Empty Vessel

I heard the title of this post in my sleep some months ago and when I woke up, I prayed, "I refuse to be an empty vessel, I want to be a very useful vessel for your Lord" however, the words kept popping up in my mind. It wasn't until after a few weeks that I got the message the Lord was trying to pass across to me. God wants me to be an empty vessel so that He can fill me up.

See, oftentimes, we are not patient or attentive enough to actually hear and understand God when He speaks to us.

Now, unto our message: "The Empty Vessel".

The message is quite simple and straight forward - Nobody keeps pouring into an already filled vessel, if you want God to keep filling you up, you have to keep emptying yourself by continually giving of yourself to others. That's it! I honestly feel the sentence right here will suffice but this blog has never been about how I feel, it's about what God wants me to say to His people so for that reason, I'll explain some more. :)

The story of the widow in 2 Kings 4:1-6 is the perfect illustration of empty vessels, the oil did not cease until there was no more empty vessel to fill, I bet if that woman knew the kind of miracle she was going to experience, she would have borrowed more vessels, who knows, she might have even gone to the extent of buying vessels on credit with the assurance that she would be able to pay back, but she didn't know, God gave her as much oil as her faith went and He only stopped when she had no more room to receive the blessings He was bestowing on her. The God of the days of Elisha is the same God we serve, He wants to pour out His blessings upon us but the big question is - do we have room to receive? Have we realized our unworthiness and helplessness, do we recognize that we are not competent on our own to become righteous before the Holy and Perfect God, are we willing to let go of our bloated belief in the systems of the world, are we ready to leave our comfort zones, have we emptied ourselves of sins so that we can receive God's mercy and grace? And when we receive grace and mercy, are we being merciful to others and saving them by snatching them from the fire? Jude 22 - 23. Remember that your blessings are not for you alone, when God blesses you, it's so that you can bless others. Just like the widow, God wants you to search out empty vessels from your neighbors, bring them into your house and pour into them.

Allow me to let you in on a secret that keeps me going even when I'm tired, I remind myself that God has deposited so much in me and it will be a disservice to Him, myself and my generation if I don't expend everything before I go to heaven. Whatever your occupation is on earth, I don't think you will have need of your skills or creativity in heaven, the Bible says in Revelation 7: 15 "Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them", your only job/duty when we get to heaven will be to serve God so for whom are you saving all those talents, that great idea that God has laid on your heart, the app you want to build, the orphanage you want to start, that scientific method that you buried in your notepad, when do you plan on doing/using all these things? When you die? In heaven? My dear brethren, extend those blessings to others, let your talents bless others and bring them to the knowledge of Christ, keep emptying yourself so that God can keep filling you up.

2 Timothy 2: 20 - 21 says "Now in a great house there are not only vessels of gold and silver but also of wood and clay, some for honorable use, some for dishonorable. Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from what is dishonorable, he will be a vessel for honorable use, set apart as holy, useful to the master of the house, ready for every good work." Being a useful vessel is not just a spiritual concern, it applies to all aspects of our lives as Christians. In Titus 3: 3 - 8, Paul said that God saved us, He poured out the Holy Spirit on us generously, emphasis here is on verse 8, This is a trustworthy saying. And I want you to stress these things, so that those who have trusted in God may be careful to devote themselves to doing what is good. These things are excellent and profitable for everyone. There you have it, you have been saved to do good, your salvation is not exclusively for you, pour the Christ in you into the empty vessels in your sphere of influence so that God can keep refilling you, after all, if you love someone, you want the best for them and the second greatest commandment is to love your neighbor as yourself!