Hebrews 4:12-16 — The Bible is Alive??

READ THIS: Hebrews 4:12-16

12 For the word of God is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. 13 Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him to whom we must give account.
 
14 Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has ascended into heaven, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. 15 For we do not have a high priest who is unable to empathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are—yet he did not sin. 16 Let us then approach God’s throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need.

WHAT’S THIS MEAN, ANYWAY?

First of all, what does it mean that a book of words is alive and active? Well, supporting scripture actually can help us understand. In Proverbs 4, God tells us to listen to His words carefully because they are life to those who find them! And we have the word of God written on our hearts (check out 2 Corin. 3:1-3!) so God's words will literally equip us with His power and love, which is so awesome!

We also should never take God's word lightly. Every word is "sharper than any double-edged sword" and it holds so much divine power.

Secondly, we have so much to be thankful for because Jesus understands all our suffering, what other "god" out there willingly suffered for the sake of understanding their people? It's pretty amazing! And because of that, we should never feel like we need to clean ourselves up before going to God for help, before approaching His throne. Ideally, God is the most approachable relationship we have in our lives because we know He knows us so intimately, even more than we do (check out Psalms 139:1-4!) 

THINK ABOUT IT:

1. How does it make you feel knowing God's words are "alive and active?" Does that change how you think about the Bible?
 
2. Do you think you go to God first for help when you are struggling? If yes, how has that helped you? If no, how can you remember to next time?

TRY THIS:

To help us practice having God's word written on our hearts, your challenge this week is to memorize verse 15! Writing it many times on paper can help, or making it your lock screen on your phone, or putting it on a sticky note on your mirror and reading it over and over while you brush your teeth!

SONG OF THE WEEK:
 
This week, we saw how Jesus lived His life and that points us to living our lives differently! Think about this concept through the song of the week!





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