In the book of 2 Kings chapter 4:1-7, it tells a story of a widow whose husband died and had a lot of debts and the debtors were about to take her sons. Many of us were like those two sons, where we are chained by so many things of this world and those things try to wrestle us away from God. Those chains, whether it is worrying, debts, pleasure, hatred, anger, jealousy, greed, lust, addictions are just things that devil use and offer us that bind us and try to pull us away from God.
When the widow went to Elijah to ask help, Elijah told her to gather empty vessels. The same thing when we come to believe in God. God asks us to become empty vessels. Those vessels represent us. The Oil represents Holy Spirit.
When we were born, we were pure and have no ideologies just like empty vessels. We start learning things from our parents, our surrounding, televisions, teachers, school, bible etc, but slowly we started filling ourselves with what shaping our personalities and ways of thinking. Our vessels are no longer empty but it has contents of whatever we put in our lives. When we accept Christ, He gave us Holy Spirit that lives inside of us.
Imagine we are half filled a bottle of ketchup and it is now filled with oil. That oil or that ketchup cannot function as it was intended to be. The same thing if we are a bottle of water; it won’t mix with oil. Or vinegar or whatever we fill ourselves with. Holy Spirit cannot function fully in our lives, as long as we hang on to our ideologies and our ways of thinking. It is just like ketchup mixed with oil.
That is why many Christians cannot be used fully by God; not being led by Holy Spirit; cannot find their purpose and calling because they don’t want to empty themselves of the things of this world. If we empty ourselves, like empty vessels, and we are fully filled 100 percent with oil or Holy Spirit, then we will live our lives the way God wants us to live. We will be in tune with the guidance of Holy Spirit and fulfill the work of God and His purpose in our lives.
When we become empty of the things of this world, that oil will keep pouring in our lives. The Holy Spirit will continuously work in our lives and His power will shine through us in a pure God’s way. His work will no longer be corrupted with our ways of thinking, our principles that was corrupted by the world.
Let’s empty ourselves; be empty vessels and let God fill us with His power and love and anointing. Then the world will see Jesus when they interact with us. Purely Jesus, and not us!
2 Kings 4:3
Daily prayer
Lord Jesus, forgives me for holding on to the things of this world. I want to be empty and be filled only by Your Spirit. I pray that when people see my work, they will only see Jesus through me. They will see Your love, Your grace and Your mercy and be saved. In the Name of Jesus I pray
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