This week, we have been looking at a section of a letter
in the Bible called the book of Ephesians. Wednesday, we saw Apostle Paul
reveal for us a timeless truth when it comes to our identity as a follower of
Jesus in that our identity as a follower of Jesus requires that we live lives that
are controlled and influenced by the Holy Spirit. We talked about the timeless reality
that we are influenced by what influences us. Our life does not occur in a vacuum; in our
life there are external and internal forces at work in your life that influence
your life. And in order to live a life that reveals and reflects our identity
as a follower of Jesus, we must live lives that are controlled and influenced
by the Holy Spirit.
Now a question that arises here is “what does a life that
is influenced and controlled by the Holy Spirit look like? And how do I know if
my life is controlled and influenced by the Holy Spirit?” That is a great
question. And regardless of whether you are a follower of Jesus or not, a
person can look at their lives and the lives of those around them and begin to
recognize what controls and influences our lives.
And in the verses that follow, we see Paul begin to
unpack four specific evidences that appear in lives that are controlled and
influenced by the Holy Spirit. So let’s begin to look at them together,
beginning in Ephesians 5:19:
speaking to one another in psalms and hymns
and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord;
In verse 19, we see Paul identify the first two evidences
of a life that is influenced and controlled by the Holy Spirit. First, we see
that the relationships of a person who is controlled and influenced by the Holy
Spirit will be marked by conversations that encourage others and bring glory to
God. The phrase “psalms and hymns and spiritual songs” here reveals for us the
reality that during the days of the early church, followers of Jesus would not
only sing songs, but would also recite creeds that informed and reinforced
basic truths about God.
In addition, early church services would have included
the reading of a letter, like this letter that would have been written by an
early church leader to encourage and teach the church. And in the same way
today, lives that are controlled and influenced by the Holy Spirit will be
marked with conversations that encourage others and shine a light on God. So what
influences the conversations that occur in your lives? Because our lives are
influenced by what influences our conversations.
Second, we see that the life of a person who is
controlled and influenced by the Holy Spirit will be marked by a life that is
lived with an attitude of worship of God. The phrase “singing songs and making
melody with your heart to the Lord” can refer to singing or playing a musical
instrument. The word heart is used to describe the center and core of a
person’s being. Paul’s point here is that a person who is controlled and
influenced by the Holy Spirit will, from the core of their being, live a life
that is a response of worship to God. Their life will be a response of worship
that controls and influences how they approach their lives and their
relationships.
When a person is influenced by the Holy Spirit in this
way, do you think it would be possible to live lives that use others or that
are hypocritical if we leaned into loving God with our total being and loving
our neighbor as ourselves? So what do you worship? Because our lives are
influenced by what influences our worship. Paul then reveals a third evidence that
reveals the influence and control of the Holy Spirit in verse 20:
always giving thanks for all things in the
name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father;
Here we see that lives that are controlled and influenced
by the Holy Spirit are marked by an attitude of gratitude. When Paul uses the
phrase always giving thanks in all things, this phrase conveys the sense of
expressing our appreciation for the benefits and blessings that we have
received from God. When Paul states that we are to express our appreciation in
the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, he is reminding followers of Jesus
throughout history that the blessings of receiving the forgiveness of our
selfishness and rebellion and the relationship with God that we were created
for are the result of Jesus life, death, and resurrection.
As a result of Jesus willingness to enter into humanity
and allow Himself to be treated as though He lived our selfish and sinful life
so God the Father could treat us as though we lived Jesus perfect life, we are
to respond with an attitude of gratitude that influences our lives. So is your
life marked by an attitude of gratitude? Because the level of our attitude of
gratitude reveals the level of the Holy Spirit's influence in our lives. Paul
then reveals a fourth evidence that reveals the influence and control of the
Holy Spirit in our lives in verse 21:
and be subject to one another in the fear of Christ.
And right about now, every person in this room has a mental
picture of what the first three words of this verse means. In your minds the
words “and be subject” have conjured up an image: an image painted by a red
faced pastor beating on a pulpit; an image painted by an abusive husband or
father; an image painted by our culture that is based on what these three words
mean today. However, what these words mean today is irrelevant and the image in
your mind may not be accurate. So what I am going to ask you to do is to clear
your mind of that image and let’s look at what Paul meant when he wrote these
three words. Can we do that? Great.
The phrase “be subject”, in the language that this letter
was originally written in, literally means to place oneself in a submissive
role in a relationship where appropriate respect is shown to someone based on
the role that they have within an ordered structure. In other words, we are to
willingly place ourselves under others by placing others first based on one’s
role in the relationship.
For example, the catcher for the Arizona Diamondbacks
places himself under the manager of the Diamondbacks. Because the manager has
been give the role of leading the team, for the team to be successful, the
catcher is demonstrate the appropriate respect for the manager and place himself
under his leadership. The manager has a role and responsibility and the catcher
has a role and responsibility as part of the team. Conflict within the team can
occur when either the player or the manager do not function within their roles
on the team.
Now notice who Paul says we are to be subject to: we are
to be subject to one another. In other words, we are to place ourselves under
others by placing others first in a way that demonstrates respect toward one
another based on the nature of our relationship. Paul then explains that the
reason why we are to place ourselves under others by placing others first that
demonstrates respect toward one another is out of the fear of Christ. Now when
Paul uses the word fear here, he is not referring to the fear that we
experience while watching a horror movie. This fear refers to having a reverent
respect that results in submission and obedience to someone.
You see, when we willingly place ourselves under others
by placing others first when it comes to our relationships with others, we are
demonstrating a reverent respect for God’s desire and design for how we are to
live out our horizontal relationships in
light of our identity as a follower of Jesus. And when we willingly place
ourselves under others by placing others first when it comes to our horizontal relationships,
we reveal and reflect Jesus to those that we are in relationship with.
Just as Jesus willing placed Himself under God the Father
and came to earth on a mission to provide an opportunity for us to be rescued
from our selfishness and rebellion, when we willingly place ourselves under
others by placing others first when it comes to our relationships, we reveal
and reflect Jesus to those around us as we live our lives in a way that
reflects my identity as a follower of Jesus.
And this is why this timeless truth
is so important. Because we are influenced by what influences us, for us to
live in a way that reflects our identity as a follower of Jesus that reveals
and reflects Jesus to others we must be controlled and influenced by the Holy
Spirit. To live lives that influence others toward Jesus, we must live lives
that are controlled and influenced by the Holy Spirit.
Now if you don't buy the whole Jesus, Bible, church
thing, this is why those who say they are followers of
Jesus often live lives that look nothing like Jesus. Those who say they are
followers of Jesus often live lives that look nothing like Jesus because they
are not living their day to lives under the control and influence of the Holy
Spirit who comes in Jesus name to empower us to live like Jesus.
So here is a question to consider: what controls and
influences your life? Because the timeless reality is that we are influenced by
what influences us. And to live out our identity as a follower of Jesus
requires that we live lives that are controlled and influenced by the Holy
Spirit.
It is the Holy Spirit that empowers us to live in light
of the identity He has given us as a follower of Jesus. It is the Holy Spirit
that empowers us and drives us to live in a way that is worthy of our identity
as a follower of Jesus. It is the Holy Spirit that empowers us to live a new
life as we lay aside our old life. It is the Holy Spirit that empowers us to
a lifestyle that builds trust with others. And it is the Holy Spirit that empowers us to live a life that
imitates Jesus as we live in relationships with others.
Next week, we will see the
Apostle Paul begin to unpack how a life that is controlled and influenced by
the Holy Spirit lives out their identity as a follower of Jesus in their
horizontal relationships here on earth...
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