Understanding the Spirit – Being Filled
October 26, 2008
Text for today is Ephesians 5:15-21
Part of a much larger context – open your Bibles to see
Pew Bibles p. 828 – the context goes back to 4:17
Paul is addressing Christians expressing the need to walk in the light, goodness, as opposed to darkness
It is obvious that some may be having difficulty doing that
That’s no news – it has always been and always will be difficult to live as children of light
Let’s summarize some of the major points of this discussion
4:17 So I tell you this, and insist on it in the Lord, that you must no longer live as the Gentiles do, in the futility of their thinking.
18 They are darkened in their understanding and separated from the life of God because of the ignorance that is in them due to the hardening of their hearts.
19 Having lost all sensitivity, they have given themselves over to sensuality so as to indulge in every kind of impurity, with a continual lust for more.
This cannot be you:
20 You, however, did not come to know Christ that way.
21 Surely you heard of him and were taught in him in accordance with the truth that is in Jesus.
22 You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires;
23 to be made new in the attitude of your minds;
24 and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.
Here are some things that should characterize you:
25 Therefore each of you must put off falsehood and speak truthfully to his neighbor, for we are all members of one body.
26 “In your anger do not sin” : Do not let the sun go down while you are still angry,
27 and do not give the devil a foothold.
28 He who has been stealing must steal no longer, but must work, doing something useful with his own hands, that he may have something to share with those in need.
29 Do not let any unwholesome talk come out of your mouths, but only what is helpful for building others up according to their needs, that it may benefit those who listen.
30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, with whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.
31 Get rid of all bitterness, rage and anger, brawling and slander, along with every form of malice.
32 Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you.
1 Be imitators of God, therefore, as dearly loved children
2 and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
3 But among you there must not be even a hint of sexual immorality, or of any kind of impurity, or of greed, because these are improper for God’s holy people.
4 Nor should there be obscenity, foolish talk or coarse joking, which are out of place, but rather thanksgiving.
5 For of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person—such a man is an idolater—has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.
6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of such things God’s wrath comes on those who are disobedient.
7 Therefore do not be partners with them.
8 For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Live as children of light
9 (for the fruit of the light consists in all goodness, righteousness and truth)
10 and find out what pleases the Lord.
11 Have nothing to do with the fruitless deeds of darkness, but rather expose them.
12 For it is shameful even to mention what the disobedient do in secret.
13 But everything exposed by the light becomes visible,
14 for it is light that makes everything visible. This is why it is said: “Wake up, O sleeper,rise from the dead,and Christ will shine on you.”
That brings us to the reading this morning:
15 Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise,
16 making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil.
17 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.
18 Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit.
19 Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord,
20 always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
21 Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.
Here’s what I’m operating on :
All Christians receive the Spirit at conversion:
Peter replied, “Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.
Acts 2:38
Yet …
It is possible to grieve the Spirit
Quench the Spirit –we talked about that last week
Suppress the benefits of the Spirit; minimize his power in our lives
Asymptomatic - Neither causing nor exhibiting symptoms of disease
It’s possible to have the Spirit but not have any of the effects of the Spirit
I have felt that way at times, yet I still believe the Spirit was there
So …
We must be intentional in pursuing this life in the Spirit
It will not happen naturally
Why else would Paul be warning these Christians?
We must be open to the Spirit – he will not force himself on us, he will not overtake us
Let’s look at that one phrase and make some observations
Be filled with the Spirit
It is in the imperative mode – it is a command
Being filled with the Spirit is not an option
It’s not just for super Christians
It’s not some experience for only a few – it is a command to all Christians
We have a choice in the matter
It is in the present tense which carries the idea of an ongoing process
Not a single act, not a second type of conversion
It is an ongoing process, a continuous replenishment
It is a passive verb
Something done to us, not something we do
This is confusing – we are commanded to have something done to us
This points out the working together of God and man in this process of salvation and living the Christian life
On one hand it is a free gift of God, on the other hand we must position ourselves to receive it
The Spirit is given to us, but we must be receptive to it
The question is how do I get filled with the Spirit?
How can I be a person who lives in the light of God’s righteousness rather than slip into the darkness of the world?
19 Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord,
20 always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
21 Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.
The NIV also has one participle (“giving thanks” in v. 20). But the Greek text actually has only two imperatives — “Do not get drunk” and “Be filled with the Spirit” — and five participles:
• Speaking to each other with psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs
• Singing
• Making music
• Giving thanks
• Submitting to each other in fear of Christ.
18And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, 19 addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, 20 giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, 21 submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.
ESV
While participles can be interpreted as commands, these participles describe either:
What the spirit filled life looks like
OR
How to become spirit filled
I tend to think that Paul is saying here are some ways you can usher in the powerful work of the Spirit in to your lives. Here is how you can win that battle between darkness and light. Here are some practical ways to allow God to fill you with the Spirit.
Mutual Spiritual Encouragement
Paul especially sees this done by signing to one another
You want the Spirit – then sing to one another
Not just in worship
Carry that one step further and have a song for those around you
Sing someone a song
Galveston housewife had a pet parakeet named Chippie. The woman, however, made some terrible mistakes with Chippie. There are just some things that you don’t do with parakeets!
While vacuuming the carpet one day, she decided to clean out of the bottom of Chippie’s cage with her vacuum. MISTAKE NUMBER ONE.
The phone rang and she turned to answer the phone with turning off her vacuum cleaner. YOU GUESSED IT. Sssssp! Chippie got sucked through the tube and into the canister. MISTAKE NUMBER TWO.
She dropped the phone, shut off the vacuum cleaner, and opened the canister. There was Chippie – feathers ruffled, dirt all over his little body. He was stunned but alive. She rushed into the bathroom, BIRD IN HAND. MISTAKE NUMBER THREE. She held Chippie under the faucet and turned it on full blast.
Then she spotted the hair dryer. MISTAKE NUMBER FOUR. She turned it to “hot” and “high.” The blast of hot air did the trick, but it nearly finished poor Chippie.
The next day a reporter called back to check on the bird. “How’s your poor parakeet?” he asked. She said, “Well, Chippie doesn’t sing any more. HE JUST SORT OF SITS THERE AND STARES.”
We sit there and stare! We need to have a song of encouragement on our heart to everyone that we meet
I like musicals – people burst out into song
Songs of joy, love
Life can’t be like that but can’t we be a little more encouraging to one another
Can’t we bring a song to the people around us – a little encouragement?
Too often we don’t express appreciation for those around us
Ice cream truck
Do you bring a song into the lives of people?
Many times we are horns – get out of our way
Or a siren
Be a song, not a siren
Don’t Save It For The Funeral
An elderly man lay dying in his bed. In death’s agony, he suddenly smelled the aroma of his favorite chocolate chip cookies wafting up the stairs. He gathered his remaining strength, and lifted himself from the bed. Leaning against the wall, he slowly made his way out of the bedroom, and with even greater effort forced himself down the stairs, gripping the railing with both hands.
With labored breath, he leaned against the doorframe, gazing into the kitchen. Were it not for death’s agony, he would have thought himself already in heaven: There, spread out on the kitchen table were literally hundreds of his favorite chocolate chip cookies. Was it heaven? Or was it merely one final act of heroic love from his devoted wife, seeing to it that he left this world a happy man?
Mustering one great final effort, he threw himself toward the table. His aged and withered hand made its way to a cookie at the edge of the table, when his wife suddenly smacked it with a spatula.
"Stay out of those," she said. "They’re for the funeral."
She’s not the only person to save something for a funeral that should have been shared long before. It often seems a shame that flowers are sent at a funeral rather than beforehand when they could truly be enjoyed. Many of the comments made at a funeral reflect the realization that we didn’t express our feelings adequately to those we love while they were alive: "What a wonderful friend she was. I never told her how much I appreciated what she meant to me!" "I hope he realizes how much I loved him!"
If someone means something special to you, don’t save it for the funeral. Share it with them now!
Mission Barnabas – Let someone know you appreciate them
Not only will that person be blessed, but you will as well
It is through encouragement to one another that the Spirit breaks into our lives.
I want all of you to commit to encouraging at least one person every day of your lives
That you will sing a song to someone
Personal Devotion
Make melody in your own heart to the Lord
Don’t just sing to others, but celebrate the love of God on your own life
You must have some time for personal devotion to God
Years ago a young lumberjack asked the foreman of a logging crew for a job. After watching the man skillfully cut down a large tree, the foreman exclaimed, "You can start Monday!"
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday rolled by. On Thursday afternoon the foreman approached the young man and said, "You can pick up your paycheck on the way out today." The young man was startled and replied, "I thought you paid on Friday." "Normally we do," answered the foreman, "but we’re letting you go today because you’ve fallen behind. You just aren’t cutting down enough trees."
"But I’m a hard worker," the young man objected. The foreman knew what the young man said was true and thought about the situation for a moment. A thought crossed his mind and he asked, "Have you been sharpening your axe?"
The young man replied, "I’ve been working too hard to take the time."
Not only support and encourage others but make sure you are taking care of yourself personally
Time in celebrating your relationship with God
Must have time with God
Must be in the word –
Our theology is shaped by current events, popular writers, and Christian fiction
Rather than the word of God
16 All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness,
17 so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
2 Timothy 3:16-17
19 And we have the word of the prophets made more certain, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts.
20 Above all, you must understand that no prophecy of Scripture came about by the prophet’s own interpretation.
21 For prophecy never had its origin in the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.
2 Peter 1:19-21
Biblical Illiteracy (Read through the OT – that was there?)
2. How bad is it? Consider these results from various surveys...
a. Fewer than half of all adults can name the four gospels
b. Many professing Christians cannot identify more than two or three
of the disciples
c. 60 percent of Americans can’t name even five of the Ten
Commandments
d. 82 percent of Americans believe "God helps those who help
themselves" is a Bible verse
e. 12 percent of adults believe that Joan of Arc was Noah’s wife
f. A survey of graduating high school seniors revealed that over 50
percent thought that Sodom and Gomorrah were husband and wife
g. A considerable number of respondents to one poll indicated that
the Sermon on the Mount was preached by Billy Graham
-- "Increasingly, America is biblically illiterate." - George Barna
For comedians, there are subjects that are almost too easy -- sure things that guarantee a laugh. For Jay Leno one late night, it was the Bible. During the taping of one of his television shows, Leno moved through his audience asking people what they knew about the Bible. "Name one of the Ten Commandments," he said.
"God helps those who help themselves?" someone ventured.
"Name one of the apostles," Leno told them. No one could.
Finally, he asked them to name the Beatles. Without hesitation, the answer came ringing from throughout the crowd: George, Paul, John and Ringo.
But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed.
Luke 5:16
Giving Thanks
Michelle asked the children in her class to tell her about Thanksgiving. She thought it might be effective to inch toward its meaning by having them playfully correct some wrong ideas.
“Now let me think,” she started. “Thanksgiving? That’s the day when we think about all the stuff we have. And how we want more things than anybody else has. And how we don’t care about anybody but ourselves. And . . .”
“No!” the preschool kids were starting to chorus! “No-o-o!”
Then one little guy in the middle of the pack looked up and chirped, “That’s not Thanksgiving, Miss Michelle. That’s Christmas!”
Appreciating Our Blessings
Two old friends bumped into one another on the street one day. One of them looked forlorn, almost on the verge of tears. His friend asked, "What has the world done to you, my old friend?"
The sad fellow said, "Let me tell you. Three weeks ago, an uncle died and left me forty thousand dollars."
"That’s a lot of money."
"But you see, two weeks ago, a cousin I never even knew died, and left me eighty-five thousand free and clear."
"Sounds like you’ve been blessed...."
"You don’t understand!" he interrupted. "Last week my great-aunt passed away. I inherited almost a quarter of a million."
Now he was really confused. "Then, why do you look so glum?"
"This week... nothing!"
That’s the trouble with receiving something on a regular basis. Even if it is a gift, we eventually come to expect it. Someone once suggested to me a way to test someone’s character. Give him (or her) $5 a day for a month. Then stop, and see what his reaction is. The natural tendency is that if we receive a gift long enough, we come to view it as an entitlement. We feel hurt, even angry, if we don’t receive it any longer.
It’s the same way with the blessings God gives us every day. I don’t deserve the comfortable home I live in, the beautiful scenery around me, the clean water that I drink. But after receiving these gifts (and a multitude of others) for years, I sometimes fail to be grateful. I’ve come to expect these good things. And when one of them is removed for a short while (like the water being cut off), I get upset.
Make an effort today to recognize the blessings you’ve come to take for granted. Focus on what you have rather than on what you don’t have, and see if it doesn’t improve your attitude.
"Oh, that men would give thanks to the LORD for His goodness, and for His wonderful works to the children of men!" (Psalm 107:8)
16 Be joyful always;
17 pray continually;
18 give thanks in all circumstances, for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.
19 Do not put out the Spirit’s fire;
1 Thessalonians 5:16-19
Psalm 103
1 Praise the LORD, O my soul; all my inmost being, praise his holy name.
2 Praise the LORD, O my soul, and forget not all his benefits—
Thanksgiving is essential
Submissive relationships
This one surprised me
So many times we stop at the singing and thanksgiving and put this concept somewhere else
New paragraph / section
Paul is saying that mutual submission is part of being filled with the spirit
Submission was so important for New Testament writers because it described the self-giving love, humility, and willingness to die that are demanded of all Christians. For example, in Philippians 2:3 Paul rejects selfishness and asks that in humility people consider others as “surpassing” themselves. In the verses that follow he shows how Christ himself modeled such a life (cf. Rom. 12:3; Gal. 5:13).
Jesus repeatedly makes the same point: Whoever exalts himself will be humbled, and whoever humbles himself will be exalted (Matt. 23:12). Neither Jesus nor Paul was weak, nor did either acquiesce to anyone, but both knew what God requires. Christians are called to live in mutual submission, and without mutual submission they cannot fulfill their destiny. Such submission is a strong and free act of the will based on real love of the other person (cf. 4:2). In the end, submission is nothing more than a decision about the relative worth of another person, a manner of dying and rising with Christ, and a way to respect and love other people. In fact, for Christians, authority and submission are the same thing.
Mutual submission should be applied to current discussions of worship styles. To insist that worship can take place in only one manner is myopic and limits the expression of the whole body. Mutual submission requires the humility to listen, tolerate, be taught, and be enriched by the worship of others, so long as it is within legitimate bounds.
Paul will go n to talk about marriage, children/parents, slaves/masters
These are spiritual things – relationships can affect us spiritually
A bad relationship can prevent the Spirit from living vibrantly in your life
• Mutual Spiritual Encouragement
• Personal Devotion
• Giving Thanks
• Submissive Relationships
9 “So I say to you: Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you.
10 For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.
11 “Which of you fathers, if your son asks for a fish, will give him a snake instead?
12 Or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion?
13 If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”
Luke 11
