From His fullness we have grace upon grace

The true light, which enlightens everyone, was coming into the world. He was in the world, and the world was made through him, yet the world did not know him. He came to his own, and this own people did not receive him. But to all who did receive him, who believed in his name, he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor the will of the flesh nor the will of man, but of God.

And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth....And from his fullness we have all received grace upon grace. For the law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ. No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father's side, he has made him known. (John 1:9-18)

The Fullness of God and Ephesians

So I took a running leap this morning and dove into Ephesians. It was a fantastic plunge, a reminder of the wonder of God and the beauty of His Word. It also reminded me, while rushing past in surges of cooling and satisfying water, that I am His child and all things were created for and are filled by Him.

I first came across this in Ephesians 1:

"...as a plan for the fullness of time, to unite all things in him, things in heaven and things on earth" (vs. 10).

This little snippet is a part of a passage that I will discuss at a later date, but this section stood out to me this morning. It reminded me of a passage in Colossians. This passages also outlines that all things are Christ's, made by Him and for Him.

Back to Ephesians. The first chapter in Ephesians goes on to talk more about the glory of Christ and the fact that all things are His and He fills them with all His fullness:

"And he [God] put all things under his [Christ's] feet and gave him as head over all things to the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all" (vs. 22-23).

The main passage that stood out to me though was Ephesians 4:9-10. In my translation, it is a parenthetical statement, but I'm not sure that's what it should be. Because it was formatted in this way, and because of what Pastor Piper said last week about parentheticals, I took a little bit more time to read these verses.

"(In saying, 'He ascended,' what does it mean but that he had also descended into the lower parts of the earth? He who descended is the one who also ascended far above all the heavens, that he might fill all things.)"

Christ descended in His death to the lower parts of the earth and after His resurrection, ascended "above all the heavens". He is in all things. He fills them all with His fullness. This concept is incredible if you really think about it. Not only are all things His, but He fills all things. Fills them. Like water in a clay jar. Like an aroma in a room. Christ is the fullness that holds our world up.

I believe that this passage that is made into a parenthetical statement is much more important. I believe that it outlines the fullness of God, and for us mortal humans, gives us a picture of what the fullness of God is. From the lower parts of the earth to above the heavens, Jesus Christ is. He fills them.

So dripping wet with the water of the Word, my suggestion now is to read the whole passage from Ephesians 4. I also urge you to read all of Ephesians. Just do it! It's not a long book, and the truth that is tucked into this letter is incredible. Then you can feel refreshed by Christ's words as well.

So after you read Ephesians (or just after you read the blog), spend some time thinking about the fullness of God. Everything was made for Him and by Him and is filled with His fullness.

Bigger Inside than Outside

"It seems, then," said Tirian, smiling himself, "that the Stable seen from within and the Stable seen from without are two different places."

"Yes," said the Lord Digory. "Its inside is bigger than its outside."

"Yes," said Queen Lucy. "In our world too, a Stable once had something inside it that was bigger than our whole world."

--"How the Dwarfs Refused to Be Taken In," pgs. 140-141; The Last Battle; C.S. Lewis

Thank Heavens for iGoogle Weather

So today I was looking at my iGoogle page (thank heavens for iGoogle), and I decided to look at the weather.

Out of five choices, Belfast, Ireland, seemed to be the best place to be. In my opinion. Because I have one.

St. Paul, MN: 81 with a 30% chance of showers and thunderstorms.

Louisville, KY: 94, partly sunny with a 50% chance showers and thunderstorms.

Boston, MA: 90 with a 40% chance of showers and thunderstorms and gusty winds.

River Falls, WI: 83 with a 40% chance of showers and thunderstorms.

Belfast, Ireland: 64 with a 20% chance of rain.

Anybody want to go?