The Sword of the Spirit

Take the…sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

Ephesians 6:17

This is the last of these pieces of the armor of the Christian. The sword of the Spirit is Christ, Christ made available to us in practical ways through the sayings of his Word. The authority of Jesus Christ and the authority of the Scripture are one and the same. They are indivisible. To attempt to distinguish the two is like asking which leg of a pair of pants is more necessary. We know Christ through the Bible, and we understand the Bible through the knowledge of Christ. The two cannot be separated.

In the phrase, the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, Paul is not referring to the complete Bible. There are two words used in Scripture for the word of God. There is the word logos, which refers to the complete revelation of what God has said. Then there is another word, used less frequently, rhema, which is different in meaning. Rhema means a specific saying of God, a passage or a verse which has special application to an immediate situation.

Rhema is the word used here. The sword of the Spirit is the saying of God applied to a specific situation. This is the great weapon placed in the hands of a believer. We have all read passages of Scripture when the words suddenly seem to come alive and leap out of the page at us. Perhaps in some moment of temptation or doubt, when we were assailed by the flaming arrows of the evil one, it has been answered immediately by a passage of Scripture which flashed to mind. Or perhaps we have been asked a question, and for a moment we did not know how to answer, when suddenly a word of Scripture came to mind, and we saw what the answer was. All this is the rhema of God which strikes home like arrows to the heart. That is why this is called the sword of the Spirit, because it is not only originated by him as the author of the Word, but it is also recalled to mind by the Spirit and made powerful by him in our lives. It is his answer to the attack of the devil, who comes to discourage us, defeat us, lure us aside, deceive us, misguide us, or mislead us in some way — but then a word comes to mind instantly. This is the sword of the Spirit.

Father, how helpful your word is in the midst of my pressures and discouragements! May I use this great sword that is given to me in Jesus Christ.