A Word Centered Church
The Living Word: Why Scripture Must Be at the Center of Our Church
Have you ever wondered what makes the Bible different from every other book? Why would someone like William Tyndale willingly give his life just to translate it into English? As I stand in my office looking at a painting of Tyndale hunched over his desk translating Scripture—with a friend standing watch lest he be caught—I’m reminded of the extraordinary power this book holds.
The Word of God Is Living
“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” (Hebrews 4:12).
Unlike any other book, the Bible alone is alive. Do you understand the depths of what that means? Seriously? Because I don’t. This is one of those truths Thomas Watson referred to as the “bottomlessness of the Bible.” You cannot fully grasp the truths in this book.
If this Word of God is living, then in it and through it we come to know the living God. Not know about Him, but to know Him. No other book can do that. You can read the best biography about anybody, but you will never meet them in that book. But we come to meet and know the Almighty living God in His Word.
I’ve been asked many times, “How do you know that this Bible is the Word of God?” Sometimes I’m intrigued by all the evidence—historical, archaeological, manuscript evidence. But personally speaking, I know this is the Word of God because it is alive and He speaks to me through it. That might sound baffling to some people, but friends, I mean that quite literally. This book is alive, and the Almighty God speaks to me personally in it and through it.
The Word of God Is Active
The Word of God is not just making sounds out of words. This Word goes out and does things. Think of God’s Word when He said, “Let there be light,” and there was light. Jesus on the Sea of Galilee saying, “Peace, be still.” Jesus after his friend Lazarus had died, saying, “Lazarus, come forth.”
Isaiah 55:10-11 tells us, “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven and do not return there but water the Earth… so shall my word be that goes out from my mouth, it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purpose.”
Martin Luther understood this when he kicked off the Protestant Reformation. Near the end of his life, when asked about his part in the Reformation’s success, he famously replied: “I simply taught, preached, wrote God’s Word, otherwise I did nothing… the Word so greatly weakened the papacy that no prince or emperor ever inflicted such losses upon it. I did nothing. The Word did everything.”
The Word of God Is Penetrating
The Word of God is “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” (Hebrews 4:12).
This means that while I am reading this Word, it is reading me. As I am looking to interpret this Word, it is interpreting and explaining me. The author of Hebrews explains this further: “And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give an account” (Hebrews 4:13).
The Word “exposed” here is unique in the New Testament. In ancient times, it described a criminal on his way to judgment with his head down in shame. A knife would sometimes be put under his chin to force him to meet the gaze of others. That’s what the Word of God does—it exposes us.
It’s uncomfortable to be faced with who we are spiritually. But as believers, we know we’re sick—actually, we were dead—but we have hope. That hope enables us to face our sin, to look in the mirror, to confess, and to open the Word of God and welcome its piercing power in our lives.
Putting It Into Practice
- Thank God for His holy Word. Let us not take this Bible for granted. There was a day when you had to risk your life to have this book in your possession. Now we labor over what color cover we want and how big a font size. Thank God for His Word. Read it. Apply it.
- Commit to being part of a Word-centered church. A church where the foundation is the Word of God. The core is the Word of God. The center is the Word of God. Where there is devotion and humility that asks, “How may we become more Word-centered? How can we become more faithful to the Word of God?”
When we build our lives and our churches on the living, active, and penetrating Word of God, we position ourselves to truly know Him and to be transformed by His truth.
Biblical Leadership Matters
Prayers That Transform The Church
Empowered By The Holy Spirit
A Word Centered Church
Deliberate Worship
Expressions of Worship
We hope you enjoyed the sermon and would love to see you in person. Plan your visit to Community Baptist Church in Spring Hill, Tennessee today!