SPIRITUAL SURGERY NEVER HURTS

Table of Contents

1. Opening and Pastor Lori’s Nighttime Encounter with the Word
2. The Message God Spoke to Us in Christ
3. The Word as a Surgeon’s Scalpel
4. The Word Removes Unbelief and Leads Us into Rest
5. Listen to Christ and Behold Who You Are
6. The Word Pierces the Deepest Core
7. Dividing Soul and Spirit
8. Seeing the Unseen Kingdom Realm
9. Ending the Dominance of the Sense Realm
10. The Spirit Becomes the Ruling Influence
11. The Living Word Detects and Removes Disease
12. Living from Christ and Enjoying His Love

Opening and Pastor Lori’s Nighttime Encounter with the Word

Pastor Leonard opens by greeting the audience and thanking everyone who supports the ministry through cards, letters, gifts, and financial contributions. He and Pastor Lori briefly reflect on the Christmas season, their enjoyment of time with family, and their anticipation of returning home. Leonard then explains that Lori came to him with something on her heart that she wanted to share. He gladly turns the teaching over to her and says that he will add to what she shares.

Pastor Lori describes getting ready for bed one night. Although she regularly reads before going to sleep, on this particular occasion she felt unusually excited. While brushing her teeth, she spoke aloud to the Lord and asked, “What are we going to read tonight? What are we going to talk about?”

Pastor Leonard observes that Lori spoke to God as though He were right there with her. He emphasizes that this is important because God truly was right there with her.

Lori opened her Bible and found some highlighted verses. She decided to stop and read them. The passage was Hebrews 4:12, which she read from the Mirror Translation. The wording captured her attention so deeply that she continued thinking and meditating on it for days.

Hebrews 4:12- “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”

The passage presents God’s message in Christ as the most life-giving and dynamic influence within the believer. It compares the Word to both a surgeon’s scalpel and a soldier’s sword. It reaches the deepest parts of human consciousness, divides soul and spirit, ends the dominance of the sense realm, frees the human spirit to become the ruling influence again, and discerns what is hidden where the joints and marrow meet.

Lori says there is enough truth in this one passage to remain there for weeks. The more she thought about it, the more she found herself responding with amazement. There seemed to be no end to what the Holy Spirit could reveal through it.

The Message God Spoke to Us in Christ

Lori begins by considering the phrase, “The message God spoke to us in Christ.” She asks what that message is and begins identifying what God has communicated through Jesus. One of the first answers that comes to her is that Christ gave her life and made that life new.

Leonard connects the message of Christ with grace and with Paul’s declaration that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself.

2 Corinthians 5:18-19- “And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation; To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.”

Leonard explains that the message God spoke through Christ is that humanity has been reconciled to God. The believer is at peace with God, at one with God, and united to Him because of Christ. God is not holding the believer’s trespasses against him. Christ has brought the believer into oneness and peace with God. The message also declares that the believer shares Christ’s standing in this world.

1 John 4:17- “Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.”

Lori also mentions that she had recently been reading the Song of Solomon, also called the Song of Songs, in the Passion Translation. That translation suggested reading the entire book in one sitting, so she did. After reading it, she repeatedly found herself saying, “I am His lover. He loves me so much. I am His lover.”

This truth became a personal reminder of how deeply God loves her. She was not merely studying information about God. She was becoming increasingly aware of His love, nearness, and relationship with her.

The Word as a Surgeon’s Scalpel

Lori returns to the description of the Word cutting like a surgeon’s scalpel and being sharper than a soldier’s sword.

Hebrews 4:12- “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”

A surgeon uses a scalpel to enter the body and deal with something that does not belong. The purpose of the cutting is not to injure the patient but to remove the problem and bring healing.

Lori sees this as a picture of what Christ accomplished. Jesus cut away the old. Sin and the sinful nature were dealt with and removed. The problem of sin was not merely covered temporarily or left for the believer to solve through human effort. What Christ accomplished took the old away and settled the issue of sin. The Word enters with the accuracy and precision of a surgeon. It reaches what human effort cannot reach and removes what the believer cannot remove by striving.

This spiritual surgery is not a process of the believer trying to repair himself. The living Word operates. It removes what contradicts the new life already given in Christ and frees the believer to live from that new life.

The Word Removes Unbelief and Leads Us into Rest

Leonard places Hebrews 4:12 within the flow of the entire chapter. The verses immediately preceding it discuss entering God’s rest. They warn believers not to follow Israel’s example of unbelief.

Hebrews 4:1-11- “Let us therefore fear, lest, a promise being left us of entering into his rest, any of you should seem to come short of it. For unto us was the gospel preached, as well as unto them: but the word preached did not profit them, not being mixed with faith in them that heard it. For we which have believed do enter into rest, as he said, As I have sworn in my wrath, if they shall enter into my rest: although the works were finished from the foundation of the world. For he spake in a certain place of the seventh day on this wise, And God did rest the seventh day from all his works. And in this place again, If they shall enter into my rest. Seeing therefore it remaineth that some must enter therein, and they to whom it was first preached entered not in because of unbelief: Again, he limiteth a certain day, saying in David, To day, after so long a time; as it is said, To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts. For if Jesus had given them rest, then would he not afterward have spoken of another day. There remaineth therefore a rest to the people of God. For he that is entered into his rest, he also hath ceased from his own works, as God did from his. Let us labour therefore to enter into that rest, lest any man fall after the same example of unbelief.”

The Israelites did not enter the promised rest because of unbelief. Leonard therefore sees the surgeon’s scalpel as a picture of the Word cutting unbelief out of the believer’s soul, mind, and patterns of thinking. When believers are combating unbelief, the answer is not condemnation. The Word can surgically remove unbelief so that they are able to live and act from the faith God intended.

Leonard explains that nothing has power to prevent God from moving in the believer’s life except those things that the believer believes will hinder Him. The Word confronts those beliefs and removes their influence.

The operation is not performed through self-condemnation or greater human struggle. The Word removes unbelief and establishes confidence in what Christ has already accomplished. As unbelief is removed, the believer enters into rest rather than continually attempting to produce through personal effort what Christ has already finished.

Listen to Christ and Behold Who You Are

Leonard then focuses on the declaration that God’s message is spoken to us in Christ. If believers want to understand what God is saying to them, they should look at what the Father said to Jesus.

At Jesus’ baptism, the Father identified Jesus as His beloved Son in whom He was well pleased.

Matthew 3:17- “And lo, a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.”

God’s message in Christ reveals beloved identity, acceptance, and pleasure. The believer should look to Christ to understand the Father’s heart rather than attempting to understand God through fear, law, condemnation, or religious legalism.

Leonard also recalls what happened on the Mount of Transfiguration. Peter, James, and John saw Jesus with Moses and Elijah. The Father then directed their attention toward Jesus and commanded them to hear Him.

Matthew 17:1-5- “And after six days Jesus taketh Peter, James, and John his brother, and bringeth them up into an high mountain apart, And was transfigured before them: and his face did shine as the sun, and his raiment was white as the light. And, behold, there appeared unto them Moses and Elias talking with him. Then answered Peter, and said unto Jesus, Lord, it is good for us to be here: if thou wilt, let us make here three tabernacles; one for thee, and one for Moses, and one for Elias. While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him.”

Leonard applies this as a command to listen to Jesus and follow grace. The believer is called to let the Word cut away law and legalism and to keep his attention upon Christ. The message revealed in Christ also tells believers who they are. Christ is their model, and they have been made like Him.

1 John 4:17- “Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.”

Leonard and Lori emphasize that the revelation is never-ending. The whole Word connects together, and the Holy Spirit can continue showing believers more about Christ, their identity, and the life they have received in Him.

The Word Pierces the Deepest Core

Lori considers the statement that the Word pierces to the deepest core of human consciousness.

Hebrews 4:12- “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”

People often describe dealing with deeply rooted issues as peeling away the layers of an onion. They believe they must remove one layer at a time before they can finally reach the root of a problem.

Lori explains that Hebrews 4:12 presents something more immediate. If the believer allows the Word to operate, it can pierce directly to the deepest place. The Word does not necessarily have to remove one layer at a time. It can reach the core.

Both pastors emphasize that the believer is not performing this operation. The Word does the piercing. The Word does the healing. Whatever may be taking place deep within a person’s consciousness, the Word can reach it. Leonard compares this with beholding the glory of the Lord as in a mirror and being changed into the same image by the Holy Spirit.

2 Corinthians 3:18- “But we all, with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the Lord, are changed into the same image from glory to glory, even as by the Spirit of the Lord.”

The believer is changed by beholding Christ. The transformation is accomplished by the Holy Spirit rather than through human effort. God’s message says to be as Christ because God has already made the believer like Christ. The believer beholds Christ and recognizes the identity that has already been given.

1 John 4:17- “Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.”

Dividing Soul and Spirit

Lori next considers what it means for the Word to divide soul and spirit.

Hebrews 4:12- “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”

She explains that the soul consists of the mind, will, and emotions. The spirit is the real person. The believer’s true life is found in the kingdom realm and the supernatural realm. The Word divides soul and spirit so that the natural mind, emotions, and senses no longer conceal or overrule the believer’s true identity in Christ.

People commonly live according to what they see, hear, feel, taste, and touch. Those natural senses can become so dominant that people begin to regard them as the highest form of reality. The Word separates the reports of the senses from the truth of the spirit. It exposes the difference between what the natural senses are reporting and what Christ has accomplished.

This does not mean denying that people see, hear, or feel things. It means refusing to allow those things to define who they are or determine the spiritual reality from which they live. The Word restores believers to an awareness of who they truly are in Christ and what Christ has truly accomplished for them.

Seeing the Unseen Kingdom Realm

Leonard illustrates the kingdom realm by recalling the biblical account of the prophet and his frightened servant. In the transcript, the prophet is called Elijah, but the biblical account in 2 Kings 6 identifies him as Elisha.

The servant saw the surrounding enemy army and became afraid. Elisha remained calm because he was aware of a reality that his servant could not yet see. Elisha prayed that the servant’s eyes would be opened.

2 Kings 6:15-17- “And when the servant of the man of God was risen early, and gone forth, behold, an host compassed the city both with horses and chariots. And his servant said unto him, Alas, my master! How shall we do? And he answered, Fear not: for they that be with us are more than they that be with them. And Elisha prayed, and said, LORD, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see. And the LORD opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha.”

When the servant’s eyes were opened, he saw that the mountain was filled with horses and chariots of fire. The spiritual army had already been present, but the servant had been unable to see it with his natural eyes.

Leonard asks which man was operating in the real world. Elisha was living from the unseen spiritual reality. The servant was initially limited to what his natural eyes could see. When God opened the servant’s eyes, he became aware of the kingdom reality that had been present around them all along.

Leonard explains that when believers allow the Word to operate upon their souls like a surgeon’s scalpel, it removes their dependence upon the natural and fleshly realm. The Word reveals the spiritual realm that is already around them and in which they truly live.

Lori connects this with a children’s book that Allison gave her to read to Wilder. The story was about a little boy and his dog entering an unsafe situation. The illustration showed a large angel standing behind them.

As Lori looked at the picture, she could see the angel protecting the child and the dog. It reminded her that this invisible protection was a real part of their situation, even though the characters could not see it with their natural eyes. When she read Hebrews the following day, the kingdom realm became even more vivid to her. What cannot be seen with the natural eyes is still real. The spiritual realm is not imaginary. It is the believer’s true kingdom reality.

Ending the Dominance of the Sense Realm

The pastors dwell on the statement that the Word ends the dominance of the sense realm and its neutralizing effect upon the human spirit. The sense realm says, “I do not see God working, so He must not be working.” It says, “I do not feel Him, so He cannot be here.” It causes people to ask where God is simply because they cannot perceive Him through their physical senses.

Lori answers those thoughts with the truths she has been meditating upon. She is God’s lover. He is close to her. He loves her. He will never leave her. She is a new creation.

Hebrews 13:5- “Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee.”

2 Corinthians 5:17- “Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.”

The Word ends the authority of the senses to define spiritual reality. Sight, feeling, hearing, taste, and touch no longer rule the believer or determine whether God is present and active. The natural world is not evil, and it can be enjoyed. The problem begins when the natural world becomes the believer’s ruling realm and determines what the believer accepts as true.

God’s presence does not depend upon whether a person feels Him. God’s activity does not depend upon whether a person can see immediate evidence of it. The Word establishes a higher reality within the believer.

The Spirit Becomes the Ruling Influence

When the dominance of the senses ends, the spirit is freed to become the ruling influence again in the thoughts and intentions of the heart.

Hebrews 4:12- “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”

Leonard and Lori repeat the phrase “the ruling influence” because it captures the change they are describing. The natural senses are no longer the ruler. What a believer sees, hears, feels, tastes, or touches does not hold the final authority. The kingdom realm, the spiritual realm, and the believer’s reality in Christ become the ruling influences.

They recall the worship song that declares that God is working even when He cannot be seen or felt. Their point is that God’s activity cannot be measured solely by sensory evidence. Believers live in the heavenly realm and can continually remind themselves, “I live in the heavenly realm.” The spirit, awakened to Christ’s finished work and indwelling life, becomes the ruling influence over the believer’s thoughts and the intentions of the heart.

The Living Word Detects and Removes Disease

Lori then reaches the final portion of the passage, which speaks about the living Word detecting what is hidden deep within a person, where the joints and marrow meet.

Hebrews 4:12- “For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any twoedged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”

Lori is careful to acknowledge that she is still meditating upon this portion. She wants to continue considering it and allowing the Holy Spirit to speak to her about it. She does not claim that she has reached a complete understanding. Even while leaving room for further revelation, she recognizes the power of the statement. The living Word can detect every possible disease and discern the body’s deepest secrets.

The Word can reach what is concealed within a person. It can go into the places that human observation cannot reach and identify what is happening there.

Lori asks whether this applies physically, spiritually, or to anything unhealthy operating within a person. Leonard responds that it includes anything. The Word detects it and removes it. They return to the imagery of a surgeon. The Word does not merely expose what is wrong and then leave the believer with the responsibility of removing it. The same Word that detects the condition is able to remove it surgically.

The message of God in Christ is the most life-giving and dynamic influence within the believer. The purpose of this spiritual surgery is not to harm the believer. It is to remove everything that has attempted to neutralize or conceal the life of Christ within.

Living from Christ and Enjoying His Love

Lori describes going to bed that first night with a desire to be free from living under the dominance of the sense realm. She wants the life of Christ within her to become the dominant influence.

Leonard clarifies that Christ is already in the believer. The believer needs to become conscious of that reality and learn to live from Him. The objective is not to persuade Christ to come closer. It is to recognize that He already lives within the believer and then live from His indwelling life.

Leonard tells the listeners that they are God’s lovers. God wants them to know beyond any shadow of doubt how deeply they are loved, who they truly are, and how much they mean to Him.

Believers do not have to remain confined to the sense-filled realm. The natural world is available for them to enjoy, but it is not the realm from which they are supposed to receive their identity or define their relationship with God. Their true life is in the kingdom realm. God wants them to enjoy Him just as He enjoys them.

The pastors close by encouraging everyone to enjoy the day outside the dominance of the sense realm and within the kingdom realm. They urge believers to enjoy God’s presence and love. Spiritual surgery never hurts because the living Word is not cutting away the believer’s true identity. It is removing unbelief, legalism, false dependence upon the senses, and everything else that prevents the believer from freely living out of the life of Christ within.

We hope this article blessed you and helped you see how the living Word reveals Christ within you, removes unbelief, and frees you to live from the reality of God’s kingdom. Share this teaching with someone who needs to know how deeply loved, reconciled, and complete they are in Christ.