Dr. Bradford Reaves
Crossway Christian Fellowship
Hagerstown, MD
www.mycrossway.org
Tony Evans spoke of being on an elevator in a high-rise building. He said he’d never been particularly comfortable on such elevators. He worried that something would go wrong and he would get stuck in the elevator.
One day it did. The car he was riding in got stuck in between floors way up on the higher floors. Some of the people in the car became frantic. They began to beat on the door hoping to get someone’s attention. Others began to yell in the hopes that their voices would get someone’s attention. But nobody heard their noise or their cries.
Then Evans quietly made his way to the front of the car, opened a little door in the wall, and pulled out a telephone. Immediately he was connected with someone on the outside. He didn’t need to beat on the wall to get their attention. He didn’t need to speak loudly on the phone to receive their help. He could have whispered and they would have heard him.
Evans said that - in this world, we’re going to get "stuck" in places we aren’t comfortable with. Some people begin to beat against the walls, others cry out in dismay. But the person who trusts in the power of prayer and the Holy Spirit has nothing to worry about. (Credit: Jeff Strite, Sermon Central).
Have you ever been spiritually stuck? Maybe you are that way right now. It seems that coming to church, worshipping, serving, singing, praying, and reading your Bible is far more of a drudgery than giving us life. And when that happens, our worship becomes flat, our Bible reading is sporadic, and our prayer life is flaccid.
Last week, we talked about being awakened and living in the light. This week we continue with that thought as we move through walking as children in the light and becoming unstuck. The way we do that is a lifestyle of worship that should be evident in the believer.
15 Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be foolish but understand what the will of the Lord is. 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 5:15–21)
I. A Believer's Walk is a Life of Wisdom
Years ago when I was a young pastor at the beginning of my ministry, I spent most of my time trying to amass the necessary skills for an effective ministry. But as the years have gone by I found myself looking for something beyond skill, I wanted wisdom. I had the facts, but I was concerned about how to use them. I had acquired the skills, but I wanted wisdom to apply them rightly. Today, when I pray, I pray for wisdom far more than anything else.
Paul tells us that we are to walk our Christian life with wisdom. If you were to Google the definition of wisdom, you would come across something like this, The ability to discern or judge what is true, right, or lasting;
We can find wisdom in God’s Word and being biblically literate is paramount to living in the light and not getting stuck. There is a difference between godly wisdom and worldly wisdom. Worldly secular wisdom tends to be self-centered. It exalts us. When our hearts are not submitted to God, we will harbor pride, jealousy, and selfish ambitions and use our wisdom against others. God’s Word calls such wisdom “earthly, unspiritual, demonic“.
But if you have bitter jealousy and selfish ambition in your hearts, do not boast and be false to the truth. 15 This is not the wisdom that comes down from above, but is earthly, unspiritual, demonic. 16 For where jealousy and selfish ambition exist, there will be disorder and every vile practice. (James 3:14–16)
Our lives are the result of all the choices we make. It takes wisdom to ensure that our choices come together so that we end up at the narrow gate of eternal life, not the wide gate to eternal destruction. To find the path to the narrow gate, we need to seek wisdom and guidance from God. He will show us the way.
?“Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. 14 For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few. (Matthew 7:13–14)
I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you with my eye upon you. (Psalm 32:8)
Godly wisdom could even result in us bringing many others with us to the narrow gate. Worldly wisdom often tends to result in destruction. We receive wisdom from God’s Spirit. The Holy Spirit communicates through our spirit and inner conscience. As we pray and quiet down to listen to Him, He will give us an “inner knowing” and plant insights into our minds.
And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord. (Isaiah 11:2)
You can also find wisdom in strange places. I’m sure you’ve heard out the mouths of babes. Listen to the wisdom of some of these children.
For example:
Patrick, age 10, said, “Never trust a dog to watch your food.”
Michael, 14, said, “When your dad is mad and asks you, "Do I look stupid?" don’t answer him.”
Michael, a wise man that he was also said, “Never tell your mom her diet’s not working.”
Randy, 9 years of age said, “Stay away from prunes.” One wonders how he discovered that bit of wisdom.
Kyle, age 9, said, “Never hold a dust buster and a cat at the same time.”
Naomi, 5 said, “If you want a kitten, start out by asking for a horse.”
Lauren, age 9 said, “Felt markers are not good to use as lipstick.” (Credit: Horace Wimpey, Sermon Central)
The world will tell you there is no such thing as truth, aka Relativism. Relativism is the concept that points of view have no absolute truth or validity, having only relative, subjective value according to differences in perception and consideration. Paul tells us that we are not to cling to such foolishness of the world but hold fastly to the truth of God. Relativism will leave you empty and hopeless; God’s truth will fill you and strengthen you for the future. Keep you from getting unstuck.
A Believer's Walk is a Life Filled With the Holy Spirit
And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, (Ephesians 5:18)
Being “filled” with the Spirit is something that is urged upon Christians, which is what Paul does here. The command is “be filled and keep being filled with the Holy Spirit. It refers to our being so under the Holy Spirit’s control and leading so that our thoughts and life are entirely focused on Jesus Christ. It is the idea of permeation. This is central to being people of worship because our worship is not an experience, it is a way of life.
First, it is not us who control our worship of the Lord Jesus Christ, it is the Holy Spirit that leads us into true worship. Our worship is not based on our preferences on emotions, but upon the truth of God’s character, nature, and word. So to live in this manner means that we are not getting drunk and this is the contrast Paul uses, “do not get drunk with wine, but be filled with the Holy Spirit.”
The idea behind this is not a prohibition on drinking alcohol, although some make that choice. What Paul is contrasting is the difference between worldly worship and Christian worship. The normal expression of worship at pagan temples was drinking themselves into drunkenness, which would lead to all kinds of wild dancing and uncontrolled immoral behavior in an effort to please some deity. Alcohol is a depressant; it “loosens” people because it depresses their self-control, their wisdom, their balance, and judgment. The Holy Spirit has an exactly opposite effect. He is a stimulant; He moves every aspect of our being to better and more perfect performance.
This is a complete contrast to Christian worship, which the Bible says is to be orderly and reverent. The purpose of Christian worship is to give honor to God by declaring the truths of His nature and character. That is why we must be so careful that our worship is not likened to worldly entertainment.
And that’s very important because what we’re talking about being filled with the Spirit, we’re not talking about some kind of charismatic event or feelings of euphoria. We’re talking about a constant way of life to have the constant influence of the Holy Spirit in our lives.
Now let’s take this a step further. In English, we understand that “filling” can have a number of meanings. To say you fill something one-dimensional, like when you filled a box with clothes or when you filled a glass with water. The word here is not speaking of filling something up, but a permeation to the point of movement. We’re not talking about being filled up with the Holy Spirit, as if that is some kind of momentary experience, but rather living an entire life that is literally carried along, moved along by the Holy Spirit like wind filling our sails.
Now again, is this some kind of mystical experience? Is this something that you feel? Colossians 3:16 “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.” Like Ephesians, Paul is using a present tense command. “Le the full truth concerning Christ let it permeate your life, your spirit, your soul, your mind to move you and shape your life. Colossians 3, we see that instead of being kept filled with the Holy Spirit, it says, “Let the word of Christ richly dwell in you” - and here come the same results – “with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your heart to the Lord.”
And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit. (2 Corinthians 3:18)
False teaching associated with being filled with the Spirit is falling down, babbling, material prosperity, physical healings, and all kinds of external phenomena, and this has nothing whatsoever to do with any of that. The Holy Spirit’s ministry is to conform us to Christ. As we gaze at the perfection of Christ revealed on the pages of Scripture, the Spirit takes that truth alive in us and shapes us into that very image. The goal is an internal transformation so that we can know and discern the perfect will of God.
Back when the telegraph was the fastest method of long-distance communication, a young man applied for a job as a Morse Code operator. Answering an ad in the newspaper, he went to the office address that was listed. When he arrived, he entered a large, busy office filled with noise and clatter, including the sound of the telegraph in the background. A sign on the receptionist’s counter instructed job applicants to fill out a form and wait until they were summoned to enter the inner office.
The young man filled out his form and sat down with the seven other applicants in the waiting area. After a few minutes, the young man stood up, crossed the room to the door of the inner office, and walked right in. Naturally, the other applicants perked up, wondering what was going on. They muttered among themselves that they hadn’t heard any summons yet. They assumed that the young man who went into the office made a mistake and would be disqualified.
Within a few minutes, however, the employer escorted the young man out of the office and said to the other applicants, “Gentlemen, thank you very much for coming, but the job has just been filled.”
The other applicants began grumbling to each other, and one spoke up saying, “Wait a minute, I don’t understand. He was the last to come in, and we never even got a chance to be interviewed. Yet he got the job. That’s not fair!”
The employer said, “I’m sorry, but all the time you’ve been sitting here, the telegraph has been ticking out the following message in Morse Code: ‘If you understand this message, then come right in. The job is yours.’ None of you heard it or understood it. This young man did. The job is his.”
We live in a world that is full of busyness and clatter, like that office. People are distracted and unable to hear the still, small voice of God as he speaks to them. What about you? Are you tuned in to God’s voice? Do you hear him when he speaks to you? Are you listening?
If you want the Spirit to control your life and know the will of our Heavenly Father, you must know the truth of Scripture and be continually filled with the Spirit of God. That’s what Jesus meant when he said that the Father is looking for worshippers in Spirit and truth. That is why I am particular about who we emulate in our worship music because there are “churches” out there that are modeling worship patterns off of the world or worse without any regard to Scripture and their lyrics reflect that, but also their music is written from ungodly premises devoid of the Spirit. We can’t have that here.
Conclusion
The question for you today is are you living a godly, Spirit-filled life? Is it the Spirit that is guiding your thoughts, and your decisions or are you still trying to live a Christian life with worldly strength and guidance? It is simply not possible and eventually you wind up being stuck, like the people in the elevator banging on the doors and screaming at the walls in hope that someone will hear you when in reality, all you have to do is pick up the phone.
“Every hour, yea, every moment has brought favor upon its wings. Look downward and give thanks, for you are saved from hell; look on the right hand and give thanks, for you are enriched with gracious gifts; look on the left hand and give thanks, for you are shielded from deadly ills; look above you and give thanks, for heaven awaits you.” (Charles Spurgeon)
ABC's of Salvation
Close "I Need Thee Every Hour"
