God’s Word is powerful because it’s more than just words on a page. It’s alive and active, discerning the intentions of the heart (Hebrews 4:12).
Not only does it bring salvation, but it also speaks truth, helping us correct areas of our lives to become living epistles who reflect Christ. In doing so, we can find more fullness in life and be a light to others.
That’s exactly what happened as God’s Spirit worked powerfully through his Word in the heart of a translator in Eurasia.
God’s Word Is a Mirror
“The Holy Spirit won’t let me rest until I have confessed and renounced this horrible sin,” a translator said to an expat worker. “The Epistles are a mirror by which I see my shortcomings.”
The Ducho* team was immersed in detailed checking of the New Testament.
In the past, this translator had wondered why his Christian brothers and sisters from other cultures had so much integrity. “Now I realize it is because they have been studying and meditating on God’s Word for so many years that it has totally changed them,” he explained. “I don’t want to be two-faced anymore. I don’t want to ever deceive anyone again. I’ve asked for my family’s forgiveness, and now I ask for yours.”
In his culture, it’s nearly unheard of for someone to confess sins that they were not caught red-handed in. This heartfelt display of humility is powerful evidence that God’s Spirit, working through the translated Word, is living and alive, producing beautiful fruit in the lives of men and women.
Taking that truth to heart, the translator said, “The teaching of the Epistles leaves us no excuse for not living the new life that Jesus commands, especially if we are leading and teaching others.” And so, with no one’s prompting except that of the Holy Spirit, he confessed to lying and received God’s forgiveness.
Take a moment and reflect on defining moments in your life—before and after Scripture. How has God’s Word come alive and compelled you to follow Jesus more closely?
*Pseudonym
