Isaiah 55: 2; “(2) Wherefore do ye spend money for that which is not bread? And your labour for that which satisfieth not? hearken diligently unto me, and eat ye that which is good, and let your soul delight itself in fatness.”
In Christ, we have abundant life, as He promised in John 10: 10. But how should we define the word abundant? The thesaurus defines it as: “lavish, overflowing, bountiful, plenteous, teeming, more than is needed.”
Think of it! God is abundant in mercy. That is, His mercy is lavish, overflowing, bountiful, plenteous, teeming, and more than enough to forgive any quilt we’ve been feeling. He gives abundant joy more than is needed for any trial. We can delight ourselves in the abundance of peace and He is able to do “exceedingly abundantly above all that we ask or think.” When we get to heaven and look back on our earthly days, we’ll find that He answered our prayers with lavishing, overflowing, bountiful, plenteous, teeming generosity.
He gives so much more than is needed! And think of the eternal abundance of our inheritance in heaven! Jesus is not insolvent.
The abundant life is ours through Him. We should delight in the abundance of Christ, who is our life.
What is more abundant life? It is the Lord Jesus Himself… life more abundant is glorious life…victorious life…fruitful life…strong life…praising life.
Following Christ and growing strong is exercising the freedom to trust in Him and obey His commands. When a soldier submits to the authority of his or her commanding officer, he or she obeys what that officer tells him or her to do. If a patient submits a=to a doctor’s treatment, he or she follows the instruction. If a football player submits to the direction of his coach, he abides by the coach’s plan. When we submit ourselves to the Savior, we obey what He tells us to do because we know His way is right.
How many problems could be avoided if God’s people would obey His Word? The Bible gives us principles that will guide our lives. God’s Word isn’t to be debated or dissected; it is to be done. Psalm 119: 101; “I have refrained my feet from every evil way, that I might keep thy word.”
God also leads the Holy Spirit. Sometimes we struggle to know what is right. Many times, it’s because we don’t want to give up something we know we should walk away from. But through prayer, asking God to give us strength, He will enable us to make the hard decisions, and we find that the joyu of obeying Christ fills the void.
When we take a stand for Christ, we may be forsaken by friends, but we must never compromise our faith for the sake of friendship with the world. The Bible tells us that we should influence others toward God. Remember in Christ, we have abundant life. Abundant= more than is needed.