GlobalChristians

Eternity 34 - Filled With All The Fullness of God

We continue our series on Paul's prayer to the Ephesians....

(Ephesians 3:19 NKJV) to know the love of Christ which passes knowledge; that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

Look at this brief but amazing phrase: "That you may be filled with all the fullness of God". What does that mean?

How can you and I be "filled with all the fullness of God"? If it wasn't in the Scriptures I would think it was blasphemy! Now obviously we don't become God - but we do become sons of God and we do become "like Jesus" ( 1 John 3:1-3). So like Jesus in fact that we are "conformed to His image" (Romans 8:29-31).

What this verse tells us is that there is no upper limit to Christian growth.

We can be filled and filled and filled with the love of Christ and changed and changed in holiness until..at some point in eternity, it can be said that we are filled with all the fullness of God.

This verse tells us that "average" , mediocre Christianity is the true blasphemy.

We are meant to be exactly like Jesus and when we think otherwise, when we settle for a lot less than holy - its then we are falling short of the glory of God and the fullness of his nature and bringing His name into disrepute.

The Scriptures expect us to be like God and to be filled with His nature.

We are to be filled with the love of God, the wisdom of God, the grace of God, the joy of the Lord, the peace that passes understanding, the kindness of the Saviour, the gentleness of the Lamb of God and to be holy as He is holy (1Peter 1:16) and perfect and He is perfect in love (Matthew 5:48).

We are told to accept others as Christ accepted us (Romans 15:7), to forgive each other as Christ has forgiven us (Colossians 3:13), and to love our wives as Christ loved the Church (Ephesians 5:2).

To carry out these commands we need to have access to the divine nature - we need to be people "born of God". (1 John 3:9, 4:7, 5:1,4,18)

Two verses give us a glimpse into the process of being transformed into the image of Jesus Christ and the fullness of God. Firstly the process of renewal involves the creation of a new person:
"(Colossians 3:10 NKJV) and have put on the new man who is renewed in knowledge according to the image of Him who created him"

Its not our old self that is renewed but rather a new self that is created and then grows in knowledge. As we shall see this new self also grows in glory.
"(2 Corinthians 3:18 NKJV) But we all, with unveiled face, beholding as in a mirror the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from glory to glory, just as by the Spirit of the Lord."

This verse tells us that the transformation is a spiritual process that comes from "beholding Christ" and we are changed from glory to glory though the work of the Spirit.

To sum up the Christian life involves the creation of a new person, who is born of God and grows in knowledge and glory into the image of Jesus Christ and the fullness of God in a spiritual growth that knows no limits.

Praise God!

Blessings,

John Edmiston