Is the Spirit's Filling That Big a Deal?, Part 2

Are you looking for appropriate prayer as you start a new day board. I'm yours today remind me as I get to my place of employment. Remind me Lord as I meet with those individuals who may be difficult to deal remind me that I'm yours and help me to depend to lean on you and have you fill my mind in my thoughts so that I am literally filled with your presence and power.net for many Christians prayer has become an ongoing conversation with God throughout the day. It starts first thing in the morning and the quiet dialogue continues as the day rolls on today on Insight for living Chuck Swindoll's teaching from a variety of New Testament passages that speak to this interactive relationship with God. In particular, were looking at what it means to be filled with the Holy Spirit will began right where we left off on our previous program. Chuck titled his message with the question, is the spirit spilling that big a deal. Some things in Ephesians 5. Do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the spirit, let's focus our attention on the second of the two commands stay with me now, keep thinking, look at that command be filled with the spirit to begin with. I've said it already, but let me repeat. I want to make four observations about it. First of all, it is in the imperative mood you be filled with the spirit. I suppose we could say and with the inflection of my voice you can tell it's not a mild, casual recommendation. This is not a polite, calm piece of advice. It is a straightforward firm command. We have no more liberty to escape this duty then to ignore the ethical commands that surrounded chapters 4 and five mention work hard, speak the truth be kind. Forgive, be tenderhearted, be filled with the spirit receipts in the same spirit as those other commands so Christian. Let me admonish you.

Let me admonish us if our lives are not filled with the spirit we are not obeying God's direct command. It is an imperative mood. Interestingly, it is in the plural form is not directing this to one's special group of people or one super spiritual saint in the church at Ephesus or for that matter, in the church.

You may be a part of. He is saying to all of us universally across the board. All believers are to be equally filled with the spirit of God. Third, it is in the passive voice. Did you notice that be filled.

The command is not filled yourself up with the spirit, no the new English Bible does a good job with this rendering.

Let the Holy Spirit fill you. But don't make too much of that. Just as a person gets drunk by drinking alcohol. Someone individual is filled with the spirit, with the spirit by involving himself in the process that leads to it. For example, I cannot be filled with the spirit and operate my life with known sin at work. I cannot be filled with the spirit, while at the same time operating in the flesh for my own glory. I cannot be filled with the spirit. While I am walking against God's will and depending upon myself. I need to be sure that in my life I have taken care of the sins that have that have emerged that I have not ignored the wrong that I have done to others.

I need to walk in dependence on the Lord in a daily basis. Many a morning I began my day by sitting on the side of the bed and saying without necessarily speaking. It allowed this is your day Lord I want to be at your disposal. I have no idea what the day holds.

But before I ever began. Even with my 1st cup of coffee before I ever dressed. I want you to know from from this moment on through this day, I'm yours now. Once again, I don't necessarily mechanically go through that statement every morning, but that's filled my mind I have I operate my lie.

Many of you do that to board.

I'm yours today remind me as I get to my place of employment, we might say remind me of someone on the freeway. Remind me Lord as I meet with those individuals who may be difficult to deal with remind me that I'm yours and help me to depend to lean on you and to have you fill my mind in my thoughts take control of my senses so that I am literally filled with your presence and power in.net.

I want to be your spirit, your tool your vessel today.

I can't make it happen and so I'm saying Lord filled me with your spirit today. It's a it's a proper prayer. Please observe.

Also, are we are at least take note that it is in the present tense.

It's a continuous appropriation.

This is not some great high and mighty moment where you go through an experience of the fullness of the spirit and from then on, you are on that all time high, which never wanes.

I see it as a regular thing.

We are regularly pray filled me, Lord, for this moment. Fill me in this hour, fill me as I'm facing what I have to face it is like walking and he began to walk without thinking about walking when we were little we don't we don't do it that way. Every step is magnificent achievement and then once we learn to put two or three steps together. We we began to put 45 together and then before you know it with the time you reached it young age of three, four, five, your walking and not even thinking about it just a part of life. The filling of the spirit is much like that, it becomes a part of our conscious life. But we we learn to walk carefully and we say the Lord as we as we walk in him, Lord, this is your day and I take this next step and yet this next step you me with. Now what happens when I am filled with the spirit. This right here in the passage were told at least four things that are affected in the Christian's life. Do not get drunk with wine that is debauchery, but be filled with the spirit and not there are some participles that follow in these are the results of being filled with the spirit. First of all, this billing affects our speaking how he puts it, speaking to one another.

Colossians 36 just has to be read along with this, so hold your place here and go to 316. I should of said Colossians 316 that will say a word about what I want to refer to here 15 and 16. Colossians 3. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, to which indeed you were called in one body.

And be thankful. Let the word of Christ dwell richly richly dwell within you with all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another.

Don't go any further. But just because right there. We began to speak to one another when we are filled with the spirit. This is called Christian Fellowship by being filled with the spirit we relate to other people. We want to hear what they have to say you want to learn from one another and we also want to contribute to each other. If we see our brother in a in a dangerous or perilous situation.

We want to warn him our sister as well. We are in a family together and it affects our speaking with one another the filling of the spirit results and wanting to be together with others in the family of God. I suppose we could use the age-old word Fellowship. We want to have fellowship with others, and that's one of the marks of the blessings of the filling of the Holy Spirit. Now you were nice enough to wait for that second part, the rest of it, speaking to one another. It says this in Colossians 316 as well as an Ephesians 519, from which I'm reading, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord is filling leads us to a melodious life, a life that is lived in harmony with other people. There was a little like that word.

We don't use it very much. There is a little in life there is a joy that comes with the with the filling of the spirit. Howie Stevens is one of his favorite words is singing partially under the Lord and not we live our lives under the Lord as we would sing his praises as we would sing a song, the spirit filling opens our hearts and moves us into a realm of overflow of worship. One of the characteristics of the spirit filled believers that he doesn't wait until Sunday to worship his daily worship occurring in his life. Now you may be a singer, you may not be a singer, you may have a preferred place to sing and it may not be in public, but most of us have melody that sort of bubbles up out of our lives and I have observed when I am walking in the spirit that there is usually a song pretty close to the tip of my tongue. There is a melody on my heart. There is even in the broader sense of desire to live in harmony with my brothers and sisters, I desire that is part of the fellowship continue to read in chapter 5 of Ephesians and notice in verse 20 yet another example a result of being filled with the spirit, always giving thanks for all things in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the father.

Another characteristic of being filled with the spirit, is that you become a thankful person. One of the telltale signs of the spirit filled life is gratitude.

Show me a grumble and I'll show you a person who has distanced herself or himself from the spirit of God from his filling show me a person who is turned against the favor and the blessings of God and I'll show you person who is long since forgotten about the filling of the spirit.

When we are filled with the spirit, there is a sense of thankfulness. There was a quick delight in saying thank you. We are not hard to please all, we are happy to have whatever God provides. There is a sense of gratitude that surrounds the spirit filled believer and then one other well over here in the subject and that is verse 21 and be subject to one another in the fear of Christ that the spirit of submission characteristic of the of the filling of the spirit is that we become more submissive now you you read this and you think well I I hope my wife is listening because verse 22. Really, that's the one that's on God's heart wives, be subject to your own, but before that command, there is the command to all of us to be subject to one another. There was a mutual submission to one another.

A teachability and openness and not only for the wife toward her husband, but the husband verse 25 in love toward his wife so that just as Christ loved the church, the spirit filled husband loves his wife.

It's easy to make a submission a one-way street. And we men are good at it partly. I have discovered and I'm very sincere and very serious must say this, I have discovered that there is no problem with the submission of the woman as long as that man has a heart that is submitted submissive to God because with a heart submissive to God. He wants to love his bride his wife as Christ loved the church and there's no one on earth he loves quite like her and he demonstrates part of love is listening. Part of love is caring part of love is giving up one's own rights. Part of love, sharing when a wife knows that she is embraced and that kind of affection. She is no trouble at all yielding to the wishes of the husband, the spirit filled life will not only change your spirit to spirit filling will not only change a life it can absolutely transform a home as I apply all of this I want to say three things that I believe have not been sufficiently stated, at least in this message I want to say something to all of us who who cannot claim to have received some exceptional manifestation of the spirit.

Some have many of us have not and I want to talk first in application to those of us who have not stepped into the realm of such visible and an exceptional manifestation. Second, I want to say something to to you who have and and third, I want to apply it to something to everyone of us. The first comment I want to make is that abnormal experiences are not necessary to Christian maturity great exceptional manifestations of the spirit are not required for there to be maturity.

You may have a good friend who is in a particular realm of evangelical Christianity that places a great deal of emphasis on those things and it may not be your frame of reference may not have ever been your experience you may find yourself uncomfortable and you might even feel that you can't defend it from the Scriptures. Let me encourage you to be very gracious. Be very tolerant and it is a matter of fact I would pass on the Council of Gamaliel if you if you will turn to one more passage of the forward through here. Acts chapter 5 are I thought of this in my preparation I thought this would be a good one to a couple of three verses to read Gamaliel's counsel to his friends as they were wondering what to do with these apostles who were turning the world upside down.

Gamaliel says to them, and they took his advice. Acts 538 and so in the present case, I say to you, stay away from these men and let them alone for if this plan or action should be of man. It will be overthrown by but if it is of God, you will not be able to overthrow them, or else you may even be found fighting against God. So my plea to those of us who happen not to be in trying to stay away from all the labels in a particular realm of expression of the fullness of the spirit that has a great deal of exceptional manifestations. If that's not your persuasion.

Be tolerant of those for whom it is I was fresh out of seminary. I felt it necessary to correct all the things that I didn't agree with.

I felt it necessary to sorta be a crusader and address all those particular expressions of the faith that were not of my convictions and I've found that that's a great way to waste a lot of energy, God did not call me to to what cleanup the entire world or to run special errands that that would get people in line with my conviction, I have learned over the years to be a little wiser with that. Now let me speak to you happen to be of that persuasion and that there may be many of you what God has sovereignly given to you has not been given to everyone. The comfort he has brought you in your walk is a is a comfort that you experience and I would encourage you not to try to force that our press that upon anyone else.

Don't feel you must be an emissary for your conviction. Try hard not to stereotype all Christian experiences you will work a lot more easily with the body of Christ and you will find a great deal more satisfaction in your walk with the Lord. If you will simply call that your own personal experience and you feel it is not from the enemy. You feel it is from God, and you cannot even explain how it all is taken place that's fine.

Just be sure that you have tested the spirits be sure that it is of God, and if it is enjoy it is you feel you should try not to force that upon anyone else or to look down your nose as though you have something that they don't have and that makes you is especially spiritual, the fullness of the spirit is all of ours to enjoy and how it works its way out is a is another matter.

I find it goes in one direction with one person in another way with another, and I am not in the business of of writing all the script for the for the entire world of Christendom. I live very comfortably with the with their different being different expressions of this fullness of the spirit. Third, missing all of us. Let us seek to enjoy a vast common ground among us. I said for years. There are more things that that we have alike than there are those things that separate us. Let us enjoy the vast common ground rather than feel the need to to proselyte or defend some particular area of theological or experiential persuasion. Relax. You, you take care of your responsibilities before the Lord and let him take care of your brothers and sisters, since we are all adults in this.

Let's let God be God. Let's understand we are all in his family. CS Lewis shortly after his conversion in 1929, wrote this note to a friend. I just love it when all is said and truly said about divisions of Christendom. There remains by God's mercy and enormous common ground married again when all is said and truly said about divisions of Christendom. There remains by God's mercy and enormous common ground since the common ground is enormous.

Or as I called it earlier since it's vast.

I suggested we ask the spirit of God to give us delight in one another. Joy in his presence and not feel the need to get everybody to agree with us in every realm of our persuasion. There was a time in my Christian life and I think a person saying that I do probably label them as it cause I heretic you know soft not really a person of conviction, but II don't feel that now I come to realize that God uses a whole lot of people that I don't even particularly like and to the surprise of of others who don't really like that much. I am being used and I think in the heavenly's. Our father finds great pleasure in blessing his people in innumerable ways and art we get glad that we are not God. Aren't we glad that our loving father who is the source of our fuel and our reason for existence that he is still on the throne using its his glory. Let's pray together so lonely world out there. Lord we have succeeded in making a royal mess of things in our few years on this earth. It's not as good a place as we found it when we were born. And if we were to live another hundred years. We would make it even worse. So we discovered that when we fill this place.

It is worse than how we found it in the only good that has come in the passing of time has been from your hand. How thankful we are for your spirit who fuels your work are grateful for the living spirit of God, who moves administers among us are used to resist and resent Lord I see now is a variety and I know there are extremes in these things, and that's not good, but I see various expressions of good things and I want to thank you for the I want to thank you for others, tolerance of me and of my quirks and unusual convictions which really are mine and that may not be that important to others.

I thank you for their tolerance me.

I pray that you will teach us through this that a part of the fullness of the spirit is, is this speaking to one another in an wisdom and with Melody and and fellowship. Lord take charge of our lives in a new and fresh way capture our attention earlier in the day and remind us as we are running headlong into our own will, were getting terribly close to Paris boundaries and use this message to bring us back in line living God, being all that you can possibly be with Dennis as we yield ourselves to you, refresh you this dear name of Jesus, and with Chuck Swindoll's closing prayer, we conclude a two-part message titled with an honest question is the spirits filling that big a deal, the answer of course is a resounding yes you're listening to Insight for living learn more about Chuck Swindoll in this ministry, we invite you to visit us online@insideworld.org this daily program is made possible through the voluntary contributions of people like you and when you give your gift is channeled directly toward providing shots Bible teaching for others so they can benefit just as you have. For example, I thought should be encouraged to hear these comments from one of our friends in Kentucky.

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When Chuck Swindoll describes what he calls the spirit who surprises that's Thursday on Insight for living. The preceding message is the spirits filling that big a deal was copyrighted in 1992, 1993, 2003 and 2008 and the sound recording was copyrighted in 2008 by Charles R. Swindoll. All rights are reserved worldwide. Duplication of copyrighted material for commercial use is strictly prohibited