Ministers of the Gospel are sent to dispense God's love, glory, power and wisdom to the world and to edify the body of Christ. We are heralds of God's Heavenly virtues.
One of the principal means by which God communicates His divine Presence is through words. That's why He has given His Word to us. His Word is the complete revelation of the Person of Jesus. And the Person of Jesus is the very representation of God Almighty. John literally calls Him God's icon.
As God's representatives and ambassadors, we carry a message of hope that the world so earnestly desires and needs, but cannot find...simply because they keep looking in the wrong places for it.
Now, remember what Paul said: the Kingdom of God is not in word but in power. We have an anointing from God. The Holy Spirit in us has energized our words with miracle working ability such that it must of necessity perform that which we speak. God said that the Word He has sent forth will accomplish that for which He sent it; in other words, His Word cannot fail. God's Word in your mouth is God Himself speaking.
No wonder Jesus told the disciples after His resurrection that if they forgive anyone's sins, they are forgiven and if they don't...well, that person should brace himself for a lot of trouble. But the point is, we are endowed with tremendous ability that reside in God's Word that we proclaim.
People can be restored when we preach the Gospel! People can experience the warmth of God's love and goodness when we minister to them. People can be freed from their afflictions and oppressions when we preach the Word. Demons must respond to God's Word and check out of human bodies once we order them in the Name of Jesus!
There are three important characteristics of God's Word that is seen in your message as you preach the Word:
# God's Word is like a sword
Hebrews 4:12 KJV
For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.
In the book of Revelation, John reported that he saw the Lord Jesus with a sharp two-edged sword coming out of His mouth (Revelation 1:16). That sword is His Word. It cuts into the deepest recesses of a man's life cutting apart mental strongholds and defeating all forms of negative thoughts.
No matter how hardened a sinner is, this Word which is like a sword cuts their hearts and gives them a heart of flesh. Remember what the Bible says about Peter's first sermon? It says "Now when they heard this , they were pricked in their heart, and said unto Peter and to the rest of the apostles, Men and brethren, what shall we do?" (Acts 2:37).
The Word of God pricks people's hearts and awakens them to the reality of God's world. It releases them from the shackles of the devil!
# God's Word is like a hammer
Jeremiah 23:29 KJV
Is not my word like as a fire? saith the Lord ; and like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces?
The Word of God acts like a hammer by shattering doubt. It enables you to know that you know that you know that you know that God loves you unconditionally. It shatters your limitations and erects new possibilities for you!
So whenever you minister the Word of God, remember that you're building up lives: "And now, brethren, I commend you to God, and to the word of his grace, which is able to build you up, and to give you an inheritance among all them which are sanctified." (Acts 20:32)
# God's Word is like fire
Jeremiah 23:29 KJV
Is not my word like as a fire? saith the Lord ; and like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces?
This is one awesome characteristic of the Word. It burns up and consumes chaff and puts holy urgency into us. As fire purifies, the Word which we minister causes the real man to emerge, so that it is only Christ that is manifested in the person.
This fire causes the message to keep resounding in their hearts and minds such that all they can do is to act upon the Word even years after they have heard that message!
Why would someone who has heard a message on soul winning decide to devote the rest of their whole life to do so? The Fire! The Word is like a blazing, hot FIRE!!!
So intense was the heat of Jesus' Words that the disciples said, "And they said one to another, Did not our heart burn within us, while he talked with us by the way, and while he opened to us the scriptures?" (Luke 24:32).
Maybe you've been preaching for some time and you are not really 'seeing' these characteristics manifested in your messages. Well, to preach fruitfully, A.W. Tozer says the first lesson you must learn is prayer. Get acquainted with the Author of the Word. Don't just talk out of your head! Share from your heart; that's from your spirit- which is His Spirit because you are mingled (or one) with Him. That's why it's so critical to be fervent in prayer, especially when you're going to preach the Gospel. Ask God to Voice Himself through you...then yield to Him. Learn to pray in the Spirit frequently- that's how you communicate on God's frequency. When you speak in tongues, God releases mysteries into your heart which open you up for very deep revelation you may not have heard any man of God share (it must definitely line up with His Word). Speak in tongues fervently. Don't stop. That's how to get 'Rhema' from God. When you pray in the Spirit, the Holy Spirit sharpens your focus on the Word. He gives you clarity of vision and insight. You begin to personally get the essence of the Scriptures you're reading. The Bible no longer becomes a foreign, outlandish, irrelevant book to you but a living, breathing Person.
In order to see these three important characteristics play out in your messages, you must apply yourself to diligently study the Word of God. Study the Word. Meditate on it. Ponder over it. Mutter it under your breath. Let it soak into your consciousness. Don't just throw Scriptures about in a superficial way because you can quote them. Get to know what God's mind is from the Word and its application to your peculiar situation. That's how it will profit you. Dig deep into the text. Never take Scriptures out of context lest you mislead people.
When you speak from a standpoint of revelation resulting from being filled with the Holy Spirit and in-depth study, the end result will be that the Word will indeed be a sword, a hammer and fire!
Glory!
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