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“Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.”
— Matthew 4:4
Let us look at what the Word of God says.
These words were spoken by Jesus Himself in a moment of intense spiritual conflict. They reveal a principle that governs all true spiritual life: a believer does not live by material provision alone, but by the continual, life-giving utterance of God.
The associated scriptures deepen this:
> “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing.
> The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life.”
> — John 6:63
> “For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two–edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.”
> — Hebrews 4:12
The song you have given centers on one central, non‑negotiable truth:
This is not a religious slogan. It is a spiritual law. To the degree that you take in, submit to, and walk in the Word of God, to that degree you live in the life of God. To the degree that you neglect it, replace it, or resist it, to that degree you live in spiritual weakness, confusion, and defeat.
The lyrics echo this biblical testimony:
> “We live by every word
> that comes from the mouth of God.
> Not bread alone, but His living word—
> it feeds our soul, it makes us whole.”
This is not optional for the believer seeking deliverance, maturity, or victory. This is central. God’s Word is not a supplement; it is our food, our life, our weapon, and our measuring line.
---
### Matthew 4:4 – The Wilderness Temptation
The words “Man shall not live by bread alone…” are spoken by Jesus in the wilderness, immediately after His baptism and the public affirmation of the Father:
> “This is My beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.” (Matthew 3:17)
From the waters of the Jordan, Jesus goes straight into the conflict of the wilderness:
> “Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.”
> — Matthew 4:1
Notice:
“And when He had fasted forty days and forty nights, afterward He was hungry.” (Matthew 4:2)
The first temptation is directly linked to His physical need:
> “If You are the Son of God, command that these stones become bread.”
> — Matthew 4:3
Satan’s strategy is clear:
1. Attack at the point of physical weakness.
2. Attempt to separate the Son from dependence on the Father’s Word.
3. Push Him to use His power independently of the Father’s will.
Jesus’ answer establishes the pattern for all spiritual warfare:
> “But He answered and said, ‘It is written,
> Man shall not live by bread alone,
> but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.’”
> — Matthew 4:4, quoting Deuteronomy 8:3
Jesus does not reason with Satan. He does not appeal to His own status. He takes His stand on Scripture: “It is written.” That is decisive.
He also reaches back to Israel’s history in the wilderness. Deuteronomy 8:3 describes God’s dealing with Israel:
> “…that He might make you know that man shall not live by bread alone;
> but man lives by every word that proceeds from the mouth of the LORD.”
The original context in Deuteronomy:
Jesus stands where Israel failed—and triumphs—by absolute reliance on the Word.
### John 6:63 – The Bread of Life Discourse
In John 6, Jesus has just miraculously multiplied bread and fed thousands. The crowd seeks Him for more material provision. Jesus redirects them:
> “Do not labor for the food which perishes, but for the food which endures to everlasting life…” (John 6:27)
He reveals that He is the true bread from heaven (John 6:35). The Jews murmur. Many are offended. In the middle of this, He makes a vital statement:
> “It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing.
> The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life.”
> — John 6:63
He moves them from material bread to spiritual words. From external provision to internal life.
### Hebrews 4:12 – The Word as Living Sword
Hebrews 3–4 addresses Israel’s failure to enter God’s rest because of unbelief. The writer warns believers not to repeat that pattern by hardening their hearts.
Then he describes the instrument God uses to expose unbelief and wrong motives:
> “For the word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two–edged sword…”
> — Hebrews 4:12
In other words: it is not enough to hear the Word; the Word will also search us, divide between what is soulish and what is spiritual, and reveal the true condition of our hearts.
The song rightly picks this up:
> “Your word is living, powerful,
> sharper than any sword—
> feed on it daily, live by it fully.”
---
### 1. “Word” – *Rhema* and *Logos*
In Matthew 4:4, Jesus says:
> “…but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.”
The Greek term here is ῥῆμα (*rhema*).
Compare this with λόγος (*logos*), which can refer to:
Both are essential, but here the emphasis is on *rhema*—the living, proceeding Word, applied by the Spirit to your present situation.
This means:
In John 6:63, “The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life,” the word is ῥήματα (*rhemata*)—plural of *rhema*. Jesus is saying: “My spoken sayings, my utterances, are Spirit and life.”
### 2. “Living” – *Zōn* / *Zōē*
In Hebrews 4:12, “the word of God is living,” the Greek is ζῶν (*zōn*), from ζωή (*zōē*)—life.
So when Scripture says the Word is living, it means:
When the song says:
> “Not bread alone, but His living word—
> it feeds our soul, it makes us whole.”
It is aligning with this reality: God’s Word does not merely inform the mind; it imparts life and restores wholeness.
---
Let us take the lyrics in themes and align them with Scripture.
### Theme 1: “We live by every word that comes from the mouth of God”
This line directly echoes Matthew 4:4 and Deuteronomy 8:3.
#### a) Life Defined by Dependence
Spiritual life begins when a person turns from independence to dependence on God’s Word.
To live by “every word” means:
1. Comprehensiveness: We do not select the parts we like.
“Every word” includes promises, commands, warnings, and corrections.
2. Continuity: God’s Word is not a one-time meal; it is daily bread.
“Give us this day our daily bread.” (Matthew 6:11)
3. Priority: Bread is not wrong, but it is not enough. Material provision is secondary; God’s utterance is primary.
Psalm 119:130 says:
> “The entrance of Your words gives light; it gives understanding to the simple.”
Where God’s Word enters, light enters. Where God’s Word is absent or resisted, darkness prevails, regardless of religious activity.
#### b) The Proceeding Word
“Proceeds from the mouth of God” indicates an ongoing process. God did not merely speak in the past; He is speaking. But He always speaks in line with what He has already spoken in Scripture.
The Holy Spirit takes the written Word (*logos*) and makes it a spoken Word (*rhema*) to your situation.
### Theme 2: “Not bread alone, but His living word—it feeds our soul, it makes us whole”
Here we have two great truths:
1. The Word as Food
2. The Word as Restoration
#### a) The Word as Food
Jeremiah 15:16:
> “Your words were found, and I ate them,
> and Your word was to me the joy and rejoicing of my heart…”
Job 23:12:
> “I have treasured the words of His mouth
> more than my necessary food.”
The normal Christian life is a life in which the Word of God is taken in as daily nourishment.
If your intake of Scripture is irregular, superficial, or purely intellectual, your spiritual health will show it: weakness, confusion, lack of discernment, vulnerability in temptation.
#### b) The Word as Wholeness
“it feeds our soul, it makes us whole.”
Wholeness in Scripture is often expressed by the word shalom: completeness, soundness, well‑being.
The Word restores:
Psalm 19:7–8:
> “The law of the LORD is perfect, converting the soul;
> The testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple.
> The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart…”
The Hebrew for “converting” is *shuv*—to turn, restore, bring back. God’s Word brings back the soul from scattered, fragmented, and broken conditions to alignment with God.
If you are seeking inner healing, emotional stability, or deliverance from confusion, one of God’s chief instruments is steady intake and obedience to His Word.
### Theme 3: “The words I have spoken to you are full of the Spirit and life”
Jesus says plainly:
> “The words that I have spoken to you are spirit and are life.”
> — John 6:63
#### a) The Spirit–Word Connection
The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth (John 16:13). He operates in and through the Word. When Jesus speaks, His words carry the Holy Spirit.
This means:
The song phrases it: “full of the Spirit and life.” This is accurate theology: the words of Christ are containers and channels of the Spirit and the life of God.
2 Corinthians 3:6 says:
> “…the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.”
This is sometimes misused to reject the written Word. That is an error. Paul is not attacking Scripture. He is warning against relying on the text without the Spirit. But when the Spirit breathes upon the written Word, it becomes life‑giving.
#### b) The Flesh Profits Nothing
“It is the Spirit who gives life; the flesh profits nothing.” (John 6:63)
“Flesh” here is not just the physical body, but human nature acting independently of God. Religious effort, intellectual study, or emotionalism—apart from the Spirit—produce no spiritual life.
This confronts us with a clear choice:
### Theme 4: “Your word is living, powerful, sharper than any sword”
Here the lyrics quote Hebrews 4:12 in summary form.
#### a) Living and Powerful
The Greek for “powerful” is ἐνεργής (*energēs*)—energizing, active, effective. God’s Word contains its own power to fulfill what it says.
Isaiah 55:11:
> “So shall My word be that goes forth from My mouth;
> It shall not return to Me void,
> But it shall accomplish what I please,
> And it shall prosper in the thing for which I sent it.”
When you receive and proclaim God’s Word in faith, you are releasing a divine energy that does what no human effort can do.
#### b) Sharper Than Any Two‑Edged Sword
The Word penetrates where nothing else can:
Many believers confuse soul and spirit. They regard strong emotions as spiritual experiences. The Word of God, applied by the Spirit, will cut through that confusion. It will expose what is of God, what is of self, and what is of the enemy.
If you submit to this searching work, the result is freedom and purity. If you resist it, you remain vulnerable to deception.
#### c) Spiritual Warfare Dimension
Ephesians 6:17 says:
> “…the sword of the Spirit, which is the word (*rhema*) of God.”
Again, the *rhema*—the spoken, applied Word—is your weapon. Jesus, in the wilderness, shows us how to use it:
Every time Satan attacks, Jesus counters with specific Scripture. That is how we must fight.
The lyric: “feed on it daily, live by it fully” connects nourishment and warfare. The believer who feeds on the Word is the believer who can wield the sword effectively.
---
For this truth to benefit you, it must be applied. I will outline four practical steps, each of which can be turned into a proclamation.
### 1. Make the Word Your Daily Bread
First, we must treat Scripture as daily necessity, not occasional supplement.
Proclamation:
“I do not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God. God’s Word is my daily food.”
### 2. Ask the Holy Spirit to Make the Word Spirit and Life to You
Second, we must depend on the Holy Spirit to make the written Word a living *rhema*.
Before you read, pray something like:
This keeps you from treating the Bible as a dead, religious text. It also guards you from private interpretation apart from the Spirit’s guidance.
Proclamation:
“The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of truth. He opens my eyes, and the words of Jesus are Spirit and life to me.”
### 3. Obey the Word You Receive
Third, we must respond in obedience. Spiritual life does not come through hearing only, but through doing.
James 1:22:
> “But be doers of the word, and not hearers only, deceiving yourselves.”
Where you receive light and refuse to obey, you open yourself to deception. Where you obey, life flows.
Proclamation:
“I am not a hearer only, but a doer of the Word. I align my thoughts, words, and actions with Scripture.”
### 4. Use the Word in Spiritual Warfare and Self‑Examination
Fourth, we must wield the Word and submit to its searching work.
Pray regularly:
Proclamation:
“The Word of God is living and powerful in me. It searches my heart, exposes darkness, and drives back the enemy.”
---
### Proclamation
Say this aloud, thoughtfully and with faith:
“I confess that I do not live by bread alone,
but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.
The words of Jesus are Spirit and life to me.
The Word of God is living and powerful in me,
sharper than any two–edged sword,
dividing soul and spirit,
and discerning the thoughts and intents of my heart.
God’s Word is my daily bread.
It feeds my soul and makes me whole.
I submit my mind, my will, and my emotions
to the authority of Scripture.
I receive the Holy Spirit as my Teacher.
He opens the Scriptures to me
and makes them life in my inner man.
I am a doer of the Word, not a hearer only.
I wield the sword of the Spirit, the *rhema* of God,
against every scheme of Satan.
By God’s Word I live.
By God’s Word I stand.
By God’s Word I overcome.
In the name of Jesus. Amen.”
### Prayer
“Lord Jesus Christ,
You are the living Word, and You have given us the written Word.
I acknowledge today that I cannot live by bread alone—
I need every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.
Father, forgive me where I have neglected Your Word,
treated it lightly, or placed human opinions above it.
Cleanse me from unbelief and hardness of heart.
Holy Spirit, Spirit of truth, come and breathe upon the Scriptures
every time I open them.
Make the words of Jesus to me Spirit and life.
Let the Word of God work in me—
penetrating, dividing, discerning, and cleansing.
Write Your Word on my heart.
Renew my mind.
Heal my soul.
Strengthen my will to obey.
Teach me to feed daily on Scripture,
to live by it fully,
and to use it as a sharp, two–edged sword
against all the works of darkness.
I yield myself to the authority of Your Word.
Let my whole life be governed, shaped, and sustained by it.
I ask this in the name of Jesus, the living Word of God.
Amen.”
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