Christ-Filled: Living in the Fullness of Jesus
Living patterns
"He (the Holy Spirit) shall glorify Me (the Lord Jesus)" (John 16:14).
The Christian life is not merely about being empowered to do good works or maintain religious practices. At its heart, it is about being filled with the life of Christ Himself. Today’s reading from Abide Above reminds us that the Holy Spirit’s ultimate purpose is to glorify Jesus by displacing the old man and emplacing the New Man within us.
The Work of the Spirit: Displacement and Emplacement
A.M. writes, “The power to carry out this will is not a permanent gift but must be each moment received from the Holy Spirit.” This truth reminds us that while we have been given a new will through our new life in Christ, the strength to live out that will is not self-generated.
The Spirit’s work is twofold:
Displacement: The Spirit displaces the old man—our self-reliant, Adamic life. This involves putting off the residual thought patterns of the Old Man, the flesh, and learning to rest in our identity as crucified with Christ (Galatians 2:20).
Emplacement: The Spirit emplaces the New Man—Christ’s life in us. This is not a one-time event but an ongoing, moment-by-moment dependence on the Spirit to manifest Christ’s character and purposes in and through us.
The Centrality of Christ in the Spirit’s Ministry
T. A-S. emphasizes that the Spirit’s ministry is not about empowering us to perform religious duties or achieve spiritual maturity for our own sake. Instead, the Spirit’s ultimate aim is to glorify Christ by filling us with His life.
Paul captured this beautifully in Ephesians 4:13:
“… unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ.”
When we are filled with the Spirit, we are filled with Christ Himself. The Spirit leads us into deeper fellowship with Jesus, shaping us into His image and enabling us to reflect His glory.
A Fresh Perspective on Being Spirit-Filled
It is easy to reduce the Holy Spirit to a source of power for accomplishing our goals. A.M. warns against this, urging us to honor the Spirit as the One who fills us with the very life of Christ.
The Spirit-filled life is not about what we can do but about what Christ does in and through us. As we yield to the Spirit, the focus shifts away from self-effort to a reliance on the indwelling Christ. This shift brings:
Rest: Ceasing from our own works and trusting in the sufficiency of Jesus (Hebrews 4:10).
Transformation: Experiencing the life of Christ progressively formed in us (2 Corinthians 3:18).
Glory: Living in a way that exalts Christ, revealing His character to the world (John 15:8).
Reflection and Prayer
Are you striving to live the Christian life in your own strength, or are you yielding moment by moment to the Spirit’s work?
How can you allow the Spirit to glorify Christ more fully in your life today?
Prayer
Father, thank You for giving me the Holy Spirit to glorify Jesus in and through my life. I acknowledge my utter powerlessness apart from Him. I yield myself to Your Spirit, trusting You to displace the living patterns of the old man and emplace the very life of Christ within me. May I live today, and every day, as a vessel through which Jesus is seen and glorified. Amen.
A Final Thought
The fullness of the Spirit is the fullness of Christ. As the Spirit leads, empowers, and transforms us, we become living testimonies of Jesus’ life and love. Let us rest in this truth and allow the Spirit to glorify Him in all that we do.