THE
WORD AS A WEAPON
Memorise:
For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged 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. Hebrew
4:12
Read:
Matthew 4:1-11, 4 Then
was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil.
2 And when he had fasted forty days and
forty nights, he was afterward an hungred.
3 And when the tempter came to him, he said,
If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.
4 But he answered and said, It is written,
Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the
mouth of God.
5 Then the devil taketh him up into the holy
city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple,
6 And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of
God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge
concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time
thou dash thy foot against a stone.
7 Jesus said unto him, It is written again,
Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God.
8 Again, the devil taketh him up into an
exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the
glory of them;
9 And saith unto him, All these things will
I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me.
10 Then
saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt
worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.
11 Then
the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him.
Bible in one year: Genesis 29-30, 29 Then Jacob went on his journey, and came
into the land of the people of the east.
2 And he looked, and behold a well in the
field, and, lo, there were three flocks of sheep lying by it; for out of that
well they watered the flocks: and a great stone was upon the well's mouth.
3 And thither were all the flocks gathered:
and they rolled the stone from the well's mouth, and watered the sheep, and put
the stone again upon the well's mouth in his place.
4 And Jacob said unto them, My brethren,
whence be ye? And they said, Of Haran
are we.
5 And he said unto them, Know ye Laban the
son of Nahor? And they said, We know him.
6 And he said unto them, Is he well? And
they said, He is well: and, behold, Rachel his daughter cometh with the sheep.
7 And he said, Lo, it is yet high day,
neither is it time that the cattle should be gathered together: water ye the
sheep, and go and feed them.
8 And they said, We cannot, until all the
flocks be gathered together, and till they roll the stone from the well's
mouth; then we water the sheep.
9 And while he yet spake with them, Rachel
came with her father's sheep; for she kept them.
10 And it came to pass, when Jacob saw Rachel
the daughter of Laban his mother's brother, and the sheep of Laban his mother's
brother, that Jacob went near, and rolled the stone from the well's mouth, and
watered the flock of Laban his mother's brother.
11 And Jacob kissed Rachel, and lifted up his
voice, and wept.
12 And Jacob told Rachel that he was her
father's brother, and that he was Rebekah's son: and she ran and told her
father.
13 And it came to pass, when Laban heard the
tidings of Jacob his sister's son, that he ran to meet him, and embraced him,
and kissed him, and brought him to his house. And he told Laban all these
things.
14 And Laban said to him, Surely thou art my
bone and my flesh. And he abode with him the space of a month.
15 And Laban said unto Jacob, Because thou
art my brother, shouldest thou therefore serve me for nought? tell me, what
shall thy wages be?
16 And Laban had two daughters: the name of
the elder was Leah, and the name of the younger was Rachel.
17 Leah was tender eyed; but Rachel was
beautiful and well favoured.
18 And Jacob loved Rachel; and said, I will
serve thee seven years for Rachel thy younger daughter.
19 And Laban said, It is better that I give
her to thee, than that I should give her to another man: abide with me.
20 And Jacob served seven years for Rachel;
and they seemed unto him but a few days, for the love he had to her.
21 And Jacob said unto Laban, Give me my
wife, for my days are fulfilled, that I may go in unto her.
22 And Laban gathered together all the men of
the place, and made a feast.
23 And it came to pass in the evening, that
he took Leah his daughter, and brought her to him; and he went in unto her.
24 And Laban gave unto his daughter Leah
Zilpah his maid for an handmaid.
25 And it came to pass, that in the morning,
behold, it was Leah: and he said to Laban, What is this thou hast done unto me?
did not I serve with thee for Rachel? wherefore then hast thou beguiled me?
26 And Laban said, It must not be so done in
our country, to give the younger before the firstborn.
27 Fulfil her week, and we will give thee
this also for the service which thou shalt serve with me yet seven other years.
28 And Jacob did so, and fulfilled her week:
and he gave him Rachel his daughter to wife also.
29 And Laban gave to Rachel his daughter
Bilhah his handmaid to be her maid.
30 And he went in also unto Rachel, and he
loved also Rachel more than Leah, and served with him yet seven other years.
31 And when the Lord saw that Leah was hated, he opened her
womb: but Rachel was barren.
32 And Leah conceived, and bare a son, and
she called his name Reuben: for she said, Surely the Lord hath looked upon my affliction; now
therefore my husband will love me.
33 And she conceived again, and bare a son;
and said, Because the Lord hath heard I was hated, he hath therefore
given me this son also: and she called his name Simeon.
34 And she conceived again, and bare a son;
and said, Now this time will my husband be joined unto me, because I have born
him three sons: therefore was his name called Levi.
35 And she conceived again, and bare a son:
and she said, Now will I praise theLord:
therefore she called his name Judah ;
and left bearing.
30 And when Rachel saw that she bare Jacob no
children, Rachel envied her sister; and said unto Jacob, Give me children, or
else I die.
2 And Jacob's anger was kindled against
Rachel: and he said, Am I in God's stead, who hath withheld from thee the fruit
of the womb?
3 And she said, Behold my maid Bilhah, go in
unto her; and she shall bear upon my knees, that I may also have children by
her.
4 And she gave him Bilhah her handmaid to
wife: and Jacob went in unto her.
5 And Bilhah conceived, and bare Jacob a son.
6 And Rachel said, God hath judged me, and
hath also heard my voice, and hath given me a son: therefore called she his
name Dan.
7 And Bilhah Rachel's maid conceived again,
and bare Jacob a second son.
8 And Rachel said, With great wrestlings
have I wrestled with my sister, and I have prevailed: and she called his name
Naphtali.
9 When Leah saw that she had left bearing,
she took Zilpah her maid, and gave her Jacob to wife.
10 And Zilpah Leah's maid bare Jacob a son.
11 And Leah said, A troop cometh: and she
called his name Gad.
12 And Zilpah Leah's maid bare Jacob a second
son.
13 And Leah said, Happy am I, for the
daughters will call me blessed: and she called his name Asher.
14 And Reuben went in the days of wheat
harvest, and found mandrakes in the field, and brought them unto his mother
Leah. Then Rachel said to Leah, Give me, I pray thee, of thy son's mandrakes.
15 And she said unto her, Is it a small
matter that thou hast taken my husband? and wouldest thou take away my son's
mandrakes also? And Rachel said, Therefore he shall lie with thee to night for
thy son's mandrakes.
16 And Jacob came out of the field in the
evening, and Leah went out to meet him, and said, Thou must come in unto me;
for surely I have hired thee with my son's mandrakes. And he lay with her that
night.
17 And God hearkened unto Leah, and she
conceived, and bare Jacob the fifth son.
18 And Leah said, God hath given me my hire,
because I have given my maiden to my husband: and she called his name Issachar.
19 And Leah conceived again, and bare Jacob
the sixth son.
20 And Leah said, God hath endued me with a
good dowry; now will my husband dwell with me, because I have born him six
sons: and she called his name Zebulun.
21 And afterwards she bare a daughter, and
called her name Dinah.
22 And God remembered Rachel, and God
hearkened to her, and opened her womb.
23 And she conceived, and bare a son; and
said, God hath taken away my reproach:
24 And she called his name Joseph; and said,
The Lord shall add to me another son.
25 And it came to pass, when Rachel had born
Joseph, that Jacob said unto Laban, Send me away, that I may go unto mine own
place, and to my country.
26 Give me my wives and my children, for whom
I have served thee, and let me go: for thou knowest my service which I have
done thee.
27 And Laban said unto him, I pray thee, if I
have found favour in thine eyes, tarry: for I have learned by experience that
the Lord hath blessed me for thy sake.
28 And he said, Appoint me thy wages, and I
will give it.
29 And he said unto him, Thou knowest how I
have served thee, and how thy cattle was with me.
30 For it was little which thou hadst before
I came, and it is now increased unto a multitude; and the Lord hath blessed thee since my coming: and now
when shall I provide for mine own house also?
31 And he said, What shall I give thee? And
Jacob said, Thou shalt not give me any thing: if thou wilt do this thing for
me, I will again feed and keep thy flock.
32 I will pass through all thy flock to day,
removing from thence all the speckled and spotted cattle, and all the brown
cattle among the sheep, and the spotted and speckled among the goats: and of
such shall be my hire.
33 So shall my righteousness answer for me in
time to come, when it shall come for my hire before thy face: every one that is
not speckled and spotted among the goats, and brown among the sheep, that shall
be counted stolen with me.
34 And Laban said, Behold, I would it might
be according to thy word.
35 And he removed that day the he goats that
were ringstraked and spotted, and all the she goats that were speckled and
spotted, and every one that had some white in it, and all the brown among the
sheep, and gave them into the hand of his sons.
36 And he set three days' journey betwixt
himself and Jacob: and Jacob fed the rest of Laban's flocks.
37 And Jacob took him rods of green poplar,
and of the hazel and chesnut tree; and pilled white strakes in them, and made
the white appear which was in the rods.
38 And he set the rods which he had pilled
before the flocks in the gutters in the watering troughs when the flocks came
to drink, that they should conceive when they came to drink.
39 And the flocks conceived before the rods,
and brought forth cattle ringstraked, speckled, and spotted.
40 And Jacob did separate the lambs, and set
the faces of the flocks toward the ringstraked, and all the brown in the flock
of Laban; and he put his own flocks by themselves, and put them not unto
Laban's cattle.
41 And it came to pass, whensoever the
stronger cattle did conceive, that Jacob laid the rods before the eyes of the
cattle in the gutters, that they might conceive among the rods.
42 But when the cattle were feeble, he put
them not in: so the feebler were Laban's, and the stronger Jacob's.
43 And the man increased exceedingly, and had
much cattle, and maidservants, and menservants, and camels, and asses.
John 17:1-19; 17 These words spake Jesus, and lifted up his
eyes to heaven, and said, Father, the hour is come; glorify thy Son, that thy
Son also may glorify thee:
2 As
thou hast given him power over all flesh, that he should give eternal life to
as many as thou hast given him.
3 And
this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus
Christ, whom thou hast sent.
4 I
have glorified thee on the earth: I have finished the work which thou gavest me
to do.
5 And
now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had
with thee before the world was.
6 I
have manifested thy name unto the men which thou gavest me out of the world:
thine they were, and thou gavest them me; and they have kept thy word.
7 Now
they have known that all things whatsoever thou hast given me are of thee.
8 For
I have given unto them the words which thou gavest me; and they have received
them, and have known surely that I came out from thee, and they have believed
that thou didst send me.
9 I
pray for them: I pray not for the world, but for them which thou hast given me;
for they are thine.
10 And
all mine are thine, and thine are mine; and I am glorified in them.
11 And
now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee.
Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that
they may be one, as we are.
12 While
I was with them in the world, I kept them in thy name: those that thou gavest
me I have kept, and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition; that the
scripture might be fulfilled.
13 And
now come I to thee; and these things I speak in the world, that they might have
my joy fulfilled in themselves.
14 I
have given them thy word; and the world hath hated them, because they are not
of the world, even as I am not of the world.
15 I
pray not that thou shouldest take them out of the world, but that thou
shouldest keep them from the evil.
16 They
are not of the world, even as I am not of the world.
17 Sanctify
them through thy truth: thy word is truth.
18 As
thou hast sent me into the world, even so have I also sent them into the world.
19 And
for their sakes I sanctify myself, that they also might be sanctified through
the truth.
MESSAGE
Besides shouting, praising God, the Name
of Jesus and the Blood of Jesus, another very important weapon available to
believers in Christ is the word of God. Psalm 1:2-3 reveals that the word of
God is a weapon against physical and financial dryness. Psalm 1:3 says:
“And
he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his
fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth
shall prosper.”
This is simply great. The word of God
fights against every anti-progressive element it comes in contact with. If you
delight in God’s word and meditate daily on it, you create the opportunity for
it to work for your prosperity. How often do you spend quality time feasting on
God’s word? Some people think they are doing other people a favour by reading
the Bible. No! You are only doing yourself a favour. If you fail to create time
for the word, you are only doing yourself a disservice.
Moreover, the word of God is a very
powerful weapon against the devil. When the devil came to tempt the Lord Jesus,
He overcame him using the word of God. He kept saying “it is written….”.
Whenever you engage the devil, use the word. Some people think that the Bible
is becoming too old-fashioned to combat modern schemes of the devil. That is a
lie from the devil himself! The Bible is ever relevant and never loses its
power, message and effectiveness, irrespective of the times. Always apply the
word; it always works! After becoming the General Overseer of the Redeemed
Christian Church of God (RCCG), I went on a familiarisation tour. The youths
rejoiced over God’s choice to place me in that position. One day during the
tour, we were heading towards my village when the devil said to me, “You are
now very popular; it is better you die when you are popular than when you
become unpopular.” Immediately, this word of God in Psalm
118:17 came out of my mouth: “I shall not die but live, and I will declare the
works of the Almighty God.” Five minutes later, we narrowly escaped a horrible
accident. At that time, the entire congregation of the RCCG was below 1000. If
the word of God had not come forth to deal with the devil, he would have had me
for breakfast. He could anticipate an explosion of God’s move in the church and
he wanted to stop it, but the word of God stopped him. Never neglect
opportunities to know more of the word.
Action
Point
Know
the word, believe it, apply it and expect it to work, and it will work wonders.
0 Comments
Please drop a comment. God bless you!