The Fullness of Emptiness

For you know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that though he was rich, yet for your sake he became poor, so that you by his poverty might become rich

(II Cor. 8:9). 

I recently discovered the lyrics of a song released by the rock band Staind entitled Full of Emptiness (2023). I’m not a fan. Yet I feel compelled to share some of the lyrics with you.

I keep my lungs full of smoke, and my head full of regret,

My heart full of broke, and my bed full of sex,

My good full of bad, and my life full of mess

Because I’m so full of emptiness….

Why do I feel like I just can’t feel like myself?

Am I in hell?

I have two reasons for sharing these disturbing lyrics. First, the words remind us of the pessimistic nihilism that characterizes much of the young generation today. We only need to listen to some of their music to understand the depth of their darkness and despair. Unless we know where they are, we will never be able to connect with them in a meaningful manner.

Second, these lyrics actually help us to understand the good news about Jesus! In describing the bankruptcy of modern paganism, the words provide a dramatic contrast to the revolutionary power of the gospel. Just as a jeweler will often display a diamond by putting it on black velvet to highlight the beauty, so the truth of the gospel is sometimes best grasped by seeing it in contrast to the hopeless despair of worldly philosophies. 

If only the author of these lyrics had paused to ask the question, “But why?”. Why am I so full of emptiness? Why do I feel like I can’t feel like myself? Why do I wonder if I am already in hell? These are the kinds of questions that could lead from despair to hope because the answer brings an honest soul to a shocking discovery. I’m in this hellish despair precisely because I’ve made myself the focus of my life. I’ve trusted my perceptions of reality and pursued my passions because I believe that if I could get what I want, then it would make me happy. Yes, like millions of others today, the members of Staind have bought into Satan’s lie: life is all about me and getting what I want. For people who buy into this line of thinking, I simply want to ask: How’s that working out for you?

The song Full of Emptiness is rooted in a worldview that exalts the sovereign self. It tells me that I can find myself by looking for myself, that I can fill the aching emptiness inside only by satisfying my hungers and desires. And when self-acceptance, self-esteem, and self-expression fail to fill the void, it encourages me to turn to self-definition and self-creation. I can choose my own identity. And if I’m not happy with the results, well, I can choose something else.

Should any of us be surprised by the nihilistic despair that is all around us? In our mad pursuit of self, we have not only lost ourselves, we have destroyed ourselves! Yes, when I am the focus and when self is at the center, the results are always the same: we are full of emptiness. If you want to know more about what happens to a civilization that makes the sovereign self its supreme value, read Carl Trueman’s excellent book The Rise and Triumph of the Modern Self (Crossway, 2020).

It would be difficult to find an issue where the message of Jesus is in starker contrast to the modern world than in how the “self” is understood. However, before God tells us what we should do with the self, he first gives us a demonstration of what a perfect self looks like.

Though he was God, he did not think of equality with God as something to cling to. Instead, he gave up his divine privileges (he emptied himself); he took the humble position of a slave and was born as a human being. When he appeared in human form, he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal's death on a cross. Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor and gave him the name above all other names, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue declare that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

(Phil. 2:6-11 NLT).

Though Jesus Christ was fully God, he emptied himself and gave up all his perks and privileges. In doing so, he gave us the perfect model for being a human person. “Behold, the man!” (Jn. 19:5). We could say that he was full of emptiness. I marvel at how perfectly the title of Staind’s song describes the truth of the gospel. When Jesus denied himself, renounced his status, and gave up his rights, God affirmed him, filled him, and exalted him! Yes, Jesus found himself when he lost himself in his Father’s will. He was full precisely because he was empty. He was fully empty! 

Here’s the deal. "YOU MUST HAVE THE SAME ATTITUDE THAT CHRIST JESUS HAD" (Phil. 2:5). When Jesus says, “Follow me,” he is inviting  us to live the same kind of self-emptying life that he lived. Yes, he wants me to model my life after his, to imitate his example. The world tells me to assert myself. Jesus urges me to deny myself, give up my rights, renounce my status, and lay down my life for others. 

Then [Jesus] said to the crowd, "If any of you wants to be my follower you must give up your own way, take up your cross daily, and follow me. If you try to hang on to your life, you will lose it. But if you give up your life for my sake, you will save it.

(Lk. 9:23-24 NLT). 

I want to encourage you today, dear friend, to pray a prayer that might just change the world. Lord, make me fully empty. Singing Wesley’s hymn And Can It Be? may serve as a source of inspiration to help you pray.    

He left His Father's throne above,

So free, so infinite His grace;

Emptied Himself of all but love,

And bled for Adam's helpless race:'

Tis mercy all, immense and free;

For, O my God, it found out me.

(Charles Wesley)

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