Brothers and sisters, if I asked you to describe what the word of God is, how would you do that? We might immediately think of the bible; a book on the altar, or on our bookshelf at home. But the word of God is much more than that. Throughout the scriptures pictures are often used to help us understand what the word of God is like. The Psalmist says the word of God is a lamp to our feet, light upon our path. As we walk in a spiritually dark world, we need the light of God’s word to direct our steps, so that we don’t wander off into darkness, and stumble and fall.
In Jeremiah 23:29 God declares: “Is not my word like fire and like a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces?” The sense here is like a refining fire that purifies precious metals, melting and consuming impurities so that what is left is a pure metal like gold or silver. The concept is that through his word, God removes the impurity of our sin and makes us his holy and pure people, even as Jesus prayed: “Father make them holy by the truth; your word is truth.” By the analogy of a hammer that breaks the rock in pieces, the picture is one of God by his word breaking through the hardest of hearts against him—no opposition can ultimately withstand God’s word.
The word of God is also pictured as a seed. Seeds bear life, and from a single seed a plant gradually unfolds and emerges through the surface of the soil. In Luke, Jesus tells a story where he pictures the preached word as seed that is scattered. As the farmer scatters the seed, it brings forth a crop to be harvested—the church; the communion of saints. Just as a seed unfolds life in the soil it is planted in, the seed of God’s word unfolds new life in the hearts of those it is planted in—unseen life and transforming power. (Luke 8:5-15).
In today’s text, the writer to the Hebrews describes God’s word as a two-edged sword. Swords in ancient times were originally like daggers, before evolving into the longswords familiar with the medieval era. But the single edged longsword had its problems. The edge could become easily damaged when unintentionally striking other objects. When the edge became blunt it was not easy to resharpen the weapon during battle. The longsword needed a big back lift, making the warrior vulnerable to the attack of others, and it was not easy to control while holding a shield with the other hand.
But the double edged sword revolutionised battle. It was generally shorter and could be more easily controlled without need for a huge back lift. The shape of the blade meant it could be used to thrust more easily, and easily pierce between small gaps in armour, no matter how well-protected soldiers were. Once wounding a person it could swiftly and easily be manoeuvred from side to side to inflict a deep and fatal wound to internal organs. (Sorry to be so gruesome today!)
Why does the writer to the Hebrews speak of God’s word with such a gruesome image in mind?
Because as Christians we are in a spiritual battle. Our natural state is to be opposed to God and his word. The Devil tempts us to instead follow our own thoughts, reasonings, standards, imagination and delights, and to believe that ultimately we know best, causing breakdown in relationships between ourselves and others, and between us and God. When we fall to the temptation to wrong God and our neighbours like this, the Devil troubles our conscience.
Then he tempts us a second way: to deal with our guilt and shame our way. He tempts us to bury it deep down inside, far out of sight of others, yet we can’t conceal it from God. And he tempts us to put on our armour when challenged on our sin. We operate from the standpoint that what is of primary importance is to protect our reputation, popularity and pride rather than humbling ourselves and acknowledging our wrongs. We become defensive and blame others and even God for our behaviours, or we make excuses for why we said or did what we did. That’s exactly what the devil wants, because it destroys marriages, relationships and community, even church community.
But God’s word is living and active. God goes to work with the double-edged sword of his word (have you ever noticed ‘sword’ and ‘word’ are only a letter ‘s’ different!) to cut through our hard hearts, and pierce through our defences; our armour of self-justifications and blame of others. Through his word, God pierces to the division of soul and spirit, of joints and marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. God’s word cuts right to the core of us that we might see and discern what is the ungodly things we hold dear in our heart. Because before him no creature is hidden, but all are open and laid bare to the eyes of him before whom we must give account. Like Adam and Eve who tried to hide before God in the Garden of Eden, we cannot make coverings by which to conceal our unholiness before God.
Well, that’s all a bit grim and negative, isn’t it! Just as well today’s text doesn’t end there. What comes next?
We have a great High Priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God. Jesus is unlike any High Priest of the Old Testament. Those High Priests entered the Holy of Holies in the Temple to pay for the nation’s sin with the blood of a sacrificed animal. Jesus did not offer the blood of a sacrificed animal, but was sacrificed himself. Having been tempted in every respect as we are, Jesus was without sin. Yet the innocent Son of God took our own sin upon himself, was nailed to a cross, was then pierced between joints and marrow by the soldiers’ spear in his side. By his holy and precious blood that flowed from these wounds he paid the price for everyone in the world to be God’s own, reconciling them to him. Whereas every other High Priest only ministered in the earthly sanctuary in the Temple, Jesus has entered the holy of holies in the heavenly sanctuary itself, to open the way there for all those who hold fast to their confession of faith.
Jesus has done this for you and me. By holding firmly to the faith we profess—that by Jesus’ merit alone, by his work, his righteousness and obedience and humbling himself to the point of suffering and death, even death on a cross—we share in all the saving benefits he won for the world: the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. By holding firmly to the faith we profess, we shall also pass through the heavens in the same way that Jesus has, to receive our true home.
In Jesus we do not have a High Priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses. But he does more than sympathise with our weaknesses. He stepped into our world and was hung on a cross to save us. And he still comes to us through the Scriptures to speak to us. That is why the Bible is not just a book, but the living and active word of God—because the living Word made flesh is present and speaks through it. And the words that Jesus speaks through the Scriptures are Spirit and they are life (John 6:63). What other book has its author personally present to you, who still lives to speak through every page when it was first written and still does now?
So God comes to us to bring his saving help to us, through the Scriptures, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and spirit, of joints and marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart. He does this not to harm and destroy us, like a soldier in battle would try to do. He comes through the scriptures, piercing to the division of soul and spirit, joints and marrow to bring to our conscience that which needs repenting of, so that we are led to throw ourselves before the throne of grace, the divine throne of mercy which is our only help.
I’m reminded of the Apostle Peter’s Pentecost Day sermon in Acts 2. He proclaimed to the crowd: “Let all the house of Israel therefore know for certain that this Jesus whom you crucified God has made him both Lord and Christ.” (Acts 2:36).
Now when they heard this they were cut to the heart, and said to Peter and the rest of the apostles, “Brothers, what shall we do?” And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.” (Acts 2:37-38).
And so there is a great promise in our text: though sinful and undeserving, though unable to help ourselves enter the Kingdom of Heaven, the writer to the Hebrews urges us: “Let us therefore approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in time of need.”
How is it that the throne of a holy God—before whom we must all give account, before whom nothing is hidden—is a throne of grace? Because of Christ who was laid bare for us, pierced between joints and marrow to redeem and reconcile us to God by the precious blood he poured out from his wounds. His life was given in exchange for our life. He was without sin but took our sin upon himself. For those who place their faith in Jesus the decree is not one of punishment or death but mercy and grace in our time of need. Let us not place our confidence in our own self justifications of how good we might think we are, but to place our confidence in God’s justification of us—his declaration that we are right with him, through faith alone in Christ alone.
Again, this morning, our High Priest has come to give us the love and mercy we need but do not deserve. For all who have a troubled conscience today, be assured that the Lord of his church again feeds us with his flesh and blood to bring you the forgiveness, life and salvation that he won for the world on the Cross. He feeds you in the wilderness of this world to strengthen you to uphold the good confession of faith. He has freed you. He has saved you to be his own alone, by grace alone, through faith alone, to share in his life, holiness and righteousness. Let us never depart from the faith we confess from the Word of God, until the day we too are called to go through the heavens to worship God in truth and holiness with all of his saints, and the angels forever. Amen.
