How to Become an Expert at Swinging the Sword of the Spirit of God

We’ve arrived. Today, we take a look at the final piece of the armor of God, the Sword of the Spirit. What is the Sword of the Spirit? Well, the scripture says that it’s the Word of God. So, our interaction with the Bible is necessary when we engage the levels of devils that come against us to steal, kill, and destroy. One gentleman, Robert Boardman wrote an article entitled, The Neglected Exercise, What will you miss if you don’t read your Bible every day? In it, he said that in the early 1970s, he accompanied a small tour group into a country that was difficult to enter. In one city of about 500,000, we found only one church left open by the authorities. All over the city, we could distinguish former church buildings turned into museums, warehouses, offices, or military barracks. In that solitary open church, we joined about fifteen bystanders, including several youths, watching a stand-up worship service. The worshipers numbered ten elderly women, one elderly blind man, and a handful of children. A priest wafted incense and recited some incantations. Then he brought out a huge, bejeweled Bible, carefully unlocked it, and read a portion from the Old Testament and another from the New. He then locked the Bible and, to our astonishment, one by one the eleven elderly worshipers came by and reverently kissed the ancient Holy Book. As we came out of that forlorn but open church building, many thoughts raced through our minds. One thing we were sure of was that the onlooking young people were thinking, If this is Christianity, it deserves to stay in the Middle Ages. What we saw was a ritualistic, clergy-dominated religion where the people had no access to a Bible of their own. It was locked away from them. How many versions of the Bible do we have in the free world? Hundreds I’m sure. I have an invaluable study book called The New Testament from 26 Translations. Do you and I take advantage of the unlocked, abundant versions of the Bible in our homes and libraries? Or do our negligence and apathy make the Bible a locked book? That was Robert Broadman’s insightful comment. Let me ask you a question based on what you’ve heard. How does the Bible become the Sword of the Spirit that it needs to be if you treat it as a locked book? How to Become an Expert at Swinging the Sword of the Spirit of God, that’s the focus of this week’s Light on Life.

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About Emery

Emery committed his life to the Lord Jesus Christ over 45 years ago and has served as both a full-time pastor and an itinerant minister. He and his wife Sharon of 40 years emphasize personal growth and development through the Word of God. The ministry of the Holy Spirit is the focus and the hallmark of their mission. Read more about them here.

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The Armor of God

Once again, let’s talk about the armor of God.

Ephesians 6:14–17 (ESV) — 14 Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. 16 In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; 17 and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God,

The Armor of God: The Sword of the Spirit

What is this Sword of the Spirit all about?
Well, we can gain some insight by looking at what the sword of ancient warriors consisted of.
And, with that thought, here is the Historical Background of the Day.

The sword commonly was two feet long, often with a grooved bone grip for a handle. It was two-edged, but legionnaires were taught to stab rather than cut and thrust. They were known for their deadly accurate thrust. Constant weapon drill made them experts at their trade. We also have the weapon of the sword of the Spirit, the Word of God, and constant weapon drill may make us experts in our trade.

So, the sword wasn’t a slashing weapon.
It was a stabbing weapon.
Now the thing that jumped out at me when I read this was the word accuracy.
Ancient soldiers were constantly training.
They were so familiar with the weight and the feel of that weapon.
Ancient soldiers ate, drank, and slept that weapon if you understand what I mean by that analogy.
They were one with their weapon.
What is our level of familiarity with the Sword of the Spirit?
Are we trained and accurate when using this God-empowered weapon?
And, with that thought, here is the Illustration of the Day.

In the battle of Peleliu in World War II, my company commander was known throughout the First Marine Division as an arms expert. When Division Headquarters had a problem with a complex captured enemy weapon, Captain Heath could be counted on to solve it. His expertise was the fruit of years of painstaking study. In the same way, we should become experts on the complexities of the Sword of the Spirit, the Word of God. But doing so takes lots of time and hard work that only self-discipline will drive us to invest.¹

This weapon that we have at our disposal is indeed a weapon.
It’s the only offensive weapon in all the armor.
The Breastplate of Righteousness, the Helmet of Salvation, the Gospel Shoes of Peace, and the Shield of Faith are all defensive pieces of armor by nature.
They are designed to keep you safe — to keep you standing.
The Sword of the Spirit is your response to the flaming darts of the enemy.
If you remember, from a previous podcast, we spoke of the enemy’s purpose for putting fire on the end of an arrow.
The enflamed arrow flying through the air made the tiny lit flame a ball of fire.
It was designed to cause panic.
The enemy knew their opponent had a shield pre-soaked in water.
They knew that they would be holding that shield to protect against incoming darts and arrows.
The ball of fire was designed to create panic — panic so intense that you would drop your shield.
And, now, what?
You’re a sitting duck, that’s what.
But, what if you can keep your shield up?
Now you are ready to advance on your enemy.
You are ready to get close enough to thrust your enemy through with your sword.
Do you remember that this is close combat?
We wrestle not against flesh and blood.
Wrestling is close-quarter combat.
We don’t allow our enemy to cause us to panic — to put us into fear.
When Satan gets done shooting his arrows, when he is finished with his mind games, now it’s our turn — it’s the believer’s turn.
Use your sword.
Always be reminded that it’s not important what the devil has to say.
What’s vital is what you have to say after he gets done talking.
The Holy Spirit-inspired words that come out of your mouth will finish any fight.
It will finish every fight.
But, how do you know what to say?

The Armor of God: The Components of the Sword of the Spirit – Logos

There are two different Greek words used to specifically describe God’s Word.
The first word is the Greek word logos.
The word logos appears in many places, but of special interest is how Logos ties to Jesus.
This word is part of the famous verse, John 1:1.

John 1:1–2 (ESV) — In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 He was in the beginning with God.

The Word is divine and the word “became flesh and dwelt among us.
You find that in John 1:14.
In other words, Jesus is the Word of God who represents God to us and us to God.
The term is also used to describe the Scriptures.

Hebrews 4:12 (ESV) — 12 For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

This same word logos is found in Luke 5 where it is connected to Jesus’ teaching ministry.

Luke 5:1 (ESV) — On one occasion, while the crowd was pressing in on him to hear the word of God, he was standing by the lake of Gennesaret,

How about taking a look at the book of Acts?

Acts 4:31 (ESV) — 31 And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness.

With boldness, they continued to speak the logos of God.
And with that thought, here is the Definition of the Day.
The Greek word logos means thought, reason, spoken word, discourse, message, speech, declaration, logic, revelation, reckoning, or expression of thought.
As we already saw in John 1:1, logos is a title for Jesus.
Jesus is the message of God.
As Logos, Jesus is God’s ultimate communication of truth about Himself.
Now, Jesus walked the face of the earth in the 1st century.
How do I as a New Testament believer in the twenty-first century learn about, or become familiar with all who Jesus is?
Well, I have to go and read the message, the logos, the New Testament.
The New Testament writers understood that the message that they were inspired to write as the Spirit of God moved upon them was logos.
Look here in the book of Acts.

Acts 8:4 (KJV) — 4 Therefore they that were scattered abroad went every where preaching the word.

They went preaching logos is how the original language reads.
Look now at Acts eleven.

Acts 11:19 (KJV) — 19 Now they which were scattered abroad upon the persecution that arose about Stephen travelled as far as Phenice, and Cyprus, and Antioch, preaching the word to none but unto the Jews only.

Here it’s the same thing — they preached the logos to none but the Jews is how this reads.

Acts 8:25 (KJV) — 25 And they, when they had testified and preached the word of the Lord, returned to Jerusalem, and preached the gospel in many villages of the Samaritans.

Again. The same deal.
The disciples preached logos — the Word.

The Armor of God: The Components of the Sword of the Spirit – Rhema

But, there is a second term used when referencing God’s Word and that is the Greek word Rhema.
In the text, we are working with in Ephesians six, and seventeen, you find the word Rhema.

17 and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God,

The Word of God described as the Sword of the Spirit here in verse seventeen is the Greek word Rhema.
So, we can read verse seventeen like so: “And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Rhema of God.”
So now, we have the second Greek term used to describe God’s Word.
The word Rhema means saying, statement, or spoken word.
Rhema is not just words on a page like logos.
What Rhema consists of is the logos of God coming out of one’s mouth.
So, when the Word is read — when you engage it, read it out loud, or quote it, and when this cycle occurs repetitively, the effect of that is the Word coming off the page and dropping down in the heart.
Do you remember what Jesus said about this phenomenon?

Matthew 12:33–35 (ESV) — 33 “Either make the tree good and its fruit good, or make the tree bad and its fruit bad, for the tree is known by its fruit. 34 You brood of vipers! How can you speak good, when you are evil? For out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks. 35 The good person out of his good treasure brings forth good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure brings forth evil.

Out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks.
Getting the Word in the heart is the first step to the logos of God becoming Rhema.
And, with that thought, here is the Historical Background of the Day.

This historical background is based on the 119th Psalm. If you look at Psalm 119 in your Bible, you will see that it’s broken up into sections. Seven verses for each section. Each of the sections of Psalm 119 is based on one of the letters of the Hebrew alphabet. The seventh section of Psalm 119 which begins at verse 49, is also based on the seventh letter of the Hebrew alphabet. It is the letter zayin. In English, it is the letter z.

Let’s read it.

Psalm 119:49–56 (KJV) — 49 Remember the word unto thy servant, Upon which thou hast caused me to hope. 50 This is my comfort in my affliction: For thy word hath quickened me. 51 The proud have had me greatly in derision: Yet have I not declined from thy law. 52 I remembered thy judgments of old, O Lord; And have comforted myself. 53 Horror hath taken hold upon me because of the wicked That forsake thy law. 54 Thy statutes have been my songs In the house of my pilgrimage. 55 I have remembered thy name, O Lord, in the night, And have kept thy law. 56 This I had, Because I kept thy precepts.

Now, Hebrew is a ‘word-picture’ language.
What is the word picture projected by the letter zayin?
The word picture generated by this seventh letter of the Hebrew alphabet is a ‘sword.’
Picture a sword — maybe picture the one we are talking about in this podcast.
Zayin, the seventh letter of the Hebrew alphabet, is located in the word ‘remember’ and is found in verses 49, 52, and 55.
Okay, we have ‘remembering’ — we have a sword – What does all of this have to do with anything?
The function of remembering is one of the tools needed to turn the written Word logos, found in the Bible, into the spoken Sword of the Spirit that we find in Ephesians six.
Simply stated, for the Word to become a Rhema Sword of the Spirit, it must first be brought up to your remembrance.
Now, in talking about remembering, don’t think of mental memory.
It’s not your brain — it’s your spirit that’s involved in remembering.
Now, the ministry of remembrance is one of the areas where the precious Spirit of God comes alongside us to help.

John 14:26 (KJV) — 26 But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you.

Rhema occurs when the Holy Spirit engages in bringing a verse to your remembrance, and you lift your voice and speak that out.
Now this Word becomes a Rhema word.
It becomes a sword.
Again, Rhema is not about physically memorizing Bible verses.
It’s not bad to memorize portions of the Bible.
That’s not what I am saying.
What you should understand is that the Word does not become the Sword of the Spirit because your head is full of scripture.
It becomes the Sword of the Spirit because your heart is full of scripture.
After all, you don’t defeat the enemy with your head.

2 Corinthians 10:3–5 (KJV 1900) — 3 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war after the flesh: 4 (For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strong holds;) 5 Casting down imaginations, and every high thing that exalteth itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ;

Our weapons are not of the soul — they are of the spirit.

John 6:63 (KJV) — 63 It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.

Can you see that the right place for the Word is in your heart?

Psalm 119:10–11 (KJV) 11 — Your word have I hid in my heart, that I might not sin against you.

Once the logos is in your heart, your head will follow.
The Spirit will bring the Word up from the inside of you.
He will bring it up out of your spirit.
When He does, those Words, at that exact moment, become Rhema Words.
They are anointed Words that will bring the God kind of life and the God kind of results.
Rhema words spoken by the inspiration of God will annihilate any enemy
That’s why you need to read the Word.
That’s why you must meditate on the Word — that’s why you should quote it.
You need to get the Word in you so the Spirit of God can draw it up out of you.
Get the Word deposited within so the Spirit can bring it to your remembrance when you need to use it as a weapon to defeat the enemy.
The word ‘weapon’ — I mean we have been talking about the Armor of God here — opens our eyes to the fact that Christianity is not a life lived on flowery beds of ease.
Sometimes people think they won’t have any problems because they are children of God.
No, at times life is a war.
One of my favorite ‘war’ scriptures is found in the book of Judges.

Judges 3:1–2 (ESV) — Now these are the nations that the Lord left, to test Israel by them, that is, all in Israel who had not experienced all the wars in Canaan. 2 It was only in order that the generations of the people of Israel might know war, to teach war to those who had not known it before.

When God brought the children of Israel out of Egypt and into the Promised Land, He intentionally left some enemy behind so that Israel would have someone to practice their war skills.
It’s a pity when God’s people don’t know war — when they don’t know how to put on the whole armor of God.
Isn’t that what the armor is for? — for conflict?
People always seem to be looking for an easy life.
They are always yearning to find that one person who can pray that one prayer will fix all their problems.
How about you becoming a person who can pray?
You’re in the wrong business if you think being a Jesus follower is easy.
There are days when it’s tough.
There are alien entities loose on planet earth who oppose you and try to derail the plan of God for your life.
We’ve already talked about the levels of devils found in Ephesians six.
But, there is good news.
God has not left us defenseless in this engagement.
He has given us weapons, spiritual weapons from the armories on high.
These weapons are not natural.
They’re not based on your personality, personal influence, financial status, mental capability, or other human ability.
These weapons function through God.
That means the Spirit of God is involved.
That means hearing God is involved.
That means you have to be led by the Lord.

Romans 8:14 (KJV) — 14 For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.

Always remember that the Spirit of God is the cutting edge of your sword.
Jesus was a master in the use of the Armor of God.
The Father God trained Him, and the Holy Spirit led Him.

John 5:19 (KJV) — 19 Then answered Jesus and said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise.

I don’t know if you realize that some wars are of God.
They are inspired by heaven.
God anoints men as weapons to bring down evil.
You may not like the sound of this but it’s the truth.
Your life is a weapon for righteousness.
Your walk is a weapon for good and for God.
The enemy is deathly afraid of you because of the potential of this Sword of the Spirit in your life.
Satan has encountered this weapon, this Rhema word before.
He has run up upon it many times.
And, he has had zero results.
Satan has never beaten the Sword of the Spirit.
He has never overcome it — not even once.
No demon has come close.
What if you had the devil’s track record?
What would you do if you came into contact with a force you had never overcome?
Well, if you had any sense, you’d run.
So let me ask you — Are you familiar with the Sword of the Spirit?
If not, you can be.
If you are, there’s more for your life because our God is a God of increase.
He is always going to take you from glory to glory.
He always moves you from one degree of effectiveness to another.
Higher is a Bible concept.
Greater is the way of the divine.

The Armor of God: Jesus and the Sword of the Spirit

When Jesus returns riding on a white horse, whose coming with Him?

Revelation 19:11–15 (ESV) — 11 Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. 12 His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. 13 He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. 14 And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses. 15 From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty.

Notice the armies of God.
That means our conflict is a group thing, a body thing, a corporate thing.
There comes a day when it will no longer be said, ‘Here comes the Lone Ranger and Tonto’ but ‘Here comes the army of the living God.’
Army, did you get that?
An army is a group.
The book of Revelation shows us a side of Jesus many are not familiar with.
The gospels portray Jesus as the meek and lowly Lamb of God who came to lay His life down for man.
But, the book of Revelation shows a different picture.
It unveils Him as God’s Avenger.
It displays Him as a dispenser of wrath.
It reveals Him as a righteous judge.
Notice this dramatic picture of Jesus.
His eyes, which are the windows of the soul, are a flame of fire.
Out of His mouth comes not the words, “I am meek and lowly of heart,” as in His earthly ministry, but a sharp double-edged sword.
Zayin means sword or weapon, and that weapon is in Jesus’ mouth.
This sword is the Rhema of God, the spoken Word of God.
When Jesus comes leading the armies of heaven, He won’t be singing Kumbaya brother.
He will be coming with His Father’s Rhema Words on His lips.
And those words are anointed to put what is out of order in order.
This same sword is your sword.
The Sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God.

Now, Father thank you for this weapon. Help us, teach us, show us how to employ this weapon for good and for God. We thank you for it in Jesus Name, Amen.

You guys have a great God week and we will see you next time for another edition of Light on Life.

#S3-003: How to Minister Healing Like Jesus Did [Podcast]

__________
References:

Robert Broadman, Discipleship Journal ↩

emeryhorvath.com

Equipping people to pursue God's glory

How to Become an Expert at Swinging the Sword of the Spirit of God

Podcast: Light on Life Season Ten Episode Fourteen

by Emery Horvath

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Click to Listen | Right Click to Download |Subscribe in PlayerFM

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Accept the Challenge

Join the Conversation

Episode Resources:

We are currently teaching in the book of Ephesians. You can click on the links below to listen to some of these podcasts.

About Emery

Subscribe to the Podcast

Share the Love

Podcast Notes

The Armor of God

The Armor of God: The Sword of the Spirit

The Armor of God: The Components of the Sword of the Spirit – Logos

The Armor of God: The Components of the Sword of the Spirit – Rhema

The Armor of God: Jesus and the Sword of the Spirit

Listen to the Audio

Click to Listen | Right Click to Download |Subscribe in PlayerFM

Read the Notes

Accept the Challenge

Join the Conversation

Episode Resources:

We are currently teaching in the book of Ephesians. You can click on the links below to listen to some of these podcasts.

About Emery

Subscribe to the Podcast

Share the Love

Podcast Notes

The Armor of God

The Armor of God: The Sword of the Spirit

The Armor of God: The Components of the Sword of the Spirit – Logos

The Armor of God: The Components of the Sword of the Spirit – Rhema

The Armor of God: Jesus and the Sword of the Spirit

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