And Elijah said unto Ahab, Get thee up, eat and drink; for there is a sound of abundance of rain.” 1 Kings 18:41
Dear Ones:
There are several short phrases in Scripture which communicate to us the idea of fullness or abundance. For example, “…You greatly enrich it (the earth) with the river of God which is FULL of water.” (Psalm 65:9) Another is: “The trees of the Lord are FULL of sap.” (Ps. 104:16) Also, “…the earth is FULL of Your riches.” (v.24) When Isaiah had his vision of God, as he relates it in Isaiah 6, we are struck by this line of thought in the declaration by the seraphims: “….Holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts: the whole earth is FULL of His glory.” What we gather concerning this subject, is that God is NOT a God of half measures, but one of fullest blessing, and commitment to save, glorifying His name. Jesus declared: “I am come that they might have LIFE, and that they might have it more ABUNDANTLY.” (Jn. 10:10) Paul speaks of being FILLED with the Spirit. This is because, as he writes, “…the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, has blessed us with EVERY spiritual blessing in heavenly places in Christ.” (Eph. 1:3) The questions that we must ask ourselves in light of this single aspect of the heart of God is this: 1. If God has given completely His Son, placed us in Him and Him in us by the Spirit, what then does He desire to accomplish in and through us? 2. If Jesus Christ is the Almighty Savior, is He not worthy to be trusted fully to save us completely, not only for eternity, but for today? The life that He has called us to live is His FULL life, communicated to us by the Spirit of God. The fullness of the Spirit means the fullness of Christ…Christ dwelling in our hearts by faith. This is the abundant life, the life of fullness, where Christ not only reigns unrivaled, but where He is our whole hope and expectation on a moment by moment basis.
In the history of Israel, the Lord instructed Elijah to pray that it would not rain for over three years. Why? Most certainly to reveal to the people that He is God, sovereign, the one who holds our lives in His hand. But also, to create a sense and conviction of need…a thirst. After three years, in the Lord’s perfect time, He will instruct Elijah to pray for rain…but not rain in a very small measure, but in abundance. What would have occurred if Elijah had prayed for a “little” rain? It would certainly have communicated to the people that the God of Elijah was not great, glorious, and sovereign. So, Elijah’s declaration to Ahab was: “…there is the sound of ABUNDANCE of rain.”
So, what is to be our prayer? First, it is to be one for revelation. The “mystery of Christ” which was hidden from former ages before Pentecost is only seen, known, and grasped as the Spirit reveals to us the reality of it. Paul once wrote: “…when it pleased God to reveal His Son in me…” There must be a coming to grips with this truth and reality, that Christ does indeed dwell in the heart of the believer. But, does our experience reflect this reality? The second element of our prayer is for strength to believe…not only to grasp the truth of our union, but to believe the Father for Christ’s fullness, the fullness of His love, His Work, and His Spirit to fill, lead, teach, and accomplish in and through us His will, His way, for His glory.
Father, grant us this Spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Thee, Thy Son, and His work. Then, strengthen us by the Spirit to believe Thee FULLY for the abundance, the fullness, that You are waiting to give in answer to prayer. We thank and praise Thee in Jesus’ name, Amen.
Love, Dad