A popular Christian singer has a song that says,
So I’m praying, Father, help my heart believe
That right now You’re singing over me
And fill me up with Your love…
A contemporary worship song has the lines (sung mournfully),
More love,
More power
More of You in my life….
The sincerity of the Christian writers of these songs cannot be doubted. Both are asking God for “more”. Millions hear and sing these songs, making the lyrics even their own prayer. So we pray for God to fill us up with God’s love. We pray for God to give us more love, more power and more of God in our lives.
What’s wrong with this picture?
How can we ask for “more” of what we already have? It would be like owning and living in a two-story house and asking for God to give you a two-story house. We would tell such a person, “Hey, you already own a two-story house — so enjoy it!” It would be like an incredibly rich benefactor giving someone $100 billion and we hear the recipient moan, “I wish I could pay off my car loan!” Pay off his car loan? He can now buy an entire auto assembly plant!
God does not respond to prayers for more of His love, patience, wisdom, kindness, power, self-control, etc. Why should He? He has already given us His Son.
How much love does the The Lord Jesus have? An infinite amount. He is the source of love. “God is love” (1 John 4:8, 16).
How much patience does the The Lord Jesus have? An infinite amount. He is the source of patience (1 Cor 13:4, Gal 5:22)
How much power does the The Lord Jesus have? An infinite amount. He is the source of power. God is almighty (all-mighty, Rev 21:22 and 50 other verses)
Simply put, there is nothing good lacking in the Lord Jesus Christ. Nothing. Colossians 2:9 states, “For in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily”. The fullness of the Godhead dwells bodily in Christ. All of the Father, all of the Son, all of the Holy Spirit.
Let me ask you: is there anything lacking with the Lord Jesus Christ? Of course not. He is the infinite sum and source of all that is good. When you have Jesus you have all. That’s why the very next verse, Colossians 2:10 makes this stunning statement:
and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power.
Stop everything. Remove all distractions around you or get away from all distractions. Pay close attention to that amazing statement:
and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power.
The Amplified Version translates this verse well, capturing the amazing full dimensions of the biblical Greek:
And you are in Him, made full and having come to fullness of life [in Christ you too are filled with the Godhead — Father, Son and Holy Spirit — and reach full spiritual stature]. And He is the Head of all rule and authority [of every angelic principality and power].
Our completeness is because of Him. Our completeness is every bit as complete as The Lord Jesus Christ is complete. Because He is complete and perfect, we are just as complete and perfect because we are in Him who is infinite completeness and perfection. Our completion is not because of “becoming more like Jesus”, doing all the right things, dying and going to heaven. Our completion IS The Lord Jesus Christ! And we are in Christ because of the Father’s doing (1 Cor 1:30).
God never intended for the man to live without God. Not God “way out there”, distant and detached from us, but God right here, inside of us and we inside of Him. You cannot possibly ever get closer to God than that. Jesus described His own relationship with The Father in precisely the same terms in John 17:
You, Father, are in Me, and I in You (verse 21a)
Then Jesus connected the dots by saying this:
that they also may be one in Us, that the world may believe that You sent Me. (verse 21b)
Remember: Jesus was saying these words before the cross, before His finished work, before His resurrection, ascension and the descent of the Holy Spirit, bringing the indwelling Christ inside every believer. These gracious words have been totally fulfilled ever since, because of the reality of Christ in the believer and the believer in Christ.
We don’t need “more of God”. We have Him. He has us.
We don’t need more of anything of God. Can God exist without His nature and character? Of course not.
You have God, therefore you have it all. He has you and therefore you have it all.
“and you are complete in Him, who is the head of all principality and power”
Colossians 2:10
CC by-nc-nd 2013 Mark D. VanOuse. This article is under a Creative Commons copyright license. www.DailyInChrist.org
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