ABUNDANT LIVING Seven Vital Keys to Spiritual Fullness

Ken Birks, Pastor/Teacher

I. Introductory Re ar!s.
Ecclesiastes 6:3 If a man begets a hundred children and lives many years, so that the days of his years are many, but his soul is not satisfied with goodness, or indeed he has no burial, I say that a stillborn child is better than he; Ecclesiastes 5:10 He who loves silver will not be satisfied with silver; nor he who loves abundance, with increase. This also is vanity. These two Scriptures point out very clearly the peril of an empty soul and how vain it is to put your trust in the things of the world and carnal pleasures. As hristians, who have !een !orn again !y "od#s Spirit, it is foolish to trust in the empty things of this life. $n order to !e truly satisfied in this life we must invest our lives in those things that have eternal value rather than those things that are of temporal value. Isaiah 55:2- 3 Why do you spend money for what is not bread, and your wages for what does not satisfy? Listen carefully to e, and eat what is good, and let your soul delight itself in abundance. ! Incline your ear, and come to e. Hear, and your soul shall live; and I will ma"e an everlasting covenant with you; The sure mercies of #avid. $n contrast to having an empty soul, $ !elieve it is "od#s deepest desire for each of us to e%perience "od meeting our deepest needs with a spiritual fullness that flows from &is !eing. &is desire is to !ring us into a place of spiritual fullness. Psalm36:8 They are abundantly satisfied with the fullness of $our house, %nd $ou give them drin" from the river of $our pleasures. 'hen $ use the words (Spiritual )ullness(, what are some of the things that come to your mind* +et me give you an idea of what $ am talking a!out.

II. "#at Is $eant By Spiritual Fullness%

T#e Fullness o& God's (lessin) constitutes t#e &ollo*in)... ,oy "od - &is Presence 'isdom .nderstanding /ivine "uidance &ealing )inances 0motional 1eeds
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Peace 2ighteousness )reedom from "uilt

Knowledge of "od#s

'ill

Spiritual 2est

'hen $ think of spiritual fullness $ think of !eing a!undantly satisfied in each of these areas. These are the areas that are important to my life !oth spiritually and naturally. I (elieve God *ants us to open our out# *ide and (e &illed.

Psalm 81:10 I am the L&'# your (od, Who brought you out of the land of )gypt; &pen your mouth wide, and I will fill it.

III. Seven Vital Keys To Receivin) God's Fullness.

1ow that we know that "od really desires for each of us to !e a!undantly satisfied fro the fullness of &is house, let#s look at some vital keys in opening our mouths and receiving from &im. +. T#ere $ust Be A T#irstin) and a See!in) For God. Psalm 63:1 & (od, $ou are my (od; )arly will I see" $ou; y soul thirsts for $ou; y flesh longs for $ou In a dry and thirsty land Where there is no water. Matthew 5:6 *lessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be filled. Psalm 143:6 spread out my hands to $ou; land. y soul longs for $ou li"e a thirsty

+To long after (od3 implies in the &e!rew +to see" greedily., $t is a very aggressive word. This would involve intensive prayer and fasting on occasions in addition to your regular times of prayer and worship. Personal and corporate worship are ways of thirsting after "od. Psalm 107:9 -or He satisfies the longing soul, %nd fills the ihungry soul with goodness. ,. Spend Lots o& Ti e -rayin) In T#e Spirit. 1 Co inthians 14:4 He who spea"s in a tongue edifies himself, but he who prophesies edifies the church. !"#e 1:20 *ut you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy .pirit, .. /ave A Real Love For T#e Ti e 0ou Spend "it# God In /is "ord.
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Psalm119:165 (reat peace have those who love $our law, %nd nothing causes them to stumble. Psalm 1:1- 3 *lessed is the man who... delights is in the law of the L&'#, %nd in His law he meditates day and night. /!0 He shall be li"e a tree 1lanted by the rivers of water, That brings forth its fruit in its season, Whose leaf also shall not wither; %nd whatever he does shall prosper. 1. 0ou $ust Be Spiritually $inded. $omans 8:6 -or to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Isaiah 26:3 $ou will "eep him in perfect peace, Whose mind is stayed on $ou, because he trusts in $ou. 2. Be a Giver o& Tit#es 3 4&&erin)s. Malachi 3:10 2*ring all the tithes into the storehouse, That there may be food in y house, %nd try e now in this,2 .ays the L&'# of hosts, 2If I will not open for you the windows of heaven %nd pour out for you such blessing That there will not be room enough to receive it. %"&e 6:38 2(ive, and it will be given to you3 good measure, pressed down, sha"en together, and running over will be put into your bosom. -or with the same measure that you use, it will be measured bac" to you.2 5. /ave A 6ontinued /eart 4& Repentance. 'cts 3:19 2'epent therefore and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, so that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, 7. Learn /o* To Rest In God. Isaiah 30:15 -or thus says the Lord (&#, the Holy &ne of Israel3 2In returning and rest you shall be saved; In 4uietness and confidence shall be your strength.2 *ut you would not, Psalm 116:7 'eturn to your rest, & my soul, -or the L&'# has dealt bountifully with you. Matthew 11:28- 29 25ome to e, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. 67 2Ta"e y yo"e upon you and learn from e, for I am gentle
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and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.

IV.

6oncludin) Re ar!s.

'e have seen that it is "od4s desire that we as !orn again hristians walk in the spiritual fullness that causes us to e%perience an a!undant life in &im. &is desire as we have seen is to a!undantly satisfy us with the fullness of &is house. $t4s up to us to drink and !e filled with the &oly Spirit, who !rings us &is fullness into our lives. $t is when we fail to drink from &is fullness that we e%perience added demonic activity in our lives. $f our lives are full of "od and &is goodness, Satan doesn4t stand much of a chance with us. So let4s drink up and e%perience all that "od has for us.

All Scripture references are from the New King James Bible unless otherwise noted.