Andrew Fountain - Singing: the link with being filled by the Spirit

Full sermon notes - Singing: the link with being filled by the Spirit

(link to my own translation from the Greek text)

• I want to go back to the passage we started looking at 2 weeks ago

Ephesians 5:15–6:9

18. and do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery,
    but be filled by the Spirit,

• And do not get drunk with wine, which is debauchery
  • The point here is what is controlling you
    • being under the control of alcohol does not lead to good places
    • being under the control of the Spirit leads to these things
  • It’s not saying being drunk on beer is ok!
    • this would apply to any drugs that lead to loss of control
• Technically the words here have the Spirit as the filler.
  • It doesn’t specify what he is filling us with
  • Other places in Ephesians talk about being “filled with all the fullness of God”
  • however there are so many places in the NT where people are described as being filled with the Spirit, I don’t think you can avoid that as the main application
  • But above all, the Spirit is the one who is making us into a New Creation
  • So primarily his filling us is the same as making us into New People
• Why would he choose the this parallel of Spirit vs. Wine?
  • I don’t think that necessarily means that someone filled with the Spirit seems drunk
    • Although Pentecost
    • Hannah, Samuel’s mother
  • But I think there are some parallels:
    • “He’s a different person when he’s had a few drinks!”
    • Exuberant joyfullness (of course not usually based on reality)
    • But you can primarily tell someone has had too much to dring because of how they talk
      • speaking and singing
    • And so here the Spirit-filled person is speaking and singing
• A command (continually filled)
  • followed by four descriptors of what that will look like
  • Now we might be expecting gifts to be listed here
    • Paul does in other places
  • But I think he is focussing on who we are, not what we do
    • These are all things we do, but they flow our of our core person
    • They flow out of how we relate to others and to God
      • We want to build others up, and put them first
      • We love, praise and honour God
• It’s what it means to be a new creation
  • The old nature is self-centred
  • The New Creation is God and other-centered

• Damage done by a “Worship CD culture”
  • can turn worship into something passive
• Wife: Do you love me?
  • Rather than answer that I’ll put a love song CD on and play it in the background and carry on with what I was doing
• In the Bible, praise is always vocal
• the Old Testament scholar Ronald B. Allen makes the following statement:
  • Praise! A Matter of Life and Breath by R. B. Allen (Nashville:Nelson, 1980), p.58

• Psalm 9:1 —notice what David says here about praise.
• Praising God, is telling of his works. It is telling forth, declaring, proclaiming God’s works.
  • In verse 11 the Psalmist encourages other people to join in by saying...

• Let’s come back to the “filled by the Spirit” part

Ephesians 5:15–6:9

• Is it saying that if you are filled by the Spirit you will do these
  • or that this is how you get filled by the Spirit?
• How does he suggest we get filled by the Spirit?
  • e.g. boy sitting by an athletics track “If I was an athlete, I could run”
• It won’t get you the Spirit, but these things will stir up the Spirit
  • New Creation activity
  • If you want to experience the presence of God, then do them
  • God meets us as we praise him

• is God self-centred?
• Newfrontiers value
  • Not “front led”
  • That why we look for gifts at this time

• We’re now going to pray a song, and then sing it.

Updated on 2013-07-10 by Andrew Fountain