The Word of God is more than just a book of instruction. The Word is Jesus, and this great Word of Truth that is living breathes life into every situation of our lives. I have heard the Bible called "a book of instruction." And it is. I have heard the Bible called "a book of conviction." And it is. I have also heard the Bible called "a book of knowledge." And it is. But the Word, God's Word, is much more than that. The answers in the Word of God are complete and purely Jesus, and His physical presence as recorded in the Bible was as he said, "the fulfilment of the Word!" When Jesus read the scrolls at Nazareth, his boyhood home, He read the scroll of Isaiah the prophet. Here is what He read. 18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free, 19 and that the time of the Lord’s favor has come.” Jesus read Isaiah 61:1 and then said in Luke 4:20-21 20 He rolled up the scroll, handed it back to the attendant, and sat down. All eyes in the synagogue looked at him intently.21 Then he began to speak to them. “The Scripture you’ve just heard has been fulfilled this very day!”
Jesus "being" the Word of God might be just a little beyond our comprehension, because we Americanized Christians want to theorize things to make them more tangible for us to understand. But just realize that a prophecy given to the prophet Isaiah over 700 years prior to the birth of Jesus was now standing fulfilled in front of their eyes. The Word of God was there. And the Word of God is just as fresh and real today if we will immerse ourselves into the power of that Word. I could not express all that the Word of God is if I tried, so I just pray to the Lord to help me understand as much as my feeble mind can handle. Even in that, I am overwhelmed by the purity of it!!
When the Word says something. I must follow it, believe it, and make it my life!! Easier said than done, but that is the goal! There are times that the Word wants to do more than I realized it can. One of those times is when the Word of God becomes the Word of all comfort. The Word exhibits, in real time, the very image of Jesus and allows us to receive a palatable expression from Him. That expresson from God through His Word is real and helpful in times of needt. Paul, in his tumultuous times of ministry, had to rely on the Lord to comfort Him in the midst of great persecution and suffering. So when Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 1:3-5 about the comfort of God. It means something to us as well. Here is what the scritpure says, 3 All praise to God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. God is our merciful Father and the source of all comfort.4 He comforts us in all our troubles so that we can comfort others. When they are troubled, we will be able to give them the same comfort God has given us.5 For the more we suffer for Christ, the more God will shower us with his comfort through Christ.
This comfort that Jesus gives to us is particularly personal and helpful, as it should be!! So when I make the statement that "only Jesus can comfort me." It should mean something more...and it does! In another translation the verses in 2 Corinthians says that He is the "God of all comfort!" And yes, that is very true....VERY TRUE!! Today let Him be the God of comfort to you and trust that His Word is alive and working to complete you and me. If you have a strong faithwalk, then all of this makes sense. If not, then you mght want to get in the Word more and see just how much Jesus shows you about comfort. I too, get attacked at every turn of my life, and the enemy tries to shut me down, but praise God, the Word is real and powerful and He lifts me up to handle that attack. I don't always do the right things, but hopefully what I do is for the right reason, based on the Word of God.
To that end, I will continue to fight the good fight and believe God still has more fight left in me to follow His Word. His powerful Word!!
The Pilgrimage Continues.....
David Warren
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