Fresh Speaking
(Nancy's notes from Lord's Day, August 15, 2010)
Have you ever spent time with children? As they play together, the level of noise increases and the pitch rises. Every now and then you have to remind them "hey kids, settle down". Then for a short time they are quieter, and soon the noise levels increase again and again we remind them "hey kids, settle down! The house is not a gym!" As you go on, the quieter times become shorter and shorter and they need reminded more and more. In our Christian life, sometimes,often times, probably all the time - we hear something so good, and then we level off and begin to walk once again in our old way, away from the central focus. The Lord comes again and again to remind us. As kids grow, they mature.
Eph. 1:9-10 - "Making known to us the mystery of His will... to head up all things in Christ"
v. 22-23 - "...Head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of the One who fills"
The fullness of the One who fills! We understand somewhat what heading up is. In this country the head has the authority - the buck stops here! In the Old Testament, in God's economy God is the authority. As kids, we know what dad says - we do it. This kind of headship we understand. In the New Testament, God's heading up is His filling up! There is a revelation here. How is it that God can head up all things? By dispensing Himself into us! God knew that in the law man could not do what He commanded. Therefore there was the need of sacrifices to appease God. In Matthew there is the beginning of good news! God's intention and His way is to get Himself into us. We fall in love with Him, and we give our lives to Him, but we find we are not able - we fail every time. He is dispensing Himself into us to be everything to us! Love one another. OK. We'll do it! It doesn't work. I love me. God's way is not a command, but a dispensing. This is the foundation behind everything.
v22-23 "the church, which is His body"
We can understand organizational things such as how a company runs. But the church is not an organization. Paul uses the word body. This is revolutionary! This is a new word. The church is the body of Christ. We are not an organization. There is no voting, no impeaching. The church is the body, the fullness of the One who fills. The church is an organism. The hand doesn't have to stop and think about what it is doing. There is an automatic flow. Morning watch? I'm going to do that! 2 or 3 days later - you have no strength. I'm going to read through the Bible. How many times do we begin again? The Lord shines at 5:30 in the morning! He is really good! I'm not saying don't do this. But, what is the source behind it? What is the essence? The Lord is working Himself into us! We must have this foundation, this focus. God is being dispensed into us! So often we, like the kids, need reminded over and over again. We become Christians who live according to the law. We need to be ones who come to this foundation. The fear is that we hear a good message or have a good admonishment to preach the gospel or to read the Bible and we have no strength. We need to eat our way into these things! The way the kids matured over the years was by eating and drinking daily! They were nourished and growing. We must get in contact with the One who is the bread of life and the fountain of life! We need to eat our way and drink our way into the gospel and into love for the saints. What is the foundation of my life? It needs to be eating and drinking of Him! Partaking of Christ! My love for the saints comes out of this. As we partake of Christ, He is constituted into us. This is the filling. We say, "Lord, fill me!" He says, "AMEN!" I want to preach the gospel. The Lord says, "AMEN! Eat and drink of Me and lets go!"
Col. 2:19 - "out from whom all the body... grows"
The way the Lord becomes the head is by dispensing Himself into us. God is dispensing Himself into us! In the Old Testament, they did not know. When Christ came, He opened the flood gates! This is the foundation. "Lord, You have come in to us to be our everything! Your central focus is to work Yourself into us to be our everything!"