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IN TOUCH WITH GOD    by Edward Heppenstall

 
Found by God JANUARY 25

"MY CUP RUNNETH OVER"

Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Ps. 23:5.

In our world and on our behalf God has made everything to overflow. A legend tells us that prior to the entrance of sin the head of wheat extended the whole length of the straw. Because of sin the heads grow as we see them now. This legend reflects the truth as to the generosity of God. He has overflowed to us in all things.

The cup of salvation overflows. The plan of redemption is not merely to save us, to rescue us, but to restore in and to us all the fullness in which He made us. God's forgiveness is without reservation. He is not limited, hesitant, reluctant.

God's love and mercy toward us immeasurably transcend our own. They stand in immediate and immense contrast to the limited love of man. The free gift of God's righteousness in the gospel is God's everlasting masterpiece. When God clothes us with His righteousness the joy and glory of the new life leaves no room for hesitation and doubt. Here we see how the riches of grace go beyond our deepest needs and desires. We "rejoice with joy unspeakable and full of glory" (1 Peter 1:8).

We are heirs of God's unbounded love and eternity. How foolish to live away or apart from God, to depend on our own meager resources. Let God fill the cup of life, and forthwith it overflows. Let us not live by the temporal and limited offerings of man.

All of God's gifts to us are in cups that run over. All of us are vessels for the reception of His overflowing blessings. "The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage" (Ps. 16:6).

God has gone beyond all that we can think of for the fulfillment of our lives. The divine overflow is an invitation to bring a larger cup, the widening and deepening of our hearts and minds. What remains is a response in kind. We are to give Him all the love we have, a spontaneous obedience that runs beyond all the small limits of calculated rules and careful regulations. "I beseech you therefore, brethren, . . . that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service" (Rom. 12:1).

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