Be Filled: Ephesians 5:15-21

             I really like this text because it helps to put a lot of life into perspective, especially from the perspective of a church goer. It gives us hope to move beyond our brokenness into something better, not into emptiness. Here is Ephesians 5:15-21:

15 Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. 18 Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit. 19 Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, 20 always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
21 Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.

           I think the key verse in this passage is verse 18, which tells us to be filled with the Spirit. This connects with lots of great imagery in the Bible that tells us that we are to put off that which can never fill ourselves for Christ. Take a look at Matthew 13:44-46:

 44 “The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field.
45 “Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. 46 When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.

          and John 10:10b:

 10b I have come that they may have life, and have it to the full.

          The mistake with a lot of our modern theology and preaching these days has to do with our focus on "sin management", which supposes that we can fix ourselves with enough guilt and faith, intermingled and poured on oneself continually in hope of removing the stench of sin. However, this mixture only makes the stench even more unbearable, especially as our energy and emotions are drained to make this attempt possible. The way of God asks us to seek him and fill ourselves with his life. We are to pursue him first and foremost and everything else will follow, including righteousness. Look at Matthew 6:33:

 33 But seek first his kingdom and his righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

          and Psalm 37:4:

 4 Delight yourself in the Lord
    and he will give you the desires of your heart.

              These come with spending time with God and allowing his love and presence to wash over us. This takes the stench of sin away. We enter into a relationship with God to escape our sin in the first place and it is in this relationship that we put off sin daily. Also, we see that this needs to happen in community. Both of these ideas combined are touched on in our initial passage, Ephesians 5:15-21, so let us return there:

15 Be very careful, then, how you live—not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the most of every opportunity, because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is. 18 Do not get drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit. 19 Speak to one another with psalms, hymns and spiritual songs. Sing and make music in your heart to the Lord, 20 always giving thanks to God the Father for everything, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.
21 Submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.

          First, we see again the command to put off sin and make the most of every day along with the command to fill ourselves with the Spirit instead of wine. This takes us up to verse 19, which is where the passage really starts to address the "how". First, we need to encourage each other with worship, not only on Sunday, but throughout the week. This does not mean that we are to live our lives in a constant musical, as fun and amusing as that would be. Instead, we see that we are meant to always be "singing" our songs of thankfulness throughout the week by recognizing where God has been present and communicating to us and then passing along those notes of gratitude, not just up to God, but to our brothers and sisters in the Lord as well. I believe that a large part of why this helps is because we all need help recognizing what God is doing in our lives, not just as part of Bible studies or morning devotionals, but throughout our normal, every day lives. This is part of what makes the incarnation so beautiful: God did not spend most of his life in ministry, but likely working on wood projects, engaged in ho-hum conversation with friends, and recognizing and worshiping God in these parts of life. Part of our commercialization of Christianity has robbed us of ancient riches of the Christian tradition that recognized that God is present in our work or, as I've been told, "Prayer is Work and Work is Prayer." This means that God is present with us throughout the week and is always waiting beneath the surface, waiting to be engaged and recognized. This also enriches our understanding of prayer: we do not need to only approach God with requests; we can come to God just to sit in his presence and nothing else. In Luke 10:38-42, Mary was commended for sitting at the Lord's feet, not for taking good notes, preaching, adding insightful comments, or doing great works of faith. No, the "one thing" she did was to sit and listen, not because she needed to learn, which she did, but out of adoration and love for God. Thus, much work can be put into prayer by letting God be present to us always. Look for ways that he wants to speak to you and spend time with close friends discussing where God has been present. If he is the one thing that sustains life, then I doubt he would abandon you to figure out life on your own just because you're not paying attention to him. Finally, paying attention to God with prayerful attention is how we fulfill 1 Thessalonians 5:17:

17 pray continually

           There are plenty of great ways to pray that would help in this process, like praying the Bible or listening prayer. If you need any good ideas, just let me know and I'll see what I can suggest.
Peace of Christ to you,
Simeon Snow