Imagine waking up one morning to the car of your dreams sitting in your driveway. It is brand new. Not just new off of the showroom, but it went from the showroom to the custom shop where it was decked out with all the bells and whistles. Quickly it was then sent over to the paint and body shop where it was buffed and given a fresh coat of the prettiest paint you’ve ever seen. Not one mistake is on this thing. No flaws or blemish. But wait, there’s more. It then goes to the detailer who washes, waxes, and makes sure that the inside dashboard is so clean you could eat off of it. You can’t wait to drive this thing. You get in the car (or truck if you’re me) and turn the key but nothing happens. It won’t start. Now, the car is brand new, perfect condition, with all the bells and whistles but in order to go out in it you have to push it everywhere you go. I can’t think of anything more exhausting and disappointing than that. Sadly, the beauty and power of this car is going to be a waste as you spend all your energy pushing it around town from point A to point B. Defeatedly after many days, weeks, and months you eventually stop pushing it around town from sheer exhaustion. You keep the car but let it sit in your driveway. There’s no point in getting rid of it, after all it was free, right? Sadly, many Christians today live their Christian life much the same way. They’ve been given something far greater, shinier, and powerful than a new car. They’ve been given new life in Christ. The riches of His grace have now become our wealth and are there to empower our walk, yet we go about things in our own strength. We push the car around instead of seeing if it is even filled with gas or not. We exhaust ourselves when the Lord not only provided the car but gave you His Holy Spirit to be the engine of your life. He is the gas and oil that keeps you moving. He is the only thing that keeps your car functioning. Without the Holy Spirit, our Christian walk is just a brand-new car in a driveway that we have no power to get in and drive.
The Spirit filled life should be the normal Christian life. Unfortunately, being filled with the Spirit is something that we think to be strange, mystical, charismatic, unnecessary, or something for only a select few Christians. We have settled to live the Christian life by our own strength, ability, and sheer stubbornness. The greatest problem in our walk in Christ is that we are walking under our own power leading to “burnout,” disappointment, dissatisfaction, or disinterest in persevering in the faith. What does it mean to be filled with the Holy Spirit? First, it is distinguished from Spirit baptism which occurs the moment we are born again where the Holy Spirit seals and indwells us permanently until the day of redemption (Eph. 1:13-14; Rom. 6). Spirit filling is the continual filling of the believer with the enabling energy of the Holy Spirit who strengthens us in the inner man as we yield to His work in and through us by faith (Eph. 3:16). To be filled with the Spirit is to be controlled by Him. We are saved to be vessels emptied of self to be filled with the Spirit for the glory of God. We can’t be filled with the Spirit when we are so filled with our self. This is why Paul says that we must “put off concerning the former conversation of the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; and be renewed in the spirit of your mind; and that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness” (Eph. 4:22-24). Being filled by the Holy Spirit is not us getting more of Him, but Him getting more of us. You can’t have any more Holy Spirit than you do if you are in Christ, because only and all those who are in Christ have the Holy Spirit in them. We don’t need more of Him, but we do need more surrender to Him in our daily life. A.W. Tozer says, “The Spirit-filled life is not a special, deluxe edition of Christianity. It is part and parcel of the total plan of God for His people.” God’s will for you is to be filled moment-by-moment with the Holy Spirit to grow in Christlikeness for personal and corporate maturity and unity. The only way that we can walk in our wealth in Christ is to be filled with the Spirit. Don’t settle for less. The Spirit filled life is for each believer. You have the same Holy Spirit in you as the Apostles before you. You have the same Holy Spirit as your brother or sister in Christ. What you and I need to do is to see that the Holy Spirit is not like a cup of coffee in the afternoon to give us a boost. No, the Holy Spirit is the very person and power in us that not only enables us to do big things, but all things. Not only do you need the Holy Spirit to serve God, but you also need the Holy Spirit to breath and pump blood through your veins. Being Spirit filled is what Paul prayed for us in Eph. 3:19 that we would be “filled with the fullness of God.” We live in Christ, and He lives in and through us by His Spirit. Without His abiding presence (not just assistance) we can do nothing.
As we have been studying Ephesians, we have seen our position and possessions in Christ in Eph. 1-3, which is our wealth in Christ. We have also seen how we practically live in light of our position in Eph. 4-6, which is our walk in Christ. Everything in the Christian life is in Christ because the Christian life is Christ abiding in the Christian. We can’t walk worthy, walk in love, walk in the light, walk in maturity, or walk in unity without being filled with the Holy Spirit. You can tell a believer isn’t walking in the Spirit when they remain unforgiving, filled with pride, speak corruptly, and doesn’t cultivate maturity and unity in the local Church. Today we will study Eph. 5:15-21 to see that we need to be Spirit filled to walk, be wise, to worship, and work in Christ.
Eph. 5:15-21 says,
“15See then, that ye walk circumspectly not as fools, but as wise,16 Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.17 Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.18 And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit;19 Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord;20 Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ;21 Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.”
First, we must be Spirit filled to walk. Remember, our walk is used to represent the entirety of our life from the inside out, from our attitudes and affections to our actions. Eph 5:15 says, “15 See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise . . .” The phrase “see then” transitionally points us to look back at truths that have already been exposited (Eph. 1-3) and the exhortation that has followed (Eph. 4-6). To become who we became and walk in our wealth in Christ we must be filled by Him. The Lord doesn’t just give us what we need to live the Christian life, He is what we need for living the Christian life. The Spirit filled walk is one that is characterized by walking “circumspectly.” Paul gives us a command to “walk circumspectly,” which is a present imperative, meaning, we are to continuously walk circumspectly without stopping. It is the constant manner of our life. The word “circumspectly” has a meaning of considering, observing, paying careful attention to. Walking circumspectly means that we live considering who we are in Christ, what we have in Christ, and how we are to live in Christ. We must be careful to consider who Christ is and what He wants our life to look like. We need to look carefully at our walk in considering if it matches who we are in Christ (our wealth). Also, this means that we must walk carefully being filled by the Holy Spirit so that we may “walk worthy” (Eph. 4:1) of our saved position in Christ. In life, we are constantly considering something. As Christians, we must carefully consider how we are presently living and what is “acceptable unto the Lord” (Eph. 5:10). Walking circumspectly (or carefully with consideration) is not optional. It is a command for each believer, and it is the responsibility for each believer because no one can walk your walk for you. No one else can live your life for you. If you take care of your walk, then you won’t have time to worry about someone else’s walk. This is how we develop maturity and unity in the local Church. If we all walk circumspectly then we’ll all grow in Christlike maturity and unity. Ask yourself, “Am I walking circumspectly?” Consider your life and see if you are walking worthy of your salvation in love and light. Carefully inspect your walk and see if you are yielding to the Spirit or struggling in your own strength. Second, we must be Spirit filled to be wise. Eph. 5:15-17 says, “15 See then that ye walk circumspectly, not as fools, but as wise,16 Redeeming the time, because the days are evil.17 Wherefore be ye not unwise, but understanding what the will of the Lord is.” There is no truth or wisdom outside of God (Eph. 4:20). As we have seen throughout Ephesians, it is God who gives us light (enlightenment to truth and divine revelation) in Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit through the Word of God. We are commanded to walk wisely, not foolishly. The most foolish thing a Christian can do is not be filled by the Spirit, but to live in the strength of their own flesh. The Bible speaks a lot about those who are foolish and those who are wise. Look at what the Bible says about the fool. Psalm 53:1-4 says, “The fool hath said in his heart, There is no God. Corrupt are they, and have done abominable iniquity: there is none that doeth good.2 God looked down from heaven upon the children of men, to see if there were any that did understand, that did seek God.3 Every one of them is gone back: they are altogether become filthy; there is none that doeth good, no, not one.4 Have the workers of iniquity no knowledge? who eat up my people as they eat bread: they have not called upon God.” Proverbs 1:7 says, “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge: but fools despise wisdom and instruction.” Proverbs 9:6 warns the reader to, “Forsake the foolish, and live; and go in the way of understanding.” The Bible says much more about those who are foolish with even Jesus giving us a story contrasting the wise and foolish builder in Matthew 7:24-27. Simply, fools live in their own strength, not in the Spirit. Dear Christian, you are never more foolish than when you live in your own might, strength, and understanding. What does the Bible say about wisdom and wise living? Proverbs 3:7 says, “Be not wise in thine own eyes: fear the Lord, and depart from evil.” Proverbs 12:15 says, “The way of a fool is right in his own eyes: but he that hearkeneth unto counsel is wise.” Wisdom is not just intellectual or cognitive understanding. It is the application of knowledge. It is putting to usefulness in life what has been understood in the mind. To walk wisely and not as a fool, we must be filled with the Holy Spirit who teaches, corrects, guides, and strengthens us to live wisely in Christ. What does Spirit filled wisdom look like in our life? One, Spirit filled wise living “redeems the time because the days are evil.” The word “redeeming” means to buy up or make the most of. The word “time” here is dealing less with hours and minutes, but more with opportunities in life. When eternity gets stamped on our hearts we will live in the present hour, not the past or future which bogs us down. To redeem the time is to live wisely by living in obedient love and faith in each opportunity that is given for us to live in and for Christ. Urgency is required in wise living because the days are evil, and time is short. Psalm 90:12 says, “So teach us to number our days, that we may apply our hearts unto wisdom.” Our days are numbered, and our time is borrowed. Wise, Spirit filled living makes the most of every moment by living each moment for the good of others and glory of Jesus Christ. Two, Spirit filled wise living “understands what the will of the Lord is.” Everyone wants to know God’s will for their life. Well, here it is. God’s will for your life is to be Spirit filled to walk circumspectly and wisely in these evil days. God’s will for each believer is that we would walk in His will. We only know God’s will by the Word of God as taught by the Holy Spirit. God’s will is for every believer to be Spirit filled in their walk and for each local Church to be filled by the Spirit. God wants you to be filled with Him, not yourself. Our issue in our daily walk is not a lack of knowing what God wants, but rather the lack of obedience, love, and faith to surrender our will to His. Oh, how we need to be filled by the Spirit to walk wisely in these evil days.
Grow with me as we study the believer’s wealth and walk in Christ.
Grow deeper.
Grow higher.
Grow wider.
Grow With Pastor Joe 
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