“For the word of God is living 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.” —Hebrews 4:12
The inner life of a believer is an odd mixture of motivations, some spiritual, some selfish, as interwoven as the “joints and marrow” of our bodies. Even when we aspire to good, our motives may be flawed.
The Hebrews attributed power to words. Once spoken, a word existed independently. It became more than the sound of vowels and consonants. Words went forth and did things. “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth…. and God said, light be…and light was.”
The Word of God is living and full of energy. The Word possesses the power to expose the intentions of our hearts and reveal what is motivated by the Spirit and love—and what is not. “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” (Hebrews 4:13).
Anyone can read the Bible—many do—but to experience the Word as the holy eyes of God, peering into our hearts, allowing Him to see our true thoughts, intentions, and motivations—that’s another thing altogether. We may find ourselves exposed and naked before Him, defensive, desperate to avoid humiliation, dodging truth rather than admitting our poverty of spirit.
If only we could see how unnecessary all this pretense is! The embarrassing and humiliating reality we run from is the very thing Jesus said is a virtue! “Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the Kingdom of Heaven.”
We can take off the masks. God loves us as we really are, behind our facades—because He sees the real us, the children He created to love and cherish. He sees us as His beloved.
