Divine But Practical

UV 1187/10,000 Divine But Practical
Is not my word like as a fire? saith the LORD; and like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces?


Jeremiah 23 v 29


The Word of God is like a fire. It starts as a small spark but can provide light and warmth all our lives. It purifies us and removes the impurities or dross from our thoughts and our faith. It shows us the direction and purpose of our whole lives while at the same time, giving us guidance regarding the next small steps that we need to take in that direction. It provides both strategic direction as well as tactical direction. It gives us a map for our whole life as well as for each day of our lives.


A man was asked in a vision by the Lord to push a big rock in front of his cabin. He started pushing the rock day and night for many years but the rock did not budge an inch. When he went back to the Lord and expressed his disappointment and frustration, the Lord told him, “ I only asked you to push the rock and did not expect you to move it. See how strong your body has become in the process: how your arms and back muscles, sinews and tendons have developed?” Similarly, we are to “Push” with the help of the Word that is both a kindled fire in our hearts and minds as well as a hammer to break down our rough edges and angularities, to shape us, to develop us. The word push has three implications in this context: pray until something God-intended happens, proclaim until something God-intended happens and practice until something God-intended happens.

The Word provides the tools to build up our faith and to break down our false confidence in the things of this world. A hammer has two purposes to drive in a point as well as to pull out something that is deeply ingrained like a nail in our human nature. The Word by reiterating the kind of attributes of character God expects us to have, the kind of attitudes that we need to develop drives these points into us while it also helps to extract the pride, lust and deception that can so easily ensnare us in this world. The Word is eternal, versatile, creative of good, destructive of evil, dynamic, practical and universally applicable.


Prateep V Philip