My Cup Overflows...With Love

[dave c]

HEALING SHELTER MINISTRIES #126b; Re-Written 20SEP08; http://groups.msn.com/AHealingShelter/welcome.msnw

My Cup Overflows— Part Four: ...With Love

by rev dave c

What happens when a child overfills a glass of milk? The excess, of course, spills out and all over everything surrounding the glass. Well, that’s not exactly true. The milk flows down the side and spreads outward in the direction of the lowest point (whether the table, or the floor). When you turn on a light in a darkened room…how long does it take for the light to dispel the darkness? Is there a period of struggle between light and dark when you aren’t sure which will be victorious? As something overwhelms your heart with beauty, compassion, or Godly sorrow, what becomes of ugliness? ...Or bitterness? ...Or pride?

Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good (Ro 12:21; NIV). In each of these cases, we experience a “thing” flowing into, or replacing, the existence of another “thing.” The milk seeks to fill a void—the light instantaneously eliminates darkness—intense, constructive experiences supplant destructive ones. This is the principle of displacement, and this is how a Christian is to fight the “good fight” (1Ti 6:11&12). Jesus came to “destroy the work of the devil (1Jn 3:8)” and He accomplished this purpose during His first advent by overcoming evil with God’s own goodness. Wherever He went, the very presence of the fully submitted Son of God as the Son of Man “crowded out” the forces and the work of Satan and his world systems. Like a cup overflowing with milk, the love of Jesus spills over and flows into the lowest points of human existence—bringing spiritual, rational, and physical nourishment to a world that is starving and dying from thirst. Just as light drives out darkness He speaks the Word, and by nature of His absolute truth, all lies...all deception...all falsity is replaced with the clarity of Spiritual discernment and knowledge that is being perfected through Godly understanding.

Galatians 5:16 So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. 17 For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other, so that you do not do what you want. 18 But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under law. 19 The acts of the sinful nature are obvious: sexual immorality, impurity and debauchery; 20 idolatry and witchcraft; hatred, discord, jealousy, fits of rage, selfish ambition, dissensions, factions 21 and envy; drunkenness, orgies, and the like. I warn you, as I did before, that those who live like this will not inherit the kingdom of God. 22 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, 23 gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law. 24 Those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the sinful nature with its passions and desires. 25 Since we live by the Spirit, let us keep in step with the Spirit (NIV).

In these well known verses from the Letter to the Galatians, Paul doesn’t just say, “Thou shalt not…,” regarding the evil that men do—the Apostle to the Gentiles tells us to allow the Holy Spirit to replace the acts of the sinful nature with the fruit of the Spirit. So I say, live by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the sinful nature. For the sinful nature desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit what is contrary to the sinful nature. They are in conflict with each other…. We are to replace the desires and actions of our flesh with Godliness, and, as we begin to overflow with righteousness, peace, and joy in the Holy Spirit (Ro 14:17), we will begin to displace the ways of the world that surrounds us.

James 3:11 Can both fresh water and salt water flow from the same spring? 12 My brothers, can a fig tree bear olives, or a grapevine bear figs? Neither can a salt spring produce fresh water. 13 Who is wise and understanding among you? Let him show it by his good life, by deeds done in the humility that comes from wisdom. 14 But if you harbor bitter envy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast about it or deny the truth. 15 Such "wisdom" does not come down from heaven but is earthly, unspiritual, of the devil. 16 For where you have envy and selfish ambition, there you find disorder and every evil practice. 17 But the wisdom that comes from heaven is first of all pure; then peace-loving, considerate, submissive, full of mercy and good fruit, impartial and sincere. 18 Peacemakers who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness (NIV).

While the world works from the outside to modify behavior, control human endeavor, and legislate every facet of existence, God works from the inside through His personal presence to actually change people—first their hearts (Ez 11:19), then their heads (Ro 12:2), and finally the activity of their hands (Ja 2:12-18) ...and one person at a time. Jesus made it clear to the Pharisees that external righteousness alone is no more than “whitewashed tombs, which look beautiful on the outside but on the inside are full of dead men's bones and everything unclean” (Mt 23:25-28). As Paul extends his blessings to us with these words from First Thessalonians 3:13, May the Lord make your love increase and overflow for each other and for everyone else, just as ours does for you (NIV), he is telling us that Jesus displaced the fallen nature of the Apostle with the overflow of His love. In turn, the Apostle’s love overflowed into the lives of others. That same love should now be flowing out from our lives and into the existence of all who surround us. In this way God displaces hate, hurt, and hunger. Amen.