Take your copy of God's Word and turn with me to Ephesians chapter 5 verses 18 through 21. Ephesians chapter 5 verses 18 through 21. And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with 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 for everything to God the Father, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ. Amen. I want to label the message for tonight, Be Filled with the Spirit. Be Filled with the Spirit. Spirit infilling is arguably the most controversial, divisive, and misunderstood ministry of the Holy Spirit in the work of the believer. Ask any random Christian what it means to be filled with the Spirit, and there's no telling what kind of answer you'll get back. the response may reflect anything from ignorance to fear to superstition to fanaticism to indifference. Why? Why is there so much confusion about what it means to be filled with the Holy Spirit? I would suggest tonight the problem is the same problem that would be related to any confusion about a matter of Christian truth or living. It's a two-fold problem. No teaching and wrong teaching. But as we consider this text and subject tonight, my concern is not to debate doctrinal positions. I have a more pastoral concern. that I hope will be challenging and encouraging to you. The fundamental truth I want you to get from our time together tonight is that you must be filled with the Holy Spirit in order to be a healthy, growing, fruitful Christian. You must be filled with the Holy Spirit. This is true because ultimately only one person has ever lived the Christian life. That is the Lord Jesus Christ himself. All of us have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God. We cannot be like Christ in our own wisdom, strength, or resources. Yet Christ's likeness is the purpose for which Christ, we have been called by God in Christ. Romans chapter eight, verse 29, says, for whom he foreknew, he predestined to be conformed to the image of his son, that he may be firstborn among many brothers. So the question is, how can sinful people like you and me be like Christ? I believe the answer here is in Ephesians five, verse 18, be filled with the Spirit. It is the will of God to have the Spirit of God use the Word of God to make the children of God look like the Son of God. Be filled with the Spirit. As we talk tonight about Spirit and filling, of course, we are not talking about getting more of the Holy Spirit. When A sinner repents of his sin and puts his faith in the Lord Jesus Christ for salvation. God, the Holy Spirit, takes up residence in his heart, her heart, immediately, permanently, completely. Romans chapter eight, verse nine, makes it clear that if you do not have the Spirit of Christ, you do not belong to him. But if you belong to Christ, God, the Holy Spirit, is there. Ultimately, you don't need the Spirit to fall on you. He lives in you. The late A. Louis Patterson would regularly talk about Christians being beneficiaries of what he called the indwelling presence of the life-giver king. This is true of every believer. But there is a distinction between spirit in dwelling and spirit in filling. It is a great tragedy for a sinner to live and die without Christ and go to hell. It is also a tragedy for a sinner to be redeemed and live and go to heaven without being filled with the Spirit. The human spirit fails unless the Holy Spirit fills. But unfortunately this is how too many Christians live out their faith and unfortunately it is true of many of us who serve the people of God. It's like getting a new fancy car with all of the bells and whistles, top of the line, but you can't figure out how to get this thing started, so you just put it in neutral and push it everywhere you go. In a real sense, this is how many Christians live, but it does not have to be that way. It should not be that way. You can be what Christ has called you to be and do what Christ has called you to do, The text here says be filled with the spirit. It's how that happens. There are many passages that mention spirit in filling, but there's only one primary text that explains what it means to be filled with the spirit. It is the text before us. And I want you to consider with me tonight four dynamics of the spirit-filled life presented here in Ephesians 5 verses 18 through 21. Consider first of all the contrast to spirit in filling, the contrast to spirit in filling. Verse 18 begins, and do not get drunk with wine. I don't think there's any deeper hidden mystical meaning to that prohibition. It just means what it says. That Christians should not get drunk with wine. Proverbs 20 verse 1 says, wine is a mocker and strong drink a brawler and whoever carried away with it is not wise. Paul begins this passage by warning Christians not to play the fool by getting drunk with wine. It is a part of What he has been saying in verses 15 through 17, look carefully then how you walk. Not as unwise, but as wise, making the best use of the time because the days are evil. Therefore, do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is and do not get drunk with wine. This is a part of his call to the believer to walk in wisdom. He says at the beginning of the verse, do not get drunk with wine. And then by contrast, at the end of the verse, he says, but be filled with the spirit. Note that these are contrasted ideas. Being filled with the spirit is not some spiritual intoxication. A person drunk with wine is under the influence, a person indeed who is filled with the Spirit is under the influence, but there is no parallel behind that. The two ideas are antithetical. This is not about some spiritual intoxication where one is out of control in the Spirit. On the day of Pentecost, Crowds mocked the spirit-filled believers, claiming that they were drunk with wine. And Peter said, these are not drunk as you suppose, seeing that it's so early in the morning. He was not merely denying that they were drunk on what the people thought they were drunk on. It was a categorical denial. They were not drunk with wine. Galatians chapter five, verse 23. Paul says that the fruit of the Holy Spirit is self-control. And so being filled with the Spirit, as some would suggest it is, is not some notion where I'm out of control in the Spirit. No, the mark that you would feel with the Spirit is that in a real sense, He gives you the ability to control areas of your life that you can't control without being filled with the Spirit. Being drunk with wine is a depressant, but being filled with the Spirit is a stimulant that enables us to live for Christ. And so Paul says, and do not be drunk with wine. And he gives a reason, for that is debauchery. The term there for debauchery is used in Titus chapter one, verse six, where we are told that elders should have children who are not accused of insubordination or debauchery. And in First Peter chapter four, verse four, Peter, in a real sense, warns the Christians that it's hard to be holy and popular at the same time. because there will be people who malign you in the world because you do not run with them, he says, 1 Peter 4 and 4, in the same flood of debauchery. And Paul uses the term here to say that we should not be drunk with wine or do anything that contradicts our Christian walk, work, or witness. We should be, however, filled with the spirit. So there's this contrast to spirit in filling. But then secondly, consider with me the call to spirit in filling. Do not be drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the spirit. This word filled in the Greek just means to fill. It's to bring something to a saturation point, it's level of containment, nothing deep about it. But when it is used metaphorically as it is here, the term denotes totality or exclusivity, something that is already full, doesn't have room for anything else. And so the scripture speaks this way about You're being filled with something. It is that this thing is the driving force, the controlling presence, the dominating influence in your life. In scripture, you'll see that you could be filled with quite a few things. Luke 2 verse 40 says Jesus was filled with wisdom. In Luke 4 verse 28, we are told that in his hometown, the people were filled with wrath or filled with anger at the preaching of Jesus. In Acts chapter 13 verse 45, the opponents of Paul were filled with jealousy or filled with envy. In 2 Corinthians 7, verse 4, Paul claims to be filled with comfort. In 2 Timothy 1, verse 4, he says he'll be filled with joy to see Timothy again. You can be filled with many things, but here, scripture explicitly commands us to be filled with the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is to be the dominating presence, the controlling influence, and the driving force of our lives. On one occasion, a group of pastors in a city met together to plan an evangelistic crusade in their city. And when they moved to discuss who the evangelists should be that they invite, Someone with glowing words rose and commended to them the famous Chicago evangelist, Dwight L. Moody. After the recommendation, and there was discussion, and one of the ministers was offended by the recommendation and said, you all are talking like Mr. Moody. has a monopoly on the Holy Spirit. To which the reply came, no, we know that Mr. Moody doesn't have a monopoly on the Holy Spirit, but we speak so highly of him because it's obvious that the Spirit has a monopoly on Mr. Moody. In a real sense, we are commanded to allow the Holy Spirit to monopolize our lives, to be filled with the Spirit. to let the Holy Spirit be the controlling influence, the driving force, the dominating presence in our lives. Consider the dynamics of this call to be filled with the Spirit. It is a command, not a suggestion. This is not a merely good idea, this is a divine mandate, be filled with the Holy Spirit. Nowhere in the New Testament are we commanded to be indwelt by the Holy Spirit, or gifted by the Holy Spirit, or sealed by the Holy Spirit, or anointed by the Holy Spirit. These are standard equipment things that come in the Christian life. Spirit infilling is not standard equipment, but it's necessary to make the standard equipment work. And so here we are commanded to be filled with the Holy Spirit. It's not just a good idea. It's not a recommendation for us to consider. It is the mandate of God that we be filled with the Holy Spirit. To put it another way, there are two mandates in verse 18, one at the top of the verse and one at the bottom. And may I just simply suggest that both carry the same amount of weight. It is just as sinful not to be filled with the Spirit as it is to be drunk with wine. Think about that. Think about the Members of your church showing up and they can't get through the door without being assaulted by the smell of liquor on the usher's breath. They would be outraged. You'd hear about it. But if the song leader couldn't get through the song because the speech is slurred, because they had too much to drink before church, they'd be outraged. You'd hear about it. or that the minister had to be helped to the pulpit because he had too much to drink before church, it would be an outrage. But I really believe, in the same sense, we should be just as outraged when the preacher preaches without being filled with the Spirit. And when we sing without being filled with the Spirit, God commands us to be filled with the Spirit. It's a command, not a suggestion. Likewise, consider that it's for everyone, not just a few. It is an all-inclusive command. This is not about Pentecostals or charismatics. This is not about spiritually elite super saints. This is not just for those who are actively involved in the organized ministries of the church. It's not even for those who choose it or desire or want it. It's for every Christian. God commands all believers here to be filled with the Holy Spirit. Our text we'll focus on is in the verses 18 through 21. But in the next section of this passage, Paul will go on to unfold how the Spirit-filled life should shape our relationships. And just the progression of the text draws the conclusion that the Lord expects every Christian wife and husband to be filled with the Spirit. Every Christian child and parent to be filled with the Spirit. Every Christian slave and master for a purpose as employer and employee to be filled with the Holy Spirit. Brothers, consider what kind of church your church would be if every member was filled with the Spirit. It is a command, not a suggestion. It is for everyone, not just a few. It is repeated, not permanent. The language here indicates that we are to keep being filled with the Holy Spirit. This is no second blessing in which we live permanently above sin after some special experience. If I may quote him again, when someone asked D.L. Moody if he was filled with the Holy Spirit, his answer was, yes, I'm filled, but I leak. And that's true of all of us. We leak. In Matthew 16, there's the great confession, who do men say that the Son of Man And what about you fellas? What do you say about me? Who do you say that I am? And Peter declares Matthew 16 verse 16, you are the Christ, the son of the living God. And after that great confession, remember what happens next? Jesus begins to predict to his disciples that he will go to Jerusalem and be crucified. And the Bible says, Matthew 16, verse 22, that this same Peter rebukes Jesus. Peter rebukes Jesus and says, far be it, that will never happen to you. Jesus says to him, get behind me, Satan. You are a hindrance to me. For your mind is on the things of man, not on the things of God. Same Peter, just a few verses. It's just a reminder, brothers, why we must keep short accounts with God. And make sure our hearts have been set on Him and that there is a confession of our sins and a willingness to submit to Him afresh and be filled with His Holy Spirit. It is a command, not a suggestion. It is for everyone, not just a few. It is repeated, not permanent. It is received, not earned. To be filled with the Spirit is again not something you can accomplish. It is a command to obey, but we must submit to the filling of the Holy Spirit. Spirit and filling is accomplished by humble submission, not human achievement. It is like telling someone to be loved. You can command one to love, but to be loved means someone is willing to love you. And the call here to be filled indicates that there is one who is willing to fill us. We just must be willing to yield. But thirdly, would you consider with me then the conditions for spirit and filling? Having said all of this, how is one to be filled with the Holy Spirit? Let's be clear, there is no passage. that gives some formula for being filled with the Holy Spirit. The text doesn't tell us, command us to pray to be filled with the Holy Spirit, or wait a tarry to be filled with the Holy Spirit, or none of the other exotic things you may hear associated with being filled with the Holy Spirit. So the question is, how is one to be filled with the Spirit. As you already know, Ephesians and Colossians are parallel epistles. They're both prison epistles. They share a similar theme. In Ephesians, Paul is emphasizing that the church is the body of Christ. In Colossians, he's emphasizing that Christ is the head of the church. And in an abbreviated form, Colossians 3 parallels what we find in Ephesians chapter 5 going into chapter 6. You'll see, for instance, at the end of Colossians 3, how he gets into again these household rules and instructions for wives and husbands, children and parents, bondservants and masters and the rest. Colossians is an abbreviated parallel, but note that Ephesians 5.18 says all of this is the overflow of being filled with the Holy Spirit while Colossians 3.16 says, 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. Brothers, I wish I had something deeper for you tonight. But I really do believe that being filled with the Holy Spirit is as simple as submission to the authority of the Word of God. To be filled with the Holy Spirit is to let the Word of Christ dwell in you richly. One is rightly commented here. that God does not fill with His Spirit those who believe in the filling of the Spirit or even those who ask for it, but those who obey. You show me a person who is filled with the Scripture and I'll show you a person who is filled with the Spirit. To be filled with the Spirit is to live in submission to the authority of God's Word. When I am in rebellion against the Word of God, the Holy Spirit is grieved. The work of the Holy Spirit is quenched. But when I submit to the authority of God's Word, God the Holy Spirit lives within me to enable me to resist temptation. to live obediently, to serve faithfully, to witness confidently, and to suffer joyfully. When I submit to the authority of God's word, God the Holy Spirit lives within me to give strength as strength is needed to do the will of God. There is this calling to be filled with the Spirit in Ephesians 5, 18 through 21. And then he fleshes it out in Ephesians 5, verse 22, through chapter six, verse nine, and how this looks in our relationships. And then chapter six, verse 10, he says, finally, brothers, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might. put on the whole armor of God so that you may stand against the schemes of the devil. In a real sense, the progression of the text seems to indicate to us that if you obey the scripture here, if you submit to the authority of God's word, if you live by the enabling help of the Holy Spirit, the common enemy of our soul, Satan, will fight back. But the good news is, God has already provided the spiritual equipment that we need to stand our ground, has he not? The whole armor of God. Paul details this armor in verses 14 through 17, and as you Consider the pieces of armor. They are defensive pieces of armor, of course, to help us stand against the schemes of the devil and to withstand in the evil day. But one piece of the armor mentioned there in chapter six, verse 17, the last mentioned, is both defensive and offensive. It is the sword of the spirit, which is the word of God. Here we are reminded that the Spirit and the Word are not working in competition with each other, they work together. The sword of the Spirit is the Word of God. And when the enemy attacks, God the Holy Spirit lives within me to help me stand my ground. That's the good news. Unfortunately, the Holy Spirit will only fight with his own weapon. And to the degree that I fail to let the word of Christ dwell in me richly, I really don't give the spirit much to help me with, but the more I personally, not just for sermons and lessons and classes, but the more I feed on the word for my own soul's sake, reading the word and meditating on the word, delighting in the word. It's like putting a sharp sword in the hand of the Holy Spirit. And he gives me strength to overcome. Consider finally with me the characteristics of spirit in filling. The characteristics of spirit in filling. How can you tell if a person is filled with the Spirit? Here in the definitive passage, here in the definitive passage, we don't see a lot of the exotic things here that is often accompanied with Spirit and filling. No speaking in tongues, no visions and voices, No being slain in the spirit. No, no, nothing wild or exotic. In fact, if you just kind of follow the progression of the text, it seems to suggest here that the clearest evidence of being filled with the spirit is how you treat other people. As he follows this with the household cults. There are many passages that mention people being filled with the Spirit, but there is no passage where a person who is filled with the Spirit claims to be filled with the Spirit. Why is that? I believe it's because in John 15 verse 26, Jesus says, when the Spirit comes, he will bear witness to me. In John 16, verse 14, Jesus says, when the Spirit comes, he will glorify me. The Holy Spirit, if you will, is the shy member of the Trinity. When he shows up, he's always pointing to Jesus. And so the sign of a spiritual person is not that person showing off how spiritual or gifted they are. To be filled with the Spirit is to be empty of self. Here in verses 19 through 21, Paul gives several practical but important evidences of spirit and filling. The first is spirit-filled worship. You'll be addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart. I'm always blown away when I read that. Here in the progression of this text, Paul says the first evidence that a person is filled with the Holy Spirit is that the Holy Spirit will put a song in your heart. Blows me away. He'll put a song in your heart. Now wait, wait, wait. Doesn't say that if you are filled with the Spirit, you'll learn how to sing. If you can't sing before you're filled with the Spirit, you still can't sing after you're filled with the Spirit. But you'll have a song. The song is not just for you. We're to address one another. in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs. Corporate singing is the language of the church. We're to address one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, and then we're to sing and make melody to the Lord with the heart. It reaches the Lord when it is from the heart. Here we're reminded of Colossians 3.16 again. where Paul exhorts us to let the word of Christ dwell in us richly, teaching and admonishing one another in all wisdom and speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs. We are reminded there that music and church is to be an extension of the ministry of the word. Theology and doxology are to go together. Deep conviction should lead to high praise. Sound doctrine should produce a singing heart. Faithful preaching should be logic on fire. Biblical exposition should turn on the lights and turn up the heat. There is spirit-filled worship. But then there is also spirit-filled thanksgiving. We're to be giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. In a real sense, Paul says, you show me an ungrateful person, a person who is petty and complaining and hard to get along with, and I'll show you a person who is not filled with the Spirit. Spirit-filled people are grateful people. There are people who are giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Notice the subtle reference here to how the Trinity works in this process. By being filled with the Spirit, we are to be giving thanks to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. This is not just being a generally happy person in a natural sense. This is spirit-filled thanksgiving. You can see that in how they are to be giving thanks. Always. We're to be giving thanks always. Psalm 34 verse one, David sings, I will bless the Lord at all times. His praises shall continually be in my mouth. And not just always, unceasingly, but unconditionally. We're to be giving thanks for everything. 1 Thessalonians 5 verse 18 says, we're to give thanks in everything, but here Paul says for everything. The spirit-filled Christian gives thanks. And then in what seems to be a transitional verse to the next section where he gives these household instructions, he gives one more mark of a spirit-filled Christian. Submission. From worship to thanksgiving, to submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ. This is a military term, submit to pictures, a soldier lining up under the command of an officer. In a real sense, he is saying here that spirit-filled people know how to follow leadership. Spirit-filled people are not infighting and politicking and pressing to have their own way. Spirit-filled people know how to follow leadership. Spirit-filled people are not trying to press themselves up front. Excuse me. It's been well said. That to get over what God has put under you, you've got to learn how to get under what God has put over you. We must learn to be submissive. And I've been having conversations about this with a couple of colleagues lately, especially those of us who lead, where God puts you in the lead role. The call here to submit does not abdicate leadership, but it is a call to be a servant leader, not lording it over those whom God has entrusted to your care. And we do so out of reverence for Christ. We submit to one another, but it has nothing to do with one another. It's out of reverence. I first learned this passage from an older translation that just simply used the word fear. Out of fear of God. I prefer that. I've just, I think my faith has grown up enough that I accept the fact that the fear of God is, without trying to dress it up, is just the fear of God. To know who God is, there are some things you should be afraid to say. There should be some things you're afraid to do. There are places you should be afraid to go because you know who God is. And we're to be submitting to one another. But it has nothing to do with one another. It's because we have a captain to check in with who has given us an assignment. And we want to hear him say, well done. The young student finally learned his piano well enough to get his first recital. As he went on stage, his teacher went in the balcony. He played and the crowd clapped and cheered and applauded. But he kept playing unmoved by the response of the audience. He was not concerned about their reaction. He just wanted to please his teacher above. This is the spirit of that command. We don't serve playing to the crowd. We submit to one another out of reverence for Christ. My mother taught me to sing, you may build great cathedrals, large or small. You may build skyscrapers grand and tall. You may conquer all the failures of your past, but only what you do for Christ will last. The verse that sticks with me is this. You may seek earthly fortune and fame. The world might be impressed by your great name. But soon the glories of this world will all be past, and only what you do for Christ will last." Only what you do for Christ will be counted in the end. Only what you do for Christ will last. Let us pray. Thank you for your word tonight, Father, and for this call and command to be filled with the Holy Spirit, a commandment for our benefit, that we might live out the life of the teachings of our faith, that we might follow hard after the Lord Jesus Christ, that we might even endure hardship as good soldiers of Jesus Christ. Would you forgive us tonight for trying to serve you in our own strength? Would you forgive us for trying to do your will our way? Would you forgive us for running ahead of you when we should be walking in the Spirit. Forgive us, Lord, of our rebellious hearts. Cleanse us from unrighteousness. Set our affections afresh on the Lord Jesus Christ, and give us, Lord, a renewed commitment to not just know and teach a word, but to do it, to live it, to obey it in our own lives and in our own hearts, in our own relationships. And may our service be the overflow of our heart's devotion to you. May it be energized, not by efforts of the flesh that are doomed to fail, but by the enabling power of your wonderful Holy Spirit. So that as we speak, We will speak according to your living word, and as we serve, we will do so in the strength you supply, and in everything, the name of the Lord Jesus Christ would be glorified. Let it be so, we pray, amen.