"You are not created to be CONTAINED. You are created to be a CONTAINER for my glory."
I had to dig into this to find out what He meant! Curious, I looked up the definition for each word.
Container, according to Merriam-Webster, is "a receptacle (such as a box or jar) for holding goods", and synonyms include holder, receptacle, and vessel.
To contain something:
1: To keep within limits: such as
(https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/)
So what does it mean to be contained?
In this context, I feel like it means to be held back or restrained in a way that is counteractive to our freedom in Christ. When Jesus spoke the word "contained", I thought of how we sometimes try to contain our passion or excitement in an effort to look dignified or "put together". We put limits on how much we let God overflow in us. I know I soften put an unhealthy restraint on how much I act on the gifts and calling God has put on my life. It's like I'm waiting to magically "arrive" or suddenly know what I'm doing with my life, like I need to know all the answers before I can fully live "uncontained" the way Christ has called me to live.
Then I came across this verse: 2 Timothy 2:21 "...You are to be a pure container of Christ and dedicated to the honorable purposes of your Master, prepared for every good work that he gives you to do."
Wow, how beautiful to be called a "pure container of Christ"!
I also love the amplified version of this!
2 Timothy 2:20-21 AMP "... He will be a vessel for honor, sanctified [set apart for a special purpose and], useful to the Master, prepared for every good work."
How glorious, and what an honor to be created to be a vessel of honor for the Master's use! I so want to be cleansed of anything I'm containing that is NOT of Christ, so that I can be filled with Him and set apart as a vessel for His glory!
But, I also don't want to JUST be a pretty container that is full of Jesus, although that is great! We are not created to hold on to what God has put inside us. We are not made to sit on the shelf collecting dust, just being a beautiful vessel. It's what the container holds that makes it precious! We are designed not to be contained, but to continually receive and pour out the glory He has hidden inside us. It's the anointing of heaven, the beautiful fragrance of Jesus that changes the atmosphere around us.
How often do we allow ourselves to just come undone and release what God has put into us? When we're young it feels so easy to just let go. No one expects us to "have it all together" yet. It's normal for young people to be zealous, to show their emotions freely. Then, for some reason, when we enter "adult life", it's like there is this expectation to hold it together. It's as if maturity is defined by how calm and collected we are. But I'm pretty sure that's not how God defines maturity.
Romans 8:14 " The mature children of God are those who are moved by the impulses of the Holy Spirit."
What?! According to God, maturity is when we are MOVED by his impulses, not when we are restrained!
Several years ago I was leading the song "How He loves" at the church I was serving in at the time, there was a moment in the song when I just came unglued.
I don't know what happened; all I know is that I had a revelation. It was just a small glimpse of the magnitude of the love of God, and I was overwhelmed. I just started weeping and fell to my knees and could not continue to lead the song. This was in front of the whole church, with everyone looking at me probably wondering what in the world was wrong with me. Thankfully, the worship leader who was co-leading with me covered for me. He took over singing while I just sat there and cried for the duration of the song, pouring my love back on Jesus. After the service, a few people looked at me oddly and asked me if I was okay.
I wanted to scream, I AM MORE THAN OKAY. I AM WRECKED BY JESUS' LOVE AND YOU CAN BE TOO!"
But, I don't think they wanted to be wrecked. In fact, I don't think most people want to be wrecked. When you are passionate about Jesus, it will always look like foolishness to those who aren't passionate about Jesus. It looks horrifying, and humiliating. But really, it's the MOST joyful thing that can happen to you. It reminds me of David dancing before the Lord, saying he would become even more undignified than this (2 Samuel 6). It reminds me of the woman who poured her precious jar of costly oil out on Jesus' feet in a lavish expression of love (Luke 7).
When you are a container for His glory, you can NOT be contained! We were made to be filled up and spilled out. Over and over and over again. We follow the pattern of Christ, who came specifically for the purpose of pouring His life out.
We are created to lose our lives. This alone IS true life. This alone is what truly satisfies the human soul.
The reality is, it's uncomfortable to come undone in front of everyone, or even to come undone by yourself. But Heaven honors the one who overflows with abandon to the King who is worthy.
This is who I want to be.
I don't want to live "put together" anymore. That's boring. I want the REAL life! When I see the face of Jesus, I'm pretty sure I'm not going to be reserved or held back in ANY way. In that moment, I won't give one thought to what people thought of me! So, I might as well live that way now!
So do you want to come unglued again with me? Let's be the crazy people of God who don't care what the world thinks. Let's be unashamed to fall apart in passionate love for Jesus. Let's overflow and splash His love onto everyone we come in contact with!
It's WAY more fun to live this way! But most importantly, Jesus is worthy of what He paid for. Let's live uncontained!
P.S. I wanted to share two songs that I LOVE that really speak to this! Enjoy!https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hf04GoCCVQg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6Fao_mc5RTo
