During the ministry of Jesus Christ many disciples left Him forever and never came back. But Jesus was not burdened by this because He knew he was in the center of His father’s will. 67 So Jesus said to the twelve, “You do not want to go away also, do you?”68 Simon Peter answered Him,“Lord, to whom shall we go? You have words of eternal life.69 We have believed and have come to know that You are the Holy One of God.” (John 06:67-69). Peter was very sure that his very existence was by receiving the words of eternal life from Jesus Christ. He could not imagine a situation where he could not get the words of eternal life. Peter was fully aware that the only source of the words of eternal life was Jesus Christ Himself. Jesus told the devil when he came to tempt Him in Mathew 04:04 “But He answered and said, “It is written, ‘Man shall not live on bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.'”. Jesus was talking not only about Him as a man but also about all men. So for our spiritual life, the most essential nourishment we need is every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.
“God’s word is cleansing us when we receive it even though we might not feel it.”
After becoming born again, a believer has to grow in salvation. Apostle Peter gives the very essential requirement for spiritual growth in 1 Peter 02:01,02 ” 01 Therefore, putting aside all malice and all deceit and hypocrisy and envy and all slander, 02 like newborn babies, long for the pure milk of the word, so that by it you may grow in respect to salvation.”
When the apostles were imprisoned in the beginning of the early church, the angel of the Lord released them from the prison in a miraculous way. The angel asked them to stand and speak the words of this life. The requirement of every man is to receive the words of life and to have abundant life. Act 05:19,20 ” 19 But the angel of the Lord by night opened the prison doors, and brought them forth, and said 20 Go, stand and speak in the temple to the people all the words of this life.”
Paul preached to the church at Ephesus day and night for three years. At the end, when he was about to leave them, he gave them great warning about their future. But even in front of this great danger Paul was encouraging them to depend completely on God and His word of grace, which would build them and give them their inheritance. Acts 20:29-32 ” 29 I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; 30 and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after them. 31 Therefore be on the alert, remembering that night and day for a period of three years I did not cease to admonish each one with tears. 32 And now I commend you to God and to the word of His grace, which is able to build you up and to give you the inheritance among all those who are sanctified.” While Jesus was talking to His disciples, He told them in John 15:03 “You are already clean because of the word which I have spoken to you”. God’s word is cleansing us when we receive it even though we might not feel it. When we keep God’s word in our heart, it will guard us against sin. Psalms 119:11 “Your word I have treasured in my heart, That I may not sin against You.”
After teaching the fundamentals of the New Covenant life to the disciples in the sermon on the mount, Jesus told them to be hearers and doers of His words. Only the hearers and doers will survive the testing of faith. Mathew 07:24-27 ” 24 Therefore everyone who hears these words of Mine and acts on them, may be compared to a wise man who built his house on the rock. 25 And the rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and yet it did not fall, for it had been founded on the rock. 26 Everyone who hears these words of Mine and does not act on them, will be like a foolish man who built his house on the sand. 27 The rain fell, and the floods came, and the winds blew and slammed against that house; and it fell – and great was its fall.” When anyone becomes only a hearer and not doer of God’s word he is deceiving himself and inviting the judgment upon him. James 01:23-25 ” 23 For if anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks at his natural face in a mirror; 24 for once he has looked at himself and gone away, he has immediately forgotten what kind of person he was. 25 But one who looks intently at the perfect law, the law of liberty, and abides by it, not having become a forgetful hearer but an effectual doer, this man will be blessed in what he does.”
The boy Samuel and the mother Mary are good examples for us. We read in 1 Samuel 03:10 “Then the LORD came and stood and called as at other times, “Samuel! Samuel!” And Samuel said, “Speak, for Your servant is listening.” and also we read in Luke 01:38,45 ” 38 And Mary said, “Behold, the bond slave of the Lord; may it be done to me according to your word.” And the angel departed from her. 45 “And blessed is she who believed that there would be a fulfillment of what had been spoken to her by the Lord.” These are the kind of examples we must learn from.
May God help all of us to receive God’s word and act on it by faith.
