The Fullness of God

How do we live in the fullness of God every day? The bible tells us that our spiritual condition was death before coming to Christ: “As for you, you were dead in your transgressions and sins, in which you used to live when you followed the ways of this world…” Ephesians 2:1-2.

But THE GOOD NEWS is that “because of his great love for us, God, who is rich in mercy, made us alive with Christ even when we were dead in transgressions-it is BY GRACE you have been saved.” Ephesians 2:4-5

Apostle Paul prays to God in Ephesians 3:16: “I pray that out of His glorious riches He (God) may STRENGTHEN you with POWER through His Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith.” But what STRENGTHEN us? Does guilt, condemnation, or leaving under the law strengthen us? By no means.

What STRENGTHEN US is the truth of the gospel -that WE ARE UNDER GRACE (not under law), and that we have God’s GIFT OF RIGHTEOUSNESS-JESUS CHRIST. “God will credit righteousness-for us who believe in Him who raised Jesus our Lord from the death. He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.” Romans 4:24-25

How do we experience the fullness of God every day? The bible makes it clear that the following are vital in our daily walk with Christ:

His abundant grace

His gift of righteousness

To live victorious lives in Christ, we need to RECEIVE/APPROPRIATE/TAKE HOLD of God’s abundant GRACE and of His GIFT OF RIGHTEOUSNESS every single day. If we don’t receive His grace and righteousness daily, we will not experience the fullness of God. We will try to do it on our own, and we will run empty, frustrated and disappointed. Galatians 5:4-5 warns us about this: “You who are trying to be justified by law have been alienated from Christ; you have fallen away from GRACE. But by faith we eagerly await through the Spirit the RIGHTEOUSNESS for which we hope.”

Romans 2:8-9 is a great reminder: “For it is by GRACE you have been saved, through faith-and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God-not by works.”

Every time we fall (trying to make it in our own strength), we get up and remember that God’s abundant GRACE carries us through. We remember that it is Christ’s RIGHTEOUSNESS (not ours) that gives us right standing with God. “Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of Spirit of life set me free from the law of sin and death.” Romans 8:1-2

Let’s stand together in the truth of the Gospel, remembering what God did for us and receiving His GRACE and RIGHTEOUSNES daily:

“But the GIFT is not like the trespass. For if the many died by the trespass of one man (Adam), how much more did God’s GRACE and the GIFT that came by the GRACE of the one man, JESUS CHRIST overflow to the many. Again, the GIFT of God is not like the result of the one man’s sin (Adam): The judgement followed one sin and brought condemnation but the GIFT followed many trespasses and brought justification. For if, by the trespass of the one man (Adam), death reigned through that one man, how much more will those who RECEIVE God’s abundant provision of GRACE and of the GIFT OF RIGHTEOUSNESS reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ.” Romans 5:15-17