Be Filled With the Holy Spirit

Be Filled With the Holy Spirit

Text: Ephesians 5:18 And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess: but be filled with the Spirit.

Introduction:

We are forbidden in God’s word to be drunk with wine, which can cause many problems in life. But we are also commanded to be filled with the Holy Spirit. The person who is drunk with wine is under the influence and control of alcohol. It affects body and soul negatively and may actually shorten the life. Our behavior is changed and easy to see. Likewise, when we are under control of the Holy Spirit, we are under the control of the Holy Spirit, and our behavior is changed as well. The word to be filled is in the imperative. This means that it is a command of God. The word is in the present tense in Greek. This indicates continuous action rather than a single action. We could translate it: keep on being filled. It is in the passive tense. We do not fill ourselves, but allow ourselves to be filled by another, in this case, by God Himself.

Who is the Holy Spirit?

It is not “what is the Holy Spirit!” The Holy Spirit can be grieved, he speaks, he prays, he witnesses, he can guide: in other words, he has the characteristics of a person. He is also eternal and coexistent with God the Father and God the Son.?

In the Old Testament, God promised a new covenant made with us giving us a heart of flesh, not a heart of stone. Before he ascended to heaven, Jesus promised that he would send another comforter (another like himself) who would indwell the believer, which occurred after Jesus was glorified.?John 14:16 And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you forever. 17. Even the Spirit of truth, which the world cannot receive, because he seeth him not, neither knoweth him; but ye know him, for he dwelleth with you and shall be in you.?Paul wrote:?I Corinthians 6:19 What? Know ye not that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit, which is in you, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own? 20. For ye are bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body, and in your spirit, which are God’s.

The believer receives the Holy Spirit at salvation, and at that time, he/she is baptized into the body of Christ. This is, in contrast to the filling of the Spirit, a one-time event.?I Corinthians 12:13 For by one Spirit are we all baptized into one body, whether we be Jews or Gentiles, whether we be bond or free, and have been all made to drink into one Spirit. Romans 8:9 But ye are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if so be that the Spirit of God dwell in you. Now if any man have not the Spirit of Christ; he is none of his.?These verses demonstrate that all believers have the indwelling Holy Spirit. The word “baptized” is in the aoric passive. Again, it is the Holy Spirit which does the baptizing but this time is a single event occurring in the past. So when I received Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit came to indwell me. Furthermore, the Spirit seals me until the day of redemption, and thus he will not leave me.?

What is the relationship between the filling of the Holy Spirit and sin?

When I receive Jesus Christ as savior, my past sins are forgiven.?I John 1:9 If ye confess your sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins, and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.?However, our old sin nature is still present. We should keep short accounts with God. The Bible teaches that there are three groups of people spiritually. First, some are unsaved, are guided by their old nature, and do not have the Holy Spirit in their lives. That was my situation before I received Jesus Christ as savior. Second, there are saved individuals who have the indwelling Holy Spirit. Some saved individuals are under the control of the Holy Spirit. They are spiritual. Others, although they have the Holy Spirit in their lives, continue to allow their old nature to direct their lives. They are called carnal. See I Corinthians 2:14-3:4. The Holy Spirit will enable us to have victory over present sin when we are filled with the Spirit – which happens when we allow the Holy Spirit to fill and control our lives. Praise the Lord, for the believer, our eternal destination will be where we are freed from the very presence of sin.?

What is the context of the command to keep being filled?

The entire section of Ephesians following the command to be filled with the Spirit is in the context of life, especially life in the family. The father, the mother, and children all need the control of the Holy Spirit to walk in the Spirit and not fulfill the lusts of the flesh (See Galatians 5:16-23) We also need his control for work (masters and slaves) as well as spiritual victory against the devil and the powers of darkness (Ephesians 6:5-20). When we are continually filled with the Holy Spirit, we will be walking in the Spirit. We will not fulfill the lusts of the flesh, but manifest the fruit of the Spirit, such as love, joy, peace, long-suffering, etc.?

What are the conditions for being filled with the Spirit?

Of course, it is imperative that we are genuinely saved so that the Holy Spirit lives in us. Then we must thirst, we must believe, and we must ask.?John 7:37 In the last day, that great day of the feast, Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto me and drink. 38. He that believeth on me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall come rivers of living water. 39. (But this spake he of the Spirit, which they that believe of him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given, because that Jesus was not yet glorified.?So we must first thirst for the filling, and believe the promise of the filling, and then finally, we must ask.?Luke 11:11 If a son shall asak bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? Or if he ask a fish, will he give him a serpent? 12: or if he shall ask an egg, will he give him a scorpion? 13. If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children, how much more shall your heavenly father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?

The question for us is – are we filled with the Holy Spirit now? Does He control our lives as we yield to the Lord? Or are we living carnal, self-centered lives? #filledwiththeSpirit #walkintheSpirit #carnalChristian #SpiritualChristian