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About Jesus - Steve (Stephen) Sweetman The
Energy Of Life "Somewhere in the
Bible it says ..." How
often I hear these words spoken by those who have been Christians for
decades? "I've been a
Christian for fifteen years," one man told me.
"Should I start reading the Bible?" he asked.
It amazes me that so many of us have so little knowledge of the
Bible that we claim to be God's Word by which we are to live.
In light of this, read Hebrews 4:12, giving attention to the words
"alive" and "active." "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." Whatever form God's Word
takes at any given moment, which includes the Bible, Hebrews 4:12 states
that it is a living entity, as the Greek word "zeo" translated
as "alive" implies. Since
God's Word is a living entity, its purpose is to be productively active in
our lives, as Hebrews 4:12 also states.
The Greek word "energes" is translated here as active.
We derive our English word "energy" from this Greek word,
and energy defines "energes" perfectly.
Energy is the process by
which work is done, whether that work is kinetic, thermal, electrical,
chemical, nuclear, or whatever. Energy
is invisible. We don't see it,
but we certainly experience its productive impact.
Humanity's very existence depends on energy.
Our bodies exert about six watts of energy at any given time.
When you think to turn on a lamp, energy produces that thought and
the ability to turn on the lamp, and then, electromagnetic energy takes
over and produces a
lighted lamp. Productive work,
then, is fundamental to the essence of energy.
In the Greek text of
Hebrews 4:12, the Greek word "energes" is an adjective.
That means it describes the essence of God's Word to be pure
energy. God's Word, including
the Biblical text, when carried to our minds and hearts by His Spirit
works to produce its intended purpose in our lives. Hebrews 4:12 states that
God's word is a living entity consisting of pure energy.
It's interesting to note that John 1:1 states that Jesus is also
God's Word. In fact the text
states that Jesus is both with God and is God.
This leads me to conclude that energy is inherent in the very
essence of God. He, being
energy, is the source of all forms of energy.
When God breathed the breath of life into humankind, divine energy
produced life, and it is that energy that sustains all forms of life
(Hebrews 1:3). Our survival depends on
various forms of energy, which includes the energy that is God's Word.
That's why Jesus told us that we can't survive on food alone.
Our human existence as God created it to be depends on the living
entity, the pure energy, that is God's Word (Matthew 4:4).
So, when we understand what we read in the Bible from this
perspective, how can we not prioritize God's productive energy into our
lives? It really is the energy
of life, more than most of us realize.
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