One of the most intimidating things in the world as far as I’m concerned is a blank greeting card, especially if it’s for my wife on our anniversary. It dares me to scour the English language in search of the relative handful of words that will adequately express my feelings. And sometimes I just freeze like a deer in the headlights. But when I accept the challenge, put pen to paper, and get them right, those few words unleash a force that deeply enriches our marriage.

A carefully chosen and articulated phrase can be very powerful. But conveying the right words in the moment requires the existence of the whole dictionary. Like a well-stocked stationary store with enough greeting cards to choose from that you can find the one that’s just right for the occasion, it’s the richness of a full vocabulary that empowers any individual message.

The relationship between those two things – the vocabulary and the message – is described by Jesus in his prayer recorded in John 17. As part of his assessment of the disciples’ readiness for the challenges ahead, he reported on how they had responded to what he described to his Father in verse 6 as “your word”, and in verse 8 as “the words.” But the distinction he was making was not just singular versus plural. His strategic meaning was captured using two different Greek words: logos and rhema.

Logos is defined as speech that embodies a concept or idea. And the New Testament often uses it when referring to Scripture as the definitive, written expression of God’s voice. But John made clear that he intended to expand its use when he employed it three times in the opening sentence of his gospel to identify Jesus as the word who was in the beginning, was with God, and was God. These are not references to what Jesus said. They describe who he is.

Rhema is a Greek synonym of logos, but the New Testament often distinguishes them in this way. Where logos refers to the full vocabulary of God, rhema describes specific messages composed from that vocabulary. For instance, logos could be used to identify the Bible as a whole, and rhema as an individual passage highlighted by the Spirit as he speaks through it to a specific person and applies it to their unique circumstances.

Jesus was affirming two separate aspects of the disciples’ spiritual development that should be true of ours as well when he said they had “kept” the logos and “received” the rhema. To keep means to hold on to something, and to receive means to welcome something being offered. It's only when we’re holding on to the logos of God that we can receive his rhema. Becoming sensitized to his timely messages that address our specific needs requires that we first have a firm grasp on the vocabulary he uses to deliver them.

We need both, but rhema is dependent on logos. So, let’s determine to develop a holy habit of regularly mining the depths of Scripture, God’s written word. And by doing so, we can’t help but enrich our relationship with Jesus, the personification of that word. He’s the embodiment of everything God is communicating. He’s the complete lexicon. He IS the logos.

John 17:6-10 (3) • The Vocabulary and the Message

Come On In

Crossroads Foursquare Church

Becoming a Deliverer

Matthew 6:21
Wherever your treasure is, there the desires of your heart will also be.

Listen on Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/track/596Lrt5qvhwlOc7Kggv77r?si=aEkYLapxQWqU2qMLBpaeyA

Composed by Sarahjane Cromarty
Copyright © 2019

John 17:6-10 (3) • The Vocabulary and the Message

Randy Boldt

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