The Implanted Word

Perhaps you've heard other Christians say, “The Bible is important, but it’s not all there is to a relationship with God.” A relationship with God? A relationship as in He/me, me/He? Yes! It’s certainly true that our relationship with God cannot be limited exclusively to mere book knowledge, even if that book is the Bible. It’s imperative that we take what we read in the Scriptures and make those words the foundation and blueprint of an active life in Christ (Gal. 2:20; Gal. 5:24; Gal. 6:14).

The Bible itself says it is the “implanted word” that is able to save our souls (James 1:21). IMPLANTED! Did you get that? To implant is to insert or fix into a person's body. To implant God's Word is not merely the “read and understood Word.” How many people occasionally read their Bibles, perhaps memorize some favorite verses, tell others they can identify with certain scriptures when hearing them quoted by someone else, and then believe as long as they have read, know or recognize some scriptures it's all that is needed to have a relationship with God? Is that you or someone you know?

You see, the doctrine, reproof, correction, and instruction in the inspired Scriptures are intended to complete us as servants of God, and equip us for every good work (2 Timothy 3:16-17). Discipleship is not merely an educational exercise — it is the process of allowing God’s word to transform us into the likeness of Christ (Romans 12:2; Romans 8:29; 2 Corinthians 3:18). Transformation is a process that continues throughout a lifetime as we change from glory to glory. Glory to glory is not moving from one state of euphoria to another. It is not going from one state of being lost in the spirit to the other. To go from glory to glory - to be ever-increasing in glory - is to continually be changed into what you were created to be. It is infinitely more than studying as though for an academic exam — it is being recreated into a “new man who is renewed in knowledge” by means of the instruction and direction of God’s word (Colossians 3:10).

Consider the words of David as recorded in 2 Samuel 22:31: "As for God, His way is perfect; the word of the Lord is proven; He is a shield to all who trust Him." We’ve all learned many valuable things from our parents, teachers, and other persons of positive influence, but would we say of any of them that everything they taught was perfect? However, when we follow God’s Word — unlike the frail, self-serving words of humankind — we can be one hundred percent certain that what He says is true. We can trust Him. We can count on His Word as being 100% foolproof. Regarding the unchanging character of God, Moses wrote in Numbers 23:19: "God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent. He has said, and will He not do? Or has He spoken, and will He not make it good?" Moses continues in Deuteronomy 32:4: "He is the Rock, His work is perfect; for all His ways are justice, a God of truth and without injustice; Righteous and upright is He."
God’s Word has been proven: “The words of the LORD are pure words, Like silver tried in a furnace of earth, Purified seven times” (Psalm 12:6). No one who ever relied on God’s word in humble faith and right understanding has ever been disappointed by it. While it’s true that many have suffered from unreal expectations and false interpretations, the true Word of God has been honestly tested time after time and has never been found wanting (lacking). The Bible has withstood every onslaught of skeptics and infidels who have died long ago — but the Bible still remains: “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will by no means pass away” (Matthew 24:35). BY NO MEANS! That's very specific.


As those who inhabit this planet we can choose to place our confidence in many things — our own feelings, which change from moment to moment; the theories, religions, beliefs, philosophies, and ideas of other people who are as prone to error as we are; or we can choose God’s perfect and proven Word, delivered through His Son (Hebrews 1:1-2). Our Lord Himself said: “The words that I speak to you are spirit, and they are life” (John 6:63). It shouldn’t take a great deal of thought nor a higher degree of education to determine which way is wisest and best. To have a "relationship" with Jesus Christ requires more than skimming through the pages of the Bible. It’s imperative that we take what we read in the Scriptures and make those words the foundation and blueprint of an active life in Christ through thought, meditating on His Word, spending time with Him in prayer, and acting in obedience to what we learn as He reveals it to us in a slow unfolding manner. And when we do there is a lasting peace the world cannot give.

Until next time,
-Pat-