and the One who walks with me on it.

Tuesday, April 02, 2013

Chicken and the Living Word



       For the first time in my life I saw how you are supposed to cut a chicken into pieces to cook on one of those tv cooking shows (walked in on hubby watching!).  Up until now I’ve never felt capable to cut up a whole chicken, and though it occurred to me after watching that I could have found some video footage on the internet long ago, I only ever bought (more expensive) pieces to cook.

       So it really didn’t look too difficult.  Start with the leg and thigh, extend, cut with a sharp knife between the bones in the cartilage then separate the two pieces.  Do the same with the wings.  It doesn’t take too long for the whole chicken, but I still haven’t tried it yet.  Perhaps one day I will.  But the past couple days I’ve been thinking about how the Word of God is living and cuts between the joints and marrow.

For the Word of God is living and powerful and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing apart of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.  Heb. 4:12 (for word studies, see below)

       For years I’ve seen the Word of God ‘pop out at me’ and transform my life.  It is like I can read a passage hundreds of times and still find something new in it that changes how I think and want to act.  How is that possible 2000+ years after being written and read so many times by me?  I have no idea other than the power of God.  But it has dramatically changed my life in so many ways that I am grateful for.

       So anyway, with one swift chop, the knife cuts between the joints separating the chicken pieces, just as the Word penetrates to separate parts of us: the whole us from the spiritual man, that which nourishes from the physical parts of us, and is a distinguishing judge between the thoughts and the mind, will, feelings, etc of our person.

       On a personal note, the Word has cut my heart (emotions, will, mind) many times convicting me of sinful actions, thoughts and attitudes.  It may have hurt at first, and occasionally I denied the truth of it, but when I allowed the words to take root in me, they grew and transformed me for the better.  The Word penetrates deep inside of me like no other human source causing my life to be revitalized and it tends to improve my outlook on life.

       I don’t think I will ever cut anything with a knife, especially chicken, without thinking of this passage in Hebrews again and what the Word of God has done in my life.  I pray the Lord continues to use it in my life to transform me into who I need to be to fulfill His will in my life: one day, one step at a time- for this reason as Paul states:


that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. 
 
2Tm. 3:17
 

Lord, let Your Word continue 
              to transform our lives.
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^= from Strong’s and Theological wordbooks
*= from various dictionaries
living= zao- active, powerful, efficacious^ (produces effects*)
powerful= active^
sharper= cut (as in one stroke)^
piercing= penetrating^
dividing asunder= separating or distribution^
soul= psuche- (relates to Hebrew nephesh) in the sense of physical, emotional (mind) or spiritual self, life as in life experience^ (seems like the ‘whole us’ to me)
spirit= pneuma- (relates to Hebrew ruach) wind or current of air; spiritual entity or supernatural force^
the part that continues after death (1Cor. 5:5) which belongs to God (1Cor. 6:20)
joints= the physical point of connection between two bones*
marrow= nourisher and strengthener of bones, in which blood cells (life) are produced* satisfies the soul (Ps. 63:5)
discerner= one who sees, discovers, distinguishes, judges or has the power to*
intents= thinking, consideration, conception, mind, understanding, will, manner of feeling^
heart= cardea- seat of physical life, center of physical and spiritual life, vigor, soul, mind, passions, desires, purposes, appetites, intelligence, will, character ^