WEBVTT 00:00:02.060 --> 00:00:03.879 It's exciting to hear what God is doing on the 00:00:03.879 --> 00:00:06.759 university campus, and to know that we as a local 00:00:06.759 --> 00:00:09.259 church have the joy of being a part of that. 00:00:10.580 --> 00:00:12.539 Would you open your Bible, please, with me to 00:00:12.539 --> 00:00:26.120 the book of Ephesians, the fifth chapter. We 00:00:26.120 --> 00:00:29.120 have been talking about the work of the Holy 00:00:29.120 --> 00:00:33.490 Spirit in our lives. and the will of God. I'd 00:00:33.490 --> 00:00:37.369 like for you to read with me Ephesians 5, beginning 00:00:37.369 --> 00:00:43.450 in verse 15. You follow along as I read. Therefore 00:00:43.450 --> 00:00:46.509 be careful how you walk, not as unwise men, but 00:00:46.509 --> 00:00:49.969 as wise, making the most of your time, because 00:00:49.969 --> 00:00:53.429 the days are evil. So then do not be foolish, 00:00:53.490 --> 00:00:55.890 but understand what the will of the Lord is. 00:00:56.229 --> 00:00:59.689 And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation. 00:01:00.399 --> 00:01:03.859 but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one 00:01:03.859 --> 00:01:06.719 another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, 00:01:06.959 --> 00:01:10.340 singing and making melody with your heart to 00:01:10.340 --> 00:01:13.819 the Lord, always giving thanks for all things 00:01:13.819 --> 00:01:17.260 in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, to God, 00:01:17.340 --> 00:01:20.319 even the Father, and be subject to one another 00:01:20.319 --> 00:01:27.099 in the fear of Christ. There's a little prayer 00:01:27.099 --> 00:01:30.299 chorus that we sang the last time we were together 00:01:30.299 --> 00:01:32.500 in this text. I'd like for you to sing it with 00:01:32.500 --> 00:01:35.819 me now. Let's bow before the Lord and sing, Spirit 00:01:35.819 --> 00:01:41.760 of the living God, fall fresh on me. Spirit of 00:01:41.760 --> 00:01:57.799 the living God, fall fresh on me. Spirit of the 00:01:57.799 --> 00:02:16.879 living God, fall fresh on me. Melt me, mold me. 00:02:29.619 --> 00:02:45.500 Spirit of the living God, fall fresh on me. Lord, 00:02:45.639 --> 00:02:48.060 we do pray for that fresh work of your Spirit 00:02:48.060 --> 00:02:51.939 in our lives as we come to this holy word of 00:02:51.939 --> 00:02:59.520 God. In Jesus' name, amen. When I was in high 00:02:59.520 --> 00:03:02.979 school, like many of you, I took a course in 00:03:02.979 --> 00:03:05.360 driver's education. I think that's a wise thing 00:03:05.360 --> 00:03:08.479 to do, because not only does it save money on 00:03:08.479 --> 00:03:12.539 insurance premiums, ultimately, but it also makes 00:03:12.539 --> 00:03:16.719 one a safer driver. During that training, there 00:03:16.719 --> 00:03:19.099 is a lot of time that is spent in the classroom 00:03:19.099 --> 00:03:24.460 before one ever gets into a car. You have to 00:03:24.460 --> 00:03:28.479 study the laws. perhaps watch some films on safety, 00:03:28.719 --> 00:03:32.039 and you have to learn the way that an automobile 00:03:32.039 --> 00:03:34.439 operates. But can you remember the first time 00:03:34.439 --> 00:03:39.300 you got into a car and you slipped in the driver's 00:03:39.300 --> 00:03:43.039 seat behind the wheel? It may have been the driving 00:03:43.039 --> 00:03:45.500 instructor next to you, or perhaps, as it was 00:03:45.500 --> 00:03:48.740 in my case, one of your parents was there. But 00:03:48.740 --> 00:03:50.840 all of a sudden, there you were in the driver's 00:03:50.840 --> 00:03:53.560 seat where you'd wanted to be for so long. And 00:03:53.560 --> 00:03:55.699 you put that key in the ignition and you turned 00:03:55.699 --> 00:03:59.199 it on. Do you remember that sense of exhilaration 00:03:59.199 --> 00:04:02.219 that came to you as you realized that now you 00:04:02.219 --> 00:04:07.139 were going to drive the car finally? Well, it's 00:04:07.139 --> 00:04:10.699 with that same sense of anticipation that I come 00:04:10.699 --> 00:04:14.419 this morning to this text. We have studied in 00:04:14.419 --> 00:04:16.800 the book of Ephesians, particularly in the last 00:04:16.800 --> 00:04:19.860 part of it, how God wants us to conduct ourselves. 00:04:21.259 --> 00:04:23.680 We've examined the Word of God which says that 00:04:23.680 --> 00:04:27.399 we are to walk in truth, we are to walk in love, 00:04:27.639 --> 00:04:30.620 we are to walk in honesty, we are to walk in 00:04:30.620 --> 00:04:34.420 light or in purity. We have seen something of 00:04:34.420 --> 00:04:38.399 God's purpose for us, the Church, those He is 00:04:38.399 --> 00:04:41.720 calling out. We have studied about the gifts 00:04:41.720 --> 00:04:44.060 of the Holy Spirit and how those are given to 00:04:44.060 --> 00:04:47.879 us personally as believers for the building up 00:04:47.879 --> 00:04:52.459 and the unifying. of the church. But now today 00:04:52.459 --> 00:04:56.040 in what we're going to study, we are going to 00:04:56.040 --> 00:05:01.259 look at God's provision for the power for all 00:05:01.259 --> 00:05:04.579 of this. We're going to learn, as it were, how 00:05:04.579 --> 00:05:08.259 to put the key into the ignition. We have done 00:05:08.259 --> 00:05:11.560 the classroom work, but God wants us to know 00:05:11.560 --> 00:05:14.959 how to turn on the power, and that is what our 00:05:14.959 --> 00:05:18.899 text speaks about. The fuller paragraph that 00:05:18.899 --> 00:05:21.060 we're studying deals with the will of the Lord. 00:05:21.899 --> 00:05:24.740 That is something that God wants us to know and 00:05:24.740 --> 00:05:27.339 to understand. He does not want us to be in the 00:05:27.339 --> 00:05:31.579 dark regarding His purpose for us. God's will 00:05:31.579 --> 00:05:35.540 is not so much something we find as that which 00:05:35.540 --> 00:05:40.019 we follow. It is not so much discovered as it 00:05:40.019 --> 00:05:44.839 is obeyed. Charles Solomon has said, The issue 00:05:44.839 --> 00:05:49.000 is that in most cases, We already know considerably 00:05:49.000 --> 00:05:51.699 more of the will of God than we care to obey. 00:05:52.819 --> 00:05:56.100 What we want is more information rather than 00:05:56.100 --> 00:05:59.660 having to obey what we know. Maybe that's the 00:05:59.660 --> 00:06:04.519 case with some of us this morning. I remind you 00:06:04.519 --> 00:06:06.980 that the will of God is explicitly stated for 00:06:06.980 --> 00:06:11.339 us in our text, at least in part. In the first 00:06:11.339 --> 00:06:13.720 place, there is the command, be careful how you 00:06:13.720 --> 00:06:16.220 walk. God tells us to evaluate our lifestyle. 00:06:16.959 --> 00:06:20.500 our conduct, our choices, our commitments, the 00:06:20.500 --> 00:06:24.720 use of our God -given gifts and resources, and 00:06:24.720 --> 00:06:27.120 to be sure that they are all under the lordship 00:06:27.120 --> 00:06:30.920 of Jesus Christ. He says, be careful how you 00:06:30.920 --> 00:06:33.959 walk for two reasons. In the first place, because 00:06:33.959 --> 00:06:38.160 of life's privileges, God brings to us many opportunities, 00:06:38.319 --> 00:06:41.680 and we are to be careful to buy them all up, 00:06:41.779 --> 00:06:46.939 to make the best use of them. but we are also 00:06:46.939 --> 00:06:49.800 to evaluate our lives because of the present 00:06:49.800 --> 00:06:57.220 evil. Evil is at war against us. Therefore, we 00:06:57.220 --> 00:07:00.180 are to be careful how we walk so that we don't 00:07:00.180 --> 00:07:04.740 fall into the traps of Satan and of the world 00:07:04.740 --> 00:07:09.319 system, all of which is arrayed in battle to 00:07:09.319 --> 00:07:11.879 defeat us in our Christian life. Be careful how 00:07:11.879 --> 00:07:15.100 you walk. And then he tells us, do not get drunk. 00:07:16.360 --> 00:07:19.699 He says this leads to excess and the squandering 00:07:19.699 --> 00:07:23.519 of our stewardship. He calls it dissipation. 00:07:24.360 --> 00:07:26.620 And from our study of some of the principles 00:07:26.620 --> 00:07:29.939 of God's word, we concluded that it's best and 00:07:29.939 --> 00:07:34.279 wisest for a child of God to be an abstainer 00:07:34.279 --> 00:07:40.459 entirely when it comes to this matter of alcohol 00:07:40.459 --> 00:07:44.579 or drugs, anything that would control and dominate 00:07:44.579 --> 00:07:48.680 us. But now we come to a third command, which 00:07:48.680 --> 00:07:50.959 I want to focus on primarily this morning, and 00:07:50.959 --> 00:07:54.180 that is the one that says, be filled with the 00:07:54.180 --> 00:07:56.439 Spirit. That is the will of God for you, my friend. 00:07:57.600 --> 00:08:01.160 It is God's will that you and I be filled with 00:08:01.160 --> 00:08:05.899 the Holy Spirit. Now what does that mean? The 00:08:05.899 --> 00:08:11.600 word filled means to be controlled by, to be 00:08:11.600 --> 00:08:15.019 dominated by. So he's really saying to us, Be 00:08:15.019 --> 00:08:19.199 controlled by the Holy Spirit or be empowered 00:08:19.199 --> 00:08:22.279 by the Holy Spirit. And it's in the present tense, 00:08:22.379 --> 00:08:26.740 which means that he wants us to go on being filled 00:08:26.740 --> 00:08:30.779 with the Holy Spirit as an habitual, continuous 00:08:30.779 --> 00:08:35.259 experience in our Christian life. The suggestion 00:08:35.259 --> 00:08:39.059 is that there are successive fillings. The filling 00:08:39.059 --> 00:08:41.919 of the Holy Spirit is not a once and for all 00:08:41.919 --> 00:08:45.899 experience. That is true regarding the indwelling 00:08:45.899 --> 00:08:49.539 of the Holy Spirit. He comes into us at conversion 00:08:49.539 --> 00:08:53.059 once and for all, never to leave us. It is true 00:08:53.059 --> 00:08:55.940 regarding the baptism of the Holy Spirit. That 00:08:55.940 --> 00:08:58.340 is a once -for -all experience at the moment 00:08:58.340 --> 00:09:01.740 of conversion, when the Holy Spirit places us 00:09:01.740 --> 00:09:06.159 into and identifies us with the body of Jesus 00:09:06.159 --> 00:09:09.279 Christ. That is true regarding the sealing of 00:09:09.279 --> 00:09:11.700 the Holy Spirit. At the moment of conversion, 00:09:12.019 --> 00:09:15.759 once and for all, we are sealed into Jesus Christ 00:09:15.759 --> 00:09:20.039 by the work of the Holy Spirit. But the filling 00:09:20.039 --> 00:09:23.460 of the Holy Spirit is different. The filling 00:09:23.460 --> 00:09:26.820 of the Holy Spirit is successive. It is to go 00:09:26.820 --> 00:09:32.259 on as a continuous experience. When he says be 00:09:32.259 --> 00:09:34.399 filled with the Holy Spirit, he is making an 00:09:34.399 --> 00:09:37.740 obvious contrast to the pagan worshipers of Dionysius 00:09:37.740 --> 00:09:41.639 that we discussed a couple of weeks ago. They 00:09:41.639 --> 00:09:44.320 felt in order to get in touch with God, you had 00:09:44.320 --> 00:09:46.860 to become intoxicated and work yourself up into 00:09:46.860 --> 00:09:50.620 a frenzy in which essentially you lost control 00:09:50.620 --> 00:09:57.480 of yourself, often to demon spirits. The Apostle 00:09:57.480 --> 00:10:00.919 says, Be filled with the Holy Spirit. Don't be 00:10:00.919 --> 00:10:04.679 drunk with wine. Don't be involved in that kind 00:10:04.679 --> 00:10:08.980 of loss of control. But put yourself under the 00:10:08.980 --> 00:10:14.039 control of the Spirit of God. I think the most 00:10:14.039 --> 00:10:16.500 beautiful illustration I've heard of this idea 00:10:16.500 --> 00:10:19.399 of being filled with the Spirit is that of a 00:10:19.399 --> 00:10:23.600 sailboat. If you've ever been in a sailboat, 00:10:23.639 --> 00:10:26.860 you know that it's a lot of fun. You get out 00:10:26.860 --> 00:10:29.519 there into the waves. and you put up the sail. 00:10:31.799 --> 00:10:35.659 And when that wind hits the sail and the boat 00:10:35.659 --> 00:10:39.460 begins to move, it's exciting. For suddenly you 00:10:39.460 --> 00:10:42.539 find yourself empowered by an invisible force. 00:10:43.019 --> 00:10:46.120 You can't see the wind, but you can feel it. 00:10:47.039 --> 00:10:49.740 You can't see it, but you understand what it's 00:10:49.740 --> 00:10:52.700 doing for you, and you've captured it in that 00:10:52.700 --> 00:10:56.179 sail. so that it empowers the boat and moves 00:10:56.179 --> 00:11:00.620 it along. It fills the sail. So what the apostle 00:11:00.620 --> 00:11:03.120 is saying is that you and I, as a continuous 00:11:03.120 --> 00:11:06.019 experience of life, need to have the sail up 00:11:06.019 --> 00:11:09.919 so that the Holy Spirit can empower us and fill 00:11:09.919 --> 00:11:12.519 us and move us along. And notice that it's a 00:11:12.519 --> 00:11:16.039 command. This is not an option for us to consider. 00:11:16.559 --> 00:11:19.299 This is a command to be obeyed. It's imperative. 00:11:20.220 --> 00:11:29.879 Therefore, not to be filled. The will of God 00:11:29.879 --> 00:11:32.059 is that you and I be filled with the Holy Spirit, 00:11:32.200 --> 00:11:34.720 and He gives us some good motivation for doing 00:11:34.720 --> 00:11:39.659 that. He tells us that the Holy Spirit produces 00:11:39.659 --> 00:11:42.980 some wonderful results in our lives. Please note 00:11:42.980 --> 00:11:46.059 that the filling of the Holy Spirit is never 00:11:46.059 --> 00:11:51.590 an end in itself. The filling of the Holy Spirit 00:11:51.590 --> 00:11:54.490 is always intended to produce something in our 00:11:54.490 --> 00:11:57.230 lives, and he gives us four results in our text. 00:11:57.990 --> 00:12:00.330 The first one in the first part of verse 19, 00:12:00.909 --> 00:12:04.789 fellowship with one another. He says speaking 00:12:04.789 --> 00:12:08.190 to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual 00:12:08.190 --> 00:12:13.049 songs. There's a parallel passage in Colossians 00:12:13.049 --> 00:12:16.190 3 that elaborates a bit more. There it says teaching 00:12:16.190 --> 00:12:21.110 and admonishing. The speaking that is being done 00:12:21.110 --> 00:12:25.049 here is the speaking to one another in the fellowship 00:12:25.049 --> 00:12:29.909 that we enjoy as believers. That fellowship is 00:12:29.909 --> 00:12:32.490 not merely sitting down around a table and eating 00:12:32.490 --> 00:12:35.250 a good chicken dinner. Nothing wrong with that. 00:12:36.090 --> 00:12:38.210 But there are some churches who think that that 00:12:38.210 --> 00:12:41.909 is fellowship. Fellowship may happen there, but 00:12:41.909 --> 00:12:46.090 that's not fellowship. Fellowship is not even 00:12:46.090 --> 00:12:48.250 getting together in your home with a small group 00:12:48.250 --> 00:12:52.250 and chatting about the weather or some other 00:12:52.250 --> 00:12:55.289 topic that you enjoy talking about other than 00:12:55.289 --> 00:12:58.850 spiritual things. Real fellowship is when we 00:12:58.850 --> 00:13:02.970 get together and share the things of God. It 00:13:02.970 --> 00:13:05.389 is the Holy Spirit who makes that fellowship 00:13:05.389 --> 00:13:09.269 possible so that we speak to one another, we 00:13:09.269 --> 00:13:12.970 teach, and we admonish, or that means rebuke 00:13:12.970 --> 00:13:17.850 one another. He says that we are to do this with 00:13:17.850 --> 00:13:20.409 psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. This gives 00:13:20.409 --> 00:13:25.490 us a little insight into what comprised the coming 00:13:25.490 --> 00:13:28.929 together of believers in those early days of 00:13:28.929 --> 00:13:32.610 the Church. They utilized the psalms. This word 00:13:32.610 --> 00:13:35.990 is psalmus. It refers to the Old Testament psalter, 00:13:35.990 --> 00:13:42.460 the 150 psalms in our Old Testament. This word, 00:13:42.600 --> 00:13:46.080 by the way, means literally plucking of strings. 00:13:46.840 --> 00:13:50.500 That's the verb for psalms. And there you obviously 00:13:50.500 --> 00:13:54.600 get the picture of David composing his tunes 00:13:54.600 --> 00:13:58.980 and his words as he wrote about half of the psalms. 00:13:59.620 --> 00:14:01.899 And then they also incorporated in the early 00:14:01.899 --> 00:14:05.980 church hymns. This is where we get our word hymns. 00:14:05.980 --> 00:14:10.720 The Greek word is humnos. It refers to worshipful, 00:14:10.720 --> 00:14:14.460 poetic compositions. These were not ones that 00:14:14.460 --> 00:14:16.879 came out of the Psalter, but these are ones which 00:14:16.879 --> 00:14:19.559 those people wrote in that day, and apparently 00:14:19.559 --> 00:14:22.059 they especially focused on the work of Jesus 00:14:22.059 --> 00:14:24.919 Christ, the coming of the Son of God into the 00:14:24.919 --> 00:14:27.500 world, his incarnation, his work at Calvary, 00:14:27.620 --> 00:14:30.200 his resurrection from the dead, ascension back 00:14:30.200 --> 00:14:34.419 to heaven. We possibly have a couple of examples 00:14:34.419 --> 00:14:39.919 of humnos in the New Testament. I think of Colossians 00:14:39.919 --> 00:14:43.460 1, verses 15 to 18, which is a very compact, 00:14:43.620 --> 00:14:47.320 poetic statement regarding Jesus Christ. Another 00:14:47.320 --> 00:14:50.820 one, Philippians chapter 2, the incarnation, 00:14:51.320 --> 00:14:54.179 Jesus Christ, who thought it not robbery to be 00:14:54.179 --> 00:14:56.559 equal with God, but made himself of no reputation, 00:14:56.799 --> 00:15:01.120 and so on. Another very compact, poetic composition 00:15:01.120 --> 00:15:05.600 regarding the Son of God, ahumnos. They shared 00:15:05.600 --> 00:15:08.019 these kinds of things as they fellowshiped together, 00:15:08.139 --> 00:15:12.480 and also spiritual songs. The Greek word is ode, 00:15:12.659 --> 00:15:17.980 and from this we get our English word ode. A 00:15:17.980 --> 00:15:22.659 spiritual song is simply a song or poem arising 00:15:22.659 --> 00:15:26.019 within the spirit of a person. It was more of 00:15:26.019 --> 00:15:31.039 a spontaneous expression, a testimony, if you 00:15:31.039 --> 00:15:35.429 please. especially focused on the experience 00:15:35.429 --> 00:15:39.009 of the believer. Now, in our singing together, 00:15:39.190 --> 00:15:42.509 we might compare this to gospel songs, which 00:15:42.509 --> 00:15:45.169 really are not hymns of praise to God, but they 00:15:45.169 --> 00:15:49.289 are expressions of what we have experienced of 00:15:49.289 --> 00:15:52.909 the Christian faith. Those are spiritual songs 00:15:52.909 --> 00:15:56.370 as contemporary examples, at least, along with 00:15:56.370 --> 00:15:59.139 our personal testimonies. So he's saying here 00:15:59.139 --> 00:16:01.480 that the Spirit of God, when he is in control 00:16:01.480 --> 00:16:07.840 of us, produces fellowship. That's what God wants 00:16:07.840 --> 00:16:11.039 us to know as we come together like this. But 00:16:11.039 --> 00:16:12.980 it's hard to have deep fellowship when we're 00:16:12.980 --> 00:16:17.899 together in a large celebration of worship. The 00:16:17.899 --> 00:16:20.559 place you really get into fellowship is in a 00:16:20.559 --> 00:16:23.519 small church, a smaller group, or in a flock. 00:16:24.350 --> 00:16:26.490 For there you can open yourself a little more 00:16:26.490 --> 00:16:30.429 intimately to fewer people and become more deeply 00:16:30.429 --> 00:16:33.610 acquainted and there share transparently what 00:16:33.610 --> 00:16:35.990 God is doing in your own life. We all need to 00:16:35.990 --> 00:16:39.870 do that. Now the Spirit of God, secondly, produces 00:16:39.870 --> 00:16:43.750 worship to God. The last part of verse 19. Singing 00:16:43.750 --> 00:16:46.230 and making melody with your heart to the Lord, 00:16:46.429 --> 00:16:49.629 he says. Literally, he says, singing and psalming. 00:16:50.169 --> 00:16:53.129 Here we have the verb form of that word psalm 00:16:53.129 --> 00:16:58.049 used a moment ago. Singing and using instruments 00:16:58.049 --> 00:17:01.149 to reflect the real feelings of the heart is 00:17:01.149 --> 00:17:05.049 what the apostle has in mind at this point. Notice 00:17:05.049 --> 00:17:07.210 it is to be with the heart that we worship God. 00:17:08.230 --> 00:17:10.730 The heart is the center of one's personality. 00:17:11.049 --> 00:17:13.730 In the New Testament, it seems almost synonymous 00:17:13.730 --> 00:17:17.500 with the word mind. He is saying that as we come 00:17:17.500 --> 00:17:20.160 together to sing and to make melody in our hearts 00:17:20.160 --> 00:17:24.099 to God, it's to be with understanding. We are 00:17:24.099 --> 00:17:27.680 to know what we're doing. We're not to come and 00:17:27.680 --> 00:17:31.980 just go through a routine. We're not to carelessly 00:17:31.980 --> 00:17:36.099 perform ritual. But as we come together with 00:17:36.099 --> 00:17:39.539 God's people, we are to be aware of what is happening 00:17:39.539 --> 00:17:44.180 around us and with the understanding. as well 00:17:44.180 --> 00:17:48.019 as with our emotions and our wills, we are to 00:17:48.019 --> 00:17:55.279 worship the Lord. I think a beautiful illustration 00:17:55.279 --> 00:17:59.200 of this would be a wind chime. Have you ever 00:17:59.200 --> 00:18:02.359 seen one of those? Some of you have them. Three 00:18:02.359 --> 00:18:07.839 or four metal tubes that hang together, and as 00:18:07.839 --> 00:18:11.299 the wind comes against those, they are gently... 00:18:12.190 --> 00:18:14.970 rocked back and forth, and they brush against 00:18:14.970 --> 00:18:19.029 each other to produce a very pleasant sound. 00:18:19.329 --> 00:18:21.650 Now, frankly, when the wind is high in a storm, 00:18:21.829 --> 00:18:25.730 it's not too pleasant. I have walked out in storms 00:18:25.730 --> 00:18:28.690 before and taken our wind chime down because 00:18:28.690 --> 00:18:32.730 it was driving me nuts. But a wind chime, a soft 00:18:32.730 --> 00:18:36.170 wind chime, is a very pleasant sound. You see, 00:18:36.210 --> 00:18:38.569 that's the picture here, the Spirit of God blowing 00:18:38.569 --> 00:18:41.369 upon his people, moving in the hearts of his 00:18:41.369 --> 00:18:44.109 people. And as he does that, then the gentle 00:18:44.109 --> 00:18:47.230 sound of worship being raised to God, singing, 00:18:47.589 --> 00:18:51.630 making melody with our understanding, with our 00:18:51.630 --> 00:18:54.509 hearts to the Lord, the Spirit of God produces 00:18:54.509 --> 00:18:57.690 that. And then he says, thirdly, the Spirit of 00:18:57.690 --> 00:19:03.079 God produces thanksgiving in verse 20. Ceaseless 00:19:03.079 --> 00:19:06.380 praise and gratitude to the Lord, acknowledgement 00:19:06.380 --> 00:19:10.480 of the benefits which we have received as his 00:19:10.480 --> 00:19:14.200 people. The Spirit of God, when he is filling 00:19:14.200 --> 00:19:18.559 a person, will create a thankful person. A complainer 00:19:18.559 --> 00:19:22.839 is never filled with the Spirit of God. When 00:19:22.839 --> 00:19:25.240 are we to give thanks, he tells us, notice the 00:19:25.240 --> 00:19:29.859 word, always. That means we are to give thanks 00:19:29.859 --> 00:19:34.210 to God after the blessing. Exodus 15, an example 00:19:34.210 --> 00:19:36.450 of that. God delivered his people from Egypt, 00:19:36.549 --> 00:19:39.430 and the first thing they did beside the Red Sea 00:19:39.430 --> 00:19:42.970 was to have a praise service to the Lord. Thanksgiving 00:19:42.970 --> 00:19:47.130 to God. The horse and the rider he has dumped 00:19:47.130 --> 00:19:50.970 into the sea, they said. We are to give thanks 00:19:50.970 --> 00:19:54.869 to the Lord in the midst of our distress. You 00:19:54.869 --> 00:19:58.089 read Jonah chapter 2 real carefully, you'll find 00:19:58.089 --> 00:20:01.289 that he was still in the belly of the big fish. 00:20:01.960 --> 00:20:03.880 When he had a prayer meeting and gave thanks 00:20:03.880 --> 00:20:08.319 to God, in the middle of his distress, he was 00:20:08.319 --> 00:20:10.460 giving thanks. Can you give thanks to God for 00:20:10.460 --> 00:20:13.559 that situation you're in? Only by the Spirit 00:20:13.559 --> 00:20:17.240 of God can you do that. And it's an act of faith. 00:20:19.460 --> 00:20:21.579 And then we need to give thanks to God before 00:20:21.579 --> 00:20:24.299 the battle begins. Jehoshaphat did that in 2 00:20:24.299 --> 00:20:29.799 Chronicles 20. In fact, as he sent the army into 00:20:29.799 --> 00:20:33.390 battle, against the foes united against them. 00:20:34.750 --> 00:20:37.630 The ones who were leading the army were those 00:20:37.630 --> 00:20:41.470 who were appointed to be singers to the Lord. 00:20:42.269 --> 00:20:45.650 And they gave thanks to God for his loving kindness, 00:20:45.829 --> 00:20:50.829 which endures forever. And as those singers led 00:20:50.829 --> 00:20:55.480 them into battle, giving thanks to God. The Lord, 00:20:55.539 --> 00:20:57.940 it says, set ambushes for the enemies, and they 00:20:57.940 --> 00:21:00.299 destroyed themselves before the army ever had 00:21:00.299 --> 00:21:05.720 to attack. You see, the time to give thanks is 00:21:05.720 --> 00:21:09.279 always, whatever our situation. And for what? 00:21:09.759 --> 00:21:15.539 Again, he tells us three simple words. For all 00:21:15.539 --> 00:21:23.539 things. William Hendrickson says, Gratitude must 00:21:23.539 --> 00:21:26.019 be felt and expressed for blessings physical 00:21:26.019 --> 00:21:31.559 and spiritual, ordinary and extraordinary, past, 00:21:31.619 --> 00:21:34.519 present, and future, and even for things withheld 00:21:34.519 --> 00:21:38.980 and for things received. It should be borne constantly 00:21:38.980 --> 00:21:41.579 in mind that the one who under the guidance of 00:21:41.579 --> 00:21:44.859 the Spirit issued this admonition was himself 00:21:44.859 --> 00:21:49.460 a prisoner while he so commanded. But in spite 00:21:49.460 --> 00:21:53.160 of his chain, no rather for his chain, he thanked 00:21:53.160 --> 00:21:56.960 God. He was able to take pleasure in weakness, 00:21:57.319 --> 00:22:02.000 injuries, hardships, and frustrations. This may 00:22:02.000 --> 00:22:06.099 seem very strange. It is, however, entirely consistent 00:22:06.099 --> 00:22:09.640 with the rest of Paul's teachings, for it harmonizes 00:22:09.640 --> 00:22:12.779 beautifully with the assurance that to them that 00:22:12.779 --> 00:22:17.079 love God, all things work together for good. 00:22:17.690 --> 00:22:21.930 and that in all these things we are more than 00:22:21.930 --> 00:22:26.789 conquerors through him that loved us. That's 00:22:26.789 --> 00:22:29.930 why we can give thanks for all things, because 00:22:29.930 --> 00:22:34.329 all things are under his control. It may not 00:22:34.329 --> 00:22:38.069 be pleasant. It may be heartache and grief or 00:22:38.069 --> 00:22:42.849 challenge and stretching involved. But oh, thank 00:22:42.849 --> 00:22:46.849 God for it, friend. The Spirit of God will produce 00:22:46.849 --> 00:22:50.609 in you that gratitude that will give thanks for 00:22:50.609 --> 00:22:53.910 all things. And then how are we to do it? In 00:22:53.910 --> 00:22:56.930 the name, he says, of our Lord Jesus Christ. 00:22:57.890 --> 00:23:01.950 Why? Well, because he's our approach to God and 00:23:01.950 --> 00:23:04.730 because he himself is our greatest cause for 00:23:04.730 --> 00:23:08.630 thanksgiving. Give thanks to God in his name. 00:23:09.470 --> 00:23:12.730 God is the origin. He is the source of all things. 00:23:13.799 --> 00:23:16.440 what is sometimes called the first cause. So 00:23:16.440 --> 00:23:18.579 often, you know, we give thanks to other people. 00:23:19.359 --> 00:23:22.440 We write thank you notes or we express a thank 00:23:22.440 --> 00:23:25.859 you, and we should do that. We should do that. 00:23:26.140 --> 00:23:30.720 But we tend to forget that those people who were 00:23:30.720 --> 00:23:34.519 kind to us in some way were actually the ministers 00:23:34.519 --> 00:23:38.859 of the Lord. And we need to give thanks ultimately 00:23:38.859 --> 00:23:44.049 to God the Father for all of the blessings. that 00:23:44.049 --> 00:23:47.490 he gives and, as has been stated, even for those 00:23:47.490 --> 00:23:51.230 that he withholds for some good purpose. The 00:23:51.230 --> 00:23:54.809 Spirit of God produces a thankful heart. And 00:23:54.809 --> 00:23:56.769 finally, the Spirit of God produces submission 00:23:56.769 --> 00:24:01.349 to one another. Verse 21. This word, subject, 00:24:01.549 --> 00:24:06.250 is a military term. It means to line up under 00:24:06.250 --> 00:24:11.880 another who is your superior. What he is saying 00:24:11.880 --> 00:24:15.380 here is that all of us are to willingly serve 00:24:15.380 --> 00:24:22.599 others. We are to be dominated rather than demanding 00:24:22.599 --> 00:24:28.059 domination. There is to be a mutual deference 00:24:28.059 --> 00:24:32.279 about us. As the Apostle says in Romans chapter 00:24:32.279 --> 00:24:39.019 12, deferring to one another in honor. As he 00:24:39.019 --> 00:24:41.599 says in Philippians chapter 2, counting others 00:24:41.599 --> 00:24:46.400 is more important than ourselves. And we are 00:24:46.400 --> 00:24:48.819 to do this, it says, in the fear of Christ, that 00:24:48.819 --> 00:24:52.519 is with reverence for him who is the head of 00:24:52.519 --> 00:24:57.740 the body. Why is it that we can, in the fear 00:24:57.740 --> 00:25:04.099 of Christ, be subject to others? Defer to them. 00:25:05.769 --> 00:25:09.230 Why is it? Because Jesus Christ is the head of 00:25:09.230 --> 00:25:14.049 both of us. And I need not fear subjecting myself 00:25:14.049 --> 00:25:20.690 to you, because your head is my head. And as 00:25:20.690 --> 00:25:23.750 both of us are in fear of him, that is, have 00:25:23.750 --> 00:25:27.609 reverence for him, respect for his awesome position 00:25:27.609 --> 00:25:32.109 of majesty as God, then we're going to treat 00:25:32.109 --> 00:25:36.180 each other in love. Neither of us is going to 00:25:36.180 --> 00:25:38.539 seek to take advantage of the other. There's 00:25:38.539 --> 00:25:41.279 not going to be manipulation and politicking 00:25:41.279 --> 00:25:44.720 going on because we can, in the fear of Christ, 00:25:44.839 --> 00:25:48.119 subject ourselves to one another. And it's the 00:25:48.119 --> 00:25:53.000 Spirit of God who produces that within us. Now 00:25:53.000 --> 00:25:55.160 we come to the key question, how is this filling 00:25:55.160 --> 00:25:58.880 of the Spirit of God experienced? I want you 00:25:58.880 --> 00:26:04.809 to notice that the verb is passive. It is something 00:26:04.809 --> 00:26:09.269 that happens to us, but it's a command at the 00:26:09.269 --> 00:26:12.450 same time. So you put that together, and what 00:26:12.450 --> 00:26:15.170 he is saying is that here is something that you 00:26:15.170 --> 00:26:20.750 and I must allow. Here is something that we have 00:26:20.750 --> 00:26:26.390 to cooperate with for it to be real. That's the 00:26:26.390 --> 00:26:31.069 point. You see, there are conditions for the 00:26:31.069 --> 00:26:37.319 Spirit of God to be filling us. Often we look 00:26:37.319 --> 00:26:39.700 upon the filling of the Spirit as one option 00:26:39.700 --> 00:26:44.400 and walking in the flesh as another option. And 00:26:44.400 --> 00:26:47.000 somehow we're in between and we can go one way 00:26:47.000 --> 00:26:51.079 or the other. That is not the case. It's like 00:26:51.079 --> 00:26:53.359 a light switch. It's either on or off. Either 00:26:53.359 --> 00:26:55.539 we are filled with the Spirit or we're walking 00:26:55.539 --> 00:26:59.380 in the flesh. It's one or the other. There's 00:26:59.380 --> 00:27:02.440 no in between. There's no middle ground here. 00:27:04.490 --> 00:27:07.170 Being filled with the Holy Spirit is the normal 00:27:07.170 --> 00:27:11.589 Christian life. It's not something that is for 00:27:11.589 --> 00:27:16.609 just an elite few. It's not something just for 00:27:16.609 --> 00:27:20.869 those who have learned the secret. But the filling 00:27:20.869 --> 00:27:23.690 of the Spirit of God is the normal experience 00:27:23.690 --> 00:27:27.829 for the child of God who's walking in obedience 00:27:27.829 --> 00:27:31.630 to the Lord. Now the conditions for being filled 00:27:31.630 --> 00:27:36.109 with the Holy Spirit are simple. In the first 00:27:36.109 --> 00:27:40.190 place, we have to confess all known sin. If the 00:27:40.190 --> 00:27:45.069 Spirit of God is grieved or quenched, He is not 00:27:45.069 --> 00:27:47.549 going to control us and empower us, obviously. 00:27:47.970 --> 00:27:50.769 Those terms are in opposition to one another. 00:27:51.730 --> 00:27:55.049 If He is dominating, then He is not being quenched. 00:27:55.089 --> 00:27:58.309 He's not being put down. If He is in control, 00:27:58.529 --> 00:28:01.049 then He is not being grieved in our lives. So 00:28:01.049 --> 00:28:04.009 we need to confess all known sin. That's where 00:28:04.009 --> 00:28:07.640 we begin. Secondly, we need to acknowledge our 00:28:07.640 --> 00:28:10.099 need for the filling of the Holy Spirit and our 00:28:10.099 --> 00:28:15.480 desire for it. If we somehow are self -complacent 00:28:15.480 --> 00:28:18.799 or satisfied, like the Laodicean Christians, 00:28:19.140 --> 00:28:22.539 for example, and we say, well, I am full, I am 00:28:22.539 --> 00:28:25.579 rich, I have need of nothing, then the Spirit 00:28:25.579 --> 00:28:29.660 of God is not going to be in control. If our 00:28:29.660 --> 00:28:32.559 lives are filled with something else, and they 00:28:32.559 --> 00:28:37.180 can be, As the book of Acts points out, if our 00:28:37.180 --> 00:28:42.400 lives are filled with some other object or person 00:28:42.400 --> 00:28:46.400 or activity or involvement that we put first, 00:28:46.640 --> 00:28:50.180 then the Spirit of God will meekly and gently 00:28:50.180 --> 00:28:54.140 step aside and let you have your way. Let me 00:28:54.140 --> 00:28:58.869 have my way until we learn better. So we have 00:28:58.869 --> 00:29:01.309 to acknowledge our need for the filling of the 00:29:01.309 --> 00:29:04.170 Holy Spirit and desire it. That means having 00:29:04.170 --> 00:29:10.130 a broken spirit, not a satisfied spirit. It means 00:29:10.130 --> 00:29:12.710 allowing our hearts to be broken before God and 00:29:12.710 --> 00:29:17.470 say, Oh God, I need you. Truly, there is no greater 00:29:17.470 --> 00:29:21.470 need that I have in my life. And it means to 00:29:21.470 --> 00:29:26.279 seek the Spirit of God with some urgency. It 00:29:26.279 --> 00:29:28.680 means that there needs to be a deep desire within, 00:29:28.920 --> 00:29:33.019 like thirst. That's why Jesus said, if any man 00:29:33.019 --> 00:29:38.160 thirsts, let him come to me and drink. If we 00:29:38.160 --> 00:29:40.819 hunger and thirst after righteousness, we will 00:29:40.819 --> 00:29:45.480 be filled. Do you acknowledge your need for the 00:29:45.480 --> 00:29:51.119 Holy Spirit's control in your life? Do you desire 00:29:51.119 --> 00:29:55.279 it? A third condition is to yield ourselves without 00:29:55.279 --> 00:29:59.740 reservation to God. Romans 12, 1 and 2. Present 00:29:59.740 --> 00:30:05.619 your bodies a living sacrifice. Romans chapter 00:30:05.619 --> 00:30:11.099 6. Present to the Lord, he says, the members 00:30:11.099 --> 00:30:17.960 of your body. The Spirit of God will be pleased. 00:30:19.180 --> 00:30:25.140 to control that which is given to him. And the 00:30:25.140 --> 00:30:28.240 fourth condition is very simple, but it simply 00:30:28.240 --> 00:30:30.940 says, believe that the Spirit of God has done 00:30:30.940 --> 00:30:34.720 this. You see, you need not even ask the Holy 00:30:34.720 --> 00:30:39.880 Spirit to control you, because that's the natural, 00:30:40.000 --> 00:30:43.420 normal thing he will do if the obstacles are 00:30:43.420 --> 00:30:48.019 taken out of the way. Do you get the point? It's 00:30:48.019 --> 00:30:54.880 like an artesian well. It's like a fountain that 00:30:54.880 --> 00:30:58.920 produces from within unless there is something 00:30:58.920 --> 00:31:03.500 stopping it up. So once we have dealt with whatever 00:31:03.500 --> 00:31:05.960 the obstacles are, the Spirit of God immediately 00:31:05.960 --> 00:31:10.339 does begin controlling and filling us so that 00:31:10.339 --> 00:31:12.740 when we have confessed our sin and acknowledged 00:31:12.740 --> 00:31:15.980 our need and desire for it, And when we have 00:31:15.980 --> 00:31:18.799 yielded without reservation to God, at that moment 00:31:18.799 --> 00:31:22.759 the Spirit of God begins to empower us and to 00:31:22.759 --> 00:31:25.460 control us. And we need to say, Lord, thank you. 00:31:25.700 --> 00:31:28.799 I believe that you are controlling me. There's 00:31:28.799 --> 00:31:32.619 no pleading involved. It's His desire to do so. 00:31:33.420 --> 00:31:36.160 I repeat, this is the normal Christian life. 00:31:37.339 --> 00:31:41.059 Our part is to remove the obstacles. The walk 00:31:41.059 --> 00:31:43.440 in the Spirit is not one of feelings, but it's 00:31:43.440 --> 00:31:45.619 one of faith, believing that God does what he 00:31:45.619 --> 00:31:50.960 says he will do. Every genuine Christian has 00:31:50.960 --> 00:31:53.839 all of the Holy Spirit, but the command here, 00:31:53.900 --> 00:31:56.680 you see, involves the Holy Spirit having all 00:31:56.680 --> 00:32:00.059 of us so that he can do what he wants to do. 00:32:04.980 --> 00:32:09.470 Some may say, I would willingly yield all into 00:32:09.470 --> 00:32:12.609 God's hand and empty my heart that he might fill 00:32:12.609 --> 00:32:15.589 it. But there are many things which keep me bound, 00:32:15.710 --> 00:32:17.849 and I am unable to root those things out of my 00:32:17.849 --> 00:32:23.170 life. Of course, writes one commentator, God 00:32:23.170 --> 00:32:26.930 does not expect us to purify ourselves or to 00:32:26.930 --> 00:32:30.210 expel first by our own efforts that which hinders 00:32:30.210 --> 00:32:33.609 his work in us. We would not accomplish this. 00:32:34.990 --> 00:32:40.450 All he asks of us is our consent, our consent 00:32:40.450 --> 00:32:43.670 to let him enter into every part that he may 00:32:43.670 --> 00:32:48.410 transform and purify all. All he desires is the 00:32:48.410 --> 00:32:51.589 complete submission of our will, contrary to 00:32:51.589 --> 00:32:55.529 which he will not act, since he created us free 00:32:55.529 --> 00:33:00.170 beings. My Christian brother and sister, are 00:33:00.170 --> 00:33:02.869 you this morning prepared to obey this command 00:33:02.869 --> 00:33:08.299 of God? Will you do it now? Would you bow with 00:33:08.299 --> 00:33:15.160 me? This morning these conditions are laid before 00:33:15.160 --> 00:33:19.359 you. To obey this command, to allow the Holy 00:33:19.359 --> 00:33:25.119 Spirit to fill you, confess all known sin. Have 00:33:25.119 --> 00:33:31.220 you done that? Will you do it now? Be specific 00:33:31.220 --> 00:33:34.839 enough. that you know what you're talking about. 00:33:35.059 --> 00:33:41.640 Certainly God knows. Will you acknowledge your 00:33:41.640 --> 00:33:45.539 need for the Spirit of God and tell the Lord 00:33:45.539 --> 00:33:49.059 you desire it, that you thirst for this reality 00:33:49.059 --> 00:33:58.210 of the Spirit's control in your life? And now 00:33:58.210 --> 00:34:01.089 will you yield without reservation to God everything 00:34:01.089 --> 00:34:06.349 you are, everything you have, every potential 00:34:06.349 --> 00:34:10.710 that lies within you, the gifts and talents the 00:34:10.710 --> 00:34:14.630 Lord has given you as a stewardship, your resources? 00:34:18.329 --> 00:34:23.610 Will you yield? My friend, if you have done that, 00:34:23.750 --> 00:34:27.539 then will you at this moment simply believe that 00:34:27.539 --> 00:34:32.920 the Spirit of God is in control, like a well 00:34:32.920 --> 00:34:37.960 of water springing up within you. Once the obstacles 00:34:37.960 --> 00:34:40.900 are out of the way, he will burst forth in all 00:34:40.900 --> 00:34:44.420 of his power and glory to control your life. 00:34:48.179 --> 00:34:50.800 Father, I thank you for this truth, and I pray 00:34:50.800 --> 00:34:53.159 that there will be scores, if not hundreds of 00:34:53.159 --> 00:34:55.380 us this morning, who will come into a deeper 00:34:55.380 --> 00:35:00.840 understanding of the will of the Lord. And may 00:35:00.840 --> 00:35:06.519 we obey it. And I pray that having filled us 00:35:06.519 --> 00:35:11.480 to our capacity at this point in our walk, that 00:35:11.480 --> 00:35:15.860 you would deepen us and enlarge our capacity 00:35:15.860 --> 00:35:25.420 so that we may be vessels useful to you. Lord, 00:35:25.559 --> 00:35:28.860 I pray that every area of our lives will be searched 00:35:28.860 --> 00:35:33.039 out by the Holy Spirit and purified. Some of 00:35:33.039 --> 00:35:35.280 us are battling battles that we don't know what 00:35:35.280 --> 00:35:37.639 to do with, but we bring those battles to you 00:35:37.639 --> 00:35:41.340 and we give you our consent. We yield to you, 00:35:41.380 --> 00:35:43.760 Lord. We ask you to fight that battle for us. 00:35:46.400 --> 00:35:50.119 Thank you. Lord, thank you for being here and 00:35:50.119 --> 00:35:52.460 ministering in this time of worship this morning. 00:35:56.170 --> 00:36:02.170 Let's prayerfully sing together. Father, I adore 00:36:02.170 --> 00:36:21.690 you Lay my life before you How I love you Jesus 00:36:22.989 --> 00:36:41.730 I adore you. Lay my life before you. How I love 00:36:41.730 --> 00:36:59.139 you. Spirit, I adore you. Lay my life before 00:36:59.139 --> 00:37:14.360 you, how I love you. Would you stand with me, 00:37:14.380 --> 00:37:17.239 please? Let me assure you that that is a prayer 00:37:17.239 --> 00:37:20.760 that God hears, and God is delighted to answer 00:37:20.760 --> 00:37:25.489 that prayer already in your life. Let's bow together. 00:37:27.829 --> 00:37:30.630 Now, Father, I pray as we are dismissed from 00:37:30.630 --> 00:37:33.989 this place, make us aware of your presence wherever 00:37:33.989 --> 00:37:38.989 we are, that we're never left alone to face the 00:37:38.989 --> 00:37:42.809 battle by ourselves, but that the Spirit of God 00:37:42.809 --> 00:37:46.610 is within us forever, that he's there to empower 00:37:46.610 --> 00:37:51.650 us. And so now may we go forth from here. empowered 00:37:51.650 --> 00:37:55.869 like sails filled with wind. And may the beautiful 00:37:55.869 --> 00:37:59.750 produce of the Spirit of God and fellowship and 00:37:59.750 --> 00:38:04.690 worship and gratitude and submission be evidenced 00:38:04.690 --> 00:38:07.309 in us. For Jesus' sake, amen.