“And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit,” (Ephesians 5:18, ESV)
In the previous post we looked at a key verse regarding being filled with the Spirit. In it we saw two commands that presented a contrast for the believer. One was in the negative, “do not get drunk with wine. The contrast was “but be filled with the Spirit.” We concluded that the believer must not allow the things of the world to be the influencer of one’s life. In contrast the believer is to be led by the Spirit.
One of the difficulties that many believers have is to understand how to obey a command to do something that only the Spirit can do in them. In other words, what are believers to do in order to obey the command to have the Holy Spirit fill them. Let me give you the short answer. The only way believers can obey such a command is to put themselves in a condition by which the Spirit will fill them.
Let me give this example. During the time of the recent COVID epidemic, there was a great push for people to be vaccinated. Mind you, I am not getting into the debate about the use of vaccines and their effectiveness. However, the process of getting vaccinated illustrates the point that I am making.
When people were vaccinated, they did not grab a syringe and vaccine, roll up their sleeve and inject themselves. No, the process involved them putting themselves into a position by which they could be vaccinated. They went to a clinic. They filled out some paperwork. Then they went to the nurse, rolled up their sleeve, and allowed the nurse to inject the vaccine into their arm.
It is the same with being filled with the Spirit. The believer obeys this command by being in a condition by which the Spirit will do this work. The believer must seek to be in such a state as to yield to the Spirit’s work of filling. Chafer, presented three conditions essential for believers to be filled with the Spirit (Chafer, He That is Spiritual) (Chafer, Systematic Theology). These essential conditions are “Quench not the Spirit” (1 Thess 5:19), “Grieve not the Holy Spirit” (Eph 4:30), and “Walk by the Spirit” (Gal 5:16).
In the next three devotions, we will look at each of these essential conditions in the context of the passages in which we read them. The point being that when the believers meet these three conditions, they will experience the power, and leading of the Spirit in the path of God’s will.
Renewing the Heart 