The Bible is the Word of God and God has highly exalted His Word. The Psalmist said, “For thou hast exalted above everything thy name and thy word” (Psalm 138:2). Because God is a God of power, His Word must of necessity have power. Its power resides in what it is and what it can do. Those who know it then and can use it must have power. We shall briefly look at five reasons why there is power in the Word of God.
- It Reveals the Way of Salvation
Without the Word of God, God’s mighty plan of salvation would be unknown to us and, in ignorance and darkness, we would have missed God entirely and missed all the good things that we have found in Him. And talking about His power would have been out of the question. Paul wrote to Timothy saying,“.. .. and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings which are able to instruct you for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus” (2 Timothy 3:15).
Because the Bible is knowledge of God, those who do not know it perish for lack of knowledge (Hosea 4:6).
- It Guides and Directs
The Psalmist says, “Thy word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Psalm 119:105). Because God’s Word is light, those who have it have light. Those without it are in darkness. Can you imagine two ships at sea? One has a compass and the other hasn’t. The one with a compass knows where it is going and the one without a compass will end nowhere. So the one with a compass has the great advantage of knowing its direction. It will get to its destination, whereas the other ship is likely to suffer shipwreck. The Bible is to man what the compass is to a ship at sea.
In addition, the one that has light will go faster than the one who is struggling in darkness.
- It Has Power To Keep People Holy
The Bible says,
“How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to thy word. With my whole heart I seek thee! Let me not wander from thy commandments I have laid up thy word in my heart, that I might not sin against thee” Psalm 119:9-11).
The one with the Word of the Lord has that with which to guard his steps, and thereby keeps himself pure. Because he keeps himself pure, God’s power can flow through him unhindered.
- It Nourishes
The Lord Jesus said, “Man shall not live by bread alone.”The one who has the Word of God and feeds on it will be strong. When faced with temptation he will overcome them. He is able to wage war against the wicked one and overcome him, whereas undernourished people are a prey to the devil.
Power and good feeding go hand in hand in the natural level. Spiritual power and proper nourishment on the Word are indispensable in the spiritual realm. If you want power, feed on the Word. By studying it, you will know God in an increasing way and know your rights and privileges as a child of God so that you are not cheated.
- It Has Power To Help One To Overcome Temptation
The devil tempted the Lord Jesus. He wanted to get Him to sin. He calculated and found a time that was most suitable for his purpose. Jesus had been on a long fast of forty days and forty nights. Then the devil came to Him and said, “If you are the Son of God, command this stone to become bread.”
How did Jesus overcome this temptation? He did not argue with the devil. He quoted the Word of God to him with authority. He said to him, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live by bread alone’” (Luke 4:4). What if the Lord had not known what was written? What if He had not known that He could silence the enemy by using the Word? He would have been in trouble, and what far-reaching trouble it would have been!
The devil recognised that the Lord had overcome him, but he did not give up. He tried again and for the second time, the Lord overcame him by the appropriate use of the Word of God. Having been defeated twice by the use of the Scripture, the devil knew that the Scriptures were powerful and that his only chance of success was to use them. So the two princes – the Prince of God and the prince of darkness entered into a mighty battle and their weapon was the Word of God.
The prince of darkness said, “If you are the Son of God, throw yourself down from here; for it is written, ‘He will give his angels charge over you, to guard you, and on their hands, they will bear you up, lest you strike your foot against a stone’” (Luke:9-11). The devil was now fighting with the Word of God. What did Jesus do? Did He resort to another weapon? No! He continued to use the Word of God, and He used it very effectively, so much that He defeated the devil. He seemed to have said something like this to the devil, “Satan, I know the Word of God says that, but I want you to face something from the Word that is very pertinent. The Word says, “You shall not tempt the Lord your God.” (Luke 4:12). That was final for that time; for when the devil heard it, “He departed from Him until an opportune time.”
(Luke 4:13). So the Bible is an effective weapon against the devil, but it must be used by one who knows how to use it.
In describing the whole amour of God that the effective soldier must put on, the apostle includes the Word of God. He says, “And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit” (Ephesians 6:17).
The sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God, is used to attack the wicked one and it is also used for defence. Those who how to use it effectively: with all prayer and supplication coupled with a holy life, will know victory.
6. It is Effective
The Word of God is effective. It accomplishes God’s purpose for it. The Bible says, “For as the rain and the snow come down from heaven, and return not thither but water the earth, making it bring forth and sprout giving seed to the sower and bread to the eater, so shall my word be that goes forth from my mouth; it shall not return to me empty, but it shall accomplish that which I purposed and prosper in the thing for which I sent it” (Isaiah 55:10-11).
So the Word of the Lord is a source of spiritual power to be sought, discovered, and used for the glory of God, the edification of the believer, and the downfall of the enemy.