Devotions this week based on the Message: “God’s Part…Our Part?”
Mark 4:27 Night and day, whether he sleeps or gets up, the seed sprouts and grows, though he does not know how. 28 All by itself the soil produces grain—first the stalk, then the head, then the full kernel in the head.
“I don’t know how. It did it all by itself.”
This sounds like an excuse I may have made as a kid when something I did broke something and I didn’t want to own up to it. I claimed ignorance and claimed I was not the prime mover behind the broken item.
Jesus is not a young man giving an excuse why something broke, he is teaching the reality of the power of the Word of God.
We can’t scientifically or psychologically dissect the sentences, words and letters of the Word of God and discern the power contained in them. We can’t look at the effect the Word has on the hearts and lives of individuals and claim we have some ability to aid the Word to do its work.
It would be as ridiculous as saying of a seed, “I broke it apart and pulled the little shoot out of the seed so it could grow.”
It does it all by itself. So does the Word.
So what does it do?
First, it GROUNDS us in faith.
Romans 10:17 Consequently, faith comes from hearing the message, and the message is heard through the word of Christ.
Ephesians 1:13 And you also were included in Christ when you heard the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation.
Can you diagram and dissect how the Word worked its way into your heart to lead you to believe the truth that Jesus is your Savior and all the Words of God are true? Probably not. Sure you might be aware of parents who shared God’s Word with you, a family member, or friend, but it’s difficult to identify how God changed your natural inclination to reject Jesus to now believe in him. But he did. The Word did. The truths of faith found in the Word have worked to GROUND you in your faith.
Second it GUIDES us through life.
There’s a useful power in the Word that is second to none. When God works conviction that Jesus is “the Way, the Truth, and the Life” all the words God gives become useful for every aspect of life. The Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy:
2 Timothy 3:16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
Psalm 119:105 Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light for my path.
How many times have we looked back in life after finding truth in God’s Word and thinking, “Wow, I wasted a lot of time trying to do life my way.” It’s time to let the power of the Word go to work to be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
Tomorrow, one more important thing the Word of God does.
Apply: Some of the best practical wisdom of the Bible for life is found in the book of Proverbs. Centuries old, yet relevant today. Read through Chapter 23 of Proverbs today. What one proverb is worth memorizing and implementing in your life today?
Prayer: Lord, thank you for packing the power of faith and power of life guidance in the pages of your Bible. Compel me to spend more time in the Word of God so the Word can do what it does all by itself inside of me. AMEN.