Living the Spirit Filled Life, Pt. 1
Notes
Transcript
Intro; Since the beginning of this year we have been studying the Holy Spirit on Sunday mornings. I want us as the family of God to truly understand the importance of the Spirit in our everyday life.
The Holy Spirit of God is the “promise of power” for God to be able to work through us for His glory in this present world, that men would see the Light of Christ!
Acts 1:8 (NKJV)
8 But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
This “promise of power” is manifested in the life of the christian through Spiritual Gifts given by the Holy Spirit to produce Spiritual Fruit.
10 As each one has received a gift, minister it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.
11 If anyone speaks, let him speak as the oracles of God. If anyone ministers, let him do it as with the ability which God supplies, that in all things God may be glorified through Jesus Christ, to whom belong the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.
So the question that arises in my heart is, “Am I Living the Spirit Filled Life?”
Text; Eph. 5:15-21
15 See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise,
16 redeeming the time, because the days are evil.
17 Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is.
18 And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit,
19 speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord,
20 giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,
21 submitting to one another in the fear of God.
Paul’s letter to the Ephesian church is addressed to a group of believers who are rich in Jesus Christ but are living like spiritual paupers, because they are ignorant of their spiritual wealth.
In chapters 1-3, Paul reminds them of the riches they have in Christ, all the spiritual blessings of heaven, once being strangers of the covenant and without hope but now made near by the blood of Christ, and that “God is able to do exceedingly abundantly above all the we ask or think according to the power that works in us!”
Then look with me at chapter 4:1
1 I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called,
Beseech- urge, request, appeal to start living in the promised power of God.
Paul is simply saying, “Why aren’t you Living the Spirit Filled Life?”
1. Being Filled with the Holy Spirit; 18b
1. Being Filled with the Holy Spirit; 18b
Filled [pleroo/play row]- to make full, occupy, complete, controlled by, being kept filled
Every single day of our christian life there is a battle for the influence of our thoughts and then our actions. So every day it is imperative to be filled with the Holy Spirit of God!
First, [pleroo] is used in the sense of wind filling the sails of a ship thereby moving it forward. Christians today need to let the Holy Spirit move us in the direction God wants us to go.
21 for prophecy never came by the will of man, but holy men of God spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.
Second, [pleroo] carries the idea of to occupy/permeate as salt is used to flavor and preserve meat.
Matthew 5:13 (NKJV)
13 “You are the salt of the earth; but if the salt loses its flavor, how shall it be seasoned? It is then good for nothing but to be thrown out and trampled underfoot by men.
Third, [pleroo] has the connotation of total control.
A person who is filled with sorrow is no longer under his own control, but under the control of the emotion of sorrow. It is the same when someone is filled with fear, anger, hurt and even the influence of Satan. That emotion or influence dominates/controls their life. The christian is to be dominated in the same way by the Holy Spirit.
John 15:4–5 (NKJV)
4 Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, unless it abides in the vine, neither can you, unless you abide in Me.
5 “I am the vine, you are the branches. He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing.
Unlike the indwelling of the Holy Spirit which takes place at the moment of salvation, being filled with the Spirit is a repeated experience according to our circumstances and need at any given moment.
If you are looking on the internet and something inappropriate pops up, you have to appeal to the power of God in you [be filled], to make the right choice or to click the link!
When faced with a situation of dealing with a dispute, you have to let the Spirit occupy your emotions/thoughts [be filled] to hear both sides and be able to give wise council instead of choosing sides maybe with your friend over another.
When raising our children we need to be filled with the Spirt of God to give them what they need to prosper in Christ in this wicked world and not to give them what they want just to appease them.
It is a command that includes the idea of conscious continuation. Being filled with the Holy Spirit is not an option for believers but a mandate. No Christian can fulfill God’s will for his life apart from being filled with His Spirit. If we do not obey this command, we cannot obey any other—simply because we cannot do any of God’s will apart from God’s Spirit. Outside of the command for unbelievers to trust in Christ for salvation, there is no more practical and necessary command in Scripture than the one for believers to be filled with the Spirit.
MacArthur, J. F., Jr. (1986). Ephesians (p. 248). Moody Press.
2. Be Empty of the World; 18a
2. Be Empty of the World; 18a
The only way to be filled is first to become empty! For a christian to be filled with the Holy Spirit of God he must empty himself of the junk of this world!
Paul says “Do not be drunk with wine in which is dissipation”.
This is a metaphor he uses for christians not to be intoxicated with the things of the world!
Drunk- intoxicated, reckless living
When a person is intoxicated with alcohol it takes a few days for that alcohol to leave his system. But a person who drinks daily, even small amounts, it never leaves his system. He might not always be drunk but he is never completely empty of the alcohol.
Dissipation- debauchery, wasteful, prodigal living; behavior which is reckless and senseless with no concern for it’s consequences.
A christian who is not completely empty of the world cannot be Filled with the Spirit and walk as a Child of Light.
11 And do this, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep; for now our salvation is nearer than when we first believed.
12 The night is far spent, the day is at hand. Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armor of light.
13 Let us walk properly, as in the day, not in revelry and drunkenness, not in lewdness and lust, not in strife and envy.
14 But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.
1 Therefore, since Christ suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves also with the same mind, for he who has suffered in the flesh has ceased from sin,
2 that he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh for the lusts of men, but for the will of God.
3 For we have spent enough of our past lifetime in doing the will of the Gentiles—when we walked in lewdness, lusts, drunkenness, revelries, drinking parties, and abominable idolatries.
15 and He died for all, that those who live should live no longer for themselves, but for Him who died for them and rose again.
To be filled with the Spirit means to be empty of the world. This involves confession of sin, surrender of will, intellect, body, time, talents, possessions and desires. When we die to self daily, then the Lord fills with His Spirit.
Luke 9:23 (NKJV)
23 Then He said to them all, “If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me.
3. Benefits of The Spirit Filled Life; 15-17, 19-21
3. Benefits of The Spirit Filled Life; 15-17, 19-21
[v.15] we will be disciplined and wise, and not foolish
[v.16] we will use our time wisely to make a difference of hope in an evil world
[v.17] being filled with the Spirit gives us understanding of what the will of the Lord is and a desire to fulfill it
[v.19] the Spirit filled christian will have a godly conduct among others, using godly language because of the joy of Jesus we have in our hearts.
[v.20] the Spirit filled christian will give thanks to Christ in all things. Not just when times are good and going our way, but most importantly when we don’t understand why the bad things happen, we will still trust God and give Him thanks.
[v.21] the Spirit filled believer not only submits to God, but also to one another that there is “unity in the Spirit in the bond of peace”
Close;
There are many Christians today who are not functioning as God desires for them to, nor as the scriptures requires of them because they are not being “Filled with the Spirit”.
An empty glove is powerless and useless until you fill it with your hand. But when you put your hand in that glove, that glove becomes a part of your body and whatever you direct your hand to do.
In the same manner, an empty Christian is powerless and useless to the Lord until we are Filled with the Holy Spirit and directed by His will!
Let me ask you a question this morning. “Are you Living the Spirit Filled Life?”