Father, Your Word is spirit, and it is life. We thank You for Your Word, Father. Thank You that the entrance of Your Word gives light, and it gives understanding unto the simple. We thank You, Father, that it is the spirit of Your Word that produces life. Thank You, and we give You praise, in Jesus’ name.

Joel 2:28–29 (NKJV)

“And it shall come to pass afterward that I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions. And also on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days.”

This particular passage of Scripture tells us that God is the one who is pouring out. God is pouring out His Spirit. And if this glass here represents God, and He is pouring out into us empty vessels, then we have to make room for the Lord.

When we receive Christ, we are new creations in Christ. And in this new creation, God is able to pour His Spirit. He pours the Spirit out upon us, but not only upon us, He fills us up with Himself, with His Spirit.

So if God is pouring into us, then we in turn pour into others. That’s the process. That’s the way it’s supposed to be done. First, God pours into us.

And God is saying, “I am pouring out My Spirit,” but are we making ourselves available to be filled with the Spirit of God? How much time are we making available to God to pour into us?

He said He would pour out His Spirit. He said it. He did it. And He is still doing it.

This passage of Scripture had its fulfillment on the day of Pentecost. We see Peter declaring to the crowd that these men were not drunk with wine or with an intoxicating drink, as they supposed, but that this was what was spoken by the prophet Joel.

God said He would pour out His Spirit in the last days, and that is exactly what He did.

Ephesians 5:15–20 (NKJV)

“See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Ephesians tells us to be filled with the Spirit, and it also gives us instructions on how to live that out—singing, worshiping, giving thanks always.

Always having a spirit and an attitude of thanksgiving before God helps us to remain continually filled with the Spirit of the Lord.

Psalm 37:34 (NKJV)

“Wait on the Lord and keep His way, and He shall exalt you to inherit the land; when the wicked are cut off, you shall see it.”

It is imperative—so important—that we spend time with the Lord, that we spend time before Him, that we allow Him to pour His Spirit into us.

That means praying, worshiping, fasting, meditating on His Word, studying the Scriptures, and keeping our hearts open before Him.

We can only pour out what has been poured into us. And whatever we are filled with is what will come out.

If we want to pour out life, love, goodness, mercy, faithfulness, and kindness, then we must stay before the Lord. We must spend time with Him. We must wait on Him. We cannot be in a rush.

God wants to pour into us so that we can pour out what He has poured into us.

Father, we thank You this morning for Your faithfulness. We thank You that Your Word is truth. We thank You that You desire that we be vessels of light and vessels of life.

Father, even as we go forth in the earth, as Jesus did, Your Word tells us to be imitators of You. The only way we can do that is by Your Spirit.

So Father, fill us up to overflowing with the Holy Spirit. Fill us up with Your Word so that we will know how to walk, how to live, and how to pour out what You have poured into us.