“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 Bible is the basis for all of our messages in our services and meetings.  Usually we preach on a single verse or passage, although sometimes a topical teaching (say, on angels or salvation) merits references to a number of relevant texts.  In Maranatha churches, we do not preach on other books (even popular Christian books) or have study groups to discuss “hot” publications in the contemporary culture around us.  We believe that only the Word of God can feed a person’s soul or satisfy one’s spiritual hunger.  The Holy Spirit speaks to our hearts through His Word.   continue

Hebrews 10:19-22 - ”Therefore, brothers, since we have confidence to enter the Most Holy Place by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way opened for us through the curtain, that is, his body, and since we have a great priest over the house of God, let us draw near to God with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and having our bodies washed with pure water.”  

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Hebrews 11:1 - “Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.”  

Many people think of faith merely in terms of a certain feeling, or a strong religious opinion that people hold for a period of time.  True faith, by contrast, interacts with the prophetic realm.  Faith from eternity is dynamic, not static.  We say it is “dynamic” because it is connected to God’s unfolding plan or project of salvation, so faith keeps in step with what God is doing at the moment.  Human feelings and opinions (the things that unbelievers think of as “faith”) are static and temporary.  

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Hebrews 6:4-8 – “…It is impossible for those who have once been enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift, who have shared in the Holy Spirit, who have tasted the goodness of the word of God and the powers of the coming age, if they fall away, to be brought back to repentance, because to their loss they are crucifying the Son of God all over again and subjecting him to public disgrace. Land that drinks in the rain often falling on it and that produces a crop useful to those for whom it is farmed receives the blessing of God. But land that produces thorns and thistles is worthless and is in danger of being cursed. In the end it will be burned…”

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2 Timothy 2:15 - “Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.”

Hebrews 4:12 – “For the word of God is living and active.”

God spoke through the Scriptures when He first gave them to people, and He is still speaking through His Word today.  As mature believers, we need to have both types of revelation through the Bible. 

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Hebrews 4:12 - “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.”

 All true Christian believers know that the Bible is God’s Word.  Every believer knows that the Bible was verbally inspired by God (2 Timothy 3:16), and that it is relevant for our lives today.  The problem is that many Christians think of the Word only as something from the distant past.  True believers hold to the Bible, study it, teach from it, and base their lives around it.  Yet many do so as if the Bible were merely a document given long ago, like a Constitution of their religion.  There is another dimension to the Word of God.  It is alive and active.  God is still speaking through the Word today. 

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Hebrews 9:3-4 – “Behind the second curtain was a room called the Most Holy Place, which had the golden altar of incense and the gold-covered ark of the covenant. This ark contained the gold jar of manna, Aaron’s staff that had budded, and the stone tablets of the covenant.  Above the ark were the cherubim of the Glory, overshadowing the atonement cover.”

In the Old Testament, the Tabernacle and the Temple had an inner room called the “Most Holy Place” (or the Holy of Holies in some Bible versions).  The Holy of Holies contained the Ark of the Covenant.  The Ark of the Covenant played a crucial role in the major events in Israel’s history. 

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Hebrews 1:14 - Are not all angels ministering spirits sent to serve those who will inherit salvation?

In the Work of the Holy Spirit, we often speak of visions of angels. In almost all of our meetings in our mature churches, where the Spirit of the Lord is present and operating through the gifts, these visions are numerous. Visions of angels are, therefore, a common fact in our days.

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Hebrews 9:4 - “How much more, then, will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from acts that lead to death, so that we may serve the living God!”

We have received new life – eternal life – through Jesus Christ because of the Blood that he shed for us. Jesus’ blood brings us atonement and cleansing from sin (see 1 John 1:7). Most Christians understand this; in fact, we should understand something about Christ’s sacrifice for our sins at the time we convert and receive salvation. From God’s perspective, it was very important to teach us about his project of salvation and illustrate the sacrifice of Jesus through all the animal sacrifices described in the Old Testament. All of these sacrifices pointed forward to Christ’s death on the cross, and that is why no animal sacrifices are necessary since Jesus died for us; as God’s Son, he is the perfect sacrifice, the Lamb of God. Today, we can study the sacrifices and requirements in the Old Testament to gain a deeper understanding of the blood of Jesus.

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Hebrews 10:24-25 – “…And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds.  Let us not give up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but let us encourage one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching…”

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