Hebrews 4:12
For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart.
Matthew 4:4
But he answered, “It is written,
“‘Man shall not live by bread alone,
but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.’”
The bible is a funny thing sometimes. There is nothing like it on our bookshelves. What else do you have in your home that is a collection of volumes written over a span of thousands of years by scores of authors in different geographic regions and languages? I’m assuming not much. So it’s safe to say that maybe we can’t simply approach it in the same way as our news apps and paperbacks.
I know I’ve said this repeatedly before. I don’t do so to intimidate anyone from reading scripture, but to hold it more appropriately when reading it. This blog series on “Rhema” is a great example of this.
This blog digs into the usage of this foreign (to us) word. By looking at how it was used originally by the authors in the past, I think we can unpack the deeper root of what they were getting at when telling the story of Jesus. My hope is that as we, 7,000 miles away and 2,000 years later, hear the message of Jesus we also can hear the word of Jesus!
Going back to those couple of verses referenced above, the word “word” used in both Hebrews 4 and Matthew 4 both lose something in their translation. The original word in the first passage is λόγος “Logos” and in the 2nd is ῥήματι “Rhemati” (a form, think tense, of the word Rhema that we are discussing). Don’t be mistaken, I am no Greek scholar. I have just a rudimentary understanding of the value of this in biblical study, and I use a couple of online tools like www.biblehub.com and www.biblegateway.com.
Logos and rhema, both mean “word” and that is why translators being more knowledgeable than I translate these to our word “word” when building English bibles for us to use. But in the way “world” and “earth” are different or how an Oregonian knows the difference between showers on Monday versus rain on Tuesday, the words “logos” and “rhema” have different nuances. Nuances that have value.
Check out these examples:
“In the beginning was the Logos, and the Logos was with God, and the Logos was God” John 1:1
The word logos here is the everlasting word, never fading word, the thought and essence of God, from which all things were, are, or will ever be. Powerful, beautiful stuff.
But Rhema is a word spoken. In the spiritual sense, the word of God speaking and moving in real-time. Moving with the authors when they were writing, as well as with us now as we are living. The rhema of God speaks today. When we share encouragement or blessing inspired by the Holy Spirit the rhema of God is in action.
“Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every Rhema that comes from the mouth of God.” is used in Matthew 4 when Jesus was tempted in the wilderness.
Peter responded to Jesus after many others left in John 6:68 - “Simon Peter answered him, “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the Rhema of eternal life”
Take a minute to re-read Acts 11. This is when Peter recounts to the Christians in Jerusalem his experience of the gentiles receiving the gift of the Holy Spirit just as they had. A pivotal moment in the church affirming that the salvation in Jesus is for the whole world!
First, they hear that the gentiles receive the word ‘logos’ of God. Then Peter explains how the Holy Spirit opened up the opportunity for him to go to their home (the house of Cornelius). Then ‘rhema’ comes in. “Simon who is called Peter; he will declare to you a message ‘rhema’ by which you will be saved”.
What are we up to today? What is the word (or rhema) by which we are saved? How do we live not on bread alone, but by every rhema from the mouth of God? This stuff isn’t just for history books. The Spirit of the Living God dwells within you! You have access to hear the active rhema words of God. You have rhema words to speak.
About the Author
Mike is CitySalt's Lead Pastor. Mike is married to Britni and together they have two awesome elementary school-aged children. He loves working in his garden and connecting with people over coffee. One of his greatest joys in pastoring is helping others discover the fullness that God has for them through His Scriptures and His Spirit.