The word of God is living and active (Heb. 4:12a). So if the word of God is within us, it will do a work within us. The Apostle Paul writes in 1 Thessalonians 2:13 that “…you accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers.” In the very next verse, Paul writes about the evidence that the word of God was at work in the lives of the Thessalonian believers: “For you, brothers, became imitators of the churches of God in Christ Jesus that are in Judea. For you suffered the same things from your own countrymen as they did from the Jews……”
Their commitment to follow Christ despite the cost, despite the opposition that they faced, was the evidence that the word of God within them was at work. When the word of God is within us, it will produce in us deeper commitment to Christ.
We need to hear the word of God proclaimed, we need to read it, meditate upon it, memorise it, delight in it, let it have a secure place in our hearts. Because when it is there, this living and active word of God will produce a work in us for the glory of God. The word of God is not just words on a page, it is a living word.
Colossians 3:16 says “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God.”
When the word of God is within us, it will affect how we speak. It will give us the ability to teach and enocurage one another, to overcome fear, to be bold in our relationship with God, to sing songs of praise even when circumstances in life are tough, to become more Christlike in our character. Do you believe that God’s word can have such power in your life?
If it is a living word, and when that living word is within you, and within me, then it must do something. Somehting that is alive doesn’t sit dormant and inactive. It moves. And we can be sure of this: God’s word moves with power.
We beleive that the Bible is the word of God, that it is God’s complete revelation to the world on how to be saved. We believe that it is without error in the original documents. The Bible has survived every generation, it has been read by every generation, it has been translated into more languages than any other book (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Bible_translations_by_language). Human books rise up for a time, and then are quickly forgotten. One generation likes it, and the next generation forgets about it. But the word of God has been relevant to every generation for those who want to seek God with all their hearts. Nothing can replace it. We are confident that it is what it is: the word of God.
It teaches us who God is, who we are, how we can know Him, it shows us that Jesus is the centre to God’s plan of salvation, it teaches us what is right by God’s standards. But it doesn’t just give us information and knowledge. The word of God is living and active, and when it is within us, it will be at work within us.
Read, meditate, memorise, study, hear the word of God proclaimed every week as you gather with God’s people to worship Him – and you can be sure of this – the living word of God will be at work within you.
Bethel Baptist Church - Brisbane 