The Gospel Hidden in Small Words

Words have always captivated me.

Maybe it’s the writer in me, or perhaps it’s the quiet way God wired my heart to notice the details of little things — the pauses, the turns of phrase, the syllables that hold more truth than we first realize.

In college, one of my favorite classes was etymology — the study of the origin and history of words. I loved tracing how words were formed, how they shifted over time, how layers of meaning were carried across languages and centuries. For me, what began as a fascination with language became, over time, a window into how God Himself speaks.

Because I’ve learned this: every word in Scripture matters.

Not just the big ones like redemption, salvation, grace, and glory.

But the small ones — the ones we often skip over.

The prepositions.

They may seem ordinary, but they hold the gospel in miniature. They are the bridges between heaven and earth, the slender threads that reveal how God relates to us, moves toward us, and works through us.

And three of them tell the entire story of our faith.

WITH — The God Who Comes Near

“Behold, the virgin shall conceive and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, “God with us.” — Matthew 1:23

The English word with comes from Old English wið, which originally meant against or opposite. Isn’t that something? What once meant in contrast to gradually came to mean alongside, together, near.

It’s as if even the word itself was redeemed.

Humanity once stood against God, but through Christ, God turned our opposition into intimacy.

From the beginning, God has always been with His people.

He walked with Adam in the cool of the garden.

He went with Israel through the wilderness as a cloud by day and a pillar of fire by night.

And when He came to earth, He wrapped Himself in flesh and called Himself Immanuel — God with us.

He didn’t shout His love from heaven; He stepped into our dust.

He sat beside the sinner, touched the unclean, and wept at the tomb of a friend.

He is still that God. Still present in your late-night tears, in the quiet kitchen prayers, in the exhaustion that whispers, “I can’t do this anymore.”

The word with is His promise: “You never walk alone.”

IN — The Christ Who Dwells Within

“Christ in you, the hope of glory.” — Colossians 1:27

If with is God beside us, in is God within us — and that changes everything.

The English word in comes from the Proto-Indo-European en, meaning “inside, within, surrounded by.” In the Greek New Testament, the word ἐν (en) carries this same meaning — denoting not just proximity but union.

When you surrendered your life to Jesus, you didn’t just receive forgiveness; you received Him. The Holy Spirit took residence within you.

Paul writes, “It is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me.” (Galatians 2:20)

This is the staggering mystery of the Christian life — that the infinite God chooses to dwell inside the finite heart. The Holy of Holies has moved from a temple made of stone to one made of flesh and Spirit.

When you feel small, remember: the fullness of God lives in you.

When you feel empty, remember: the well of living water springs from within.

When you feel unworthy, remember: He has made His home in your heart.

You are not merely accompanied; you are inhabited.

THROUGH — The God Who Works Beyond Us

“I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.” — Philippians 4:13

Once we have learned His presence with us and His Spirit in us, He begins to move through us.

The Old English word through — ðurh (pronounced thurkh) — means “from one side to the other, to penetrate, to pass beyond.” The Greek διά (dia) carries the same idea: “by means of, across, through the midst of.”

This is the word of transformation. Of passage. Of divine motion.

God does not merely dwell in us; He desires to flow through us — our obedience, our prayers, even our broken stories — to accomplish His purposes.

Moses’ staff, David’s sling, Esther’s courage, Mary’s surrender — all became channels of divine “through.” None were extraordinary on their own. God made them powerful through Himself.

We are not the source of light; we are its lamp. Not the river; only its course.Not the power; merely its conduit.

As Paul reminds us, “We have this treasure in earthen vessels, that the excellence of the power may be of God and not of us.” (2 Corinthians 4:7)

He doesn’t wait for perfection before He works through you — He shines best through the cracks.

The Full Circle of Grace

Do you see it? The gospel is written in these three small words.

• With — the God who walks beside us.

• In — the Christ who dwells within us.

• Through — the Spirit who works beyond us.

  
  

Each word carries a movement of grace: From presence to union to purpose.

What began as against (wið) becomes with. What began as outside (en) becomes in. What began as separated (ðurh) becomes through.

Even the evolution of language bears witness to the redemption story — reconciliation embedded in grammar.

It’s no accident that the God of creation is also the Word Himself (John 1:1). Every sentence of Scripture, every turn of phrase, carries His fingerprint. Even the prepositions preach.

Maybe, like me, you find beauty in language — the way a word, once studied, opens into revelation. Perhaps that love was never random. Maybe it was God planting a seed long ago, knowing one day we’d trace the roots of language and find Him there — hidden in the smallest words, revealing the greatest truths.

He is the God with us, the Christ in us, and the Spirit working through us —forever faithful, endlessly near.

At Field & Feather

This truth is the heartbeat of Field & Feather.

We walk with women in the tender beginnings of their faith, helping them root their lives in the Word of God. We teach what it means to have Christ in us — to live from His strength, not our own. And we encourage each woman to let Him work through her — to bring His light to homes, churches, and communities in need of hope.

Because discipleship isn’t just about knowing truth — it’s about walking with the One who is Truth.

So come, walk with us. Let’s learn together what it means to live with Him, in Him, and through Him. Reach out at www.fieldandfeatherministries.org

Reflection

• Where do you most need to sense His with-ness today?

• How does knowing Christ lives in you change how you see yourself?

• What might God want to do through you in this season — not by your strength, but by His?