Fully Experiencing the Fullness of God
Eph 3:16-19 NIV
Picture this: You have just finished a ten mile hike on a 95 degree day and on the entire journey you haven’t had a thing to drink. Stumbling with thirst, you come to your father’s house and plea for water. With love and concern he brings you a cold pitcher of water and a glass and tells you to take what you want, he’s got plenty more.
With a chuckle he tells you that his well is full. What do you do? You take a couple of sips and quit. Drink more, he insists, you must be parched. But you decline because you don’t want to impose on his generosity. When you leave, you are still thirsty and he is hurt and disappointed.
Why did you do that? Why do you do that spiritually? Your heavenly Father wants you to experience fullness -- fullness of life... fullness of joy... fullness of God Himself. And yet you are only taking a few sips of living water.
The importance of this story illustrates that we are the deciding factor when it comes to fully experiencing God fullness.
He has done his part; the problem is with us not full taking advantage of his love, grace, mercy, and fullness.
The good news is this;
Many religions have what they believe are holy sites or buildings, but the God of love has chosen you to be His dwelling place, if you are willing.
The Lord is looking for a person who is humble before Him and who takes His word very seriously, even to the point of obedience. God and His love will live inside of this person.
You were created for love. You are made in the image of the God of love. Your purpose is to give love and receive love. God made you in His image so that you could experience His love
God desires to fill us with the fullness of Himself. In the passage we see the process and the result when Christ enters into us
Eph 3:16-19 NIV
16 I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being,
17 so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love,
18 may have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ,
19 and to know this love that surpasses knowledge — that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
Fully Experiencing the Fullness of God
I. His glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being,
We are strengthened with inward peace and power of God’s Love such as;
a. Power For Inner Strength
b. Power to overcome temptation.
c. Power to overcome hardship.
d. Power to overcome evil.
e. Power to overcome circumstances.
f. Power to be His witnesses.
g. Power to be holy.
h. Power to stand for what is right.
i. Power to make a difference.
j. Power to Understand
k. Power To Achieve
l. Power to Become
II. Being rooted and established in love (Who can fathom the love of God?)
"Rooted" suggests a steady position, a habit of faith and love, like a tree rooted in the soil.
Love is like the soil, rich, deep, in which all the trees are rooted
Too many Christians want the fruits of the Spirit without being rooted in spiritual things.
III. May have power, together with all the saints, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ,
Paul especially wants them to lay hold of God’s immeasurable love, a love that fills all things.
Far too many Christians think of God as an angry Judge or a stern Master instead of a loving Father.
Power together with the saints we find the fullness that so many deeply devoted followers enjoy
IV. So that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love,
The indwelling of Christ.
Christ, the essence of love, dwelling in us, and so filling our hearts with true love.
The effects of the indwelling.
(1) Breadth of promise and blessing.
Length -- reaching to the end.
Depth -- going down to the lowest.
Height -- Rising up to heavenly places.
(2) To know the love of Christ, which passeth knowledge.
(3) Filled with all the fullness of God.
V. That you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.
This is God’s ultimate purpose for our lives.
Why live like paupers when God has given us His fullness?
One thing we know is that when we are running on empty, physically, emotionally and spiritually, all of us need to refuel.
"Filled with all the fullness of God"
It’s not a one-time filling. It’s a constant refueling. Why? Because we have a constant need. There are always things in our life which are draining us, challenging us and wearing us down. And when you get to that point, you have a choice of what you’re going to do.
Application
1. Being filled with the fullness of God’s love only comes when we are able to see and accept who we are today IN Christ. As long as we see ourselves as the old woman, in our sin and shame and dressed in grave clothes we will never be able to understand the depths of God’s love
2. He wants Christ to "feel at home" in our hearts.
Christ does dwell in the heart of every true believer, but not every heart is a comfortable home for Him.
Christ loved to go to Bethany because his friends there loved Him, fed on His Word, and served Him.
When God (who is Christ) came to earth to talk to Abraham (Gen 18), He sent two angels ahead to visit Lot (Gen 19) because He did not feel at home in the house of a worldly believer.
Does He feel at home in our hearts?
Anything that keeps us from experiencing the fullness of God’s love also keeps us from being filled with all the fullness of God.
We need to allow Christ free reign over our house.
a) Allow him to Listen to your conversation.
b) Allow him to Turn on the TV and see what you are watching.
c) Allow him to Go through the refrigerator see what you are drinking.
d) Allow him to Listen to your music.
e) Allow him to Go through our books and letters.
f) Allow him to see the secret things that no one else sees.
g) And to be able to feel free to make any changes that He would like to make himself more comfortable.
Christ feels at home in our hearts when He finds faith and love.
