And be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit; Speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord; Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ; Submitting yourselves one to another in the fear of God.” Ephesians 5:17-21
The selected passage begins by saying we should be aware of the will of God. His will is for believers to be filled with the Holy Spirit. Just as a drunk man has given himself over to alcohol and is thereby controlled by this foreign substance, so a believer should give himself over to the Spirit and allow Him to take control.
When the Holy Spirit is controlling a believer, he will have a song spring- ing up from within. This is not a personality trait. This is not a proclivity toward music. This is a consequence of being filled by the 3rd person of the Trinity. Mark it down if there’s no song in the heart, there’s no Spirit in control.
It’s not always easy to be thankful for everything. It’s easy to be thankful when things are going well. It’s nearly impossible to be thankful when things are going poorly. However, when a person is filled with and con- trolled by the Holy Spirit, they have a supernatural ability to be thankful to God for all things.
Where there is pride and rebellion, there is not the Spirit of God. He in- dwells the believer and expresses himself through humility and a spirit of submission. The Spirit-filled person sees that they are ultimately submit- ting to God when they show humility and honor to those around them. These are the Biblical signs a person is Spirit-Filled!
Have you seen this to be true in your life? What has your experience been in regards to the Holy Spirit?
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