HoHum:
Charles Dickens book, Oliver Twist, is about an orphan who at the age of 9 goes to a workhouse. Oliver, who toils with very little food, remains in the workhouse for six months. One day, the desperately hungry boys decide to draw lots; the loser must ask for another portion of gruel. The task falls to Oliver, who at the next meal tremblingly comes up forward, bowl in hand, and begs Mr. Bumble, the head official, for gruel with his famous request: "Please, sir, I want some more." From this a great uproar ensues. This is the opposite of the picture we have in Psalm 23 of our cup overflows.
WBTU:
The cup that is talked about here is not a physical cup but our lives that are filled to overflowing
Beautiful, descriptive verse of the Christian life.
a. “you believe in him and are filled with an inexpressible and glorious joy,” 1 Peter 1:8, NIV.
b. “The peace of God, which transcends all understanding” Philippians 4:7, NIV.
c. “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” John 10:10, NIV.
Thesis: Let us think of some cups which never run over. And then consider, if ours runs over, why it does so? And then, thirdly, what then if our cup runs over?
For instances:
Some cups that never run over.
A. Fill their cup with the world. We live in a society today that says the following: “If it feels good do it – then do more of it and more of it and you will then find true meaning in life!” But this is a lie and many have testified to that fact. We find this message being flashed on the TV, Movie screens. It comes across in advertisements in papers, magazines and even from the radio and the internet. You see it on T-shirts, bumper stickers, bill boards. It is blatant and even subtle but you hear it promoted even in musical songs. This world says “We might as well live to party because that’s all we get out of life!” “I thought in my heart, “Come now, I will test you with pleasure to find out what is good.” But that also proved to be meaningless. “Laughter,” I said, “is foolish. And what does pleasure accomplish?”” “I denied myself nothing my eyes desired; I refused my heart no pleasure...everything was meaningless, a chasing after the wind” Ecclesiastes 2:1, 2, 10, 11, NIV.
B. Fill their cup with material things. When is enough ever enough? Billionaire John D. Rockefeller was asked that question, and his response is the famous line we've heard before: "Just one more dollar." “Whoever loves money never has money enough; whoever loves wealth is never satisfied with his income. This too is meaningless.” Ecclesiastes 5:10, NIV.
C. Fill their cup with envy. Take an envy self-examination. Do we compare our life, our home, our spouse, our kids — even our lawn — to other people’s? This exam may reveal some surprises and show us that there are more important things to do than compare ourselves or what we have to others. “A heart at peace gives life to the body, but envy rots the bones.” Proverbs 14:30, NIV. “The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.” Psalms 23:1, NIV. God provides what we need and because of this our cup can overflow. There will always be someone with more this or that, be content with what the Lord gives to us.
But now, secondly, WHY DOES OUR CUP RUN OVER?
Our cup runs over, first, because, having Christ, we have in Him all things. “He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all--how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things?” Romans 8:32, NIV. The argument of this verse is from the greatest to the least. The greatest act of God’s love was to let His Son die on the cross for us. There is no other act of love that is greater. I mean, can we imagine a father letting His son die for other people? Yet, God let His Son die for me and you. Why? So that God could spend His love on us. If letting His Son die was the hardest thing for God to do, then anything by comparison is simple. “The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not be in want.” Because of this our cup can overflow.
Our cup runs over when we give to the Lord. “Bring the whole tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. Test me in this,” says the LORD Almighty, “and see if I will not throw open the floodgates of heaven and pour out so much blessing that you will not have room enough for it.” Malachi 3:10, NIV. Also in the NT: “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you.”” Luke 6:38, NIV.
Our cup runs over when we pray and receive. “Until now you have not asked for anything in my name. Ask and you will receive, and your joy will be complete.” John 16:24, NIV. Paul Harvey told about a 3-year-old boy who went to the grocery store with his mother. Before they entered the grocery store she said to him, "Now you’re not going to get any chocolate chip cookies, so don’t even ask." She put him up in the cart & he sat in the little child’s seat while she wheeled down the aisles. He was doing just fine until they came to the cookie section. He saw the chocolate chip cookies & he stood up in the seat & said, "Mom, can I have some chocolate chip cookies?" She said, "I told you not even to ask. You’re not going to get any at all." So he sat back down. They continued down the aisles, but in their search for certain items they ended up back in the cookie aisle. "Mom, can I please have some chocolate chip cookies?" She said, "I told you that you can’t have any. Now sit down & be quiet." Finally, they were approaching the checkout lane. The little boy sensed that this may be his last chance. So just before they got to the line, he stood up on the seat of the cart & shouted in his loudest voice, "In the name of Jesus, may I have some chocolate chip cookies?" And everybody round about just laughed. Some even applauded. And, according to Paul Harvey, due to the generosity of the other shoppers, the little boy & his mother left with 23 boxes of chocolate chip cookies. Now God takes our prayer requests and answers them in his own way an time but he is a good father and he does this: “Now to him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine, according to his power that is at work within us,” Ephesians 3:20, NIV.
Now, thirdly, WHAT THEN if our cup runs over?
Great, we need this in our leaders here at the church. The primary job as a leader is to be filled up as we spend time with God. Solitude must come first for us as leaders, followed by being in community with others as a team, and then ministry, which flows out of the first two. Our model is Jesus who “often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.” Luke 5:16, NIV. Understand that we do not spend time with God just to be a leader, we spend time with God because we are a disciple of Jesus. As we spend time with Jesus then it become evident, “When they saw the courage of Peter and John and realized that they were unschooled, ordinary men, they were astonished and they took note that these men had been with Jesus.” Acts 4:13, NIV. Nothing is more vital that being with Jesus- connected to him, remaining in him, abiding in him. We are not the vine that supplies all the nutrients for growth and fruitfulness in the church. We are one of the branches that is dependent on the true vine of Jesus (John 15). Jesus’ life needs to flow through us, which naturally overflows into others and they overflow into others through Jesus. Shame that some times the leaders have not been with Jesus and this causes untold problems. Many times our lack of spending time with the Lord is shown in our attitudes. Many leaders fall into an “O, God” attitude: O God, these people aren’t really growing! O God, why are they so uncommitted to the church? O God, why are we not serving more? O God, why don’t we sense your presence? O God, why are we not growing in numbers? If we fall into this negativity trap, here are 3 things to help us:
1. Remember that we are to plant seeds, water, and cultivate. “I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow.” 1 Corinthians 3:6, NIV. Need to learn the difference between our role and God’s and don’t get the two confused!
2. Instead of “O God” learn to say, “Yeah God!” Celebrate what God is doing in and through us and the church. Much cannot be seen but the Kingdom is advancing. Count our blessings.
3. Pray together and pray in solitude. This is what the early church did.
Effective spiritual leadership = overflow. Cannot give people what we do not have, there is no substitute for personal times with the Lord. “I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.” John 10:10, NIV. The word for full or abundantly actually means overfilled or superabundantly. Think of a glass of water that is full to the brim, but more than that, think of a glass that is overflowing. What Jesus pours into our life he intends to overflow into the lives of those all around us- our family, neighbors, co workers, and church.
Go to retreats, go to revivals, go to conventions, all of these things are spiritual high times. Become so filled up with the Lord that this overflows from us into the lives of others.
Too many times as leaders we are dry spiritually and we wonder why things are not going smoothly. That is why! “O God, you are my God, earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you, my body longs for you, in a dry and weary land where there is no water.” Psalms 63:1, NIV. Must go to the Lord and fill up our cup to overflowing. Fill my cup, Lord, I lift it up, Lord. Come and quench this thirsting of my soul. Bread of heaven, feed me till I want no more; Fill my cup, fill it up and made me whole. Filled to overflowing!
David tells us in Psalm 23:5 that he is experiencing that "Overflow." The "Overflow" is only experienced by those Sheep who have declared the LORD to be their Only Shepherd, and are seeking to bring every aspect of their life under the Total Lordship of Jesus Christ.
