COLOSSIANS 2:9–10 – For in Christ the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily, and you have been filled in Him, who is the head of all rule and authority.
THEME OF THE DAY. THE ABUNDANT LIFE. There is a promise Jesus proclaimed defining what the Christian life is to be this side of heaven. In the wonderful “Good Shepherd” chapter found in John’s Gospel, our Lord said, “I came that they might have life and have it more abundantly” (John 10:10). The word “abundantly” does not mean “overflowing” or “full”. It means, “exceptional, remarkable, and extraordinary.” Wow! Think for a moment what Jesus is promising. And this “exceptional, remarkable, and extraordinary” life is not based on worldly achievements in education, promotions on the job, the latest trophy on our mantles, or anything else the world views as exceptional, remarkable, and extraordinary. When Jesus refers to giving us abundant life, He is referring to the giving of Him to us. It is the most exceptional, remarkable, and extraordinary life ever lived, the life of our Lord Jesus, living in us and flowing freely from us. In order to properly understand the abundant life Jesus came to give, it cannot be measured by what we do or achieve. It is measured by just how much two things are occurring in our lives.
First, the abundant life Jesus promises is realized and experienced in us by our conformity to His image. The goal of salvation is God working in us from new birth to glorification of making us like His Son. And this likeness is in two areas – holiness as He is holy (1 Peter 1:14-16) and in the cultivation of the Fruit of the Spirit – But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). If we want to know if we are pursuing the Christian life as God intended and provided for, go no further than these two “spiritual measuring sticks” – growth in holiness and growth in the Fruit of the Spirit. These two areas define and direct what the abundant life is; the extraordinary, remarkable, and exceptional life Jesus came to give us.
Next, the abundant life Jesus promises is lived out by a life centered on Christ’s interests and purposes. The radical nature of new birth is not only a change in us from being children of wrath to children of God, but it is a radical alteration of our worldview and who we live for. When it comes to the abundant life, it is one consistently marked by inward peace, not anxiety; joy not stress; and a rock solid positive hopefulness in a world that is filled with negative and despairing hopelessness. A Christian who is truly living out Christ in them, the hope of glory, or the abundant life He gives, lives out the idiom, “sticks out like a sore thumb” in the world around them. People see an otherworldliness about us. Instead of complaining, we are quietly content. Instead of wanting our way, we deny our way. Instead of focusing on serving self-interest, we serve the interests of others. One of the most dynamic and powerful tools of evangelism and representing the Lord Jesus is the Christian living out the Christ-centered, self-denying life before a world consumed and gripped with ugly selfishness. And when Jesus is freely living out His Person through the Christian, His priorities become ours; His love controls us; His interests replace ours. The abundant life becomes practical.
Yes, we have the glorious promise of Jesus of having life abundant or exceptional, remarkable, and extraordinary. What a promise to believe and pursue in the daily lives of being a follower of the Lord Jesus.
PRAYER: “Father, help me to see that Jesus is enough to fill all my needs, longings, and desires in this life and eternity.”
QUOTE: “The abundant life Jesus promises us is the only way to be freed from the empty life of living of self and self-interests”