A Spirit-Filled Walk

in Ephesians Chapter 5 and as I mentioned earlier, this is one of my favorite sections or one of my favorite passages, and that way to get through verse, you know 18 to 21 probably just get through verse 18 today both not to rush things, but also because I yeah but had a. Long, long week he was battling his stomach bug on and off for the entire latter half of it. And then yesterday just. Throwing out my I've never done that before throwing out my neck and shoulder. So very bizarre experience. But anyway, it's also a very rich passage as well. Now we come to the subject of drunkenness or alcohol. I'm sure there's a myriad of experiences here with that personally. And maybe within your family or loved ones, according to you know, statistics, quote UN quote during COVID. Alcohol sales rose about 20% during those that first, you know, year 2020 of COVID. Incidentally, ice cream sales also went up about 20% because people were self medicating right during that time. Legal marijuana sales went up 120%. Services like streaming and other direct to home kinds of entertainment. All of those became immensely popular as well. Now I mentioned that because while we're going to talk about alcohol and drunkenness in particular, really what Paul's concern is is what we call the. Machinery do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery and debauchery can take all different kinds of forms. It's not just an alcohol. Or drunkenness thing, but because it's a simple one, it's one that everyone almost across all of human history and experience has intersected with at all times versus Netflix or even ice cream. Alcohol becomes the the poster child for the kind of lifestyle that leads to. But you know, I thought just to spark discussion, even amongst yourselves, even when you're talking to others, I thought I'd give you just like the very briefest history of my own. Observations experience with alcohol. I think I've mentioned before. I've never been drunk before. I do remember the first time I tasted beer. I think my parents were having a party with their old high school friends and there was, like the littlest bit. In a can or cup by the sink, and that was maybe six or seven years old, OK. And I took that sip and immediately gagged. Like, why would anyone? This is this is awful, so I don't know if it was that or just. I don't have much of A predilection towards it. I personally veered away from alcohol is never an issue for me. My dad, apparently when he was younger in college, drink, drink a lot. His his nickname. In in Korean, he said in college was, uhm, like beer, canned but not like a can, like a can of beer, but like a garbage can. So like someone who drank a lot of beer by the time he had me, I rarely ever saw him drink it. Even even at that, you know when he got his friends together, which was somewhat rare, he didn't. He didn't drink a whole lot. So I don't think I've ever. Seen my parents drunk. I don't think my. Mom drank at all. I understand that's maybe unusual. Some of you may have had households where unfortunately that was a heavy part of your upbringing and that there was a lot of negative consequences for drinking. But just, just so you know where I'm coming from, that wasn't a large part of my experience, both personally or at home, went through college. And just never thought I needed. Alcohol to be any stupider than I was in that moment. So I had plenty of fun and and shenanigans completely alcohol free, so didn't really drink anything on that occasion. Had a good friend that was Greek and when we were younger. They they would. Have champagne at New Year's. I always did New Year's at their house. And you know, they had champagne. It's very, you know, traditional just, you know. A A small glass of champagne. So I would have it then. And I thought, why does anyone drink this same thing with the beer? Like I don't understand the the appeal here. The first time I ever really heavily interacted with with alcohol was when I was in the army and it was primarily in the context of being a designated driver because. I didn't really drink, but you know, everyone else wanted to drink and as part of my uhm, service, I thought I'll you know I'll be the one that's going to bite the bullet here and and be be sober. And I will say this, I, I I know immediately you might think of a negative connotation of. You know, bars and other, uhm, places where it seems like drinking is the main thing. But as I thought about it more, I obviously saw bad examples of drinking which were very much foolish. Remember my my my team leader, who was. Younger than me, but over me. Had been married and divorced and had a kid. I think maybe in that order. You know, and I remember he, you know, was giving him a ride as the Disney driver. And he, you know, puked all over the the side of my car. He barely made his head out the window and I thought I'm supposed to listen to this guy. You know I'm supposed to take orders from this guy and he was apologetic afterwards and everything, but it is one of those like. Moments where I thought I if he was drinking, I would never take orders from him. At the same time, there was, I had other friends who knew, let's say how to hold their alcohol and genuinely it seemed to be something that that didn't control them and that supplemented, let's say their their experience. So it wasn't all let's, I wouldn't say it was all negative portrayals of. So it came out of the army. It wasn't really something that I uhm. Saw like the worst things of of drinking, just ruining households and things like that. I remember sharing trying to share the gospel with someone who is drunk, which I I don't think was totally futile. I think sharing the Gospels never a futile effort with someone that needs to hear it. But that's that was sort of my experience in a nutshell. As I've gotten older. I don't really drink alcohol too much. It's just occasions like maybe the ones I I described earlier, but it's just not a big part of of who I am or what I do. So Full disclosure, I don't think it's sinful as we'll talk about in a moment to drink alcohol and I'll say why. But of course, drunkenness is something the Bible. Universally denounces, so there's kind of my experience in a nutshell. I think it's a great topic to discuss even with other believers about maybe the good, the bad, negative experiences. Maybe it's something you personally struggle. I think that's the sort of thing we ought to talk about, especially given the context here, because Paul is going to set up a contrast setting up a contrast between drunkenness and being filled. By the spirit. Having alcohol in the drivers seat versus having the Holy Spirit in the drivers seat, and I do want to say up front that the Bible is very clear that. Drinking alcohol is not inherently evil. Now of course, you can't get drunk if you never drink alcohol, so one easy way not to fall into this category of drunkenness or debauchery is to just never drink, and so that is the conviction of of many believers, and one that I think is very wise. But the Bible is clear. Actually, the wine especially was considered a symbol of celebration and. Processing and in fact is a normal part of everyday meals. Now you have to understand the kind of wine that we have now would not have been like the wine they had back then. Wine we have now. It's much more potent, and even some of our our our beers would probably have been about as if not more potent than the kind of wine that they drink. With nearly every meal, remember they didn't have. They didn't have bottled water. If they wanted to drink. If you've ever been to like a third world country, they will tell you don't drink the water. You know, in Iraq, it's like, don't drink water that doesn't come out of a bottle. And that's two, you know, 2000 years after the time of Jesus. And the advice is still in that region. Don't drink the water. So what very much was the. Was necessary was if you drink watered down wine or wine that was weaker with your meal, you wouldn't get sick from it because that's kind of those natural antiseptic properties. It was a normal part of everyday meals. You just have to understand that sort of context. But it was a sign, again, of celebration and blessing. Jesus, first miracle and John two was to turn water into wine at the wedding in Cana. And not only that, Jesus made exceptionally good wine. Proverbs 39 says honor Yahweh with your wealth and with the first fruits of all your produce, then your barns will be filled with plenty and your vats will be bursting with wine. So symbol of celebration celebration, symbol of blessing again already mentioned that wine was a normal part of the meals and everyday life. So much so that. Was a part of the meal, the Passover meals, an essential part of the Passover meal, Jesus took the bread and the wine, and he consecrated them, created the ordinance that we call the Lord's Supper, the Lord's Table, or Communion. And it was. We know it was alcoholic because the early church, when they began taking communion together, some would get drunk. First Corinthians 11/21 talks about some coming and getting drunk, so it's definitely not grape juice. Now we do grape juice. Some churches actually do wine. I don't think it's necessarily about the substance or the alcoholic content of the substance. I do tend towards using fruit of the vine, the grape, so we use grape juice and not apple juice or something. But if you were in some country that had no grapes, I think anything that was in the spirit. Of what the Lord is saying would be fine anyway. Wine is going to be instrumental even at the inauguration of Jesus, at his second coming, when the kids ask, you know when is, when is God coming back? When are we going to have heaven on Earth? Well, Matthew, Mark and Luke in the context of communion in the Last Supper, he takes the brine the the bread, the bread and the wine. The brain truly, I say to you, I will not drink again of the fruit of the vine until that day when I drink it new in. The Kingdom of God, looking forward to a day when we will share wine with our Lord himself. Wine also had some medicinal or therapeutic properties. If you remember in first Timothy 523, Paul tells Timothy to take a little bit of wine mixed with water to help settle his stomach. Proverbs 31 six has a a similar kind of idea about wine being I'd have to turn there, but proverbs 31, six. About the medicinal or therapeutic uses of wine, you can include basically alcohol in the category of other medicines and substances that can read. Relieve pain not as a long term solution, but as a temporary solution. So all of that put together the Bible's picture of wine is actually generally positive of wine itself, or alcohol itself is generally fairly positive. What the Bible? Soundly condemns is drunkenness, which Paul also talks about. In Ephesians 5 that you are not to get drunk with wine, the qualification of an elder and an and of a Deacon in first Timothy 3 is not is that he not be a drunkard or addicted to much wine. How do you know? How do you know when you've crossed over from? Celebrating from using wine medicinally from an everyday, you know, part of your meal kind of use of alcohol and into drunkenness. Well, the Bible actually gives a lot of examples. I'm going to just run through these very quickly, but. If you want the full list, you can come talk to me afterwards, but the Bible gives actually quite. A few pictures. Of drunkenness in Genesis 921, this one is. A little bit. Humorous but one way to know if you're if you're drunk. Is if you. Become a literal stumbling block to others, meaning. You pass out. Alright, so one way to know you've had too much. You're in that drunkenness zone, Noah. If you recall, after he. Saved all of humanity. The boat rests. He settles in the land. He plants some vineyards. And then he drank of the wine and became drunk and lay uncovered in his tent, and he ends up being. A spiritual stumbling block to his kids, but also a literal stumbling block because he passed out, drank so. Much he passed out. That's likely a sign that you are abusing. Come into drunkenness, yes. So I will say some medication is intended to conk you out and there are times when your body needs to rest and recuperate. But conking yourself out unintentionally or in order to escape reality. That's when it stepped into the line of drunkenness or substance abuse. Anytime you're running away from problems, of course, being a stumbling block if you are a stumbling block spiritually tempting. Someone to sin also which happens in Genesis 9 there then you are. Also falling into a category or potentially in a category of of drunkenness when you're allowing the use of it and the abuse of it to stumble others, you can go to Romans 4, Romans 1420 through 23. In other words, if your desire for wine. Or alcohol for. Any substance supersede your love for other Christians? You might have a problem. First Kings 16 eight through 10 it it talks about essentially context is. Someone being so drunk that their dull to their surroundings ends up being a liability. Getting people killed. You know the the. The person gets so drunk they couldn't defend themselves. They compromise other people's safety. So if you're alcohol consumption is putting you in a position where you would not be able to defend yourself or the people you love. It's causing them harm. You know, physically, you know, but maybe even financially and and emotionally. You might be in the realm of drunkenness. Similarly, Jeremiah 2527, Jeremiah 5139. Those who are going to be subject to God's judgment are described as being drunk like they're drunk and they don't realize the danger they're in. That God's hammer of judgement is about to fall on them, but they're too drunk to even be aware of it so that they could repent. So this dullness, this lack of realization of the situation you're in and the judgment and danger. You're in that all kind of flows together with maybe you've had too much if you can't even realize the danger you're in or the danger you're putting others in. If you're at a wedding, or if you're in a context of celebration, happiness, and joy, you don't need to be on high alert. Alcohol consumption is OK any amount can dull your senses, but you're in a context where it's it's not. A big deal. So on the one hand, my team leader, you know, he's he's got a designated driver, he's surrounded by people that that are going to take care of him. You know, if it happened once, you know, drink to throwing up. Maybe it's not a big deal, but if he was on duty. If he was even just. Picking up phone calls was something we had. To do a lot. And he was drunk. He had absolutely, absolutely been dreamed. Because a call could come in saying that, you know we're under attack or something has happened. And if if you use. Any way out? Out of his ability to be on alert, he would absolutely have been reamed for that and so never his getting drunk. A good anything the Bible commends but. Especially if you're in a situation where you need to be on alert, you need to. Pay attention. Stay at home. Where you need to be paying attention. If you have kids that they're not, you know, locking themselves in the freezer or or blowing up, you know, the the dogs, you know, house or something. You can't be getting drunk at home. There's danger there. So fine line sometimes come home from a stressful day at work. Maybe a fine line between celebrating that your home. Right, and trying to avoid thinking about that jerk. Of a boss. Or the latest, you know, news that's setting you off it. It is not OK to put yourself in a situation where your judgment being impaired is going to be a liability. So much true at. A party or a wedding? But it's very true in many other contexts. This one talks about drinking and fighting, getting into fights, so if you're getting into fights when you're drinking. You're probably drunk. It's probably too much. Proverbs 23 versus 21 or proverbs 2320 and 21. Essentially, if you can't do. Your job because you're drinking too much, or you spend so much on alcohol that you don't have enough to live on. You're sinfully abusing alcohol. It's become a priority of your own livelihood. And if you're a husband or father, the livelihood of your family, so if you're putting at risk. Handling financially, you can't keep a job or the reason you're always shy on money is because you're spending on alcohol. Proverbs 2329 through 35, there's a whole list. There's a whole list there. But. If the drinking is because of or leading to depression. Remember why it's supposed to be celebratory? You know, temporary therapeutic, but if it's from depression or leading to depression, there's a problem. Proverbs 2333. If you're hallucinating or seeing things. Probably had too much. OK, if you aren't accurately perceiving truth, how can you make good choices? You know, how can you, you know, operate heavy machinery, so to speak. So if you're who's. Using proverbs 2333. If you're saying things that you're going to regret afterwards. Probably drunk, probably sinful abuse. Proverbs 2334 through 35, if you've become numb, too, danger and pain. You've probably had. That's the real danger of a lot of drinking. You could say. This wine drinking in its positive use in the Bible. It's to bring you into the moment. It's to share and celebrate and enjoy. Sometimes to help and even to heal it is to bring together, you know, around a meal. But if you're using alcohol to become numb, distant, callous or cold. To to absolve yourself of responsibility. If it's hurting yourself or others, that is. The opposite of what wine is intended to do, and you would be sinfully. Abusing it. Isaiah 511, if you're spending inordinate amounts of time drinking, thinking about drinking, drinking, planning what you're going to drink. Probably a little bit of a drunkard. If that's what your thoughts are all resolved around, and then Isaiah 522 and 23 talks about people bragging about being heroes of drinking. So if you are bragging about how much you drink or can drink. You probably got a problem. If you're willing to sell someone out, not give justice, be bribed over a drink. Probably have a problem. So Bible has many many of these warning lights, about drunkenness and what drunkenness looks like and the causes of drunkenness and maybe going through that list. And that's that's a fairly exhaustive list of kind of the Bible's dangers and warnings about drunkenness. But a few of those warning lights came. On all right. Talk about it with someone. This church does not need to be a place where we hide certain kinds of sins because we're embarrassed or ashamed by them. There's plenty of folks I'm sure, even in this room, who've gotten DUI's, who've had issues with, you know, getting drunk at home, who maybe have experienced that kind of abuse. When you were kids. Those are the kinds of things we need to talk about those things. That Paul just says they don't get drunk. And it's supposed to be something that is a conversation. It is something that figures into our spiritual life. It's something that he even had to say. You know, as an alternative, there's spiritual living. But let me tell you up front. Don't get drunk with wine. Again, maybe you might be thinking. As they go through. All of that. Well, I don't have much of a problem with alcohol. Like I said, if I never had any more alcohol again in my life, it would impact my life. Zero it just. It would have no effect and think ah so easy, Paul. Can you can you give me a tougher command? You know to to obey. It's too easy. Well, the issue is not just the wine or the drunkenness, he says. Do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery. Debauchery is more the issue. What is the debauchery? I know you often think of the kinds of disgusting and immoral behavior it used to be only on on TV at late at night. Now, because of the Internet and their phones and everything, debauchery is just a click away. While that's all included in debauchery. The word literally means unable to save. And it came to mean something like incurable. To have an incurable disease, for example, and, and it quickly became applied to moral character. Or even a vice. It's a person who, though. Having the means. Cannot save himself because of a lack of self-control or wasting what he has. Prime example is the prodigal son. He had money. He had a status. But by the time he was eating pig slop. He could not save himself. That is almost the picture of debauchery. In other words, if you remember last week Paul saying that we're living in the midst of evil days, we should be looking for ways to redeem the time. But so often we're tempted to squander our days doing things that don't save us. Don't save the time. Don't save us, even from our own trials. And while Paul does point to the abuse of wine, the point is that anything that we choose over redeeming the time and living wisely. Simple question to ask is where you go and what you do when life gets difficult. What do you look to to save you? The battery is all the. Stuff that can't. And won't save you and such a funny picture to me, but it's like. If you went overboard on a boat, right and someone threw a lifesaver, the candy and another person threw a lifesaver. The preserver right now. Imagine the foolishness of the person saying, oh, I could either have the lifesaver candy, or I could actually grab lifers and choosing the candy. Well, that can't save you. Why would you choose? That's a waste of your decision and your time there. What's that kind of idea? What do we grabbing instead of laying hold of, redeeming the time? Well, like I said, ice cream sales went up, alcohol sales went up, marijuana sales went up, video game sales went up. Shopping from home went up. Netflix and all those, you know, streaming services went up. Guess where the culture went to. Church attendance went down. What did the culture go? Those things can be good in and of themselves or neutral, just like wine. But there's a moment when those even good things stop being a supplement to your experience, a hobby, a way to relax a favorite food or activity, and it starts becoming the primary way we respond to life and ultimately takes the place of our real mission and purpose. Those things would be debauchery, or as another translation puts it, dissipation. Kind of a waste. Of our resources, our time, our effort, our energy and again, it's not to dismiss. It's not to dismiss even the good uses of of wine, so the good uses of ice cream or Netflix or any of those things. But when they become the main thing, when you become drunk with them. When they take the driver's seat. You're in the realm of debauchery or dissipation. The way that the word filled is then in contrast, do not get drunk with wine. For that it's a butter, but be filled with the spirit. Is used metaphorically exactly in that sense that a person is characterized and controlled by what is filling him, filling her Philippians 111 talks about being full of the fruit of righteousness, which means you are. Doing righteous things. You're full of that. So you know, whatever it is, you're full of it. Whatever it is, it's what you're doing. It's what you're being. So drunkenness happens. And the adage goes. When you stop consuming the alcohol and it starts consuming you. You're full of alcohol, and so the alcohol is in the driver's seat. But Christians aren't supposed to be filled with those. What should we be filled with? Now here another reason that decided to not maybe push on further is we have interesting grammatical. Issues and I love grammar, linguistics major, and now you're going to. You're gonna have to go through a little grammar lesson here. So if you haven't had an English class in a while, you need to brush up. Uhm, because it's a little bit technical, but it's worth it because we want to handle the word of God accurately. Esv and many translations use but be filled with the spirit, and they're kind of trying to ride a line meaning. With can imply the contents. Let's say a cup of what's being filled, so be filled with the spirit would be like saying this cup is filled with the spirit, our body, our life, our mind, our bodies, everything is like a vessel. It's being filled with the spirit with could also maybe mean like. The one doing it, the spirit is the one filling us with something, maybe even himself, right. And so there's a question here, and with ends up kind of straddling the line, but it's almost very clear grammatically that this is to be, should be translated, that we are to be filled by. The spirit or by means of the spirit. Why do I say that? Well, let's get into the grammar. OK. Generally speaking, in Greek, the word to be filled is followed by. The genitive case. You could sometimes translate that of. So if I said this cup is full of wine, what's in the cup wine? So generally, the verb to be filled. If you want to say what's in that cup. You would use. The generative case and then the noun filled of wine, so. For example, Luke 141 and Luke 141. Elizabeth, the mother of John the Baptist. Goes to meet Mary and then she is filled of genitive case. The Holy Spirit. And then she actually prophecies. So there you have very clear case. Someone is filled of or with the contents. Is the Holy Spirit. So the Holy Spirit fills her, and then she prophecies very common phenomenon in Old Testament where a prophet would be filled with the Holy Spirit, and then they would utter the words of God. So there you have very clear case of of. However, here in Ephesians 518, the verb for fail is followed not by the genitive case, but by the dative case. OK. And then the data case generally means means or instrument, or how answering a how question by way of that's the dative case. And so you have. Be filled dative case the Holy Spirit. In the New Testament. Never is there a place where the verb fill or be filled. With the dative case, does that noun and the dative case describe the contents? Rather, it means. The means or the instrumentality. What's the difference between means and instrumentality? The difference would be something like this. Again, imagine a cup where the cup that needs to. Be filled and the Holy Spirit could either be the one filling us with something. Or the Holy Spirit could be like a funnel that someone else is using to fill us up. So either the spirit is actually the agent of the filling, or it's the Holy Spirit being used by someone else. As a way to fill the cup like a funnel. Does that sort of makes sense? Both would be the data OK so. I know that. Seems a little bit dense and maybe it's been a long time since you had a grammar lesson, but it's important because again, we want to say what the Bible says, not what we wanted to say. We want to handle the word of God accurately and honestly, and I will say right very sure to be sure. Christians are to be. And we are. Spirit filled in two senses, where the spirit is. Filled us in two senses. You have the indwelling of the Holy Spirit, which is what happens when we first become Christians. The Holy Spirit dwells in US and grants us. We talked about already, and if he's 1234, about the spirit granting to us. Eternal life granting to us the inheritance, it's the assurance of down payment for all of the promises of God. So all of that is because the spirit dwells in US. But the Bible also talks about moments where the spirit empowers us for ministries and Acts 848. Next for a Peter is filled with the Holy Spirit, genitive case filled genitive case, Holy Spirit, so he's filled to the Holy Spirit and then he preaches to the high priest and the Jewish leaders. So there are moments in the Christian life where there's maybe a particular feeling of. The spirit or with the spirit to do some kind of work of ministries. So there's indwelling of those spirit. There's also those moments where we are filled the spirit to do something, you know, special for the Lord, that is true. That is true, but that isn't necessarily what. Paul is talking about here now. It's all going to be related, of course. Some of this is a little bit of a, a distinction, a difference without a distinction. But I want to be accurate about this. Paul isn't talking about those kinds of moments where we're filled with the spirit. Instead, again, Paul is talking about. And alternate alternative style of life. Remember talking about a walk here. We need to walk wisely and Paul is saying ohh unwise way to walk is to let wine. Be in the driver's seat. And control us. And determine what we're going to do, say, think, and the alternative is that we must seek the Holy Spirit to enable and empower us for our everyday Christian life. We're talking about everyday Christian life, not just the moments either where we're empowered and need to do. Something like extra special. And we're not talking about that moment of salvation where the spirit indwells us. Paul's talking about just our everyday life needs to be. Seeking the spirits work in us just to walk wisely just to put 1 foot and from the other. How and what is the spirit filling us with? OK, so if if the spirit is the the instrument or the agent of it, what exactly is the dynamic? So what are we actually being filled with then if? It's not the. Well, I'll answer that two ways. OK, we're going to do that in Ephesians by look. And we're going to look at Colossians, which is the sister Epistle to two Ephesians. And we're probably going to end there. But go back to Ephesian chapter 3. I know we did. Didn't necessarily expect all the the Bible hopping earlier, but since it's only a page away, why don't you turn to this one? Remember Ephesians broken up verse 3 chapters. This is rich theology ends with the prayer and then Ephesians 4 through 6. Is this rich orthopraxy, which is the practice of our theology? And remember the prayer that he ended Ephesians with, he says for this reason, Ephesians 314. For this reason, I bow my knees before the father, from whom every family in heaven on Earth is named. That, according to the riches of his glory, he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts. Through faith that. You being rooted and grounded in love. May have strength to comprehend with all the Saints. What is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge. That is the final. Result that you may be. Filled with all the fullness of God. The essence of this prayer is Paul beseeching. The Holy Spirit. That Christ might dwell in US. That we might know his love. That we might understand these deep spiritual truths. And through that be filled with all the fullness of God. So I think what the spirit is filling us with. The fullness of God. The all that God is is meant to. To come into us. And of course, we need the Spirit's power. To help us do. It's what the essence of Paul's prayer is, and it can happen because the Holy Spirit dwells in us. That's how the spirit can. The fullness of God can can come into our lives. If it was just up to me. Couldn't do it. But I have the spirit, so I can. So you might think of it like, you know, maybe the spirit is sort of like a a funnel that. Is able to. Channel the whole fullness of God into this very finite, insecure, broken person. Ephesians 410. Remember, we're talking about spiritual gifts. Christ ascended, and he was to fill all things, you know, to be to be the one from whom all blessings and all giftings flow. Ephesians 410. He who descended is 1, also ascended far above the heavens that he. Might fill all. So he is the 1:00 to. To give us everything we need for what? To be equipped until verse 13, we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the son of God to mature manhood to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ. It's like we're being filled up until we are as Christ is. It's again the same kind of language, fullness of God's fullness. Of Christ, that is to be in here. And here, then it may be the image is Christ from whom all blessings flow. He is going to gift us and equip us and bless us so that we can live out our Christian lives and the Holy Spirit then is somehow the channel or the pathway that. Christ pouring out his blessings and his clippings and his gifts is laid hold of by us. Jesus is giving it, but it's coming by means of delivered by given, you know, allowed to be part of who we are through the spirits, work and power. And that and infusions 3. And so now when we see Ephesians 518. But be filled with or by the Holy Spirit. It makes sense. This is a another Trinitarian example from Paul, the father of the son, the Holy Spirit God. The father wants us. To be filled with the fullness of God. Jesus Christ becomes the agent whose life, death, and resurrection allows him to be the one who gifts us eternal life and forgiveness and spiritual gift. This, but how does that transaction actually occur? How do we know it's happened? Well, the Holy Spirit is the one that dwells in US and is the means by which our lives are changed and transformed by these gifts from Christ. He is giving them. The spirit in us is receiving them and filling. Us so that we can live. Live out this fullness of God. And live out this life that honors. God redeeming the time. It's very much in the theme of the book of Ephesians, which has so much emphasis on the spirit to see the spiritual, active and involved in bringing Christ and his blessings to us and empowering us to live unto him in return. How is the spirit filling us and with what then the spirit brings to us the knowledge of Christ and the gifts of Christ. And then empowers us to live for Christ fully and be like him fully. The spirit is receiving it. From Christ and then, as it dwells in US. And it fills us up. We are now able to go out and live it. And be it, that's what the source is very important. All the Ministry of the Holy Spirit is vitally important to the Christian life. The everyday Christian life. That's Paul's point. If Christ died. Rose again from the dead, and there's no Holy Spirit means nothing for us. It's it's it, it, it's the spirit that that makes it alive. It's the spirit that brings it to us in a way that allows us to live it out, comprehend it and to live it out. This is not. Some super special. Christian thing, this is just an everyday Christian thing. To be filled. By the spirit. Colossians 316 and 17. The whole letter is is very similar. To Ephesians, but almost uh more abbreviated. And notice the subtle distinction here, although you'll see the same theme. Let's start in verse 14. Above all things, Colossians 314. It's just. A couple of books. To the right. Above all, these put on love, which binds everything together in perfect harmony, and that the peace of Christ rule in your hearts to which indeed you recalled in one body. So it's kind of summing up Ephesians 4. And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom, singing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, with thankfulness in your hearts to God and in whatever you do in Word or deed. Do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus giving thanks to God the father. Through him you look at Ephesians 5. 18 and 19 and 20. To be filled to the spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord, with your heart giving thanks always and everything to God the father and the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. But he doesn't mention the filling of the spirit instead. What does he talk about? Said let the. Word of Christ dwell in you richly. Now we get maybe a little bit of an insight. Ephesians says be filled, you know by the spirit, but didn't see exactly what to be filled with explicitly. I mean, I'm telling you that ultimately we're going to be filled with the fullness of God, and that comes from a knowledge of God, of of what Christ has done. Paul puts it more on the nose with the Colossians. He's saying what, really, the spirit is doing. Is taking the word of God. And planting it and filling your life with it. Such that it's like the word of God. Lives in you? It it lives and sleeps there, it doesn't, it's. Not just visiting. But rather the the the word of God is part of every cell. In your body it lives there. And it makes sense because. One of the greatest ministries of the Holy Spirit. The word of God. The Holy Spirit wrote the word of God in order to communicate the thoughts of God to us. It is the objective Ministry of the Holy Spirit. Bringing the promise of God to humans on earth, whereas the. Ministry of the Holy Spirit to Christians is to subjectively bring the word of God the same word of God into our hearts, so that it might live there and produce root and produce godliness. So the Holy Spirit. And we have a whole section we could go into. That but this Holy Spirit. Is actually itself. The Holy Spirit. Is the assurance and guarantee of the promises. And gifts of. God, we've learned that already in the Ephesians. But the way. That the spirit makes us aware of those things is by revealing them in his word. How do we know about our inheritance? How do we know about our adoption? How do we know that Jesus Christ died and rose again? It is through this book. And that is where we come to what being spirit filled looks like or results in. You can tell someone is drunk and full of wine through those common telltale signs. Excessive talking or saying stuff that is not very wholesome or helpful. Sometimes loud singing, antagonistic, obnoxious behavior. Those are the signs of a drunk person. In contrast, what is the sign that a person is filled with all of these glorious things full of the? Word of God, filled by the Holy Spirit. Well, they speak beautiful things about a beautiful God. They sing in their hearts, giving thanks, and they submit to one another, just the opposite of drunkenness, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the heart or to the Lord, with your heart giving thanks always, and for everything to God the father and the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ. And that is what we'll get to next time. But for now I mean. I'm convicted by this because it's easy for me to say I'm going to live Christian today. So I'm not gonna do this bad stuff. I'm going to do this good stuff. I'm going to go to church instead of going to a club. I'm going to hang out with Godly people instead of a bunch of pagans and very much just. Live by a series of dos and don'ts, here's the right way to think. And here's the wrong way to think, and not that that's bad, but if you ask me, Pastor Yuri. Filled by the spirit, are you trying to give the spirit? The control are you trying to let the spirit? Dictate what you do. Where you go? What do you think? Oddly, I think I. Would say hold on a second. Let me think about that cause I've been have I been acting christianly? Yeah, I mean. For the most part I have. I have been work at a church. No get into too much mischief here. You know, most of the people I see on a day-to-day basis, they're Christians. And I have a. Yeah, I'm living christianly, but if you ask, are you living by the spirit? Are you walking by the spirit? Are you saying the spirit is the one that gets to control you? Just like the alcohol? The wine controls the young person. I don't know if I could give you necessarily that answer. It's very convicting this wink to think about that. So we can confuse keeping the rules. By the Spirit's power filled by him with the knowledge of God, the Word of Christ, and living that out. There is a subtle difference. I think it's one worth thinking about and talking about this morning. And so if you're a Christian. Have you been walking? By the spirit, how have you been allowing the spirit? To live within you to dictate what you do and what you think. Could you say that you're not just living christianly, but that you are driven by the Holy Spirit? If you're not a Christian? Who's in the driver's seat? What is dictating what you do and why you do it? Christians are making the claim that anything besides God himself, having that position of authority in your heart is going to lead to disappointment, disaster, ultimately destruction. And you see it out in the world. You've you've been there where you tried a hobby, tried this and tried that and. Nothing brings true fulfillment. Your kids are going to get older. They're going to disappoint your parents. They're gonna pass away. Your, your, your. Boss is not going to acknowledge you. The money can come and go the career. Everything it could. It's more and more clear. It's also temporary and transient transient. Bible says that's not what the way you're. Intended to live. You intended to. Live for God. Not just for God, but for. And we can only do that by the spirit the Lord is calling you to repent. Turn away from those things that are disappointing, distracting at. Best destructive at worst. And said put all of your faith in him. Turn away from the sin, the debauchery, the dissipation, and put your faith in Jesus. Heavenly Father, thank you. Again, for your word and and and even for just some of the heartache of of having to ask hard questions, I suppose. And what I not to discourage anyone, but rather to acknowledge that we have moments to lay our hearts before you and say God as things are not as they should be in my life. I want you to feel me. I want you to be the one that that tells me what to do. Where to where to go, what to think? And I thank you that you do and that that's not some, you know, barbaric or authoritative or dictatorial thing by your hand, but very much a kind and compassionate thing that a father does to a wayward. Child, it's lost all their direction. Things this is confused and alone, or you you want to be our Heavenly Father. So let us let you, especially for those who are Christians here to consider, you know, what is your spirit really trying to tell us what we should do? Thank you, Lord, for each one here. Word ultimately, that our hope is in Christ. So we put our faith and trust in him in Jesus name we pray.