The Spirit-filled Life (4)
Scott Bayles, pastor
Blooming Grove Christian Church: 6/11/2017
For the past few weeks we’ve been exploring key passages of Scripture that teach us vital truths about who the Holy Spirit is and what He is anxious to do in our lives. In the first week, we learned about the Person of the Holy Spirit (the Holy Spirit isn’t an it, He’s a person—God the Holy Spirit), we learned about the Presence of the Holy Spirit (that He indwells and infills every believer), and we learned about the Power of the Spirit (that He enables and empower believers in various ways).
In week two, we learned how to listen to the Holy Spirit and examined the three primary ways that He still speaks to us today—through His Whispers, His Witnesses, and His Word. Last week, we discovered the gifts of the Holy Spirit. 1 Corinthians 12 outlined the Plethora of Spiritual Gifts, the Purpose of the Spiritual Gifts, as well as the Problem with Spiritual Gifts and how to overcome it.
So as we bring this series to a close, I want to spotlight one last role the Holy Spirit plays in our lives. And we find a clue to that role right there in His name.
The Holy Spirit goes by many names in the Bible. He’s called both the Spirit of God and the Spirit of Christ. He’s called the Spirit of Truth and the Spirit of Life. He’s called Comforter and Teacher. But the name He’s most identified with is Holy Spirit. Ninety-seven times the Bible calls Him the Holy Spirit. Yet we sometimes lose sight of that word holy when we refer to the Spirit or when we discuss the work of the Spirit in our lives. God’s ultimate purpose for indwelling us with His own Spirit is to make us holy.
What does it really mean to be holy though? Well, it doesn’t mean living a life of silence and solitude like some monk in a monastery. It doesn’t mean that we draft a list of do’s and don’ts to live by. A holy life is not an “as good as I can be” life. What does it mean, then, to live a holy life? It means living life God’s way rather than our way. It mean choosing to be led by the Holy Spirit day by day and being transformed in the process. Paul actually describes this transformation in terms of fighting, following, and fruit in Galatians 5.
If you have a Bible, open it to Galatians 5. Paul dedicates ten verses to this topic and, even though it’s a lengthier passage, I’d like to read the whole section before we dive into the text.
So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves. The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other… When you follow the desires of your sinful nature, the results are very clear: sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these. Let me tell you again, as I have before, that anyone living that sort of life will not inherit the Kingdom of God. But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control… Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives. (Galatians 5:16-25 NLT)
In this passage, Paul uses three key words to describe our relationship with the Holy Spirit, how He gets ahold of us and transforms our lives. First, he describes the fight of the Spirit.
• THE FIGHT OF THE SPIRIT
How many of you are familiar with the Incredible Hulk? If you’re Marvel movie fan, you’ve probably seen the Hulk in action, fighting alongside the Avengers. But originally, the Hulk wasn’t envisioned as a hero. Back in 1962, Stan Lee described the Hulk as a “brutal, bestial, mockery of a man… a savage marauding monster… the most dangerous living creature on earth.” As the story goes, an explosion of gamma radiation transforms a scientist named Bruce Banner into the Hulk. True to his name, the Hulk towers head and shoulders over normal human beings. His arms are as thick as tree trunks and more powerful than pile drivers. Within the first two pages of his first appearance, the Hulk smashes through a brick wall, crushes a jeep, and overpowers a squad of armed soldiers. The contrast between the Hulk and his alter ego, Dr. Banner, couldn’t be starker. Stan Lee writes, “Where Dr. Banner had been gentle, the Hulk was a brute! Where Banner had been civilized, the Hulk was a savage! Where Banner was a man, the Hulk was a monster!” Guilt-ridden by the destruction and damage the Hulk causes, Dr. Banner spends all his energy and resource trying to control or conquer the Hulk. But every time he gets angry or loses his temper, the monster reemerges wreaks havoc.
I think a lot reader relate to the Hulk because there’s a monster within each of us. Paul calls it our “sinful nature.” Again, he writes, “The sinful nature wants to do evil, which is just the opposite of what the Spirit wants. And the Spirit gives us desires that are the opposite of what the sinful nature desires. These two forces are constantly fighting each other” (Galatians 5:17 NLT).
Much like Bruce Banner’s inner struggle with the Hulk, there is a fight going on between our spiritual desires and our sinful desires. As Paul continues, he describes the destructive results when our sinful desires win out: “sexual immorality, impurity, lustful pleasures, idolatry, sorcery, hostility, quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambition, dissension, division, envy, drunkenness, wild parties, and other sins like these” (Galatians 5:20-21 NLT).
Can you relate? Do any of those sins hit home? At one time or another, hasn’t each of us been perplexed and disgusted by our own actions? We swear we’ll never again do a certain thing, then just a few weeks (or hours) later we find ourselves doing exactly that. Again. We’re horrified by our own weakness and resolve once more to be done with past behavior. But far too soon, we’re back at it.
Why is it so hard to escape our own destructive patterns? Why do our carefully reasoned plans, our guilt-driven resolutions, and our this-time-for-sure vows prove so often inadequate? To put it in comic-book terms: the Hulk is stronger than we are.
On our own, we’ll never win that fight, because ultimately, we’re fighting ourselves. Someone once said, “When a sinner wrestles with himself, he can’t win.” But this were the Holy Spirit comes in. We may not be able to conquer our sinful desires, but the Holy Spirit can—not that there won’t be a fight, but that the winner of that fight will be the Holy Spirit! That brings us to the following of the Spirit.
• THE FOLLOWING OF THE SPIRIT
Winning this spiritual battle isn’t about trying harder or doing more; rather, it’s about letting the Spirit take control—following the Spirit’s lead. Paul began by saying, “So I say, let the Holy Spirit guide your lives. Then you won’t be doing what your sinful nature craves” (Galatians 5:16 NLT) and he concludes by saying, “Since we are living by the Spirit, let us follow the Spirit’s leading in every part of our lives” (Galatians 5:25 NLT).
Paul begins and ends with a reminder to live by the Spirit by following His leading. True transformation and victory comes when we give leadership and control over our lives to the Holy Spirit. Of course, we can’t follow the leading of the Holy Spirit unless we’re first filled with the Spirit.
Elsewhere Paul writes, “And don’t get drunk with wine, which leads to reckless actions, but be filled by the Spirit” (Ephesians 5:18 HCSB). Notice how Paul pairs the command to “be filled with the Holy Spirit” with the command “don’t be drunk with wine”? That’s not an accident. Paul is making a comparison and contrast.
Now, I don’t need any personal testimonies, but I’d guess that some of you know what it’s like to be drunk or at the very least you’ve seen someone who’s drunk in movies or television. When a person is filled with wine, the alcohol impairs and influences their mind and their body. They talk differently, they walk differently, they think differently, they even feel differently—they might become fearful, or angry, or silly, or paranoid. Some people are amusing drunks, others are angry drunk but the thing they both have in common is that they are no longer in control of themselves. They’ve given control over to a substance.
Something similar yet radically different happens when we are filled with the Holy Spirit. Paul is saying don’t give control to a substance; rather give control to the Spirit! When God’s Spirit gets into us He impacts and influences our hearts, minds and bodies. We think differently. We talk differently. We behave differently. We feel differently. The Bible says, “Those who are dominated by the sinful nature think about sinful things, but those who are controlled by the Holy Spirit think about things that please the Spirit” (Romans 8:5 NLT).
God invites us to be intoxicated with His Spirit! So how, do we get filled up with the Spirit? Well, remember back to the first message in this series. Paul said that we can be filled with the Spirit through worship (singing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs). Jesus said simply to pray (“if you know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask”). And another way to follow and be filled with the Spirit is through Scripture. Remember, the Spirit speaks to us through whispers and witnesses, but He speaks most clearly through His Word.
As we read the Bible, worship and pray we allow God’s Spirit to change our desires and ultimately to change our hearts. We gain victory over sin and begin to experience the Spirit-filled life. So, what does a life lived by the Spirit look like? I’m glad you asked. The answer is found in the fruit of the Spirit.
• THE FRUIT OF THE SPIRIT
Paul sums up the Spirit-filled life, saying: “But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control” (Galatians 5:22-23 NLT).
Paul’s introduction of the word fruit is filled with meaning. Fruit is a byproduct of a healthy tree. A tree doesn’t have to work to produce fruit; it happens naturally when it’s exposed to the light of the sun and gets plenty of water. The same is true of the fruit of the Spirit. It’s not the fruit of hard work or the fruit of personal piety; it’s the fruit of the Spirit. Believer exhibit the fruit of the Spirit, not because they work at it but simply because they are filled with the Spirit. It’s the Holy Spirit who produces this fruit in our lives.
And the Spirit’s fruit comes in nine assorted colors and fruity flavors.
Love. Love forms the foundation for all the other fruit listed. The word used here—agape—is the same word used to describe God’s unrelenting, unchanging love for you and me.
Joy. An inner rejoicing that abides despite outer circumstances. This joy runs deeper and stronger because it’s anchored not in our circumstances or successes, but in the love of God and the person of Jesus.
Peace. An inner quietness, serenity and trust in God’s sovereignty and justice, even in the face of adversity. It’s a profound acceptance of the truth that God, not we, remains in charge of the universe.
These first three fruits are all experienced internally. We feel loved. We feel joy. We feel peace. The rest all have outward expressions.
Patience. The word used here is a descriptive one. It figuratively means “taking a long time to boil.” It means patiently putting up with people who irritate us and situations that might anger us. Patience “keeps the flame low.” It waits. It listens. It’s slow to boil.
Kindness. Being friendly, generous, and considerate. Kindness was employed by ancient Greeks to describe food that was tasty as well as healthy. You know, something that’s both good and good for you. It’s both pleasant and practical. Kindness not only says good morning, kindness makes the coffee.
Goodness. It’s a moral characteristic of a Spirit-filled person. The Greek word translated “goodness,” agathosune, is defined as "uprightness of heart and life." It’s is goodness for the benefit of others, not goodness simply for the sake of being virtuous. Goodness compels us to act selflessly on behalf of others. Confronting someone about a sin demonstrates goodness. So does giving to the poor, providing for your family, visiting the sick, and praying for an enemy. It means essentially doing the right thing, whatever that may be. Expressions of goodness are as varied as the Spirit is creative.
Faithfulness. Being reliable, trustworthy, and loyal. The Spirit helps us remain faithful to God and to His Word, but it also mean being faithful in our marriage and to the commitment that we make.
Gentleness. Gentleness deals with the way we handle other people. It doesn’t mean weakness or fragility. In fact, the Greeks defined it as “power under restraint” and they even illustrated it with an image of a strong stallion that had been bridled. Our words and actions impact people in ways we don’t even realize. Often, their lives are so fragile. They could be easily broken. So treat them with gentleness.
Self-control. Is the ability to resist temptation, to make wise decisions rather than impulsive ones, and to be intentional about our thoughts, words and actions. When we give control of our hearts and lives to the Holy Spirit, he teaches us how to control ourselves.
To understand the fruit of the Spirit, it might help to see yourself not as an individual tree, but as an entire orchard under the care and cultivation of God’s Spirit. He doesn’t just want to produce a single kind of fruit in your life, but all the fruit, each becoming ripe as it’s needed. Allow your roots to reach deeply into the life-giving water of God’s Spirit and he will produce good fruit in your life.
We also need to remember that fruit is produced to be eaten, not to be admired and put on display. We don’t just bear fruit for our own consumption, either; we bear fruit that others might be fed and helped. There are people around us just starving for love, joy, peace, and all the other fruit of the Spirit. When they find those fruits in our lives, they know that we have something they need. So we want to yield the fruit of the Spirit in abundance!
Conclusion:
This is what it means to be holy. When the Holy Spirit fights against our sinful desires, when we follow the Spirit’s leading and let Him guide our lives, and when we start seeing the fruit of the Spirit ripening in and around us—that’s holiness. That’s God’s ultimate goal for our lives.
I hope this series has been a blessing to you. I hope you’ll use this as a starting point to develop and deepen your relationship with the Holy Spirit. Invite Him to fill your heart and life, listen for His voice, unwrap His gifts, share His fruit and being enjoying the Spirit-filled life!
Invitation:
In the meantime, if you’re fighting a losing battle with sin and you need the Spirit to fill you and fight on your behalf, I’d love to pray you and encourage you! You’re welcome to talk to me after church, call me at home or come forward now as we stand and sing. Let’s sing together church.
