The Bible is Christ in print, and the Lord Jesus is the Bible personified. Thus, the Word of God is both living and doctrinal, and we must relate to it accordingly.
"They that worship Him must worship Him in spirit and in truth" (John 4:24).
God is a present and living person who must be known personally. He will not be satisfied until such relationship is established and consistently enhanced in us, nor will we. Such union and communion, however, must always be experienced in the context of His written "Thus saith the Lord." We must not emphasize one branch of this blessed tree to the minimization or exclusion of the other, and one of the great challenges of the Christian life involves the maintaining of spirit and truth as the guiding determination of our hearts and minds.
If we seek to know the Lord Jesus apart from the Bible, we will quickly be led astray to "another Jesus," "another spirit," and "another gospel" (II Corinthians 11:4). Conversely, if our perception of the Christian life descends to a mere learning of principles and attempts to follow them, our relationship with God will have been drained of its very life. Spirit and truth. Life and light. Person and principle. There are many ways to express the fact of true worship, and our walk with God must be continually viewed in both aspects of the gift of His Word.
Our spiritual enemies will fight hard to hinder our determination in this most vital matter. We must expect the conflict, and our own flesh will lust against worshipping God in both spirit and truth. Girding ourselves with the sword of the Spirit, that is, with the double-edged Word of God known in both personal and doctrinal reality will maintain our genuine walk with Him. As the Psalmist declared, "Thy Word have I hid in my heart, that I might not sin against Thee" (Psalm 119:11). This Word is both the living Spirit of the Lord Jesus, and the written Word of God. May both be hidden deeply within us, and may both come forth from us for the glory of God and the blessing of others.
"I also, after I heard of your faith in the Lord Jesus, and love unto all the saints, cease not to give thanks for you, making mention of you in my prayers; that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, may give unto you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Him: the eyes of your understanding being enlightened"
(Ephesians 1:15-18).
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