Living Under the Influence

Ephesians 5:18-21

Scott Luck

Part of New Normal

May 2, 2024

Ephesians 5:18–21

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.

Four discoveries about the Spirit Filled Life

1. The distinction from the Spirit’s infilling

Ephesians 5:18

And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit,

2. The directive for the Spirit’s infilling

Ephesians 5:18

…be filled with the Spirit,

Romans 1:29-31

They were filled with all manner of unrighteousness, evil, covetousness, malice. They are full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, maliciousness. They are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, haughty, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless.

Romans 8:5-6

For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.

3. The details of the Spirit’s infilling

Ephesians 5:18

…be filled with the Spirit,

Acts 4:31

And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness.

4. The difference the Spirit’s infilling makes

Ephesians 5:18-21

Evidences of the Spirit’s infilling

Speaking and Singing

Ephesians 5:19

addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart,

Thanking

Ephesians 5:20

giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,

Submitting

Ephesians 5:21

submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.

How are we to be filled with the Spirit?

Don’t grieve the Holy Spirit

Ephesians 4:30

And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.

Don’t quench the Holy Spirit

1 Thessalonians 5:19

Do not quench the Spirit

Ask for the filling of the Holy Spirit

Luke 11:11-13

What father among you, if his son asks for a fish, will instead of a fish give him a serpent; or if he asks for an egg, will give him a scorpion? If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will the heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!”

For this week’s application guide click this URL: https://storage2.snappages.site/QG8D8X/assets/files/Eph-5_18_21424May_2_2024.docx

Resources Cited

Commentaries
Biblical Studies: Ephesians by Sam Storms. Edmond, OK: Sam Storms, 2016.
Ephesians by Bryan Chapell. Edited by Richard D. Phillips, Philip Graham Ryken, and Daniel M. Doriani. Reformed Expository Commentary. Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R Publishing, 2009.

God’s New Society: The Message of Ephesians by John R.W. Stott. The Bible Speaks Today. Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 1979.

Books
A Handbook for Christian Maturity by Bill Bright. New Life Publications, Peachtree City, GA, 1994.

Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament: Based on Semantic Domain by, Johannes P. Louw and Eugene Albert Nida. New York: United Bible Societies, 1996.

Praying with Paul: A Call to Spiritual Reformation by D.A. Carson. Baker Academic. 2015.

Sermons
Be Filled with the Spirit by Timothy Keller. Sermon on Eph. 5:18-21. www.gospelinlife.com, 1991.

Life in the Spirit in Marriage, Home, and Work by D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones. An Exposition of Eph. 5:18 to 6:9. Banner of Truth, 1974.

Be Filled with the Spirit: Eph. 5:18-21 by H.B. Charles. The 6:7 Awakening International Conference. Calgary, ON. May 30, 2023.