Learning to be Led by the Holy Spirit - Part IV
God Speaks Through His Word
by Dr. John Tetsola

The Holy Spirit guides us in many ways, and one such way is through the Word of God.  When the Holy Spirit operates within the structure of the Word, there is a release of direction, focus, and impartation. Many believers fail to really depend on God’s ability to speak to them through His Word because they prefer or have grown accustomed to a more “supernatural and sophisticated” way. Many miss the supernatural while expecting the spectacular.

So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto I sent it.

Isaiah 55:11

When God speaks to you through His Word, it is the same as a ministry gift coming to you and saying, “Thus saith the Lord.” The degree of value that you place on the voice of God released through His Word is the degree of change that His Word will accomplish in and for you. Second Timothy 3:16a says “All Scripture is given by inspiration of God.” The Greek word for inspiration is “opneustos.” It is only recorded once in the New Testament and it literally means “God-breathed.” Therefore the Word of God is God Himself speaking to us. When God speaks to us through His Word, that Scripture becomes personified and immediately connects to your spirit. You know for sure that God is speaking to you because out of the logos leaps a rhema word sent directly to meet your immediate need. Jesus said, “The words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life” (John 6:63). God’s Word is alive and His Word works. Once God’s Spirit and life words have gone forth from His mouth it shall not return to Him void and without effect. “It shall accomplish that which God pleases, and it shall prosper in the thing whereto He sent it.”

The Marriage of the Word and the Spirit

And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.

Genesis 1:2-3

God’s Word is for guidance and the Spirit plays a part, but not without the Word. The Word and the Spirit must be married to produce accurate and effective guidance. When God wants to invade the physical realm, He has a classic pattern for doing so. For example, when God wanted to invade the earth that was without form and void, how did He do it? The Spirit and the Word worked together to impact the natural realm. The Holy Spirit hovered over the world that was without order, and the Spirit of God said, “Let there be light and there was light.” The Spirit will get the job done, but He flows through the structure of the Word. It is the agreement of His Word and His Spirit that God always uses. He will never lead you by the Spirit and be in disagreement with His Word. Neither will He give you a Word that disagrees with His Spirit. They will always work in perfect harmony.

The marriage of the Word and Spirit gives us a limit, protection, and balance. All Word and no Spirit causes you to dry up. You become a Pharisee—an adherent to the letter of the law that kills. You become mean, legalistic, and engender bondage without life. Conversely, all Spirit and no Word causes you to become self-destructive. You will go nuts because you lack the necessary perimeters with which to bring order, and you will have confusion. The marriage of the Spirit and the Word will cause you to mature. It is not one or the other, but it is both in harmony to produce a mature Christian who has life, balance, and the right structure.
 

by Dr. John A. Tetsola