“Do not . . give place to the devil.” Ephesians 4:27 NKJV
Wherever God and good do not fill, lesser things will.
My thoughts and comments today are about “spiritual vacuum.”
I learned from my high school physics teacher the principle that “nature abhors a vacuum.” When the normal atmospheric pressure inside an object is lessened significantly and that object has insufficient strength to resist, the greater pressure that surrounds it will cause its increasing and eventual collapse. That has been helpful in my spiritual life; let me tell you how.
Jesus told of an evil spirit who was removed but returned to find its former place, “empty, swept, and put in order.” Read Matthew 12:43-45 NKJV. It was a place clean but not occupied. That description might at first seem good, but is not good enough. The keyword is “empty.” A spiritual vulnerability existed; the vacancy left a spiritual vacuum waiting to be filled by something or someone. The unclean spirit finds “seven other spirits more wicked than himself and they enter and dwell there; and the last state of that man is worse than the first.” Tragically and needlessly, spiritual collapse is all too common. In your heart and life, wherever God and good do not fill, lesser things will.
I see a practical application in the Bible’s warning, “Do not . . give place to the devil.” Ephesians 4:27 NKJV. The devil’s “wiles and devices” are always pressing for access into one’s life. Read Ephesians 6:10-18/2 Corinthians 2:11 NKJV. But how do you limit the daily intrusions the devil continually seeks in your soul and spirit? Feebly resisting wrong attitudes and actions without initiating and strongly sustaining righteous practices does not work. Your spiritual success will only come from actively giving God “place” in your life everyday. That is how you start everyday, live your day, and end your day; doing so must become your spiritual lifestyle.
The more extensive “place” you purposefully allow God in your life – your time, affections, thoughts, desires, and practices – the more the devilish intrusions are restrained until eliminated. Paul applies the principle in practical matters: lying or speaking truth, stealing or working, profane or edifying language, bitterness or kindness, anger or tenderheartedness, malice or forgiveness. Ephesians 4:25-32 NKJV. It is always your choice; a choice you must make.
Any spiritual vacuum is a vulnerability you cannot afford. The truth is simple enough. Writing of the Holy Spirit who is within the Christ-follower in contrast to the spirit which embodies the world and its culture, John affirmed, “He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.” 1 John 4:4 NKJV. Our modern, high-tech, low-touch world offers no suitable substitutes for the daily practice of ancient, spiritual disciplines of Biblical meditation, prayer, fasting, and New Testament fellowship.
Fill your heart with the right things; leave no place for wrong. Fear is the absence of courage; take courage. Unbelief is the absence of faith; choose faith. Disobedience is the absence of obedience; obey. Worry is the absence of trust; begin to trust. Sin is the absence of righteousness; live righteously. Discord is the absence of peace; sow peace. Hate or indifference is the absence of love; prefer love. Sadness is the absence of joy; rejoice. For every spiritual vacuum there is a fullness of God’s provision. See Ephesians 3:19 NLT/2 Corinthians 9:8 NKJV. Every emptiness you feel is an absence of God there. Invite and welcome His fullness today.
My prayer for you today is that you will experience fullness that fills and overflows.