Be Filled With The Spirit -- Part 1 Series

Scripture

We are currently in a sermon series in Ephesians 5:1-21 that I am calling, “Be Imitators of God.”

In his letter to the Ephesian Christians, the Apostle Paul wrote in Ephesians 5:1a, “Therefore be imitators of God.” That is Paul’s overall command for this section of Scripture. He then gave several ways in which Christians imitate God. Christians imitate God by walking in love, by walking in light, by walking in wisdom, and by being filled with the Spirit.

Last time we examined what Paul meant by not getting drunk with wine. Today (and next week) we will examine what Paul meant by being filled with the Spirit.

Let’s read about being filled with the Spirit in Ephesians 5:18b-21:

18 And 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. (Ephesians 5:18b-21)

Introduction

About a month ago, Ligonier Ministries released its 2018 study regarding The State of Theology in the United States. The 34-statement survey was designed to discover what Americans believe about God, salvation, ethics, the Bible, and so on.

The conclusion offered at The State of Theology website is as follows:

The 2018 State of Theology survey reveals deep confusion about the Bible’s teaching, not only among Americans as a whole, but also among evangelicals. There is something very wrong when a majority of Americans can give the correct answers to basic Bible questions and at the same time say that their beliefs are purely a matter of personal opinion.

These results show the urgent need for sound biblical teaching and the bold preaching of the gospel. Millions of people do not understand the holiness of God, the reality of sin, and the one way of salvation in Jesus Christ. There is much work to be done, but it is our hope that these findings will serve the church in its efforts to reach more people with the faithful proclamation of the truth of God’s Word.

Three statements in the survey deal with the person and work of the Holy Spirit. One statement is: “The Holy Spirit is a force but is not a personal being.” How would you answer that statement? The statement is false, but 59% of all Americans agree with that statement. Sadly, 59% of Evangelical Christians also agree with that statement. The fact is that “the Holy Spirit can be grieved and lied to (cf. Isaiah 63:10; Acts 5:3; Ephesians 4:30). He can also speak (cf. Hebrews 3:7-11; 10:15-17). An impersonal force can do none of these things, so these personal characteristics indicate that the Holy Spirit must be a person.”

Moreover, the Holy Spirit is the Third Person of the Trinity. He is the one who regenerates or gives new life to a person, which is what enables that person to exercise faith and become a Christian. The Holy Spirit is the one who then empowers and enables Christians to live holy lives before a holy God. Christians are empowered and enabled to live holy lives before a holy God by being filled with the Spirit.

Lesson

Ephesians 5:18b-21 teaches us what is involved in being filled with the Spirit.

Let’s use the following outline:

1. The Command to Be Filled with the Spirit (5:18b)

2. The Evidences of Being Filled with the Spirit (5:19-21)

I. The Command to Be Filled with the Spirit (5:18b)

First, let’s look at the command to be filled with the Spirit.

From Ephesians 4:17 onwards the Apostle Paul has been describing the new life of the Christian. And he has been contrasting the new life of the Christian with the old life of the non-Christian. So far in chapter 5 Paul has been exhorting Christians to walk in love and not in their previous way of sin, to walk in light and not in darkness, and to walk as wise and not as unwise. In verse 18 Paul exhorts Christians to be filled with the Spirit and not to get drunk with wine.

As previously mentioned, last time we examined what Paul meant by not getting drunk with wine. Now we will examine what Paul meant by being filled with the Spirit. Paul said in verse 18b, “…be filled with the Spirit.”

There is confusion in Christendom about being filled with the Spirit. Indeed, there is confusion in Christendom about the baptism of the Holy Spirit. There are some who believe that the baptism of the Holy Spirit is a work subsequent to conversion. They would say that just as the Holy Spirit came upon the believers at Pentecost and enabled them to speak in tongues (cf. Acts 2:1-4), so believers today may expect the Holy Spirit to come upon them some time after their conversion and enable them to speak in tongues. How do we answer this?