Third Requirement for Spiritual Progress-Word of God
The Word of God is essential for spiritual growth, understanding God's will, and overcoming Satan's schemes.
Zac Poonen emphasizes the vital connection between the Holy Spirit and God's Word, illustrating how they work together to bring beauty and order into our lives. He highlights the importance of experiential knowledge of the Holy Spirit alongside understanding the written Word to move forward in our spiritual journey. Poonen stresses that spiritual growth is impossible without allowing God's Word to renew our minds and guide us in understanding His will for our lives. He also warns against the danger of remaining ignorant of the Word of God, which serves as a revealer of our inner spiritual condition and a powerful weapon in spiritual battles against Satan.
Text
Right from the first paragraph of Scripture, we see the Holy Spirit operating along with God's Word. The spoken Word of God and the brooding of the Holy Spirit (Gen.1:3), brought beauty and order out of chaos. That is how God can bring beauty and order into our lives too.
The power of the Holy Spirit known experientially, without the guidance of the written Word would leave a man like a steam engine, full of steam but without any rails to run on. Conversely, knowledge of the written Word without the anointing and the power of the Holy Spirit would make a man like an engine standing on neatly laid-out rails, but lacking the steam to move forward.
God's Word is the means by which we understand the mind of God. Through submitting to it, we can have our minds renewed to think the way God thinks and "to look at things from God's point of view" (Col.1:9 - paraphrase). It is impossible to grow spiritually without allowing God's Word to renew our minds.
Many do not know the will of God in the different situations of life, only because they do not know the Word of God. There is an answer in God's Word for every single problem that we can ever face in life - if only we know where to find it.
How poor those believers are who do not know the Word of God.
The Word of God is also a revealer of our inner spiritual condition (Heb.4:12). It is like an scanning machine that reveals everything inside our hearts. One who does not regularly meditate on God's Word will remain perpetually ignorant and self-deceived about his true state.
When it comes to spiritual battle, the Word of God is our weapon against Satan. Jesus overcame Satan only by quoting the Word of God to him (Matt.4:1-10). This is the sword by which the Enemy is driven away. When the Word of God dwells within a person, he becomes strong to overcome all of Satan's schemes (1 Jn.2:14).
We need to hear God's Word speaking to us DAILY, if we are to get light on ourselves, be overcomers, and make spiritual progress.
Sermon Outline
- The Power of the Word of God
- The Means of Spiritual Growth
- The Role of the Word of God in Spiritual Battle
- The Word as a Weapon
- Overcoming Satan's Schemes
Key Quotes
“The power of the Holy Spirit known experientially, without the guidance of the written Word would leave a man like a steam engine, full of steam but without any rails to run on.” — Zac Poonen
“It is impossible to grow spiritually without allowing God's Word to renew our minds.” — Zac Poonen
“The Word of God is our weapon against Satan, and when it dwells within a person, he becomes strong to overcome all of Satan's schemes.” — Zac Poonen
Application Points
- We need to hear God's Word speaking to us daily to make spiritual progress.
- The Word of God is our weapon against Satan, and we must dwell on it to overcome his schemes.
- Knowing the Word of God is essential to understanding God's will in different situations of life.