If it is just a sliver of paper, how come it hurts so much when it cuts? Scientists attribute the sting of a paper cut to chemically coated fibers as well as bacteria that remain lodged in the skin after the cut.[1] You mean to tell me that little microscopic particles exert that kind influence? Let’s just think about that for a moment! If paper has that kind of clout, imagine the penetrating power of the Word of God.
Let us therefore strive to enter that rest, so that no one may fall by the same sort of disobedience. 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. And no creature is hidden from his sight, but all are naked and exposed to the eyes of him to whom we must give account. Hebrews 4:11-13 ESV
The writer wants us to understand the piercing sharpness of the Word of God. Paper may nick the skin, but the Scriptures dig deep into the soul. The deepest recesses of the stubbornly defiant cannot withstand its penetrating power. The Bible’s healing balm finds its way into the dark cavern of the perpetually discouraged. It sneaks past the sentries of sadness, releasing the joy that is shackled within. No troubled heart, no guilt-ridden conscience, no hidden hope is beyond the reach of its blade.
The Bible is the ultimate two-edged sword. It is sharp enough! It is sharp enough to encourage the fainthearted, to correct the wayward, to strengthen the weak, to direct the misguided, to challenge the skeptic, and to lead people to the Truth. Are you using it?
My Prayer: Lord, my confidence often rests in my words—not in your Word. Forgive me for that. Help me to trust the power of your double-edged sword. Help me to lovingly use it, knowing it can reach people and places I cannot.
[1] “A Moment Of Science” accessed on May 5, 2010 www.indianapublicmedia.org