Filled and Overflowing

“The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof” Psalm 24:1. In other words, the world, Creation, belongs to God and everything in it. That would include us. We are part of the fullness of God. Think of the fullness that comes with a good meal. It satisfies. I like to think that my Being satisfies God. God feels full with the goodness of all Creation.

We were made to be vessels or buildings. The Apostle Paul reminds us that together we are God’s building. Another reference says that we are the temple of God. We were meant to have God living in us. It is the indwelling Christ that brings glory to God. Jesus said that if He were to live in us that we would do even greater things than He had done.

Over and over Christ made reference to the fact that the God of Heaven and He were one and that they wanted to be in us and one with us. The Apostle John records Jesus’ prayer of His desire for our oneness and infilling in John 17. This is a powerful Gnostic concept. It is having an inner knowledge of Christ, not just an outer awareness.

How do you have Christ living in you? How do you make your relationship with God something more than just a formal relationship that consists of acknowledging that you love God and attending church and studying your Bible?

While all of the outward things we do are important in establishing a relationship with God and getting to know God, it is the inward work that helps us to know God best. The practice of meditation, being quiet and inviting God into your heart, mind, and soul is what makes the difference between God being on the outside or inviting God into the inside of your life. We have to ask and then we have to be still.

It is difficult for us to be quiet. There are many that are actually afraid of meditation, of being quiet. Some even fear that if they meditate an evil spirit might overcome them. When we are quiet we sometimes do see the evil intentions of our own hearts and this can be a scary thing. It is so much easier to be busy and vigilant than to be quiet and receptive.

But God has promised that when we open our hearts to the Spirit that we will receive the Holy Spirit. We are safe to open our hearts and minds to God because God is faithful to keep the promises made for our restoration. Christ is the guarantee that God is faithful.

We are the vessels—the Spirit is the sacred oil referred to in scriptures that we are to be filled with. The fullness of Christ is meant to fill us and to spill out into a world longing for the love that only God can give and that God wants to share with the world through us. To have the indwelling Christ means that we will do the work that Christ did while here on earth—and according to His words, even greater things.

When is the last time you walked on water and fed 5,000 people with 5 loaves of bread and two small fish? How about raising someone from the dead or curing leprosy? Obviously, we have more to learn. There is plenty of room for our spiritual growth. It seems that the church (aka God’s followers in any faith system) could stand to have a lot less pride and a lot more of an indwelling God.

The Spirit invites us to take time from our busy lives of constantly doing and sit quietly every day inviting the Spirit into our hearts, our minds, and our souls. It is the indwelling power of Christ that will change us and will bless the world. God invites us to be vessels filled and overflowing. If we accept we will be a light to the world and a reason for rejoicing and satisfaction for our Creator.