Nepaug Bible Church - http://www.nepaugchurch.org - Pastor's Sermon Notes - http://www.nepaugchurch.org/Sermons/zz20030824.htm

EPHESIANS: GOD'S SURE PLAN FOR INSECURE TIMES
Part VIII: Mutual Edification In The Church By God's Power
C. Relying On God The Holy Spirit's Power To Edify One Another
(Ephesians 5:18-21)

Introduction: (To show the need . . . )

This past year in particular, I have had a fairly large number of discussions with members in our Church body on the role of the Holy Spirit in life and ministry. I can tell from the questions that have come my way that a number of us have had rather extensive contact with those of the Charismatic school of thought who believe we must have a special "Second Blessing Experience" with the Holy Spirit and "speak in tongues" for blessing or even to go to heaven!

It is a fact that we at Nepaug Church are not "Charismatic" in belief! We hold the gift of speaking in tongues or interpreting tongues or the gift of prophecy, etc. were temporary gifts that ceased to be given by God very early in the history of the Church.

However, in Ephesians 5:18, the verse that begins the passage we are going to view today, the Apostle Paul COMMANDED his readers to " . . . be filled with the Spirit . . ."

Several questions can arise in our minds when we read this Biblical command: (1) Since being "filled" with the Holy Spirit occurs AFTER salvation (the Ephesians were ALREADY SAVED according to Ephesians 1:13-14), WHAT does being "filled" with the Holy Spirit REALLY INVOLVE for US TODAY? (2) How NECESSARY is it for US TODAY to be FILLED with the Holy Spirit, and WHY?



We answer these questions in today's exposition of Ephesians 5:18-21 as follows:



(We turn to the sermon "Need" section . . . )



Need: "I've heard some say WE TODAY must be filled' with the Holy Spirit and THUS speak in tongues', but I know we at Nepaug believe otherwise! Yet, (1) WHY does Ephesians 5:18 tell US to be filled' with the Spirit and (3) HOW must we DO so (4) to EDIFY?"
  1. Paul's call for US to be "filled with the Spirit" in Ephesians 5:18 is NOT a call to OBTAIN the Spirit AND THUS "speak in tongues":
    1. Though he implied his readers might not all be "filled" with the Holy Spirit since he called for them to be thus filled in Ephesians 5:18, Paul had already noted in Ephesians 1:13-14 that when his readers had trusted in Christ, they were then fully INDWELT by the Holy Spirit!
    2. In fact, in Ephesians 4:30, Paul told these believers to stop grieving [present imperative with a subjunctive negative adverb, cf. UBS Grk. N.T., p. 673] the Spirit by Whom they had been sealed unto the "day of redemption," or until God took them to heaven (Romans 8:23). Thus, they were ALREADY permanently indwelt by ALL of the Holy Spirit even though they at times needed to be "filled" with Him!
    3. Then, in 1 Corinthians 12:13, Paul taught that though all his readers had been baptized by one Spirit into Christ's body, according to verse 30, not ALL of them had even spoken in tongues: the questions in 1 Cor. 12:29-30 all appear with the subjunctive adverb, ("may") with verbs written in the indicative mood, so Paul's questions all expect a negative answer; thus, not all the Corinthians had spoken in tongues, Ibid., p. 607; Machan, N.T. Greek for Beginners, p. 197, par. #478.]
    4. Thus, throughout Acts (Acts 2, 8, 10, 19) where people are filled with the Spirit and speak in tongues,' these events intend to reveal a new program that is not the norm even in the Early Church era:
      1. In Acts 2, the Holy Spirit's indwelling and filling with speaking in tongues showed Jews were part of the Church when they believed in Christ as Savior, cf. Acts 2:1-12.
      2. In Acts 8, the Spirit's indwelling and filling with speaking in tongues showed partly Jewish Samaritans were now part of the Church when they trusted in Christ, Acts 8:5-14, 15-17.
      3. In Acts 10, the Holy Spirit's indwelling and filling with speaking in tongues showed Gentiles were now part of the Church when they believed in Christ, cf. Acts 10:1-48; 11:15-18.
      4. Finally, in Acts 19:1-6, the Holy Spirit's indwelling and filling with tongues showed uninformed Jewish believers in the Father became part of the Church when they trusted in Christ.
    5. Summary: Once the Holy Spirit was shown to indwell all who trusted in Christ, all were indwelt by the Spirit at the instant of salvation even if they never spoke in tongues, and that even in the Early Church!
  2. Thus, being "filled with the Spirit" refers to a believer's yielding to the Holy Spirit's CONTROL in his BEHAVIOR, Ephesians 5:18:
    1. In light of what we have just established and in light of the context, Ephesians 5:18 must refer to one's being controlled BY the ALREADY INDWELLING HOLY SPIRIT of God (as follows):
      1. In Eph. 5:18a, Paul urged his readers to stop being controlled by wine in being drunk (Ibid., UBS Grk. N.T., p. 675 [present tense in the indicative with " may" = to stop an act in progress].
      2. In sharp contrast ("alla"), they were to be filled with the Spirit, 18
    2. So, being "filled" with the Spirit refers to the Holy Spirit's control of the believer in contrast to the believer's being controlled by wine!
  3. Then, it is VERY NECESSARY to be thus CONTROLLED BY the Spirit so we can EDIFY one another, for DOING so makes ALL of our ministries EFFECTIVE, cf. Ephesians 5:19-21 with 5:22-6:9:
    1. Five participles modify the verb, "be filled" in Eph. 5:18, and they exist in verses 19-21 to describe the ministries of "speaking," "singing," "making melody," "giving thanks" and "submitting" ourselves to one another in the fear of God, Ibid., p. 675-676!
    2. Well, the "submitting" idea is described in Eph. 5:22-6:9, and covers the roles of believers in marriage (5:22-33), family (6:1-4) and the marketplace [slaves and masters (employees and employers)] (6:5-9).
    3. Thus, worship and basic social relationships, or all ministry effectiveness is to flow out of our being "filled" with the Holy Spirit, so this "filling" ministry is key to the success of all Christian ministry!
Application: (1) To gain all of the Spirit we can EVER have, we must TRUST in Christ as Savior from sin and become indwelt and sealed' by Him until we go heaven, Eph. 1:13-14! (2) Yet, to be EFFECTIVE in LIFE, we must YIELD to His CONTROL (be filled') in ALL of our relationships and ministry efforts!

Lesson: In CONTRAST to errant claims by some, once a person trusts in Christ as Savior, he POSSESSES ALL of the Holy Spirit he will EVER have, and that by FAITH ALONE without tongues speaking; however, we must CONSTANTLY be "filled" with the Spirit by YIELDING to His CONTROL of our BEHAVIOR so we might be a blessing in MINISTRY!

Conclusion: (To illustrate the sermon lesson . . . )

 (1) On the one hand, for our edification, it is necessary to give evidence of the cessation of the true gift of tongues from history itself. Thomas R. Edgar's article, "The Cessation of the Sign Gifts," Bibliotheca Sacra, p. 371-386 (145:580, p. 373) states: "Chrysostom, a fourth-century theologian, testified that they [the miraculous gifts of the New Testament age] had ceased so long before his time that no one was certain of their characteristics." (brackets ours) (in citing Homily XXIX in the Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, 12:168) Thus, as would be expected with our exposition of Acts, the special "sign gifts" of tongues, etc. Should have passed off the scene within just the first or second generation of Church era believers!

(2) On the other hand, it is necessary to illustrate the believer's control ("being filled") by the Holy Spirit for effective Christian living.

An illustration comes from the life of Lewis Sperry Chafer, founder of Dallas Theological Seminary and one who deeply impacted many men for God's glory. Dr. Chafer taught for decades at the Seminary, and his favorite topic was the Holy Spirit filled Christian life. The man simply lived what he taught.

On one occasion, while teaching a seminary class on God's grace, Dr. Chafer so deeply moved the class that, after he had finished teaching, and left the room, he noticed all the students were still sitting in stunned silence, dwelling on the blessing of the truths he had just taught. Dr. Chafer had to return to the room and announce that class was over before the students began to move to their next class!

Yet, of the Spirit-filled life, Dr. Chafer himself meekly wrote: "The vital question is, Am I walking in the Spirit now?' Answer to this question should not depend on the presence or absence of some unusual manifestation of the supernatural. Much of life will be lived in the uneventful commonplace; but, even there, we should have the conviction that we are right with God and in His unbroken fellowship . . . Likewise, we should not mistake worn nerves, physical weakness or depression for unspirituality. Many times sleep is more needed than prayer, and physical recreation than heart searching." (Chafer, He That Is Spiritual, p. 139)

In view of this unassuming and yet deeply godly man -- the Spirit filled life is one lived quietly but with IMMENSE impact on other people! May we live lives filled with the Holy Spirit of God!