More To Receive, More To Express
More and more, the Spirit brings Jesus into clear focus as we walk with Him.
Devotional Credit: In Christ, E. Stanley Jones
Photo Credit: Unsplash
Paul tells the Thessalonians, as you already please God, do so more and more. E. Stanley Jones lingers with that phrase. He notes how Paul encourages first, then supplies what is lacking in their faith. Paul pats their back with one hand and points forward with the other. Growth in Jesus is not pressure to perform. It is invitation from love.
Jones reminds us that the life of being in Jesus is a growing life, not an anxious chase. We have tasted grace, so of course we want another taste. We have seen God at work, so of course we want to see more. The cry of the Christian heart is not, I must do more, but, Lord, show me more of yourself. That shift keeps the soul soft.
This is not about restless novelty. It is about holy capacity. The Spirit stretches us without snapping us. He strengthens what already lives in us, then He makes room for fresh fruit. The finite keeps approaching the Infinite, not with panic, but with joy. We are on the stretch, and we are at rest.
So friend, receive Paul’s rhythm. Encouragement first, then supply. You are already pleasing God in Jesus. Wonderful. Now, more and more. Not heavier loads. Deeper life. Not frantic motion. Fuller abiding. Let the Lord who began the work expand it within you today.
Journal Entry – Voice of the Holy Spirit Through Scripture
I have called you into my Son. As you received Christ Jesus the Lord, walk in him, rooted and built up in him, established in the faith, abounding in thanksgiving. Present your body to me as a living sacrifice. Be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is good and acceptable and perfect.
Abide in my Son and you will bear much fruit. From his fullness you receive grace upon grace. Taste and see that I am good. Grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus. Walk worthy of me, fully pleasing to me, bearing fruit in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God.
Fix your eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. Forget what lies behind, and press on toward the prize of my upward call in Christ Jesus. Consider yourself dead to sin and alive to me in Christ. The life you now live in the body, live by faith in the Son of God who loved you and gave himself for you.
I strengthen you with power through my Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your heart through faith. Be filled to all my fullness. I am able to do far more abundantly than all that you ask or think, according to the power at work within you. Continue in the works I prepared for you, and do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to me the Father through him.
Real-Life Analogy
Think about a camera lens that twists to focus. At first the image looks flat. You turn the ring a little, and depth appears. You did not change the scene. You brought more of it into clarity.
Life in Jesus is like that. The Holy Spirit keeps bringing more of Him into focus as you trust and yield. Today, before you open your inbox or walk into the next room, take the posture of dependence. In your heart say, Lord, I trust you to bring this moment into focus and to express your patience and strength through me as I answer what is in front of me. Then act with a steady pace, expecting the Lord to sharpen what matters and quiet what does not.
Prayer of Confidence
Father, thank you that I already stand accepted in Jesus. Thank you that your Spirit supplies what is lacking and turns good beginnings into fuller life. I praise you that growth is your gift, not my grind. I receive this day as your assignment. More of your life received, more of your life expressed. All in the name of the Lord Jesus.
Scripture References for the Voice of the Holy Spirit Through Scripture Section
1 Thessalonians 4:1, 1 Thessalonians 3:9-10, Colossians 2:6-7, Romans 12:1-2, John 15:5, John 1:16, Psalm 34:8, 2 Peter 3:18, Colossians 1:10, Hebrews 12:1-2, Philippians 3:13-14, Romans 6:11, Galatians 2:20, Ephesians 3:16-19, Ephesians 3:20-21, Ephesians 2:10, Colossians 3:17, Psalm 16:11, 2 Corinthians 3:18