About Fullness or Fraction

About Fullness or Fraction

Fullness or Fraction is shorthand for a profound question: Will I walk with God in the fullness of His promises, or will I settle for a fraction of what His colossal promises offer?

A. Birth of a Question.

Paul’s Letter to the contains a mystifying statement:

“For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and you have been given fullness in Christ.”

Colossians 2:9-10a (NIV © 1984)

The first “fullness” refers to the astonishing truth that Jesus Christ is fully God and fully human. But the second “fullness” — “and you have been given fullness in Christ” — what could this possible mean? What difference could it make in how we live? Even if we don’t comprehend this gift of Fullness, shouldn’t we desire to receive it and experience it?

In January 2016, the Lord compelled me to begin an intensive investigation of the New Testament. Sixteen months later, I had 174 pages of notes, which can be summarized in 1 question and 10 essential concepts.

  • The Question: Will we trust God’s promises in their fullness or shrink them down to a size we consider “believable,” and therefore anemic?
  • The 10 Concepts reveal how God daily supplies His people fullness in Christ.

B. Ten Building Blocks of Life.

Biochemists call amino acids “the building blocks of life.”  As I read the New Testament, I recognized several themes recurring often, although expressed in a variety of ways. Today I call these biblical concepts the 10 building blocks of daily life in Christ. Here they are.

  1. Fullness.  Jesus Christ provides us fullness.  What does it mean to live in that fullness?  (John 1:16; Col. 2:6-10; Eph. 3:14-21; and Eph. 4:11-13.)
  2. Now.  Eternal life is not only our future life in heaven, but also our walking with God as His child in the present.  (John 1:12; John 6:47; and 2 Peter 1:1-9).
  3. Model.  Jesus did not speak and act on His own initiative.  He followed the Father’s directions.  As Jesus did, so do we.  (John 5:19-20; 12:49-50; and 20:21.)
  4. Relationship.  The believers’ intimacy with God is expressed in phrases like “child of God,” “Christ in us,” “us in Christ,” etc. (John 14:20, 23; Gal. 2:20; Col. 1:29.) 
  5. Fruitfulness.  As God worked miracles through Jesus, so the Lord grants His children power to mature and to bear fruit. (John 15:5; Phil. 2:12-13; and John 14:12-14.)
  6. Community.  The Christian walk is not a solo hike, but a journey in union with Christ’s followers near and far.  (Mat. 11:28-30; John 15:9-17; John 17; and Eph. 2-5.)
  7. Holy Spirit.  He grants power, gifts, and fruit to purify us and accomplish God’s mission.  (Acts 1:8; Rom. 12:3-8; 1 Cor. 12-14; and Gal. 5:16-26.)
  8. Team Trinity.  The Father, Son, and Holy Spirit work as a team to save us from sin and to equip us for godly living.  (John 14:12-26; Rom. 6-8; and Eph. 1:3-23.)
  9. Pushback.  Spiritual warfare and persecution will arise against those who live in Christ, but God will protect us.  (John 15:18-25; Acts 4:1-31; and Eph. 6:10-20.)
  10. Conversation.  Life with God is a two-way dialog with Him (aka prayer) – anytime and anywhere.  (John 10:3-4; Ps. 32:8; Ps. 139:23-24; John 16:12-15; and 1 Thess. 5:16-22.)

C. The FULLNESS or Fraction Series.

From 2017-2019, I wrote three ebooks to help me and others grab hold of life in Christ. All three are available for free at the Faith Trekker Store.

Let’s take a brief tour of all three.

In Fullness or Fraction in the Gospel of John the Apostle John provides us many essential details about Christ as the source of life.

  • John 1:1-18 is a prologue that introduces the 10 building blocks.
  • In John 1-12, the building blocks appear in ever-increasing detail.
  • In John 13-17, Jesus informs His disciples how we are given fullness in Christ to live daily in God’s grace, presence, and power.
  • In John 18-19, Jesus is arrested, condemned, and crucified. By this descent into undeserved suffering, Christ won forgiveness and life for us rebels.
  • In John 20-21, Christ provides living proof of His victory over sin, death, and Satan, and He sends out all of us as ambassadors to testify to His kingship over all.

Fullness or Fraction in Ephesians: Our Adoption Papers. The sub-title springs from Eph. 1:5, “God decided in advance to adopt us into his own family by bringing us to himself through Jesus Christ.” (NLT) Here’s a summary of what Our Adoption Papers declare.

  • Ephesians 1: In which we read the Preamble of Our Adoption Papers, and Paul models how to pray for awareness of and proper use of our vast inheritance.
  • Ephesians 2: In which we grasp what God has adopted us from and adopted us to, we meet our brothers and sisters, and we tour our house.
  • Ephesians 3: In which we learn about our family business and Paul teaches us to pray boldly about our role in it.
  • Ephesians 4: In which we learn how to maintain family unity and how Jesus Christ, our big brother, equips us to grow up to be like Him.
  • Ephesians 5: In which Paul prepares us for the challenges of adulthood with its struggles against the world’s darkness and evil, so we may ever walk in God’s light.
  • Ephesians 6: In which Paul trains us for warfare in our homes and our places of work, and we learn how Team Trinity equips us to fight against Satan and demons, so that we may victoriously defend the farm and expand God’s kingdom.

Fullness or Fraction in Acts 1-12: Power Up! Because Acts tells the story of how the Holy Spirit empowers Christians to share Christ’s good news and expand His reign to other people, the subtitle of this book is Power Up!  The verb “power up” refers to turning on and preparing a machine or electronic device that needs energy to operate.

The related noun, “power-up,” comes from elaborate video games in which players advance through levels of increasing difficulty in pursuit of some quest.  The players are on the lookout for extra abilities, weapons, etc. that can be earned or bought.  These new capabilities are called power-ups.  The more power-ups you obtain, the more likely you will win the game.  

Therefore, when Jesus says, “you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you,” He is promising His witnesses the greatest power-up, the Holy Spirit!

Unlike video games, the Holy Spirit’s power-ups — His fruit and His gifts — are not earned or purchased.  God grants them freely, by grace through faith.  In Acts the disciples demonstrate how to use them to invite people to discover that Jesus Christ is their Risen Savior and King.  

You may download these 3 free ebooks at the Faith Trekker Store, and you can read them in any order.

D. Fullness or Fraction Questions.

When you find a biblical promise that speaks about a building block of life in Christ, ask yourself.

  1. Experience. To what degree have I experienced what this text describes or promises?
  2. Limitations.
    • What limitations does God place on what He offers in this text?
    • What limitations have I placed on this text?
    • What limits have congregations, denominations, or theologians placed on this text?
  3. Fraction. Will I tell God, “I have all I need”?
  4. Fullness. Or will I tell God, “I need, desire, and seek all You have to give me”?
  5. Application. “Lord, how do You want me to apply this text to my present situation?”
Begin your adventure with any of these titles.

E. Dialogue.

In conclusion, Fullness or Fraction is a Bible-based, multi-media dialog exploring the question: Will I walk with God in fullness or fraction? As you internalize the ten building blocks and put them into practice, converse with others about how God equips people for abundant life in Christ. To share in the conversation: