Luke 6:38

Luke 6:38 (NIV) “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you."

Jesus used the illustration of a farmer packing grain in a basket to ensure the fullest amount was in his measure. He stuffed it in and pressed it down and even shook it down in order to get in the fullest measure possible. Isn’t it disappointing when you open a box of cereal and the box is 1/3 empty or a bag of potato chips and the bag is less than 1/2 full? Isn’t it even more disappointing when Christians are only 1/2 full of love, joy, peace, kindness, forgiveness, generosity, and compassion to share with others? It has become standard practice for food production and packaging companies to fill food containers with air. But when a Christian is filled full of hot air, their lives are opposite of joy, forgiveness and compassion. A little bit of hot air amounts to a lot of judgmentalism, criticism, anger and greed. God’s ideal is that Christians are packed and shaken down so tight, filled so full of love and mercy and generosity that they are overflowing till every bit of the hot air is squeezed out.

Your heart can be as full of these qualities as you want it to be, God doesn’t limit any body to the amount they can be filled. But the measure we use to allow God to fill our lives with mercy, generosity and forgiveness is the same measure God uses to show us mercy, forgiveness and generosity. Some people may say to themselves; “I don’t want to be a pushover and be too forgiving.” or “I can only be so generous, at some point I won’t have enough for myself.” But it is impossible to out give God.

The story is told in the Bible of a rich, young Ruler in Luke 18:18-23. He came to Jesus and asked, “What must I do to have eternal life?” The response Jesus gave was, “you must sell everything you have and give it to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me." The rich young Ruler thought about this briefly, then decided, the cost to follow Jesus was more than he had bargained for. In sadness the man turned away, But Jesus said, "How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God! Indeed, it is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for a rich man to enter the kingdom of God." His disciples heard Him say this and asked, "Who then can be saved?" Jesus replied, "What is impossible with men is possible with God." The rich young ruler did not comprehend the principle of Luke 6:38 “Give and it will be given to you, in the same measure you gave it.” He only imagined having nothing rather than the endless possibilities God has to give you more than you had to begin with.

In another story in the Bible, Simon of Bethany wanted to throw a feast for Jesus and His disciples in gratitude for being cured of leprosy. During the feast Mary Magdalene snuck into the feast and tried to secretly anoint Jesus’ feet with an expensive perfume. But the beautiful, strong fragrance revealed her secret to everyone in the room. Simon, who had been healed by Jesus, saw what Mary had done and was offended. Simon was aware that Mary had given herself to prostitution in the past and Simon was aware of this because he had led her into sin himself. Simon ignored his own guilt, but on the other hand he felt nothing but reproach toward Mary, and he questioned in his heart, “If Jesus were a true Prophet He would know what sort of woman Mary was and would not have let her touch Him.”

This story indicates the qualities of Mary's and Simon's hearts, and how each person had their own measure returned back to them. Mary was filled with love for Jesus, she shook it down and packed His love in her heart, love for the times she had been forgiven by Him and for resurrecting her brother Lazarus from the dead. Simon who had never sought forgiveness for the sin he committed with Mary filled his heart with condemnation. He was judgmental of Mary and critical of Jesus, Simon made it clear that the measure in his heart was full of a lot of hot air. Jesus went on to reveal to Simon that the measure by which he and Mary showed love and forgiveness was the same measure they received from God.

Simon learned that evening that Mary's gift was valued more by Jesus than the feast he intended to give Jesus as a gift. Because Marys' gift was packed tight and shaken down where Simon's measure was not. We hope Simon learned that the measure he had was not the only measure he could have received. If you want a fuller measure ask God for more, He can still pack it in and shake it down and heap it till it overflows.

Explain the reason why you would want more of God's goodness packed down tightly in your heart? Describe areas in your life you would like to see God pack it down tighter and filled more? What are the reasons why you selected those areas in your life compared to others?

Genesis 28:12; John 1:51

Gen 28:12 (NLT); John 1:51 (NLT) As Jacob slept, “he dreamed of a stairway that reached from the earth up to heaven. And he saw the angels of God going up and down the stairway.”; Then Jesus said, "I tell you the truth, you will all see heaven open and the angels of God going up and down on the Son of Man, the one who is the stairway between heaven and earth."

Jesus, the Son of God, is the stairway to peace and spiritual healing on our Journey to heaven. Jesus described himself as the ladder in Jacob’s dream that bridged the gap between man and God. The ladder is provided by Christ's death for our sins. Isaiah 53:4-5, TLB. "Yet it was our grief He bore, our sorrows that weighed Him down. And we thought His troubles were a punishment from God, for His own sins! But He was wounded and bruised for our sins. He was chastised that we might have peace; He was lashed—and we are healed." All of us who have been touched by sin are in great need of spiritual healing. Forgiveness is ours for the taking, peace is found by making things right with God. Romans 5:1, (TLB) tells us, "So now, since we have been made right in God's sight by faith in His promises, we can have real peace with Him because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us." However, it took years for sin to create deep festering wounds in our lives, and as anyone who has worked in the health field knows, wounds take 10 times longer to heal than they did to form. But Praise God, as we climb Jacob’s ladder each round takes us higher and closer to the spiritual healing the Bible promises us is ours on the quest to the Kingdom of God.

“Every round goes higher” So the second round of the staircase involves removing what causes the wound from our lives. This round of the staircase is obedience. Psalm 119:165, (NIV) "Great peace have they who love Your law, and nothing can make them stumble." Disobedience is what caused the spiritual wounds in our lives to begin with so it makes sense that obedience removes what causes the wounds to keep growing. Doing the right thing because it is what God wants us to do is the essence of righteousness by faith. Isaiah 32:17-18, (NIV) "The fruit of righteousness will be peace; the effect of righteousness will be quietness and confidence forever."

“Every round goes higher” So the third round in the stairway looks easy, but it is actually the most challenging part of the climb. It is finding peace by letting go of self. It is a battle within ourselves against God’s will in areas of our life where we don’t want to let go, but where we need to grow. Job 22:21, (TLB) "Quit quarreling with God. Agree with Him and you will have peace at last. His favor will surround you if you will only admit that you were wrong." Self putrefies in our wounds, but Praise God, removing self cleanses the wounds to allow healing to begin to take place.

“Every round goes higher” in this round God gives us discipline, which is the fourth round in the stairway of peace and spiritual healing. Hebrews 12:5-11, (NIV) "My son, do not make light of the Lord's discipline, and do not lose heart when he rebukes you, because the Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son. Endure hardship as discipline; God is treating you as sons. For what son is not disciplined by his father? If you are not disciplined (and everyone undergoes discipline), then you are illegitimate children and not true sons. Moreover, we have all had human fathers who disciplined us and we respected them for it. How much more should we submit to the Father of our spirits and live! Our fathers disciplined us for a little while as they thought best; but God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it." Medicine on a deep wound stings and burns, discipline is the medicine providing the antiseptic environment necessary for the spiritual wound to keep infection out. Praise God, that Jesus is the Balm of Giliad, by trusting in Him, the Balm of Gilliad will heal the sin sick soul. Isaiah 26:3-4, (TLB) "He will keep in perfect peace all those who trust in Him, whose thoughts turn often to the Lord! Trust in the Lord God always, for in the Lord Jehovah is your everlasting strength."

What are some other steps on Jacob's ladder that you feel have been important on your spiritual journey? Share an example of some of the spiritual healing you have experienced on your Christian journey?

*Originally posted as a comment by Dan on Kingdom Quest Blog on July 29, 2009 3:47 PM