Fullness| What Are You Full Of ? | Week 2 | Pastor Kevin Kringel.
Fullness
Week 2
"What Are You Full Of?"
Matthew 6:22-23: Is our world just evil and darkness? (Treasure the light within you)
Proverbs 4:23 (What am I guarding it against?) (high view and low view of my heart)
Heart: inner man, mind, will, affections.
For years I’ve taught and seen this as guarding it against people, things that would be tempting, unholy thoughts or emotions, but early church history saw beyond the behaviors and temptations into the thieves themselves.
Necessary to Exclude the Demons. Origen (250 A.D.): We who knew these and similar sayings wish to observe this precept with the mystical meaning, namely, “Keep your heart with all diligence,” that nothing of a demoniacal nature may enter into our minds or any spirit of our adversaries turn our imagination whither it chooses. But we pray that the light of the knowledge of the glory of God may shine in our hearts, and that the Spirit of God may dwell in our imaginations, and lead them to contemplate the things of God; for “as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.” Against Celsus 4.95.
Our Enemies Are Not Flesh and Blood. Athanasius (370 A.D.): Living thus, let us watch constantly and, as it is written, keep our heart with all watchfulness, for we have terrible and crafty enemies, the wicked demons, and we wrestle against them, as the apostle said: “For our wrestling is not against flesh and blood, but against the principalities and the powers, against the world rulers of this darkness, against spiritual forces of wickedness on high.” (Life of St. Anthony 21.)
Today we hear about guarding our heart from getting hurt. From toxic people, from bad energy. As we see historically, it was viewed as guarding your heart from sin, from spiritual forces that will try to tempt and lure you away from God.
If we take it as guarding our heart from getting hurt, we will be tempted to pull back on love. Loving well means vulnerability and the possibility of being hurt. Love is not safe; it’s courageous and selfless. If we love, we will get hurt at times. But we love anyway.
“Guarding” your heart from enemies outside of it. Guarding the treasure on the inside. (because it’s valuable to you).
Let no person, no event, no demon take it from you.
Matthew 12:22,33,43- Discussion on the demons within
Matthew 12:33–36 (The tree is known by its fruit. Fruit is actions and words.)
Matthew 12:43-4 (7 spirits more wicked)
The seven good spirits are the spirit of wisdom and understanding, counsel and strength, knowledge and true godliness, and reverence toward God. Arrayed against these are the sevenfold evil spirits: the spirit of stupidity and error, the spirit of foolhardiness and cowardice, the spirit of ignorance and impiety, and the spirit of pride contrary to the fear of God. (Augustine.)
At some point, around 590 A.D., the church named the 7 deadly sins, which sound very close to this list of spirits.
Pride: excessive self-exaltation
Greed/Avarice: disordered desire for possessions or wealth
Lust: disordered sexual desire
Envy: resentment of another person’s good
Gluttony: excessive consumption or appetite
Wrath/Anger: destructive, uncontrolled anger
Sloth: spiritual/moral laziness, apathy, or acedia
“If the battlefield is the mind, the heart is the prize.”
-Swept, Clean, and Empty.
Church, this is our declaration (You are too full of God to be filled with anything else)
I am filled with God’s love! Romans 5:5
I am filled with God’s Spirit! Ephesians 5:18
I am filled with God’s Word! Colossians 3:16
I am filled with the communion of my brothers and sisters in Christ. I am not alone! Romans 12:5
I am filled with light! Matthew 6:22
I am filled with hope! Romans 15:13
I am filled with joy! John 15:11
I am filled with peace! Philippians 4:7
I am filled with life to the full—and it’s overflowing! John 10:10
I AM NOT EMPTY!
I am filled with all the fullness of God! Ephesians 3:19
Week 2
"What Are You Full Of?"
Matthew 6:22-23: Is our world just evil and darkness? (Treasure the light within you)
Proverbs 4:23 (What am I guarding it against?) (high view and low view of my heart)
Heart: inner man, mind, will, affections.
For years I’ve taught and seen this as guarding it against people, things that would be tempting, unholy thoughts or emotions, but early church history saw beyond the behaviors and temptations into the thieves themselves.
Necessary to Exclude the Demons. Origen (250 A.D.): We who knew these and similar sayings wish to observe this precept with the mystical meaning, namely, “Keep your heart with all diligence,” that nothing of a demoniacal nature may enter into our minds or any spirit of our adversaries turn our imagination whither it chooses. But we pray that the light of the knowledge of the glory of God may shine in our hearts, and that the Spirit of God may dwell in our imaginations, and lead them to contemplate the things of God; for “as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.” Against Celsus 4.95.
Our Enemies Are Not Flesh and Blood. Athanasius (370 A.D.): Living thus, let us watch constantly and, as it is written, keep our heart with all watchfulness, for we have terrible and crafty enemies, the wicked demons, and we wrestle against them, as the apostle said: “For our wrestling is not against flesh and blood, but against the principalities and the powers, against the world rulers of this darkness, against spiritual forces of wickedness on high.” (Life of St. Anthony 21.)
Today we hear about guarding our heart from getting hurt. From toxic people, from bad energy. As we see historically, it was viewed as guarding your heart from sin, from spiritual forces that will try to tempt and lure you away from God.
If we take it as guarding our heart from getting hurt, we will be tempted to pull back on love. Loving well means vulnerability and the possibility of being hurt. Love is not safe; it’s courageous and selfless. If we love, we will get hurt at times. But we love anyway.
“Guarding” your heart from enemies outside of it. Guarding the treasure on the inside. (because it’s valuable to you).
Let no person, no event, no demon take it from you.
Matthew 12:22,33,43- Discussion on the demons within
Matthew 12:33–36 (The tree is known by its fruit. Fruit is actions and words.)
Matthew 12:43-4 (7 spirits more wicked)
The seven good spirits are the spirit of wisdom and understanding, counsel and strength, knowledge and true godliness, and reverence toward God. Arrayed against these are the sevenfold evil spirits: the spirit of stupidity and error, the spirit of foolhardiness and cowardice, the spirit of ignorance and impiety, and the spirit of pride contrary to the fear of God. (Augustine.)
At some point, around 590 A.D., the church named the 7 deadly sins, which sound very close to this list of spirits.
Pride: excessive self-exaltation
Greed/Avarice: disordered desire for possessions or wealth
Lust: disordered sexual desire
Envy: resentment of another person’s good
Gluttony: excessive consumption or appetite
Wrath/Anger: destructive, uncontrolled anger
Sloth: spiritual/moral laziness, apathy, or acedia
“If the battlefield is the mind, the heart is the prize.”
-Swept, Clean, and Empty.
Church, this is our declaration (You are too full of God to be filled with anything else)
I am filled with God’s love! Romans 5:5
I am filled with God’s Spirit! Ephesians 5:18
I am filled with God’s Word! Colossians 3:16
I am filled with the communion of my brothers and sisters in Christ. I am not alone! Romans 12:5
I am filled with light! Matthew 6:22
I am filled with hope! Romans 15:13
I am filled with joy! John 15:11
I am filled with peace! Philippians 4:7
I am filled with life to the full—and it’s overflowing! John 10:10
I AM NOT EMPTY!
I am filled with all the fullness of God! Ephesians 3:19