Literally, the word of God is understood to be contained in the Bible which God Himself inspired the various authors who wrote as well as those who compiled it.
But then, during the creation story that is recorded in the first book of the Bible known as Genesis, we see how God used the spoken word to bring everything into existence, in fact when He said “let there be” the scripture response that “and there was’.
And in John 1:3, the Bible clearly states that there was nothing that was created without the power of the word, after it earlier confirmed in verse 1 and 2 that the word was in the beginning with God.
As we read down the John chapter one, we discover how it personifies the word nd finally reveals in verse 14 how the word became flesh and dwelt with human beings. And the perfection description reveals Jesus Christ as the word of God.
In this sermon, we are going to look at the 10 characteristics of the word of God and I pray the spirit that reveals all mysteries to help you understand this sermon in Jesus name. men.
10 Characteristics of the word of God.
The 10 characteristics of the word of God are:
- Inspired by God (2 Peter 1:20-21)
- True (John 17:17, Psalm 33:4)
- Life giving spirit (John 6:63)
- Perfect (Psalm 19:7)
- Profitable (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
- Quick, powerful and sharp (Hebrews 4:12)
- Contains parables (Mathew 13:10-17)
- Full of wisdom (Proverbs 3:7)
- Righteous (Romans 1:17)
- Everlasting (Mathew 24:35)
1. Inspired by God (2 Peter 1:20-21)
According to the Bible in 2 Peter 1:20-21, the scripture did not come by the will of men but holy men of God spoke as they were directly inspired by God.
There would have been the possibility of men writing the Bible and attributing it to the word of God but considering how so many prophecies that were written down came to fulfillment plus how human beings were able to preserve the Bible through centuries that spanned wars and catastrophes, we cannot deny the fact that truly it was God who inspired the word of God.
Most of the Jewish prophets in the Bible predicted the birth and death of Jesus Christ and Isaiah in its 53rd gives a detailed description of all that was fulfilled in Jesus Christ. Thus having this and many more Biblical prophecies that was fulfilled as a proof, we cannot deny the fact that truly the word of God was inspired by God Himself.
2. Truth (John 17:17, Psalm 33:4)
While praying for His disciples in John chapter 17, Jesus specifically asked the Father in verse 17 to sanctify them by His word revealing that His word is truth.
This revelation by Jesus takes us back to the Old Testament where the Bible reveals in Numbers 23:19 that God is not a man that He should lie.
And in Psalm 33:4 the scripture says that the word of God is right and all His work is done in truth. Thus, we must all believe every word of God we see in the Bible because they are all true.
3. Life giving spirit (John 6:63)
In Genesis 2:7, we discover that God made man from the dust of the ground, and immediately He blew the breathe of life into his nostrils he became a living soul. This Bible verse therefore establishes the fact that human beings are made oup of two elements which are:
- The dust of the ground also known as flesh.
- The breathe of life also known as spirit.
Now Ecclesiastes 12:7 goes on to reveal to us that at the point of death, the human flesh returns to the dust from whence it came while the spirit returns to God who gave it. This then shows us that it is the spirit of God that gives life to the human flesh.
So in John 6:63 our Lord Jesus maintained that the flesh profits us nothing because it is the spirit that gives life and the words He spoke unto us are the spirit that gives life.
It is worth noting that the spirit that gives life to the human flesh has the tendency to live forever if it is able to adhere to the commands of God while it lives in the human body as the scripture reveals in 2 Cornthians 5:10:
“For we must all appear before the judgement seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad”.
4. Perfect (Psalm 19:7)
In Psalm 19:7 the scripture reveals that the word of God is perfect because it is able to convert a soul.
In the creation story we see how God inspected every single thing He created to confirm it was good before the creation day passes away.
This goes to say that God had taken the time to confirm that evverything that was written down in His word is perfect before He gave it to human kind.
5. Profitable (2 Timothy 3:16-17)
The word profitable as applied to the word of God in this context does not connote wealth, riches or affluence rather as the scripture itself states in the inciting passage 2 Timothy 3:16-17 the word of God is profitable for the following:
- Doctrine: Every Christian body or organizations can use the word of God to formulate their set of beliefs, policies and principles.
- Reproof: With the knowledge of the word of God, one will be in the position to express disapproval or blame the conducts and attitudes of human beings.
- Correction: When you see people doing things that go contrary to what the word of God says, you can use the references to point out ways they can correct their faults or errors.
- Instruction in righteousness: The word of God is a great means of helping human beings know how to do the things that are right and shun the ones that are wrong.
6. Quick, powerful and sharp (Hebrews 4:12)
The creation story has really helped us to understand how active the word of God can be because when God said “let there be” there was no wasting of time before what he commanded came into existence.
And according to our inciting passage Hebrews 4:12, the word of God is able to penetrate both the soul, spirit, joints and marrows of human beings and is capable of knowing the thoughts and intents of the human heart.
7. Contains parables (Mathew 13:10-17)
The word of God contains parables which is defined as using stoories to illustrate moral or religious lessons.
Now most of the teachings of the Lord Jesus was filled with parables and the most popular ones are:
- Parable of the Sower
- Parable of the Talents
- Parable of the Prodigal Son
- Parable of the Good Samaritan
- Parable of the Mustard Seed
Now when the disciples asked Him why He spoke in parables He responded in Mark 13:10-17 that He spoke to them in parables so that those who do not seek to believe in Him would not be able to understand His teachings.
8. Full of wisdom (2 Timothy 3:15)
In our inciting passage, we see how Paul tells Timothy that he has known from childhood the word of God which are able to give him the wisdom that leads to salvation through faith which is in Christ Jesus.
As the creator of the earth and author of His word, God knows every hidden things that is contained in existence and it is by being tuned to His word that a human being will be able to discover those hidden things and become wise.
9. Righteous (Romans 1:17)
The righteousness of God is revealed nowhere else but in His word.
10. Everlasting (Mathew 24:35)
The Bible specifically states in Mathew 24:35 that the heavens and earth will pass away but the word of God will abide forever.
Now we gain more understanding of this passage when we go to John chapter one and discover that the word of God was in the beginning with God, that is even before the heaven and earth and all that is in them were created.
So what this means is that the heaven and earth were made to last for a while and when they are gone the word of God Who made them will still live forever.
