Complete

“I just feel like something is missing.”  

“I feel like there should be more.”  

“I don’t feel complete.”  

These statements and others like them express a sentiment experienced by many Christians when it comes to their walk with God.

As a pastor, my passion is to truly see people discover what it means to live the life that Jesus Christ has promised they can live.  And yet, you and I often see that there are many Christians who live lives that are far beneath what we think a life with God should be.

After all, shouldn’t a life with God be exponentially better than a life without God?  If our heavenly Father is supposed to be a loving, generous, peaceful father, shouldn’t His children experience that love, generosity, and peace?

To be sure, there are many Christians who truly experience all or most of all what God promises.  But sadly, there are so many who don’t.  There seems to be something missing—something that is not quite right.  Maybe they feel a little of God’s love, but not a lot of God’s love.  Maybe they feel a little of His peace, but not an overwhelming sense of His peace.  Maybe they have experienced a little of His freedom, but not a complete sense of freedom.

Why is that?  Why are there so many Christians—I suspect a majority of Christians—living incomplete in the Christian life?  For sure, I don’t believe that this is what God has intended for His children.

The apostle Paul wrote to the church in Colossae, “And you are complete in him…” (Colossians 2:10 BBE).  The NIV translation puts it this way, “And in Christ you have been brought to fullness.”  Jesus says in John 10:10 (NLT), “My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life.” 

Think about the words that the Bible uses to describe our relationship with Christ—complete, fullness, rich, and satisfying.  Do these words describe your relationship with Jesus?  If not, know that it is not Jesus who is holding out—it is you.  Jesus does love you, and He does want for you to experience a complete, full, rich, and satisfying life in Him.  

If you desire to have a complete, full, rich, and satisfying relationship with Jesus Christ you can and here’s how.  Jesus says (John 15:4-8 NLT):

Remain in me, and I will remain in you. For a branch cannot produce fruit if it is severed from the vine, and you cannot be fruitful unless you remain in me.  “Yes, I am the vine; you are the branches. Those who remain in me, and I in them, will produce much fruit. For apart from me you can do nothing.  Anyone who does not remain in me is thrown away like a useless branch and withers. Such branches are gathered into a pile to be burned.  But if you remain in me and my words remain in you, you may ask for anything you want, and it will be granted!  When you produce much fruit, you are my true disciples. This brings great glory to my Father.

Here’s the key—Jesus said, “remain in me.”  Many translations read, “Abide in me.”  The BBE translation reads, “Be in me at all times.”  The idea is that we would live a life that is continually connected to Jesus Christ. 

What does it mean to continually remain or abide in Jesus?  And, how do we do it? 

First:

We must be faithful to worship with other Christians (Hebrews 10:25).  Being committed to a local church is the will of God.  Always look for an opportunity to encourage and to be encouraged by other believers.  However, church attendance once or twice a week really isn’t what it means to “be in Christ,” it is just a start.

Second:

Establish a time of personal devotion.  For me, personal devotion consists of reading the Scriptures, worshipping, and praying.

If you have never had a regular habit of reading the Bible, I don’t recommend jumping in with both feet.  Rather, I suggest that you tiptoe in with one chapter a day.  Personally, I try to read five chapters each day.  However, it is much better to read one chapter a day and understand what you are reading, than to try and read many chapters and get discouraged because you don’t understand God’s Word.  Also, I recommend using a reading chart that will help you track your progress.  Once you’ve completed the chart, save it as a milestone of growth.

When praying, I always begin with worship and then I pray for myself, my family, our church, our community, and our world.  Specifically, for myself, my family, and our church, I pray that we would please and glorify God in everything that we do.  For our community and our world, I pray that God would be glorified in seeing His kingdom advance against the darkness of this world.

Third:

Set a time of regular fasting.  Jesus says in Matthew 9:15 that those who want to be with Him would fast.  Fasting is a way of denying the desires of our flesh so that we can come to a greater hunger and sensitivity for God.  In the Bible you will find many different types and times of fasts.  For example, Nehemiah wrote that he fasted for days, Daniel fasted for 21 days from meats and sweets, and Jesus fasted for 40 days from everything except water.  If you’ve never fasted, begin with just one 24-hour fast and the times you would normally eat, stop to pray instead.

I encourage you to pursue that completion—that fullness in Christ—and experience the rich and satisfying life that He promises.