God to enable you to put into effect in your life the things written in verses 1 & 2 of this first Psalm.

“Almighty God, please show me the absolute necessity of being blessed by Thee, my Creator God. Help me to fully believe that there is no true prosperity for me apart from obeying Thy words in the Holy Bible. Teach me how that my life here on earth will be lived entirely in vain and will of a certainty end in tragedy if it is not blessed by Thee. Please guide me into a life that will be blessed by Thee. Thank Thee for Thy promise to this man in Psalm 1, that whatsoever he does shall prosper. Lord God, I want to be that man. I want to be that woman. I want to be that person. So I now completely yield myself to Thee, in order for Thee, by Thy Unlimited Power, to make me into the blessed and truly prosperous person described in Psalms 1:1-3. Please help me not to walk in the counsel of the ungodly. Please save me from standing in the way of sinners and from sitting in the seat of the scornful. Please help me to delight myself in Thy law and in all Thy words in the Holy Bible. Please help me to meditate in Thy law and in Thy words day and night. I pray this for all other people also. Amen.”

Think long and seriously on the fact that your thoughts are what fuel and nourish your soul. If you choose to feed your soul on thoughts that are garbage, rest assured it will turn you into a living, walking garbage heap. Don’t you dare to trash your own being like that. You are fearfully and wonderfully made by God. By all means, desire to be the person who is blessed and caused to prosper by your Creator God. Such is the best life you can possibly have. Presently, the devil’s high tech world of audio and video constantly bombards our minds with thoughts that are pure garbage, trash, and sinful filth. Feed your physical body garbage and of a certainty you will destroy it. You well know the truth of that. Likewise, feed your soul with thoughts that are garbage and you will destroy your soul. You will perish if you do so. Cry out to God to save you from that destruction. “Let the words of my mouth, and the meditation of my heart, be acceptable in thy sight, O Lord, my strength, and my redeemer.” (Psalms 19:14) Your heart should also cry out to your Creator God with this heart cry of King David. Daily feast your soul on God’s life giving words.

“Almighty God, help me to know that I do not have the power within my own being to properly direct my steps, to think aright in my heart, and to speak aright from my mouth. So I now yield myself to Thee for Almighty God on High to direct the meditations of my heart and the words of my mouth to make them acceptable in Thy Sight, Dear Lord. Please save me from feeding my soul on thoughts that are sinful garbage and that will destroy me. I pray that all other people will do right in their thought life also. Amen.”

“My foot hath held his steps, his way have I kept, and not declined. Neither have I gone back from the commandment of his lips; I have esteemed the words of his mouth more than my necessary food. (Job 23:11-12) Job is one of the wisest and most godly people you will ever know about in this life. And the book of Job in the Bible tells us several things about Job that made him into such a spiritual giant. Likely the most important thing that made Job of such upright character is the fact that he considered the words from God’s Mouth to be more important to him than the physical food that he ate to nourish his body. Now, just think on how important you consider food to be to you. Think on just how often you eat, what great amounts of food you eat, and how much pleasure you take in eating physical food. Now, honestly compare your love for God’s words in His Holy Bible to your love for food. Think on which one of these 2 “foods” is on your mind more. Which one do you love more? Which one do you consider more important to you, physical food for your physical body or God’s eternal words for your eternal soul and spirit? Listen to what God’s Holy Spirit is saying to you right now concerning your measure of love for each of these 2 foods, physical and spiritual. May God help you and me to be like Job by esteeming God’s words more important to our being than we consider food for our bodies to be important to us.

“Heavenly Father, I realize I will have to experience a lot of spiritual growth in order to become like Job by esteeming the words of Thy Mouth more than my necessary food. It is so easy to look on that which is seen and thereby realize that I must regularly eat food in order for my body to live. So please give me clear spiritual vision to now look upon the unseen and see just how necessary Thy words are to the nourishment of my soul and spirit. By Thy Power, please bring me to the spiritual plateau where I will truly esteem the words of Thy Mouth more than my necessary food. I pray this for all other people also. Amen.”

You are a living soul who will perish unless you constantly feed your soul on the living words of God. You must daily, constantly cry out to God to save you from feeding on an endless supply of soulish junk food around you in the devil’s world. It is all poison to your soul and spirit. It will definitely destroy you. “And he said, That which cometh out of the man, that defileth the man. For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness: All these evil things come from within, and defile the man.” (Mark 7:20-23) Now stop and seriously consider just how all these evil things get inside a person. Christ speaks of those evil thoughts coming out of the heart. The human heart is contained inside the human soul. Such sinful, evil things enter into your soul and heart by means of your thoughts, which are formed from what you see and hear. Thus they take lodging there, and then they proceed out of your being by means of your words and deeds. That is why it is so important for us to guard our thoughts. Just look at and listen to what evil and sinful things proceed forth in the words and deeds of the people around you. Our words and deeds are a clear, open testimony as to what our secret, hidden thought life is. Pray that the words of your mouth and the meditations of your heart will be acceptable to God your Judge.

“Hear, O earth: behold, I will bring evil upon this people, even the fruit of their thoughts, because they have not hearkened unto my words, nor to my law, but rejected it.” (Jeremiah 6:19) The result of those people rejecting God’s law and not hearkening to His words was that God brought evil upon them that was the fruit of their thoughts. “Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap.” (Galatians 6:7) If you sow evil, sinful thoughts, rest assured that God will bring that evil upon you, the very fruit of your thoughts. It is of dire necessity that your thoughts be proper ones. Else wise, God will destroy you by them. “For as he thinketh in his heart, so is he.” (Proverbs 23:7) Your thought life forms your character. Your thoughts mold your being. Flee vain, foolish, selfish, sinful, evil thoughts and constantly meditate in God’s words day and night. Otherwise you will be destroyed by wrong thoughts.

“Lord God, cause me to seriously think on these important scriptures listed in these last 2 paragraphs and to take proper heed to them. I call on Thee to help me to order my thought life to make it totally pleasing to Thee. I pray this for all other people also. Amen.”

“And powerful”

This word of God, coupled with God the Holy Spirit Who authored it, is the most powerful thing on this planet earth. Man’s most deadly and devastating weapons of war cannot come close to comparing to the Great Power in God’s word. God commands us Christian believers to walk in the Spirit, not in the flesh. When we walk in the Spirit, we have all the power of God’s words working in our lives to enable us to live victoriously each day and to fight great spiritual battles for our Lord, and to be victorious in those battles thru the power of God’s Holy Word. There is only one source for True Power in your life, the words of God. Just as your physical body requires much energy and power to accomplish great physical feats, your soul and spirit need the Divine Power in God’s words in order to win spiritual victories. Live and walk in the Spirit always. Feed your soul and spirit constantly with the power of God’s words in order to greatly glorify your Creator by winning great spiritual battles for Him during your ever so short but most important life of spiritual warfare here on this earth.

“Heavenly Father, please help me to do just that. Please open my eyes to behold the greatness of the power contained in Thy Holy Scriptures. Create within me a zealous desire to constantly feed on that power in order to live the victorious life Thou hast ordained for Christian believers while here on this earth. Please increase my faith to think of and to ask of Thee greater things to be wrought by my life for Thy Glory. Help me to be a giant of a spiritual warrior, standing for Thee, fighting for right and good. Help me to depend on the power of Thy word in order to accomplish many great spiritual victories that will greatly glorify Thee. I pray this for all other people also. Amen.”

“The dividing asunder of soul and spirit”

Praise God that His word is sharper than any twoedged sword. This supernatural Sword from Heaven is ever so powerfully keen. Now look at a main function of that “sharpness.” It divides asunder the human soul and spirit. Your soul and spirit are NOT one and the same. They are 2 separate and distinct entities. Many Christians mistakenly relegate several functions of the soul to the human spirit. That is a most tragic error. Your heart, mind, will, conscience, and feelings (emotions) are ALL contained in your soul, NOT in your spirit. Upon disobeying their Creator, Adam and Eve’s spirits died within them. Sinners’ spirits are made alive again by God’s Holy Spirit when a sinner returns to God. In this “church age” that happens when a lost sinner repents and trusts in Christ to save him.

Read carefully all of Ephesians chapter 2. “And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins.” (Verse 1) “Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)” (Verse 5) The human spirit is reserved for God only. Apart from God’s Holy Spirit, nothing else can possibly touch the human spirit. The human spirit died when Adam and Eve sinned. All of Adam’s offspring are born spiritually dead. (Remember that the Lord Jesus Christ was not born of Adam.) You are dead in trespasses and sins until you receive Christ. At that time, you are “quickened” (made alive) by God. God the Holy Spirit enters into your spirit and revives, quickens, makes alive your dead spirit.

Now keep in mind that the soul is always active in both lost and saved people, children of God and children of the devil. Do not forget all that is contained in the soul; that being the heart, mind, will, conscience, and feelings (emotions). Because the devil just delights to deceive people into believing that soul activity is activity of the spirit. Our spirit’s activity IS manifested thru our soul. Our soul is our outlet for our spirit’s activity. BUT all activity of the soul does NOT originate from the human spirit. Soul activity firstly originates from self. Secondly it originates from deceiving spirits.

The devil will entice Christians to “seek the Holy Spirit” and to “seek spiritual gifts” WITHOUT trying the spirits. When he is successful in doing this, the devil sends counterfeit spirits that will excite the emotions (feelings) of one’s soul with the intent of causing that Christian to believe those “feelings” are coming from God’s Holy Spirit. “Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they, are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.” (I John 4:1) Always beware that there are many false prophets and many antichrist spirits around you, and that they are most intent on deceiving you. “Hereby know ye the Spirit of God: Every spirit that confesseth that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is of God: And every spirit that confesseth not that Jesus Christ is come in the flesh is not of God: and this is that spirit of antichrist, whereof ye have heard that it should come; and even now already is it in the world.” (Verses 2-3) Therefore God strongly warns us several times in the Bible not to be deceived. Please constantly pray to God, asking Him to guard you against and to save you from all deception, deception by self, by other people, and by the devil and evil, deceiving spirits.

“Lord God, please help me to duly heed this solemn warning and command of Thine and to always try the spirits whether they are of God. Please save me from being deceived by false prophets and counterfeit spirits. Please save me from deceiving my own self. Please save me from being deceived by other people and false prophets. I pray this for all other people also. Amen.”

Thus, a most important work of this sharp “Sword” is to “divide asunder the soul and spirit,” cut them apart; clearly and distinctly separate them in order for you to clearly distinguish between your soul and spirit, and their individual activities. This living word, God’s Holy Bible, coupled together with God the Holy Spirit Who dwells within believer’s spirits, will clearly show us what is of God’s Spirit and guard us against mistaking our soul’s activities (or intrusions by false, counterfeit, deceiving spirits) as being of the Holy Spirit, if only we will yield to the Holy Spirit and allow Him to do so. Please do that.

“Heavenly Father, please help me to always yield to Thy Holy Spirit to allow Thy Sword to completely divide asunder my soul and spirit to enable me to always clearly distinguish between the activities of my soul and spirit. I pray this for all other people also. Amen.”

“A discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart”

You do NOT possess the ability to discern your own thoughts and intents of your very own heart. Why? “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked: who can know it?” (Jeremiah 17:9) The answer to that question is that no human creature can know his own heart. Thus it is of dire necessity to totally yield one’s self to God’s Holy Spirit to allow the Spirit to accurately discern the thoughts and intents of one’s heart.

“Heavenly Father, please help me to believe the truth of this Scripture, that my own heart is deceitful above all things, and that it is desperately wicked. Help me to truly believe that I do not possess the ability within mine own self to know my own heart. Please help me to totally acknowledge the necessity of fully yielding myself to Thy Holy Spirit and allow Thy Spirit to accurately discern the thoughts and intents of my heart and to reveal them to me. I pray this for all other people also. By Thy Great Power, save us all from all deception and constantly lead us in Thy Paths of Truth and Righteousness. Amen.”

So numerous are the thoughts and intents produced by a human heart. Therefore we must always bear in mind the Truth of Jeremiah 17:9 and allow the word of God to be a discerner of the thoughts and intents of our hearts. Otherwise we will meet with much spiritual failure and disaster. Your heart will bring forth many good thoughts and intents that are not from God and are not God’s Will for you to attempt to put into effect in your life. These good thoughts that are not of God mostly stem from self. Down thru the years, I have attempted to put many good thoughts and intents into effect and the result was a mess. I concluded (rightly I believe) that my efforts resulted in a mess because those thoughts and intents were from self only and were not from God. Likely Christian believers’ many good intentions and efforts, which came to naught when acted upon, did so because their origin was not from God. Therefore, each time good thoughts and intents arise in our hearts, we must bring them to God, submit them to Him, and examine them by the Light of His Holy Scriptures while listening to the Holy Spirit tell us what to do regarding them.

“Heavenly Father, please me to always be careful to do just that. Please help all other people to do that too. Amen.”

“Trust in the Lord with all thine heart; and lean not unto thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge him, and he shall direct thy paths.” (Proverbs 3:5-6) We must not fail to do this. “Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path.” (Psalms 119:105) Walk in the Light of God’s holy word or else you will stumble along in utter darkness. “O Lord, I know that the way of man is not in himself: it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps.” (Jeremiah 10:23) If you fail to make the word of God a lamp unto your feet and a light unto your path, you will go astray. You will vainly attempt to put into effect many good thoughts and intents of your heart that were not of God. You will fail. You will fall. Your efforts will end in disaster. Cleave to the word of God and fully submit to it for it to discern the thoughts and intents of your heart.

“Heavenly Father, please help me to do just that. Please help all other people to do just that also. Amen.”

“O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of the Lord.” You and I are part of that earth that the prophet Jeremiah cried out to, calling on us to hear the word of the Lord. God help us to hear it, to listen to it, to discern it, and to obey it. Praise God that He has so graciously spoken to us in each and every word of His Holy Bible. So let us be careful not to neglect any word of it. Praise God that His word is alive, powerful, and ever so sharp to divide asunder our soul and spirit and to discern the thoughts and intents of our deceitful and wicked heart. God forbid that we fail to give His word first place in our lives. Let’s exalt the word of God to the utmost in our lives while calling on all the earth to do the same. Nothing is more important for us to do.

“Heavenly Father, please cause my heart to constantly overflow to Thee in thanksgiving for Thy Precious Word that Thou hast so graciously given me. Please help me to always cleave to Thy Word, giving it first place in my life. Please help me to fully come to know the life and power of it and thereby put that life and power into effect in my life and to greatly glorify Thee by doing so. I pray that all other people will do these necessary spiritual things also. Amen.”

“Two edged”

A good knowledge of the Sword of God (the word of God) is direly essential to your eternal welfare. Always remember exactly what this Sword is. It is the word of God, God’s Holy Bible, all of it. In Revelation 19:15 & 21, we read of this Sword going forth out of the mouth of the King of Kings and Lord of Lords. Now think long and deep on the fact that It is two edged. This Sword is most fascinating in that It imparts either life or death to human creatures. That is one important aspect of It being two edged. One edge of this Sword is eternal life. The other edge is eternal death. And you make the choice as to whether you receive eternal life or eternal death and damnation from this Sword. To obey this Sword is eternal life for you. To disobey this Sword is eternal death for you. The choice is entirely up to you.

“Heavenly Father, send Thy Holy Spirit now to teach me the importance of what is written in that last paragraph. Show me the necessity of obeying Thy Sword in order for It to impart eternal life unto me. Help me to fully believe that Thy Sword will impart eternal death to me if I disobey It. Please help me to completely obey Thy Sword. I pray this for all other people also. Amen.”

This Sword (the word of God) comes out of God’s Mouth, the exact place where we would expect words to proceed from. Upon creating Adam, this Sword spoke to him telling what trees he could eat of freely and which tree he was forbidden to eat of. Obedience to that word meant life to Adam. Disobedience to that word meant death for him. Think of another related and most powerful thing (to kill or to make alive) that proceeds out of God’s Mouth, His Breath. “And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living soul.” (Genesis 2:7) Likely this Sword and God’s breath are one and the same. It put life into Adam when he was created. And this breath, word, sword gave Adam one command which was life if obeyed or death if disobeyed. And upon disobeying that command, Adam’s spirit immediately died and physical death set to work throughout Adam’s body causing it to die in due time. “Death and life are in the power of the tongue: and they that love it shall eat the fruit thereof.” (Proverbs 18:21)

“Heavenly Father, please teach me everything I need to know about what is written in these last 2 paragraphs. Please teach me fully about Thy Breath, Thy Word, and Thy Sword. Show me clearly how those all-powerful forces of Thine impart either life or death to me and that the choice of life or death is completely up to me. Please show me the seriousness of this choice and help me to make the right choice regarding this. Please help me to choose eternal life so that I may live forever with Thee in Heaven. Please save me from the foolishness of choosing eternal death. I pray this for all other people also. Amen.”

Now please take your mind off our modern era and think back to the more simple and natural life that people lived when these words of Hebrews 4:12 were pinned almost 2,000 years ago. Think on those people’s lives being untouched by all our modern instruments and machinery. The Lord God then inspired the writer of Hebrews to describe His word as being sharper than a two-edged sword. At that time, there were a large number of man-made bladed instruments in existence and in use by the people of that time, used for various jobs that required a cutting tool. Then and now, most bladed instruments were (and are) one edged. Few bladed instruments are two edged. Two-edged cutlery is designed with 1 major function in mind, mortal combat. Two-edged cutting blades are designed to kill living men and beasts. They are made mainly for the purpose of hunting and killing animals or for fighting against and killing other people.

This Sword of our Lord God is two-edged because It is His instrument of death. God uses It to kill living creatures. The Lord God uses this Sword to slay all His enemies, all creatures who rebel against Him and fight against Him. This Sword’s ultimate purpose is to slay gods. When Lucifer rebelled against his Creator, Lucifer became his own god. In Genesis 3, Lucifer came to Eve as the tempter, telling her that she and Adam would become as gods if only they would disobey their Creator. Thus that human pair rebelled against their Creator, enthroning Self on the throne of their lives. They became their own gods. Therefore this Sword slew Adam and Eve at that very time. It immediately killed their spirits within them. Because of that, all of Adam’s descendents were born spiritually dead, slain by this Sword from the time of Adam. Of a certainty, this Sword slays and kills ALL creatures that rebel against their Creator God, no exceptions. You, I, and all other people are killed by this Sword.

“But Brother Richard, I have believed on Christ! I have eternal life. So I have gotten saved and thus have escaped being killed by this Sword.” Well, I praise God that you have trusted in Christ and have received His eternal life. But still, you did not escape getting killed by this Sword. Praise God that His Sword has already killed you.

And how I praise God that this Sword has already killed me. Let me give you that testimony. I was so blessed to be reared in a Christian home, and taken to church regularly where an old-fashioned preacher stood in the pulpit and repeatedly thrust that Sword right into my sinful heart. O how painful were Its powerful, deadly thrusts, cutting deeply into the innermost regions of my heart where Self was sinfully enthroned as the god I fervently worshipped even as a small child, revealing to me what a wicked and rebellious sinner I was and clearly revealing to me the eternal death in Hell that awaited me as punishment for my rebellion. How blessed I am in that this Sword slew me (killed me) when I was a little boy. It did so by bringing me to repentance and to trusting in Christ. Thus at that time, the other edge of It that imparts life, imparted eternal life to me. As I grew in grace, applying this Sword to my life, It brought me to the place where I chose to crucify Self, and chose to cease desiring to live and walk in the flesh. God enabled me to call on this Sword to mortify the fleshly members of my body, and to put my “old man” (my sinful self and nature) to death. So presently, my heart overflows with thanksgiving for this sharp, two-edged Sword having killed me, having slain me.

“For ye are dead, and your life is hid with Christ in God.” (Colossians 3:3) Paul wrote those words to Christians who were alive and walking this earth. He declared them to be dead, because this Sword had already slain their old, sinful being. And now their life is hid in Christ. Now they are on the living side (edge) of this two-edged Sword and they will live forever. Hallelujah! How I praise God that this Sword has killed my old, sinful being and that now I am on the living side of this Sword and will live forever!

“For we are unto God a sweet savour of Christ, in them that are saved, and in them that perish: To the one we are the savour of death unto death; and to the other the savour of life unto life. And who is sufficient for these things?” (II Corinthians 2:15-16) This Scripture is an important description of the work of God’s Sword and God’s Sword bearers, we Christian believers who wield this Sword. Thoroughly study this scriptural explanation of the two edges of God’s Sword. One edge is a savour of death unto death. The other edge of God’s Sword is a savour of life unto life. The one thing you must do NOW is to get on the living edge of this Sword by repenting to God, ceasing to do battle against your Creator, and by trusting in Christ to save you and give you eternal life.

“Heavenly Father, please send Thy Holy Spirit to teach me all that is entailed in the works that Thy Sword has already done in the lives of us Christian believers, in that Thy Sword slew our old, rebellious, sinful Self, and therefore Its work of killing rebellious creatures is already past for us Christian believers. Help all us Christian believers to fully know what slaying Thy Sword has already done to our beings. Help us to fully comprehend the full meaning of us believers now being on the living side, the life edge of this Sword, having passed from death to life to live forever with Christ. Heavenly Father, I declare that I want to be on the living edge of Thy Sword. I pray that all other people will get on the living edge of Thy Sword also. Amen.”

“And powerful”

Almighty God designed this Sword as All Powerful because it is necessary for it to slay gods, ALL gods. It WILL, without fail, slay all false gods. All creatures that rebel against their Creator set themselves up as their own gods. And their Creator metes out capital punishment for that capital offence. God kills each and every rebellious creature, no exceptions. Thus this Sword must be ever so powerful because Its ultimate purpose is to slay gods. I praise God that He powerfully designed this Sword, making It fully capable of slaying all other gods. All creatures who rebel against their Creator lose totally and miserably forever in their war against this Almighty Sword. So, right now, please surrender unconditionally to this Sword and completely cease warring against God’s Sword.

“Almighty God, please help me to do just that. Please help me to totally, completely, and unconditionally surrender to Thy Sword and to cease all fighting against Thee. I pray this for all other people also. Amen.”

When earthly armies go to war, it is of dire importance for their captains to calculate and prepare sufficient manpower and weapons to overcome and to destroy the enemy’s army and thus win the battles and the war. “Or what king, going to make war against another king, sitteth not down first, and consulteth whether he be able with ten thousand to meet him that cometh against him with twenty thousand.” (Luke 14:31) To not carefully make these necessary preparations for battle is folly and invites defeat.

Praise God that His Sword is All Powerful to slay sinners by bringing them to repentance and putting their rebellion to death. Fellow preachers, we are Sword bearers. All Christian believers should also bear this Sword, daily living to thrust It into the army of sinful, rebellious mankind while praying that It will slay many sinners in the same way It slew us by bringing them to repentance.

“Lord Jesus, please help me to be a faithful soldier of Thine. Help me to bear Thy Sword well, not in vain. Thank Thee, for equipping me with such a powerful, all-powerful weapon for doing spiritual warfare. Help me to have strong, unshakable faith in the power of Thy Sword. Help me not to be afraid or ashamed to use It. Please help me to faithfully fight with Thy Sword with which Thou hast equipped me as Thy soldier and thus win many great victories for Thee, my Captain. I pray this for all other Christian soldiers also. Amen.”

“The offence”

Weapons of warfare are divided into the 2 categories of defensive and offensive weapons. “Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.” (Ephesians 6:11) Then Paul proceeds to list this “whole armour of God; loins girt about with truth, the breastplate of righteousness, feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace, the shield of faith, helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” The very last one listed, the Sword of the Spirit, is the only weapon in this whole armour that is wholly offensive in nature, designed to go on the offense against the enemy and kill him. The nature of most of these other weapons listed in this armour is defensive, designed to defend against the attacks of the enemy.

Defensive weapons defend. Military men commonly use that term. But seldom do they speak of offensive weapons in the same vein by saying, “Offensive weapons offend.” But that is certainly true of this offensive weapon that is the Sword of the Lord. It offends people. It greatly offends every human creature. Nothing offends people like the Sword of God (the word of God). That is because this Sword is pure, Holy, perfect, completely true, upright, and righteous. But we are fallen, sinful creatures in rebellion against It. This Sword opposes the false gods we have made ourselves to be. It does not tolerate our idolatry of Self-worship one bit. Therefore It highly offends all human creatures because each of us starts out our live having enthroned Self as our god. It is amazing to see how greatly the word of God offends us sinners. Why? Because It is so powerful and because It goes directly against the grain of our rebellion against God. This sharp Sword cuts us sinners to pieces and accurately (without any apology at all) reveals to all of us just how awful it is for us to have rebelled against our Creator God by setting our own selves up as gods. That revelation hurts our feelings ever so much. It offends each of us sinners terribly. The sharp cutting of this Sword is ever so painful.

As I regularly stand out in public wielding this Sword, I marvel at how highly It offends people. As I wield this Sword in various public places (by verbally projecting It from my mouth), I am careful to stand out of the way of the people going about in public. I do not accost any of them, hailing people personally and asking them to listen or to take some printed literature. I just go about minding my own business (wielding the Sword), while being sure not to interfere with anyone else present as they go about their own business. (Now ain’t I nice?) Still, I have seen people get offended enough to murder. Tho God-hating rebels have murdered many Sword wielders down thru the ages, thank God that none of them has consummated that act on me yet. Some have cursed me and threatened to beat me, threatened to run over me with their car, and one pulled a pistol on me while cursing and threatening me. What is there about innocent little ol’ me that would outrage them so? The answer to that is simple. I was wielding Almighty God’s Almighty, sharp, two-edged Sword. It was not I that offended them. The Sword of the Lord offended them. What an offensive weapon It is. Rest assured that this Sword will offend when you faithfully wield It.

That is the very nature of this offensive Weapon of God. Without fail, It will offend Its enemies. Basically that offence has nothing to do with the Sword bearer at all. He or she does not even figure into the equation. A sweet little 80 year-old saint of a lady can kindly, softly, and sweetly speak the words of this Sword to someone, and still those words will highly offend the listener. Why? Because we false gods just do not like to be dethroned, having Self toppled from its high throne. How we so desire Self to stay on the throne as our own god.

“Heavenly Father, please teach me all I should know about Thy Sword being an offensive weapon that offends all of us rebellious, sinful human creatures. Please reveal to me how of a certainty It slays all human creatures and how that it behooves me to submit to Thy Sword now and let It slay me now and impart God’s eternal life to me now while it is the day of salvation. I pray this for all other people also. Amen.”

“No other gods”

I warn you to be extremely cautious concerning your eternal well being by listening ever so carefully when this dreadful Sword speaks because It proclaims certain DEATH to all other gods. Solemnly look upon this Terrible and Mighty, Powerful and Deadly Sword as It decrees to the entire human race, past, present, and future, “Thou shalt have no other gods before me.” (Exodus 20:3) That is a Command. That is a Decree. That is an Eternal Truth. This Sword absolutely tolerates NO other rivals. Then It follows right up on that Decree by destroying all other gods. Every creature that fights against this Sword loses. When this Sword descended on mount Sinai to give that Decree to Moses, “there were thunders and lightnings, and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud; so that all the people that was in the camp trembled.” (Exodus 19:16) “And mount Sinai was altogether on a smoke, because the Lord descended upon it in fire: and the smoke thereof ascended as the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mount quaked greatly.” (Verse 18)

This mountain quaked greatly at the Presence of Almighty God. How much more should we fear, quake, and tremble at the Presence of this Sword. God had already had Moses warn the people as to how deadly this Sword is. “And thou shalt set bounds unto the people round about, saying, Take heed to yourselves, that ye go not up into the mount, or touch the border of it: whosoever toucheth the mount shall be surely put to death: There shall not an hand touch it, but he shall surely be stoned, or shot through; whether it be beast or man, it shall not live.” (Verses 12-13) No one is to approach this deadly Sword with casual familiarity. On that renown mountain, amidst a thick cloud, thunders and lightnings, the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud, fire, smoke as the smoke of a furnace, the whole mount quaking greatly, and the people trembling, this Sword declared and decreed death to all other gods.

Each and every time this Sword meets up with a human creature, this Sword declares, “DIE!” “You must die!” “Death to all other gods!” That is why this Sword is so offensive. It is confrontational. It confronts, condemns, and decrees death to every other god in existence. Being slain by this Sword is the certain fate of all other gods.

“Almighty God, please teach me to properly fear Thee. Help me to learn of Thee fully, in order to know what a mighty and terrible God Thou art. Help me to serve Thee with fear and trembling. Help me to fear and to reverence Thy Sword. Reveal to me the terror of the Lord and Thy fearful wrath that hovers over all rebellion against Thee. Please save me from rebelling against Thee, my Creator God. I pray this for all other people also. Amen.”

When this Sword came to earth in Person, human gods declared to It, “You must die!” And they murdered this Sword. But He did not stay dead. On the third day, He arose victorious from death, just as He said He would. Human gods in all ages continue to be true to their sinful, rebellious nature by never ceasing to do battle with this Sword down thru the ages. This fierce battle will continue until soon this Sword declares, “Time shall be no more.” Would you care to venture a guess as to who is then going to reign victorious forever? God’s Almighty Sword, of course. Whatever you do, DO NOT fail to get on the living edge of this Almighty Sword right now, while it is the day of salvation.

Those scriptures in Exodus clearly teach us about the death edge of this two edged Sword. Now, let’s be sure to look at the opposite edge of this Sword that gives life. “For ye are not come unto the mount that might be touched, and that burned with fire, nor unto blackness, and darkness, and tempest, And the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words; which voice they that heard intreated that the word should not be spoken to them any more: (For they could not endure that which was commanded, And if so much as a beast touch the mountain, it shall be stoned, or thrust through with a dart: And so terrible was the sight, that Moses said, I exceedingly fear and quake:) But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels.” (Hebrews 12:18-22) This Sword is not willing that any human creature be destroyed by It. Rather, this Sword desires that everyone come to It to receive eternal life. We do this by coming to Jesus Christ, the Saviour of the World. The Lord Jesus Christ Himself is this Sword. How merciful and gracious this Sword is in that It chose to taste death for me, in my place, on that old rugged cross, so that I might be saved from the sentence of death this Sword has decreed. That Love means so much more to me than I can convey to you in words.

O how I love this Sword! How I glory in It! How I stand in awe and fascination of this Sword!

Nothing is more deadly than God’s Sword!

Nothing is more lively and life giving than the word of God!

Nothing is more powerful than God’s Sword!

Nothing is more victorious than the word of God!

Nothing is more glorious than God’s sword!

Nothing is more precious than the word of God!

Absolutely nothing and absolutely no one is able to stand against God’s Sword!

Of a certainty, God’s Sword overcomes and slays all creatures that rebel against It. O how I glory in that. I rejoice in being on the victorious side (edge) of this two-edged Sword. I rejoice in being on the living edge, the life giving side of God’s Sword. And how I rejoice in having the privilege of wielding this Sword in spiritual warfare, all the while praising God for the many great victories His Sword accomplishes. All you fellow Sword bearers, rejoice greatly with me over this Ultimate Spiritual Weapon our Man of War has placed into our Hands to freely use in battle for Him.

You CANNOT ignore this Sword. That is impossible to do. This Sword created you. It is your Maker. Thus it is of necessity that you deal with It, because of a certainty this Sword will deal with you by meting out to you either LIFE or DEATH. The choice is yours to make. There is NO greater factor confronting you in life than God’s Sword. Therefore please think ever so seriously on just how you treat God’s Sword during your short life here on the earth.

“Almighty God, please impart to my understanding the extent of the importance of all the things written here after the previous prayer. I yield myself to Thee for Thee to enable me to deal with this death dealing and life-giving Sword just as I should for the sake of my eternal welfare. I pray that all other people will also do that. Amen.”

“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ”

Think on how profound is the offence of this Sword to this world of sinners. And on thinking of that profound offence, God forbid that we Christian believers, who have been given eternal life by this Sword, ever be ashamed of this Sword of God because It is so greatly offensive to rebels. Fellow ministers, preach and teach this to your flock in order to save them from being taken aback by this strong offence and then possibly stumble because of it. New babes in Christ need to be taught how that from now on offenses will come upon them like an overflowing river because they have changed their spiritual fathers; ceased being a child of the devil and became a child of God by trusting in Christ. Those new spiritual babes will certainly learn of the offense of this Sword if and when they start wielding it.

Back about 1978, a high school girl named Sachiko here in this town of Matsuida, from inside her house, heard me preaching on the narrow street in front of her house. Likely that was the first time she heard the Gospel message. In 1979 (I think), Sachiko started attending the Sunday services I held in my house. As I preached Christ to her, in short time, in a church service in my house, she prayed to Christ, repenting and asking Him to save her. I was amazed at how prepared her heart was to receive Christ and what a “genuine” Christian she immediately became. Her genuineness was manifest by her immediately telling fellow students about Christ and inviting them to come to the church service.

I believe that Christ had chosen Sachiko as His Own, and thus had worked a believer’s heart into her, resulting in her not being the least offended by God’s Sword when I spoke It to her. Instead, she readily welcomed that Sword into her life to impart eternal life unto her, praise God. And as a new spiritual babe in Christ, she appeared to be practically void of any knowledge of the offence of God’s Sword. But she immediately got a strong dose of the knowledge of that offence upon witnessing to the spiritual rebels around her. Apparently she naively thought most everyone would receive Christ’s Love just as she had readily and joyfully received it. Instead, they badmouthed her terribly with verbal abuse, because the Sword highly offended them.

So the next time she came to my house, her head was hanging ever so low, and I mean that literally. I saw her countenance and wondered what could be wrong. I greeted her as she came in and sat down. Then I made small talk as I tried to discern the problem. Soon she said, “It’s difficult.” That insufficient explanation caused me to ponder if she was having trouble understanding something she read in the Bible I had given her. But gradually, with her head literally hanging ever so low, she told me what great and ugly abuse was heaped upon her as she told others about Christ at her high school. There, as God led me, I did my best to instruct and comfort her from the Bible and prayed for God to keep her in His Loving Care.

So, fellow believers, we must listen carefully to what God tells us to teach to new believers about the offence of the cross, the Gospel, this Sword. Because this offensive weapon of Spiritual warfare is ever so offensive. May God help us all to grow into spiritual mature giants like the Apostle Paul and therefore never be ashamed of God’s Sword or ashamed of any the gracious words of our Lord Jesus Christ.

“Heavenly Father, please teach me completely just how offensive Thy Sword is. Please save me from ever being ashamed of Thy Sword. Please thoroughly train me to be a strong, courageous, mature soldier of Thine so that I will not be taken aback when certain offences come my way when I wield Thy Sword. Please help me to instruct and warn new, immature Christians about what offences they can expect to come their way when they wield Thy Sword. Help all us Christians to deeply love and treasure Thy All Powerful Sword. Amen.”

Fierce, intense battle will quickly weary any soldier. So, as we do spiritual battle, we must constantly make the joy of the Lord our strength. The Bible gives us clear examples of great soldiers of the Lord experiencing battle fatigue. Look at our fellow soldier, Jeremiah, crying to his Captain in the thick of battle. “O Lord, thou hast deceived me, and I was deceived: thou art stronger than I, and hast prevailed: I am in derision daily, every one mocketh me. For since I spake, I cried out, I cried violence and spoil; because the word of the Lord was made a reproach unto me, and a derision, daily. Then I said, I will not make mention of him, nor speak any more in his name.” (Jeremiah 20:7-9a) If you are a true soldier of the cross, you well know how many times you have felt just like Jeremiah felt there as he cried out to his Lord. O how strong is the offence of this Sword. Jeremiah said in effect, “I just cannot stand this offence any more, daily being in derision with every one mocking me and making me a reproach. I am just going to lay down this offensive Sword and quit. I will not make mention of my Lord any more.” Fellow soldier, you know how many times you have arrived at that place.

But let us praise our Lord for the way He will certainly revive a true soldier of His, restore his fighting spirit, and put him back on the firing line. “But his word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay…But the Lord is with me as a mighty terrible one: therefore my persecutors shall stumble, and they shall not prevail: they shall be greatly ashamed; for they shall not prosper: their everlasting confusion shall never be forgotten…Sing unto the Lord, praise ye the Lord: for he hath delivered the soul of the poor from the hand of evildoers.” (Verses 9, 11, 13) What a predicament! When the derision, mocking, and reproach became unbearable, Jeremiah determined to become silent about his Lord. But his attempt to shut up that overflowing fountain of living water was in vain. God’s word (Sword) became as a burning fire shut up in his bones, making him so weary with forbearing that he could not stay. Read the remainder of chapter 20 to see Jeremiah cursing the day he was born. So my fellow soldier, as you feel the reproach and offence of the sword often become so unbearable, rest assured that all soldiers of the cross experience the same. Also always rest assured that your Lord’s grace is sufficient. “Quit ye like men,” and always fight on. Praise God that He sets our bones on fire, making it impossible for us to keep silent about Him.

“Lord Jesus, help me to fight a good fight for Thee and to faithfully finish the course of battle that Thou has ordained for me in this life. When I get weary and thus shut up, please make Thy Word as a burning fire shut up in my bones so that I have to open my mouth again and release it. Set my soul afire with flaming revival fire, Lord. I pray this for all other Christian soldiers also. Amen.”

One final word of caution to you fellow Sword bearers, concerning the offence of this Sword. By Its nature, this Sword just naturally offends. But as we Christian soldiers wield It, we are NOT to be offensive in our nature. Be ever so careful not to let the proud, zealous nature of your flesh rise to the forefront and deceive you into believing that God’s Sword has ordained for you to be a fire-breathing monster as you wield this Sword, purposely causing all the offence you possibly can in your flesh. Upon sending us soldiers forth to do battle with this Sword, our Captain commands us to be “harmless as doves.” (Matthew 10:16) Never forget that it is God’s Sword that offends, not you as the Sword bearer. We are personally to be without offense in our Lord’s service, leaving it entirely up to this Sword to naturally be offensive to Its enemies. Then our use of God’s Sword will be a great paradox at which the world will marvel. (Remember my previous illustration of a sweet little ol’ lady bearing the Sword ever so sweetly?) You are to go forth bearing this Sword in love and with a heavy burden for lost souls, just as dear believers came to you bearing that Sword in love and burdened for your lost soul. That is how Sword bearers won you to Christ. Now you are to go and do likewise.

“Lord Jesus, please perfect Thy spiritual caution in me concerning this. As I bear Thy Sword, save me from thinking that I am to purposely do all in my power to be offensive to people. Please help me to obey Thy command to be harmless as doves. Please help me to go forth in love and with a heavy burden for lost souls, always bearing in mind that is how soul winners came to me and won me to Christ. I pray this for all other Sword bearers also. Please properly temper us all, Lord, I pray, to make us most effective in Thy warfare. Amen.”

“Sword”

Again, please go back with me in time almost 2,000 years ago when Hebrews 4:11 was first penned. At that time, warfare was much more primitive than now. Soldiers typically fought the enemy face to face with hand held weapons such as swords. (There were exceptions to the face-to-face aspect, such as arrows being shot quite some distance from the archer holding the bow.) Before, I mentioned that a two-edged sword is designed for mortal combat, for killing. 2,000 years ago, there was a plenteous array of mortal weapons with which soldiers fought. Shepherd boy David’s sling is one of those mortal weapons I want us to think on now.

With his Lord fighting for him and guiding that stone’s flight, little David did a perfect job of sending that stone right to the giant’s forehead. With that stone and with the giant’s own sword, David slew that large and strong enemy. In bygone days when war was waged ever so personally by soldiers with hand held weapons, it was important to target either the enemy soldier’s head or his heart (the human body’s two vital, life giving organs) in an attempt to kill that enemy. (Contrast that to modern day artillery and bombs that can obliterate an entire army and to nuclear bombs that can melt away an entire city, resulting in combat usually not being as “personal” now as it was in old times when soldiers clashed face-to-face.)

With old-fashioned mortal combat aimed at either the enemy’s heart or head, why did God call His word a Sword instead of a sling??? Both the sword and sling are biblical weapons that kill. God’s word is a Sword instead of a sling because in spiritual warfare, it is NECESSARY to go for the heart to make the kill instead of targeting the head. “The HEART (not the head) is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked.” (Jeremiah 17:9) “Out of the HEART (not the head) of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, Thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lasciviousness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness.” (Mark 7:21-22) The root of man’s sin problem lies in his heart, not in his head. That Truth is most important for you to always bear in mind.

“Lord God, please show me how important it is for me to be aware that our sin problem in rooted in our hearts, not in our heads. Please help me to regard this Truth as seriously as I should. I pray this for all other people also. Amen.”

Fellow preachers, when you preach, it is essential for you to aim for the heart not the head. Most preachers of bygone days made sure to major on going for the heart when they preached. But nowadays, so many “ministers” have risen above that “basic, simple” stuff, mainly because they are repulsed by the offence of the Sword. Therefore they twirl their little slings and aim for the head to fill it with a lot of knowledge. “Knowledge puffeth up.” (I Corinthians 8:1) You can count on knowledge doing exactly what God’s Holy Scriptures says it will do. It will puff you up. It will make you proud and heady. By its nature, knowledge does not destroy and kill a person’s sinful nature like the Sword does. Preaching that aims for the head tends to enhance the old man, our sinful nature, instead of eradicating it. Therein lies its deadly danger. It refuses to do the loathsome task of imparting death to the rebellion of the human creature, and thus it is void of the ability of imparting new life to us. It has NO edge to it, neither the death edge nor the life edge. Forsake it, my fellow preacher. Flee from it, my Christian friend. Use this Powerful Sword that naturally does the necessary work of slaying our old, sinful being.

“Lord God, please teach me all I should know about the importance of wielding Thy Sword and targeting the human heart when I do spiritual warfare instead of preaching knowledge and aiming for the head. I pray this for all other people also. Amen.”

“False”

Down thru the ages, it has been common for boys to play with toy soldiers and toy weapons of war. Nowadays, toy swords are typically made of plastic. When making a toy imitation for children to play with, making a harmless toy is a priority. We don’t want little children to get hurt by the toys they play with. God’s enemy, the devil, cringes at the Great Power contained in God’s Almighty Sword and trembles at the great harm God’s Sword does to his evil cause. Therefore, fighting for his survival in a losing cause, Satan produces many imitation swords and entices Christian soldiers to lay down the True Sword and instead take up one of Satan’s counterfeits and attempt to do spiritual battle with it. Sad is the plight of the Christian who has been deceived by the enemy into exchanging God’s True Sword for a counterfeit one from the devil. Those counterfeit swords are HARMLESS. They are void of power. One reason that sweet, aiming to please everyone, Christian soldiers opt for one of the devil’s toy swords is that the devil’s toys are NOT offensive to people. Thus people are more apt to smile and say nice things to you when you play with one of the devil’s false, toy swords, likely aiming it at their heads instead of at their hearts.

The devil’s toy swords are not likely to hurt, much less kill a person’s sinful nature. They are dulled, being riddled with lies and deceptions. They are not sharp. They are not alive. They are not powerful. They do not have much of a death edge on them. That factor delights reprobate sinners. But the tragic part is that neither do they have much of a life edge on them. They have so little ability to impart life to anyone. The devil produced them for the purpose of deceiving people and damning their eternal souls. And that is exactly what Satan’s counterfeit swords do. Be sure to avoid them.

The 1611 Authorized King James Version of God’s Holy Bible is God’s True Sword in the English language. It is inspired of God and without error in its entirety. All other English versions that differ from it are counterfeits from the devil. Avoid them. “Be not deceived.” The devil hates God’s True Sword so much because It spells out his doom. Thus he does everything in his power to deceive Christian soldiers into using powerless, counterfeit, imitation, toy swords devised by him. Cry out to God to keep you from being deceived by the devil.

“Heavenly Father, please save me from all deception. Please give me the assurance that the 1611 King James Version of Thy Holy Bible is Thy True Sword, inspired of Thee and totally without error. Save me from using counterfeit swords from the devil as I go about doing spiritual battle for Thee. I pray this for all other people also. Amen.”

There are multitudes who fly under the flag of Christianity and use one (or any) of the devil’s counterfeit swords. I observe some of them using great, swelling words and much long speech in their teachings in an all out effort to make Christians ashamed of God’s True Sword and to entice us to lay aside God’s Authentic, All Powerful Sword and take up one of the devil’s harmless, imitation toy swords instead. “Be not deceived.” Satan so delights to deceive Christians into using his powerless, harmless imitations while thinking those counterfeits are the real thing. Don’t fall for the enemy’s deception. Stay faithful to God’s True Sword and use It to win many great battles against the enemy. I praise God that the people who laud the devil’s false swords have only succeeded in making me more proud of God’s glory filled Sword that I proudly wield, and their false accusations against God’s Sword just make It more precious and dear to me. I stand in awe at Its power and marvel at Its greatness. May God help you to never be ashamed of His Most Wonderful, Powerful, Life giving Sword.

“Heavenly Father, please save me from deception. Reveal to me clearly and assuredly what is Thy True Sword. Guard me from all counterfeits of the enemy. I pray this for all other people also. Amen.”

“Greater love hath no man than this”

O how I love God’s Sword because even though It deals out a death sentence to the entire sinful human race, It also gladly took my death sentence in my place. When the time came for God’s Sword to do the deed necessary to perfect this Sword’s living edge in order to impart eternal life to sinful, dead me, this Almighty Sword sheathed Itself. It completely ceased to fight Its enemies. He (God’s Sword) was still and silent when one of His disciples betrayed him with a kiss. Another disciple, thinking it was time to fight, drew his sword and cut off the ear of one of the enemies. But Jesus rebuked that disciple, healed the wounded enemy, and said, “Thinkest thou that I cannot now pray to my Father, and he shall presently give me more than twelve legions of angels?” (Matthew 26:53) Had my Lord summoned them, those thousands of angels would have descended in the wink of an eye and swept that murderous mob right into Hell.

But my Lord did not summons any Heavenly Help. He did not resist when His enemies mocked Him, spat upon Him, hit Him, and plucked out His beard. He did not fight back when wicked men scourged Him, placed a crown of thorns on His Head, and then beat Him with the staff they had placed in His Hand. He was as a harmless sheep led to the slaughter when they nailed Him to a cross to die for me. Though He holds the keys to life and death, this deadly Sword did not resist, but rather allowed Himself to be killed. He lovingly suffered all that torment and death just for me, just for my sake. That is why I love Him so. No one else in existence loves me that much. This Sword loved me enough to die in my place.

This Sword also suffered all that agony and death just for you. And one reason God is having me preach this sermon to you is for you to examine yourself to see just far you are from making this Sword as dear and precious to you as you should make it.

“Come Holy Spirit, and reveal to me most clearly just how far I am from making this Sword as dear and precious to me as I should make It. I pray that all other people will also examine themselves regarding this most grave matter. Show us all just how loving and gracious God’s Sword is to us. Amen.”

“The remnant were slain with the sword of him”

Without fail, God’s Sharp Sword slays ALL human enemies who do not repent but rather resist and fight against their Creator to the end. How pitiful is their fate. You do not want to be among them. You should stand in fear and trembling as you look in Revelation 19 at the final victorious battle God’s Sword fights against human gods.

“And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. And the armies which were in Heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.” (Revelation 19:11-16) Please read the remainder of that chapter. For brevity’s sake, I will just quote a little more of it here. “And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet…These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone. And the remnant were slain with the sword of him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of his mouth: and all the fowls were filled with their flesh.” (Verses 20-21) Not a one of these enemy soldiers escape God’s Sword. All the rebels are to be destroyed by It. Almighty God’s Sword is All Powerful. Of a certainty, It searches out and destroys all of Its enemies. May God have mercy on you and save you from continuing on as God’s enemy by refusing to repent and continuing to rebel against God.

God’s Sword is to be feared by us first and foremost, far above and beyond all other things that we might fear. “And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.” (Matthew 10:28) Nowadays, multitudes of people tremble in fear as children of the devil kill many people throughout the world in the name of their religion. Let us obey our Creator’s command to not fear them. And let us constantly call on our Lord God to give us a Holy Fear of Almighty God’s Sword, which destroys both soul and body in an eternal hell.

“Lord God in Heaven, help me to serve Thee with fear and trembling. Help me to fear Thee and Thee alone. Teach me thoroughly of the great terror of God’s Sword. I pray this for all other people also. Give all mankind a vision of Thy Wrath on rebellious sinners. Amen.”

Without fail, God’s Sword always triumphs because It is always victorious. We Christian believers who faithfully bear and wield God’s Almighty Sword stand in Its victory. “Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us.” (Romans 8:37) Fellow Sword bearers, let us never be ashamed of the offence of this Sword. In true humility, may we faithfully bear It as long as we are in this spiritual battle on earth, fighting a good fight, keeping the faith, and each of us finishing our course in this life. Amen and AMEN!

“Lord Jesus, please help each of us believers to do just that. Be a good Christian soldier of Thine. Endure hardness as a good soldier. Never be ashamed of the offence of Thy Sword. Always believe in and trust in Thy Sword’s Great Power. In all true humility and in unwavering faith, always stand with God’s Sword drawn, continuously praising our Lord and Captain as we watch this Sword slay each and every enemy of Thine that comes our way. Glory to God in the Highest for all the Great Things Thou doest! Amen!”

“For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet.” (I Corinthians 15:25) As for you who have chosen to make yourself into an enemy of your Creator God, that is exactly what He is going to do unto you. He is going to fight against you with His Two Edged Sword. And He is going to rule and reign as King of Kings and Lord of Lords unto He destroys you and puts you under His feet. You do not want that to be your eternal fate.

You enemies of God’s Two Edged Sword, I am a messenger of this Sword serving you notice that you are riding on Its death edge. At any time now, you are to be severed from this life here on earth to plunge into the eternal darkness of the lake of fire to weep and wail and to gnash your teeth in untold torments that never end. You DO NOT want that to happen to you. Now is the day of salvation. Now is the time for you to repent to Almighty God and to get on the living edge of God’s Sword. I beg you to do that just now while it is the day of salvation and God’s mercy is extended unto you.

“Almighty God in Heaven, have mercy on me a rebellious sinner. Please reveal to me just how awful my sins are in Thy Sight. Show me the exact nature of the eternal punishment that awaits me if I die lost and undone in my sins. Draw me to Thy Throne of Mercy and grant to me a repentant heart, enabling me to truly repent to Thee of my sinful rebellion against Thee. Create within me a broken and contrite heart that Thou wilt not despise. Please give me faith to believe on and to trust in the Lord Jesus Christ, the Saviour of the world. Help me to wholly trust in Christ and have His shed blood cleanse me from all my sins. Please forgive me of all my sins. Please come into my heart and make me into a new creature, a child of Almighty God Who is my Creator. Guide me to live for Thee and to love Thee with all my heart. Help me to truly make The Lord Jesus Christ the one and only Lord of my life. Please lead me in paths of righteousness for Thy Name’s sake. Help me to daily read, study, and meditate on Thy word, the Holy Bible. Fill me with Thy Holy Spirit and help me to always be sensitive to Thy Spirit constantly teaching, leading, and guiding me. Please draw me ever so close to Thy Loving Bosom and help me to cleave more closely to Thee than to any other person on this earth. Please give me strong faith in order to see Thee work great miracles in my life for Thy Glory. Thank Thee, my Lord God, for having mercy on me and answering this prayer of mine. Thank Thee for loving me so. Make me into a good soldier of the cross and help me to faithfully wield Thy Sword, fight for Thee, and win many great victories that will greatly glorify Thee. To God be the glory for doing so many great and miraculous things for me. Amen.”

(This is the end of the sermon, A Two Edged Sword)

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