Lord, accept our feeble song

God is rich in every way. He is rich in glory and in all the divine attributes. He is rich in love, kindness, mercy, light, life, power, and strength. God’s riches are endless. Now this rich God is adding Himself into us. God’s riches are the element and substance by which we grow. God is real, rich, and substantial, and we need to absorb Him.

The Conclusion of the New Testament:

Experiencing, Enjoying, and Expressing Christ,
Chapter 356 (LSM)
Volume 2 (msgs. 323-381)
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God is rich in every way. He is rich in glory and in all the divine attributes. He is rich in love, kindness, mercy, light, life, power, and strength. Oh, God’s riches are endless! Now this rich God is adding Himself into us. This is implied by the phrase, “grows with the growth of God. ” God’s riches are the element and substance by which we grow.

Life-study of Colossians

Message 52 (LSM)

THE REALITY OF THE CHURCH BEING CHRIST AS THE FULLNESS OF GOD

The two main aspects of the church as the embodiment of the divine life and power are its reality and practicality. The reality of the church is Christ, who is the fullness of God. The Bible uses many wonderful, profound, and unfathomable terms. Two of these are riches and fullness. In the New Testament fullness is first used in John 1:16 , which says, “Of His fullness we have all received. ” Colossians 2:9 says, “In Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily. ” Ephesians 3:19 says, “That you may be filled unto all the fullness of God, ” and 1:22 and 23 say, “The church, which is His Body, the fullness of the One who fills all in all. ” Other verses speak of the riches of Christ. Ephesians 3:8 says, “To me, less than the least of all saints, was this grace given to announce to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ as the gospel. ” In Romans 10:12 Paul says, “The same Lord is Lord of all and rich to all who call upon Him. ” Other verses tell us that God is rich in glory ( 9:23 ; Eph. 1:18 ; 3:16 ), rich in mercy ( 2:4 ), and rich in grace ( 1:7 ; 2:7 ).

There is a difference between the riches and the fullness. The riches of Christ are the contents of what He is, and the fullness is the expression of the riches. If we fill a cup with water, the water is the content of the cup, but if we fill the cup past the brim, the overflow of the content is the fullness, the outward expression, of the water. That Christ is the fullness of God means that Christ is filled to overflowing with all the riches, the contents, of God to be the expression of the riches, that is, to be the expression of God Himself. It is not enough simply to say that Christ is life, power, holiness, righteousness, sanctification, justification, and other items. We need to say that Christ is the fullness of God. To speak of the fullness of God is to use an all-inclusive term, which includes life, power, sanctification, and every positive matter.

The Christ who is the fullness of God is the reality of the church. The reality of the church is not formalities, teachings, or opinions. The reality of the church is Christ as the fullness of God. The church as the Body of Christ is produced by and constituted with the unsearchable riches of Christ to be the fullness of Christ ( 1:22-23 ; 3:6-10 ). Moreover, as Christ makes His home in the church, it is filled unto all the fullness of God ( vv. 17-19 ). If we pray over Ephesians 1 and 3 , the Spirit will lead us to see that the reality of the church is nothing less than Christ as the fullness of God.

Christ as Life to Us for the
Reality and Practicality of the Church
Chapter 1 (LSM) CWWL, 1972, vol. 1

Reverend Thomas Kelly was born in Dublin, Ireland in 1760. He was the son of the Hon. Chief Baron Thomas Kelly of that city, a judge of the Irish Court of Common Pleas. His father trained him for the legal profession, but after his graduation at Trinity College he took holy orders in the Episcopal Church laboring as a clergymen for more than 60 years, becoming a Non-conformist in his later ministry. He was a sweet-souled man, who developed many friendships and was honored as much for his piety as for his poetry, music, and oriental learning.

“I expect never to die, ” he said when Lord Plunkett once told him he would reach a great age. He finished his earthly ministry on 14 May, 1855, when he was 85 years old. But he still lives. His zeal for the coming Kingdom of Christ prompted him to write one his best hymns:

On the mountain-top appearing,
Lo! The sacred herald stands,
Joyful news to Zion bearing,
Zion long in hostile lands;
Mourning captive,
God Himself with loose thy bands.
Has the night been long and mournful?
Have thy friends unfaithful approved?
Have thy foes being proud and scornful,
By thy sites and tears unmoved?
Cease thy mourning;
Zion still is well beloved.
(Brown and Butterworth)

Lord, accept our feeble song!
Pow’r and praise to Thee belong;
We would all Thy grace record,
Holy, gracious, loving Lord!

This is such a beautiful song!! Thanks Micah for introducing this song to us. 😊