"Be Filled..."
“Be Filled…”
Blessings folk!
Do not be foolish.
Understand the will of the Lord.
Now, let us spend the next couple of days with what is stated beginning with “and”...
Ephesians 5:17-21
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.
You saw the next instruction.
“And”...ties it to the previous discussion.
Do not get drunk with wine.
Such is debauchery.
Drunkenness will lead away from the will of the Lord.
The Lord’s will is not found in excess of wine, nor food...nor anything.
Many are the fellow believers who readily quote the “do not get drunk”...and they do well in doing so. Yet, they leave out the next part of the verse.
Be filled with the Spirit.
There is a curious juxtaposition that the Spirit lead Paul to write.
Drunk with wine will quench the Spirit.
Yet, soberness alone is not enough.
One can be sober and totally powerless.
Most are.
We are to literally be filled with the Spirit.
We are to seek to be filled with the Spirit.
Determine to do so today.
Did you see the other commands?
We will look at them later...but give heed today…
- address one another...how?
- give thanks...when? how? to Whom?
- submit...to whom? why?
If we were simply to live out these things…the Body Life of the Kingdom of God would shine brilliantly...just as God desires.
Quench not the Spirit.