It is crucial for us to realize that, having passed through the various steps of a process, the Triune God today has become the Spirit. John 7:39 says, “The Spirit was not yet, because Jesus was not yet glorified.” Although the Spirit of God has always been in existence, this verse nevertheless says that the Spirit was not yet. The expression “the Spirit” here denotes the Triune God—the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit—processed to become the all-inclusive life-giving Spirit. This Spirit is all-inclusive because it includes not only divinity, but also humanity, human living, crucifixion, resurrection, and ascension. It includes all the three-one God is, has, and has accomplished and attained. Therefore, the Spirit is the totality of all the three-one God is, has, and has accomplished and attained.
It is even more difficult to define the Word than it is to define the Spirit. In the New Testament, the Son of God is called the Word. Revelation 19:13 says of Him, “His name is called The Word of God.” In the past we have pointed out that for Christ to be the Word of God means that He is the definition, explanation, and expression of God. However, this understanding is not adequate. We must go on to see that the New Testament indicates that the Word is the Spirit. The Lord Jesus said, “The words which I have spoken unto you are spirit and are life” (John 6:63). Furthermore, Ephesians 6:17 even identifies the Word as the Spirit. Hence, the Father, the Son, the Holy Spirit, the Spirit, and the Word are one in a very mysterious way.
In the previous message we pointed out that the Spirit is the consummation of the process through which the Triune God has passed. We also indicated that the Word is the consummation of God’s speaking. But why is the Word the Spirit and the Spirit, the Word? I admit that this matter is very difficult to understand and explain.
As a help to our understanding, we may use the striking of matches as an illustration. Matches are made of phosphorus. Hence, a match is the embodiment of phosphorus. As such, in a very practical way it is identical to phosphorus. This means that the match is phosphorus and phosphorus is the match. Applying this illustration to the Bible and the Spirit, we may compare the Bible to the match and the Spirit to phosphorus. Furthermore, because a match is made of phosphorus and is the embodiment of phosphorus, it makes phosphorus available to us. The Triune God today is the Spirit, and the Spirit is embodied in the Word. Although it is rather difficult for us to handle the Spirit, we can easily carry a Bible. Just as we have phosphorus by having a match, so we have the Spirit by having the Bible.
However, even though the Word is the embodiment of the Spirit, many Christians do not contact the Word through the Spirit. To use the illustration of the match, when these believers strike the Word, the “match” does not light, even though they may love the Bible very much. If we want to light a match, it is not adequate merely to love the match. We need to strike the match in a proper way. In the same principle, if we would contact the Spirit embodied in the Word, we need to “strike” the “match” of the Word by exercising our spirit.
Suppose someone tried to light a match by analyzing it or by exercising his emotion to express his love for it. This indeed would be useless, even foolish. To light a match does not require that we analyze it or love it. We simply need to strike it in a proper way, and it will suddenly burst into flame. In like manner, if we want to contact the Spirit through the Word, we should not merely analyze the “match” of the Word or express our affection for it. Once again I say we need to “strike” the Word in the proper place, and that place is our spirit. Seminaries and Bible schools, however, instruct believers to analyze the “match” or to love it. They do not emphasize the way to “strike” it.
If we would “strike” the “match” of the Word, we must learn to exercise our spirit. Do not use your mind or emotion to strike the Word. The Word will only light up in our experience if we strike it in our spirit. This is the reason we need to exercise our spirit to pray when we come to the Word of God. This is to pray-read the Word.