Fill 'er Up!

  Getting filled up these days costs more then we often think?! We drive a mini-van, '99 Transport, a bunch of kms, some scars of grime and wear from five kids taking numerous 10 hr-24 hr road trips through out Canada and  the U.S. Any one interested in buying? Sounds attractive eh? Wait here's the big selling point- when we tank up these days from empty it costs us over $100- yeah that's with the dirtest unleaded money can buy! Getting filled up these days cost us more then we often think!

 PROVERBS 9  Talks about being 'filled up'; finding wholeness, fullness, completeness.

When you study through Proverbs chapter by chapter you discover this ninth chapter serves as a vantage point. Like peaking out on hiking trail where you can see the trail behind you and you can get directional bearings for the climb ahead of you. It contains two very different invitations to come and 'fill up'. 

The Invitation of Wisdom vs 1-6 Wisdom again, as in the first part of Proverbs, is personified as a pleasant and gracious woman. She has built a house, 'hewn out of 7 pillars' (signifying sufficiency and completeness), she has made a sacrifice, mixed fine wine, prepared a meal, and sends out the message, the general call, "To come break bread, drink wine- commune, dwell, live here to be filled up with wholeness, completeness."

The Invitation of Folly vs 13-18 The second invitation is made by a loud, obnoxious, amoral woman called Folly. She sits on her throne in the high places of the city, like the daily call of our media, materialistic, humanistic world, tries to sell us the lies that we need a new toy, new clothes, new body, new spouse, a new high in order to get filled up. The invitation is like a bad one night stand that turns out to be a life time of regret and destructive emptiness.

   LOOK at vs 7-12 of Proverbs 9: What stands in the middle? Between these two invitations?

Us- Me and You! How will you and I react to the invitations? If we turn to the invitation of wisdom and mock, ignore or lash out- we are the scoffer; Prideful and ignorant. If we humble ourselves take a clear look at folly and wisdom, repent of our want to go after folly and turn our hearts toward wisdom we become the one who longs to truly know fullness and wholeness, to know wisdom.

      Where is this wholeness and fullness found- look at vs 10 and 11 .  Living out of a reverent awe that God is God and therefore we are not. "The knowledge of the Holy One is insight." Holy One is actually plural here in the original,  "knowledge of the holies, or Holy Ones". I was reflecting on all of this the last few weeks: God the Triune God is complete in relationship with Himself. The Father is delighted, pleased, enjoys, honors fully the very essence of the Son; the Son delights, is pleased, enjoys, and honors the essence of the Father; the Spirit is delighted in, pleased fully, enjoys and honors the other two members of the Godhead as well; The three exist in the fullness of relationship- never at any moment has the Father turned to the Son or the Son to the Spirit or any one of them to each other to say, "you owe me". No there is perfect wholeness and fullness in the God head. God needs nothing else to be complete- He is complete in Himself- He is fullness! In eternity past God overflows this great fulness into His creation- we need to just think on that for a bit- but long story short- When man sinned he made the choice to step out of this fullness- what a wicked selfishness to believe that man could step away from the fulness of God and find completeness in himself, or in someone else, or something else! What a back turning, fist shaking, in your face, tongue stuck out, scoffer attempting to lash out in selfishness kinda thing for God's creation to do! And so the kids of the original scoffer are born outside of this relationship with their spiritual feet kicking and screaming in rebellion, like their daddy before them. What does God do? In His infinite wisdom, He makes all his own provision. He makes a sacrifice- 'breaks bread', 'pours out wine'- makes a way for us to come and commune, DWELL, live with Him. Come and live in the very fullness of this relationship. No one else- not your friends, not your roommate, not your wife, not your husband, not your girl crush,  or your man crush- will ever fill you up! Nothing else - not smaller hips, bigger muscles, more worship songs, a church just the way you want it, a new job, a new car, a new house, a new i-phone, a new promotion, a new drug or your next high will ever fill you up! God makes an abundant, sufficient supply of grace available through His Son, Jesus' death on a cross, and by the Holy Spirit, kicks out a chair from his table and invites- "Come, eat, drink, LIVE!! Come enjoy the fullness of being in relationship with Me!!" 

  - FILL 'ER UP!