READ: : Acts 6:1-8
“...I am no better than echoing bronze or the clash of cymbals” – 1 Corinthians 13:1 (Ronald Knox Translation)
As you can see, Stephen was full of something positive. That is why he became a great evangelist.
Unfortunately, there are many Christians who are empty. They have little of the Word of God in them; neither are they filled with the Holy Spirit or with love. They may speak in tongues, but the Bible says whenever they do so, they are just making a lot of noise.
I think the Ronald Knox Translation of 1 Corinthians 13:1 really brings out the concept of spiritual emptiness. The word “echo” in this Scripture depicts emptiness. If I have no love, “I am no better than echoing bronze or the clash of cymbals.” The echo and the clash are a result of the emptiness within. Empty Christians are loud and noticeable but not substantial.
A spiritual vacuum (emptiness) will be filled with spiritual things, either positively or negatively: Luke 11:25. The devil will try to fill you with evil and backsliding tendencies because of the emptiness within you.
Fill your spirit with the Word of God, with faith, with good Christian music. (By the way don’t mess around with nonChristian music; it will fill your mind with junk!) Fill your time with church activities. If you don’t fill your life with these good things something else will fill it.
Drive away the emptiness from your spiritual life (1 Timothy 4:12). This is a fundamental key to staying power for the Christian race.