"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.  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 4:12-13)

Two thoughts about "the word of God" jump out at me from this passage:

1.  How sharp and powerful it is.

I imagine a person standing at a blade sharpener.  I see sparks flying as the metal meets with that which will bring its blade to a fine point.

I used to sell cutlery during the summer of my college days.  One of the lines in the sales pitch was:  "the most dangerous blade is a dull knife because you have to use so much force.  That's when accidents usually occur: when you're struggling, pushing, sweating to get a dull knife through difficult places like bone.  It slips, hits something unintended, like your thumb, and you're off to the emergency room for stitches." 

But the word of God is eternally sharp.  It will do its good work on us, if we allow it to.  It will divide fact from fiction; the surface-level reality from the deep-down-secret-places only God can see; places that might even be too deep for me to know myself really well.

2.  The second thing that this passage tells us is that "the word of God is living and active". 

Have you ever said, "I wish the Bible talked about..."  You can fill in the blank. 

- Stem cell research 

- How to deal with a kid in trouble

- Waiting for a prospective mate to come along

- Whether or not to leave my current job and take a new one

Problems we deal with (e-mail going down or cancer) might be issues Paul, John, Moses, or other heroes of the faith hadn't thought through yet.

But this verse tells us that the word is active and living.  It didn't stop speaking when it was written down on paper.  It won't be out-of-date just because it's ancient.  It continued to speak.  It STILL SPEAKS.  God will speak to you through His Word if you will submit yourself to its voice.

Those are two of the many reasons (how sharp it is and how alive it is today), that we have made a commitment at our church to reading through it and preaching through it and listening through it this year.

Will you allow the word to do its good work in you and your situation right now, where you're at?

Grace & peace