Word
Intro
This is a short session looking at what the Word of God is. The Bible says many things about itself, the results of it, its power, what it does for people and so much more. If we understood the Bible more fully then we’d appreciate it even more, read it more, learn it, speak it out more, know its power inside of us and through us. It’s a weapon, we’re in a war, so we need to use it!!
Psalm 138.2 says this, “I will worship toward Your holy temple and praise Your name for Your loving-kindness and for Your truth and faithfulness; for You have exalted above all else Your name and Your word and You have magnified Your word above all Your name!”
God has exalted his name and his word, and has magnified his Word above all his name. Amazing! So we know that the Word of God has a power and honour that should make us respect it.
The Word Is – in lyrics
Here are some things about God’s Word from rap lyrics written by myfishbites:
“Your wisdom it is priceless, the King of endless ages
Your Word is truth filled pages, you’re peace while the world rages”
“In the face of God’s truth in his Word, no longer heard, it’s so absurd
No wonder stagnation’s occurred, our vision’s blurred”
“Your faithfulness is like a shield, your truth it will protect me”
“So I stand on God’s Word, his truth in written verses”
“Not empty handed in this fight, I’m ready for the battle
The Word of God, the sword I swing, and prayer makes Satan scuttle”
“So dig into the Word of God and pray to seek God’s face
Replace those empty feelings with ones of love and grace”
“So chuck, away, the words, of hate, that break, un-make, that shake, instead take
The Word of God and see how God wants you to be, you’ll see, like me, that he will set you free”
“My priority’s the Lord, the Spirit and his Word, that means saying to God I’ll obey all that I’ve heard”
“Words that are Biblical, to make your vision bright
Like a lamp on a hill, I’m beaming rays that will en-light”
“Spiritual not physical – it’s prayer we use to fight
With the power of God’s Word, we put demons in to flight”
“The heavens show you’re there, the earth displays your flare,
The sunlight shows you care, God’s Word your written share”
“Each believer filled, the Spirit distilled, God’s word revealed and now fulfilled
The power of death was killed, the Spirit’s life instilled”
“Just like a doctor, my sinful life could shock ya
Like a goal stopper, but your Word a real sin blocker”
Your knowledge
What kinds of things do you know that the Word of God (the Bible) can do for you and others? Think about your own Bible knowledge, maybe something written in worship songs, or even from the rap lines above. Write a few things down below:
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Psalm 138.2 says this:
I will bow down toward your holy temple
and will praise your name
for your love and your faithfulness,
for you have exalted above all things
your name and your word.
Words
Are powerful. Can anyone remember anything a teacher said to them at school, maybe even when they were younger? I remember 2 teachers. The first one at Primary school made me stand outside the room saying that I’d done something I hadn’t done. I didn’t like her at all! Another teacher said about me that I was the best natural actor he’d ever seen. I liked that teacher!
Words stay with people. It’s not true that “sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me.” Your words have a real impact. You can encourage or destroy someone. You can forgive or reject someone. You can make them happy or depressed. And what is more, you have a choice which words you speak. Sometimes we loose control, but especially if we have God inside us, we can make a choice to say positive things.
Philippians 4.8 says (MSG): “Summing it all up, friends, I’d say you’ll do best by filling your minds and meditating on things true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious—the best, not the worst; the beautiful, not the ugly; things to praise, not things to curse.”
This encourages us to think (and then speak, as whatever is inside of you comes out) – about things that are true, noble, reputable, authentic, compelling, gracious, good, the best and not the worst, beautiful and not the ugly. If you speak like this, it will transform your life and the people around you. If others know you aren’t going to stab them in the back with your words, or they know you’ll speak lovingly in truth – you’ll make a huge difference in your world and people will notice God in you
Movie clip
One YouTube clip worth watching (it’s about words written not spoken) is ‘Johnny the Bagger’
Jonny The Bagger direct link – https://youtu.be/Xgq1rSR38zg (checked October 2019)
Stories
UCB notes tell these 2 stories – click here for UCB – direct link has been changed
1) One day in a small country church an altar boy accidentally dropped the communion wine. The officiating priest slapped him and shouted, ‘Leave, and don’t come back!’ That boy became General Tito, the brutal communist dictator who ruled the people of ‘Yugoslavia’ for years.
2) In a big city cathedral another altar boy dropped the communion wine. His bishop turned to him and whispered reassuringly, ‘It’s okay, some day you’ll be a great priest.’ That boy became Archbishop Fulton Sheen, whose sermons touched the hearts of millions on national television.
Your words have a huge impact! If your words have an impact, just think of the impact that the Word of God has…
Is the Bible reliable?
Some people think that the Bible was just written by a bunch of men, that it isn’t very reliable and ask how come certain Bible books are included and others (for example the Book of Enoch) weren’t included in the Bible. These are good questions to think about.
A few facts. The whole New Testament was copied within 100 years of them happening and being written. The Gospels were written by people who had firsthand experience of Jesus. If we think about some famous authors from history like Plato, Socrates, Aristotle – we find out that there are very few written copies of their work. For example there are only 7 copies from Plato’s original work and the earliest happened 900 years later! The New Testament has 5600 copies, all written within 100 years and with a 99.5% accuracy between each of the versions!
When the ‘Dead Sea Scrolls’ were found, they realised it was exactly the same (give or take a few typos) as the copies of the Bible discovered years before. Every single archaeological discovery made proves the Bible is true. For example some people doubted Herod was real but they found evidence, evidence was found of Peter’s house and that Capernaum was a real place.
When the Bible was put together, it wasn’t a random decision. The truth is that people had known for years what was inspired by God and what wasn’t. When the Bible was put together it was just making this official. For more information visit https://carm.org/bible.
The Bible testifies that it is the truth (2 Tim 3.16, 2 Peter 1.21) and Jesus affirmed Old Testament verses by quoting them and fulfilling them. Jesus fulfilled around 100 Old Testament prophecies perfectly. For example, compare Psalm 22.18 and Matthew 27.35
Most importantly, what does the Bible say about the Bible?!
Below is a list of what the Bible says about the Word of God (note this isn’t a complete list). Split into small groups and take a few of these each and look them up. We’ve made these random so everyone gets to look around the Bible!
Psalm 119.105 – A lamp to my feet and a light to my path
Romans 10.17 – the way that faith comes
2 Peter 3.5 – created the world
Jeremiah 23.29 – like a fire / like a hammer that breaks a rock in pieces
Luke 8.11 – the seed is the word of God
Proverbs 4.21-22 – life to those who find them and health / medicine for body
Hebrews 4.12 – living / active / sharper than double-edged sword / divides soul and spirit / divides bone and marrow / judges thoughts and attitudes of the heart
2 Samuel 7.28 – trustworthy
John 1.1 – Jesus is the Word
Revelation 19.13 – one of the names of the risen Jesus
Isaiah 40.8 – stands forever
Matthew 4.4 – man lives on it
Mark 14.49 – Scripture must be fulfilled
John 10.35 – cannot be broken
2 Samuel 22.31 / Psalm 18.30 / Proverbs 30.5 – flawless
Romans 1.2 – the gospel was promised through it
Romans 9.6 – doesn’t fail
Revelation 22.18-19 – nothing should be added or taken away from it
Ephesians 6.17 – sword of the spirit
2 Timothy 2.9 – it is not chained
Hebrews 1.3 – sustains all things by his powerful word
Hebrews 6.5 – good
Psalm 56.10 / Psalm 65.4,10 – to be praised
1 John 2.5 – God’s love is made complete through obedience to it
Conclusion
Make a commitment to God today to do 2 things. First of all, to read the Bible every day in some way or another. Use notes, the Bible, books, texts, Instagram, Facebook, anything. Second, ask God to help you to live and speak his words to make a difference for him in this world. Pray this every day and see what happens! Email and let us know!