Since God is a Spirit, man cannot see, hear, touch or know Him except by the Spirit. We've spent centuries trying to find God in the natural realm. Finally, we built our own creeds and doctrines on how to know Him based on the flesh.
The only revelation of God that man has is God's Word. Satan has set up a war against God's Word that still wages strongly today. Even when we see Jesus as our carnal view of God, He is God's Word made flesh. John 1:14 says that, "The Word became flesh and dwelt among us."
Everything about a Christian's life is dependent on receiving the truth of God's Word. Even our prayer of salvation is dependent on believing His Word. Romans 10:17 says that, "Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the Word of God." Satan has fought bitterly against God's Word because God works by His Word. Even when God wanted to create the universe, He brought it into being by His Word. Hebrews 11:3 tells us the worlds were created by the Word of God. Every child of God was brought forth by the Word and was born of the Word according to James 1:18 which says that, "Of His Own will He brought us forth by the Word of truth." 1Peter 1:23 says, "Having been begotten again not of corruptible seed, but of incorruptible, through the Word of God which liveth and abideth forever."
After man was born again, his growth, nourishment and strength of life comes from the Word of God. Matthew 4:4 says that, "Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every Word that proceeds from the mouth of God." It's the Word that builds us up.
Philippians 2:13 says, "For it is Gos Who worketh in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure." So, He's working in us through His Word.
Colossians 1:5-6 (Amplified) says, "Because of the hope (of experiencing what is) Laid up (reserved and working) for you in heaven. Of this (hope) you heard in the past in the message of the truth of the Gospel which has come to you, Indeed, in the whole world (that Gospel) is bearing fruit and still is growing (by its own inherent power) even as it has done among yourselves ever since the day you first heard and came to know and understand the grace of God in truth (you came to know the grace or undeserved favor of God in reality, deeply and clearly and thoroughly, becoming accurately and intimately acquainted with it)."
Satan has had a battle against the Word from the beginning. When he saw that his moving again the Church by torturing and killing God's people didn't work and that it actually caused the Church to stand together and increase, he decided to hide God's Word from the people. He began burning Bibles, but that didn't work so well either.
So, satan had to find a more subtle way of stopping the Church. And, that way was to simply attack the Word and make it powerless in mans lives. For nearly a thousand years, the Word was never given it's place in Christian circles. Mans philosophies usurped the authority of God's Word and ruled and reigned over the Christian world.
Once the Word of God lost its place in the Church, redemption was lost and faith became an unknown factor in Christian lives. The Bible was locked away in monasteries for almost one thousand years and was printed in a language that the common people couldn't understand. The Bible was written only in Latin and only the clergy had access to it. Even history records this time as "The Dark Ages." I'm sure they didn't call it the Dark Ages because the Light of God's Word was hidden, but because the quality of life was in such decline. When God's Word lost its place in mankind's lives, the light of truth lost its place. It was during this period of history (when God's Word was hidden) that the crusades,the black death, purgatory and other such man made ideas about God appear.
The Reformation came about because a few good men saw a small portion of the light of God's Word and gave it to the people once again. Once the Reformation began, Bibles were printed in the common language and found its way back into the homes of the common people. This was something satan hadn't counted on.
Still though, satan never ceased his attack on the Word. When he couldn't keep it locked up anymore, he created creeds and doctrines of men. No single person in the Reformation had the whole light of the Word, only a part of it. Most of these men were products of the Middle Ages who shut themselves up with a set of creeds and they shut out any further light and growth from the Word. This was handed down from one generation to another and has greatly affected the redemptive power of the Word to work in mans lives. It's hindered a true presentation of Christianity to the world and has caused all kinds of battles in the Church and the world.
We have fought and still fight the authority of the Word, the deity of Christ and the power of the Spirit. Many churches are preaching things they consider to be better suited for the times and culture of today and have gotten away from the truth of God's Word. This other "gospel" has taken away a true picture of our Heavenly Father from the people. The very fact that God's Word has been made common among the people, should have been our deliverance, but has now been used to hinder the working of the Word in our lives through doctrines of men.
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