💪🏽 Hebrews 4:12 | The Many Roles of the Word of God

📧 In today’s email…

• 📖 Connecting Hebrews 4:12 to other parts of Scripture

• 🧐 A practical step you can take today

• 🧠 A quote from an unsurprising place

• 📚️ Resources to help you connect further with Hebrews 4:12

 🧠 Memorize

_{see if you know what words go in the blanks}

For the ____ __ ___ __ living ___ _______, sharper ____ ___ two-_____ _____, piercing to the ________ of soul ___ __ spirit,

of joints ___ __ marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the _____.

Hebrews 4:12

Connecting to Other Parts of Scripture 📖

Yesterday, we learned that the “word of God” is so powerful that it can distinguish between things that seem indistinguishable.

Let’s look at other places throughout Scripture that mention God’s word and see what we can learn about the role it should play in our lives.

Here are just a few examples:

When God created the earth, he did it by speaking. His word is the tool he used in the act of creation:

The word of God has healing power and the power to deliver from spiritual oppression:

The word of God keeps us from sin:

God’s word is a source of light and guidance for how we should live:

When the word of God is heard and understood, it bears fruit:

God’s word brings life and nourishment:

Hearing God’s Word is essential to eternal life:

Living out God’s word is evidence of true discipleship:

Hearing God’s word builds faith:

The word of God is the sword of the Spirit. It is a weapon for spiritual battle:

And lastly, as we learned yesterday, the word of God is like a surgeon’s scalpel, cutting away what needs to be cut and keeping what needs to be kept:

Apply & respond: A Simple Practice 🤔 

The list you just read isn’t even the complete list of the roles God’s word plays in our lives. 🤯

If the word of God is this powerful, why do we sometimes treat it as a nice-to-have?

Why do we sometimes treat it as “a book” and not THE book?

Why do we go days or weeks without reading it?

The God who created us - the Author of our lives - has revealed himself and his heart for us through his word.

I pray that we let this sink in and not take God’s word for granted!

Reflect 🤔 

When you consider the immense power of the word of God, what needs to change about how you interact with it?

Practice 📖 

Do you have a habit of reading Scripture? Are you being nourished by it? Are you being transformed by it?

If not, consider forming a new habit of regular time reading God’s word.

Here are a few examples of how you can read your Bible:

• Read the Bible in a year from start to finish (there are many plans out there to choose from)

• Focus on reading and studying 1 book of the Bible each month

• Read passages from different parts of the Bible that relate to a specific theme or topic

💡 Bonus: Do it with a friend or two or three. The early church often read or listened to the word of God in community!

Wisdom 🧐 

Our quote this week comes from the word of God itself:

“All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness”

2 Timothy 3:16

Recommended Resources 🎙️ 

Here are a few resources to help you dig deeper into this week’s passage and topics:

• 📹️ Bible Project: Overview of Hebrews (link)

• 📕 The Bible (ESV | KJV | NIV)

• ☕️ The Culture Translator newsletter by Axis (a faith-based non-profit) equips parents to help their teens view the world and surrounding culture through a biblical lens (Subscribe here in one click)

• 🎵 Hebrews 4:12 in song by Abby Houston (Listen on Spotify | Listen on Apple Music)

Answer key ✅ 

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