The Washing of the Water in the Word

Ephesians 5:25-27 presents three steps taken by Christ (with the believers’ cooperation) to make the church His glorious wife, the New Jerusalem. The first step was accomplished by His death. The third will occur at His second coming. Verse 26 is the second step which is in progress now; “He might sanctify her, cleansing her by the washing of the water in the word.”

The divine, holy, and sanctifying water of life, the Spirit of life, is “in the word.” Word here in Greek is rhema, which refers to the instant, present, living, personalized word of God to us. Logos refers to the constant and written Word of God. What God has spoken is recorded in the written Word. When God speaks this Word a second time to us in a present and personal way, the logos converts to rhema.
When we pray over the written Word in various ways, God’s logos becomes rhema to us….How crucial it is for us to “pray-read” God’s Word daily so that we can be sanctified by the washing of the water in the rhema. It is in this way that we become the New Jerusalem, the bride, the wife, of the Lamb.*

Ephesians 6:17-18 guides us regarding receiving the logos so that it becomes rhema: “receive…the sword of the Spirit, which Spirit is the word of God, by means of all prayer and petition, praying at every time in spirit.” When we take time to muse on a few verses with prayer, often the Lord will speak to us, applying that logos to our person or our situation. Thus we are sanctified by the washing and brought onward toward New Jerusalem.
— — — — — —

* From page 21-22 of Ed Marks, The New Jerusalem—A Corporate Person, Affirmation & Critique Monograph, A&C Press, © Living Stream Ministry (2025). After what is written above, the author quotes about “pray-reading” from E. M. Bounds (1835–1913), George Whitefield (1714–1770), and George Muller (1805–1898).

Photo courtesy of pixabay.com.

See also Pray-Reading the Word, printed or online.(basics of pray-reading) and Lord…Thou Saidst (experiences of many past Christians)

Posted by Don on June 5, 2026

https://newjerusalem12.wordpress.com/2026/06/05/the-washing-of-the-water-in-the-word/

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