Part IV: Developing Spiritual Discipline

     In my last post I wrote about the necessity of being diligent to study the word of God so that you have a sound understanding of the Bible.  However, we must move beyond a mere intellectual understanding into participation with the word of God.  In this post and my next I hope to help you move beyond mere study into meditation along with application.

     The spiritual discipline I want to focus upon is the discipline of meditating upon the word of God.  Once we have discovered the meaning of a text, then we need to allow that portion of scripture to become a part of us.  In the Greek language, there are several words used to describe the one word we use for the ‘word of God’ in the English language. 

    The two main Greek words used to describe the one English word are logos and rhēma.  There is a debate as to exactly what these two words mean and if there is really that much of a distinction between the two.  I have come to the conclusion that there is a difference between the two.  In generalities the logos is the teaching of the whole Bible.  In Hebrews 6:1 the King James Version of the Bible says, “the doctrines of Christ”, while the New American Standard says, “the elementary teaching about the Christ.”  The word translated into doctrine and teaching is logos.  The Vines Expository Of Dictionary Words explains the difference between logos and rhēma:

“The significance of rhēma (as distinct from logos) is exemplified in the injunction to take “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God,” Eph. 6:17;  here the reference is not to the whole Bible as such, but to the individual scripture which the Spirit brings to our remembrance for use in a time of need, a prerequisite being the regular storing of the mind with Scripture.”     

We need both the logos and rhēma.  It is important that we regularly study the word of God, yet at the same time we must be open to the Holy Spirit.

     The Holy Spirit will breathe upon our hearts to bring the word alive to us, so that it becomes not just a word, but our own personal word.  The rhēma is a specific word for a specific situation we are facing in real life.  It is by the rhēma word of God that faith is released so needs will be met, bodies will be healed, lives will be changed and God’s divine direction will be given.  The rhēma word from God will produce a living overcoming faith.  However, it is only as we learn to meditate upon the word of God that we are going to see the word become alive in us. 

     It is this living word, abiding in our hearts that produces the kind of faith, which gives us victory over the world.  Christ is more than a book; He is alive.  Jesus said that the “words which I speak they are Spirit and they are Life“.  We must move beyond a mere intellectual study of the word, which is extremely important, to a reality of the Living Word of God working in and through us.   

     The strongest principle, which shapes and influences a person’s thought patterns, is the principle of identification.  Whatever it is that we most strongly identify with is what we will become like.  What we learn to identify with will shape our purpose, direction and future.

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