Ephesians 5:15-21

(Ephesians 4:17-6:9)

 

   The purpose of this paper is to show the relationship between the Holy Spirit, the Psalms, and your (our) sanctification.  I say “your (our)”  because I will show that sanctification is a process involving both individual effort and corporate effort.

   In Colossians 2:23 Paul, after discussing various religious practices that the Colossians had introduced into their worship and lives says this:

²³ These things indeed have an appearance of wisdom in self-imposed religion, false humility, and neglect of the body, but are of no value against the indulgence of the flesh (Col. 2:23 NKJ)

   The church in general in our culture today is losing the battle against the flesh.  We fill sermons, worship services, and books with “wise” ideas about how to battle the flesh.  Paul in Ephesians 5:15-21 gives us true wisdom about our sanctification. The Holy Spirit alone can bring true sanctification.  The Holy Spirit fills the believer who sings the Psalms with fellow believers. Let us take a close look at how Paul makes this argument.

   As background to this passage, I want to set a broader Biblical context.  Consider the Great Commission in Matthew 28:18-20:

¹⁸ “And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, ‘All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. ¹⁹ Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.  Amen.'” (Matt. 28:18-20 NKJ)

 

   We call this passage “The Great Commission.”  The main verb is the command “make disciples of the nations.”  This is the primary purpose of the church.  This discipleship process includes three steps.

   The first step is the command “go.” In the original Greek “go” is not a command.  It is a participle that literally means “going” or “in your going.”  Going is assumed.

   The first step in making a disciple is to go to someone who is not a disciple of Jesus Christ.  We must take the gospel to people who are not Christians.  We call this step evangelism.

   The second is “baptizing.” This step answers the question, “What do we do when someone accepts the gospel and wants to become a disciple of Jesus Christ?”  We baptize them.  Notice that the church baptizes the new disciple not only in the name of the Father and the Son but also in the name of the Holy Spirit.  The Holy Spirit plays a vital part in this. While evangelism may involve years of faithful witness, conversion and baptism are a relatively short process.

   The third step in this commission is “teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you” which refers to the on-going mission of the church.  Note that the command “make disciples” is preceded by one participle (“going”) and followed by two participles (“baptizing” and “teaching”).[1]All three of these participles function as adverbs modifying the command “make disciples.”  There are three components to how the church is to make disciples:  going, baptizing, and teaching.

[1] A participle is a verb ending in “-ing.”  Participles can be nouns, adjectives, and adverbs.

   This commission is not complete until a disciple keeps “all” Christ’s commandments.  He lives a life that mirrors the life of Christ.  This is not some form of perfectionism, but it is a dramatic breaking with the past in such a way that when one looks at the Christian and one looks at Christ one concludes, that the Christian is worthy of Christ. Paul talks about this idea in Colossians 1:28 where he says that he preaches Christ “warning every man and teaching every man in all wisdom, that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus.”

   The challenge in “teaching them to keep” Christ’s commands is that the battle with sin in our lives is a ferocious one.  To get a sense of that, think briefly and carefully about Mark 7 and Romans 7.  Mark 7 says that my problems are not drugs, alcohol, pornography, my wife, my children or anything outside of me.  My problem is me.  Jesus said:

¹⁸ “So He said to them, ‘Are you thus without understanding also?   Do you not perceive that whatever enters a man from outside cannot defile him,  ¹⁹ because it does not enter his heart but his stomach, and is eliminated, thus purifying all foods?’ ²⁰And He said, ‘What comes out of a man, that defiles a man.  ²¹For from within, out of the heart of men, proceed evil thoughts, adulteries, fornications, murders, ²²thefts, covetousness, wickedness, deceit, lewdness, an evil eye, blasphemy, pride, foolishness. ²³All these evil things come from within and defile a man.'” (Mar 7:18-23 NKJ)

   In Romans 7 one phrase stands out to me: “that sin might become utterly sinful.” ¹² “Therefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy and just and good. ¹³Has then what is good become death to me? Certainly not! But sin, that it might appear sin, was producing death in me through what is good, so that sin through the commandment might become exceedingly sinful.” (Rom 7:12-13 NKJ)

   Our human nature recoils at that.  We struggle with the sin that comes out of our heart: our tongue, our thoughts, our habits, drugs, alcohol, pornography, homosexuality, fornication, envy, etc.

   How is a Christian to survive?  Jesus’ answer is that he is to be discipled.  In response the church has many programs for making disciples.  These include things like taking up the means of grace through church attendance, memorizing Scripture, Bible reading, Bible study, small groups, individual discipleship.

   While these are all very good things, one element that brings all of these together is missing.  This element was at the heart of Paul’s discipleship program as laid out in Ephesians.  This element is the continual filling of the Holy Spirit through psalm singing. Luther said that the Psalms are a “little Bible.”  He said that God brings together all the things He wants us to know in the Psalms.  Calvin said that the Psalms are an anatomy of the soul.  Let’s take a quick overview of Ephesians to see how Paul lays this out.

Background:

Ephesians 1 – 3  The indicative – what God has done for us in Christ  — our position

Ephesians 4 – 6  The imperative – what God asks of us in light of the indicative – our walk.

   Note carefully that in 1:3 that Paul addresses the “saints,” plural.  In this book Paul’s priority is the corporate not the individual. This book is not about how you, individually, can be a better Christian, but Ephesians tells us how we as individuals can grow up together as a body of believers into one new man, one holy temple in Christ because we have one Lord, one faith, one God and Father of us all (4:1ff).

   In breaking down chapters 1-3, note that chapter one ends in a prayer and chapter three ends in a prayer.  Both these prayers are very similar.  But there are differences.

   Chapter one gives a broad overview of God’s plan from eternity past to choose a people for Himself.  Chapters two and three deal with the same subject matter but with a different emphasis, This reminds me of Genesis one and two.   Genesis one gives a broad overview of the seven days of creation.  Genesis two goes back and fills in certain important details.

   Ephesians one gives us the broad overview of God’s eternal plan.  He purposed according to His own will before the foundation of the world to have a people for Himself who would be holy and blameless before Him.  We have redemption and an inheritance in Christ.  He has given us “the Holy Spirit of promise” (1:13) as a seal or guaranteed of our salvation until the “redemption of the purchased possession” (1:14).  All of this He did for the “praise of His glory” which he mentions three times: 1:6; 1:12; 1:14. Paul concludes Ephesians one with a prayer that the Ephesian Christians would grasp the magnitude of God’s work from eternity past to eternity future in saving them.

   Ephesians two and three then go back over this big picture and fill in the details.  God overcame three problems.  First, in 2:1-10, we were spiritually dead.  So He made us alive in Christ.  “For we are His workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them” (2:10).

  Second, the gentiles were socially separated.  God in Christ breaks down the social barriers that separated Jew and Gentile (2:11-17).  The Gospel overcomes the sinful prejudices that keep people apart.

   Third, in 3:1-13, the mystery of God’s plan to make one new man was hidden, but God is now using Paul and the church to make known this plan  “to the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places according to His eternal purpose which He accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord” (3:10-11).

    Paul then concludes chapter three with a prayer that is very similar to the prayer that closes chapter one.  His prayer is that the church, corporately and thus individually, would see and understand God’s great design and purposes both in its larger scope (chapter one) and in the details (chapters two and three). Paul’s desire is that they would be able to comprehend this work of God and be “filled with all the fullness of God.” Note here that Paul’s use of “filled” here is the same Greek word he will use again in 5:18 when he exhorts them to be filled with the Holy Spirit.

   In the first three chapters, Paul’s purposes are eschatological.  He wants us to understand the eternal purposes of God in His church.  But notice where he goes in 4:1-6,  “I therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.  There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism; one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.” (Eph 4:1-6 NKJ)

   In chapters four to six he wants us to walk worthy of our calling in Christ — to live and work out the details of our life in the church in light of the eternal purposes of God which began in eternity past and will conclude in eternity future.

   Paul lays the groundwork for that kind of worthy walk in 4:7-16 “But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift. ⁸ Therefore He says: ‘When He ascended on high, He led captivity captive, And gave gifts to men.’ ⁹ (Now this, ‘He ascended ‘– what does it mean but that He also first descended into the lower parts of the earth? ¹⁰He who descended is also the One who ascended far above all the heavens, that He might fill all things.)¹¹And He Himself gave some to be apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, and some pastors and teachers, ¹²for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ, ¹³till we all come to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a perfect man, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ; ¹⁴that we should no longer be children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, in the cunning craftiness of deceitful plotting, ¹⁵but, speaking the truth in love, may grow up in all things into Him who is the head– Christ– ¹⁶from whom the whole body, joined and knit together by what every joint supplies, according to the effective working by which every part does its share, causes growth of the body for the edifying of itself in love.” (Eph. 4:7-16 NKJ)

 

Keep in mind several things from 4:1-16:

• Our walk must be worthy (vss. 1-6)
• God has given the church gifted men to help us in our walk (vss. 7-16
• These gifted men are to bring the church to fullness in Christ (vs. 13)
• Based on the work of the gifted men fullness in Christ looks like individuals edifying one another in love (vs. 16)
• Sanctification is a corporate process.

   Beginning in 4:17 Paul begins a long series of this/not this propositions. In the “this” statements he commends godly behavior. In the “not this” statements he forbids sinful behavior. Paul continually contrasts the godly behavior of a worthy walk with the ungodly behavior of the culture. This literary pattern goes through 6:21.  Here is this pattern presented in columns:

This (positive) – Put On, or The Walk of the Wise (5:15)	Not This (negative) – Put Off, or The Walk of the Unwise (5:17)
	17This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind, 18having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart; 19who, being past feeling, have given themselves over to lewdness, to work all uncleanness with greediness.
20 But you have not so learned Christ,  21 if indeed you have heard Him and have been taught by Him, as the truth is in Jesus :
	22 that you put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts,
23 and be renewed in the spirit of your mind,  24 and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness.
	25 Therefore, putting away lying, “Let each one of you speak truth with his neighbor,” for we are members of one another.
26 “Be angry,
	and do not sin”: do not let the sun go down on your wrath,  27 nor give place to the devil. 28 Let him who stole steal no longer,
but rather let him labor, working with his hands what is good, that he may have something to give him who has need.
	29 Let no corrupt word proceed out of your mouth,
but what is good for necessary edification, that it may impart grace to the hearers.
	30 And do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.31 Let all bitterness, wrath, anger, clamor, and evil speaking be put away from you, with all malice.
Ephesians 5:1 Therefore be imitators of God as dear children.  2 And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma.
	3 But fornication and all uncleanness or covetousness, let it not even be named among you, as is fitting for saints;  4 neither filthiness, nor foolish talking, nor coarse jesting, which are not fitting,
but rather giving of thanks.
	5 For this you know, that no fornicator, unclean person, nor covetous man, who is an idolater, has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.  6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience.  7Therefore do not be partakers with them8 For you were once darkness,
but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light  9 (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth),  10 finding out what is acceptable to the Lord.
	11 And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness,
but rather expose them.  12 For it is shameful even to speak of those things which are done by them in secret.
13 But all things that are exposed are made manifest by the light, for whatever makes manifest is light.  14 Therefore He says: “Awake, you who sleep, Arise from the dead, And Christ will give you light.”
15 See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise,  16 redeeming the time, because the days are evil.
	17 Therefore do not be unwise,
but understand what the will of the Lord is.
	18 And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation;
but be filled with the Spirit, 19 speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord,  20 giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,  21 submitting to one another in the fear of God.
22 Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord.  23 For the husband is head of the wife, as also Christ is head of the church; and He is the Savior of the body.  24 Therefore, just as the church is subject to Christ, so let the wives be to their own husbands in everything.
25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself for her,  26 that He might sanctify and cleanse her with the washing of water by the word,  27 that He might present her to Himself a glorious church, not having spot or wrinkle or any such thing, but that she should be holy and without blemish.  28 So husbands ought to love their own wives as their own bodies; he who loves his wife loves himself. 29 For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as the Lord does the church.  30 For we are members of His body, of His flesh and of His bones.  31 “For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.”  32 This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church.  33 Nevertheless let each one of you in particular so love his own wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband.
Ephesians 6:1 Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right.  2 “Honor your father and mother,” which is the first commandment with promise:  3 “that it may be well with you and you may live long on the earth.”
	4 And you, fathers, do not provoke your children to wrath,
but bring them up in the training and admonition of the Lord.
5 Bondservants, be obedient to those who are your masters according to the flesh, with fear and trembling, in sincerity of heart, as to Christ;  6 not with eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but as bondservants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart,  7 with goodwill doing service, as to the Lord, and not to men,  8 knowing that whatever good anyone does, he will receive the same from the Lord, whether he is a slave or free.
9 And you, masters, do the same things to them,
	giving up threatening,
knowing that your own Master also is in heaven, and there is no partiality with Him.
10Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord and in the power of His might.  11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.
	12 For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this age, against spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places.
13 Therefore take up the whole armor of God, that you may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand.  14 Stand therefore, having girded your waist with truth, having put on the breastplate of righteousness,  15 and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 above all, taking the shield of faith with which you will be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked one.  17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God; 18 praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, being watchful to this end with all  perseverance and supplication for all the saints–  19 and for me, that utterance may be given to me, that I may open my mouth boldly to make known the mystery of the gospel,  20 for which I am an ambassador in chains; that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.

   To summarize, in 4:17-5:14 Paul gives specifics of a walk that is worthy of the calling we have in Christ.  He uses a common technique, the “this”/ “not this” format. Notice that while many of the sins are sins that individuals commit individually, Paul addresses them corporately.  Sanctification is an individual and a corporate process.

   Now think briefly about the context following our text.  In 5:22-6:9 Paul looks at relationships: husband/wife, children/parents,, and employer/employee.   He takes the specifics of their walk which he has laid out in 4:17-5:14 and applies them to relationships so that they understand what a worthy walk looks like in their relationships as they apply his earlier exhortations.

   In the final section, Ephesians 6:10-20, Paul expounds on a second dimension of a walk that is worthy.  He says that the difficulties we face in this walk are not with “flesh and blood” but with spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.  This is the greater context in which God calls us to walk worthy of our calling.

   Now having set this context, let us look at our text, 5:15-21 remembering that in 4:19-5:14 we have commands regarding individual behaviors.  In 5:22-6:9 we have commands regarding behaviors with respect to specific relationships.
The commands of 4:19-5:14 bear directly on carrying out the relationship commands.

So how does 5:15-21 fit between these two sections?

The Three Sets of Commands 5:15-21

¹⁵ See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, ¹⁶ redeeming the time, because the days are evil.  ¹⁷ Therefore, do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is.  18 And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit,  ¹⁹ speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord,  ²⁰ giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,  21 submitting to one another in the fear of God.

The three sets of commands are

• “see then that you walk circumspectly not as fools but as wise”
• “do not be unwise but understand the will of the Lord”
• “do not be drunk with wine but be filled with the Spirit”

The First Set of Commands (5:15-16)

¹⁵ See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, ¹⁶ redeeming the time, because the days are evil.

   In 5:15-16 he exhorts the Ephesians based his “this/not this” statements.  To follow his “this” statements is to be a wise person.  To follow the “not this” statements is to be a foolish person.  The Christian’s “walk” is very much on his mind.  That walk is to be “circumspectly” or “accurately” or “with care.”  Our English word, circumspectly, comes from two Latin words.  One is the verb, specto, spectare, which means to look at or to watch. We get our English word “spectator” from this verb.  The other Latin word, “circum,” is a preposition or adverb meaning “around, about.”  Our English word “circumference” has this same preposition in it.  Together the two Latin words create an English word meaning “to inspect carefully.”  We might think of an airline pilot walking around his plane before taking off with you in his plane. He is inspecting carefully the state of the airplane. Paul says that we should give the same care to our walk.

   Paul calls for an urgent seriousness by looking carefully at our behavior. This he calls “redeeming the time because the days are evil.” The evil days in which they live call for such special attention and care so that the days of their walk are not wasted.

The Second Set of Commands (5:17)

¹⁷ Therefore, do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is.

   This second set of commands is a response to the “evil days” of 5:16. “therefore” introduces that response.  The response is a repetition of 5:15 regarding being unwise but rather than going to “redeeming the time” Paul goes to “understand what the will of the Lord is.” The will of the Lord is the this/not this behaviors of 4:17-5:14. This call for understanding then leads to the third set of commands  which bring this into a clearer focus.

The Third Set of Commands (5:18)

¹⁸ And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit,

   Paul continues his “this/not this” structure with this set of commands, but this raises the question, “What does being drunk with alcohol have to do with the Holy Spirit?” The two poles could hardly be further apart. But, why these two poles?

   On several occasions I have posed this question to a group of inmates, and they give me the right answer almost immediately.

Why do people get drunk?

   Drunkenness emboldens people to do things they would not ordinarily do because the law of God is written on their hearts. We dull the conscience, suppress the knowledge of God (Romans 1) in order to get the greater effect which we lust to achieve.

   As one drinks (or does drugs or pornography) there is the need to drink more to get the same “high” which is really a low with respect to the law of God written on the heart.

Consider these two passages in the “not this” section:

19 who, being past feeling, have given themselves over to lewdness, to work all uncleanness with greediness.  (4:19)

12 For it is shameful even to speak of those things which are done by them in secret.  (5:12)

Drunkenness quiets the conscience and loosens or frees the will to do ungodliness.

Consider this quote from John McNaugher:

   “The Greeks, the Asiatic Greeks particularly, were devoted to music.  Song and jest, stimulated by the wine-cup, were the entertainment of the social hour and often these were coarse and wanton. Their very religious festivals included the orgies of Bacchus and Venus, where vile phallic (sexually explicit) songs were a feature.” From “A Special Exegesis of Ephesians 5:19 and Colossians 3:16” by Prof. John McNaugher.

   So, this set of contrasts becomes very clear. What wine does for the unrighteous, so the Holy Spirit does for the righteous. Rather than weakening the conscience as drunkenness does, the Holy Spirit strengthens the conscience. But He does more.  He empowers the will to act in accordance with the godly conscience so you have a walk worthy of Christ as the Holy Spirit works in the believer. The Holy Spirit is our “helper.”  He is our parklete, the one “called alongside to help.” (John 16).

   At this point one should ask, “How do I get the filling of the Holy Spirit?”

The Five Participles

   Paul then follows the command to be filled with the Holy Spirit with five participial phrases.

Here are the five phrases:

• ¹⁹ speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs,
• singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord,
• ²⁰ giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,
• ²¹ submitting to one another in the fear of God. (Eph. 5:19-21 NKJ)

   Consider the grammar.  What is a participle?  A participle is a verb ending in “-ing.” Participles and participial phrases can be a noun, an adjective, or an adverb. These participial phrases function as adverbs modifying the verb “be filled.” As adverbs they answer the question “How can one be filled with the Holy Spirit?”

“speaking to one  another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs”

   Paul continues his emphasis in Ephesians on the corporateness of the church which he now says involves speaking to other believers using the content of “psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs.”   What does he mean by “psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs.”   It would be easy for us to say, “Oh, that’s the hymn book we sing out of at my church.”  Or, “Those are the contemporary hymns the worship leader puts on the screen when we sing at church.”  Neither of those are the right answer.

   Before I give the right answer consider two principles of interpretation that govern the meaning of New Testament passages:

First, a text can never mean what it never meant to the one who wrote it.

   Is there any indication that Paul is referring to the book of Psalms and also to hymns and songs that the first century church wrote. No. There is no command for the church to write its own songs apart from the songs found in the Psalter. Read 1 Chronicles 25 and note what an extensive project it was for David to create the first songs (psalms) used in worship. The Psalter did not come about because a local songwriter had some words and a tune he liked. It was not a consumer process where the church picked songs they liked, songs that gave them good feelings about God.

   No, the songs in the Psalter came from men who were prophets inspired by God.  Men such as David, Moses, Solomon, Asaph, and the priestly sons of Korah. God breathed out these songs and gave them to the church to sing.

   Compiling a hymn book in our day can take ten to fifteen years, numbers of people, and thousands of dollars. The early church already had a “hymn book” collected and inspired by God.  It was the Psalter.

The second principle we must observe in interpreting “psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs” is that sacred scripture is its own interpreter. 

   This means that we use Scripture to interpret Scripture. So, does the Bible use these words in other places that could help us define them in Ephesians 5:19. Yes, “psalms,” “hymns,” and “songs” are found many, many times in our Bible but they are present in spades in the Psalter. When applying this principle, one must conclude that these words apply to the Psalter.

   But, you may ask, what about the word “spiritual” in “psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs.”  “Doesn’t God want us to sing songs that give us good feelings? I get a spiritual tingle that runs through my body every time I sing ‘How Great Thou Art’.” Surely, that is what “spiritual” means.

   The New Testament uses the word “spiritual” twenty-six times in twenty-one verses.   Of the 26 times this word appears in the New Testament only one does not clearly refer to the Holy Spirit.  This one occurrence (Eph. 6:12  “spiritual forces of wickedness”) applies to powerful non-material beings. “Spiritual” refers to the objective work of a non-material being, primarily (25 of 26 times) to the Holy Spirit.  “Spiritual” does not refer to a feeling. A spiritual song is a song inspired by the Holy Spirit.

   To summarize this section, “speaking to one another in psalms, and hymns, and spiritual songs” is the first aspect of the filling of the Holy Spirit. This involves a corporate, horizontal exercise among church members who speak to one another using the inspired words of the Psalter.

“singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord,”

   The second and third participles are “singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord.” These two participles go together, and they build on and amplify the first participle “speaking.”  Whereas the first participle involved the horizontal, the words become vertical as the speaking involves singing the Psalter.  Who is singing?  The congregation sings.  Who is listening? The congregation sings the Psalter “to the Lord.” God is the audience. The congregation is there to corporately bring a sacrifice of praise into heaven itself where Christ is sitting at the right hand of God. (Col. 3:1)

   So, is God listening to our voices? God is not comparing one person’s voice to another person’s voice.  God is listening to the music of the heart. He is looking for hearts that “make melody.” Making melody is what musical instruments do, but God is not looking for a guitar or piano or organ. In the words of Psalm 100 He’s looking for a heart that will make melody to Him:

Make a joyful shout to the LORD, all you lands!

² Serve the LORD with gladness;

Come before His presence with singing.

 

⁴ Enter into His gates with thanksgiving,

And into His courts with praise.

Be thankful to Him, and bless His name. (Ps. 100:1, 2, 4 NKJ)

 

   The Temple worship involved musical instruments.  The Psalter itself calls for the playing of instruments (Psalm 150 as one example).  But instruments in worship before Christ symbolized and pointed to the future work of the Holy Spirit just as the sacrifices symbolized and pointed to the cross work of Christ.  Since Christ has come, we no longer sacrifice.  Since the Holy Spirit has been poured out, we do not use musical instruments in our worship.  We make melody in our hearts to the Lord.

   To summarize, the second aspect of being filled with the Spirit involves corporate singing of the Psalter with melody in our hearts to the Lord.

“giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ,”

   The fourth participle and the third aspect of how the church at Ephesus could be filled with the Spirit involves the giving of thanks.  These five participles do not stand independently of each other and they are not linear.  There is an organic connection between them all. The Psalter is a book of praise, of thanksgiving. As the church speaks to one another the content of the Psalter, as the church sings and makes melody in their hearts to the Lord, the results that flows out of the heart is thanksgiving to God in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ.

   How is it that singing Psalms to God  is “in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ?”    The psalms are about Christ from beginning to end. When we sing from the Psalter, we are bringing to God the songs God has given us to remember His Son and the work that the Son did on behalf of the Father to reconcile us to God. When we sing the Psalter with understanding we are offering to the Father the sweet aroma of the work of His Son.

   Augustine said that the only songs worthy of God are those given to us by God. We bring into God’s presence the work of the Son as set forth in the Psalter.  Such praise and such praise only is a sweet aroma to God.

   One of the problems that the church faces today having sung man-composed hymns for 150 years is that few understand how Christ is set forth in the Psalter. Teaching how Christ is set forth in the Psalter should be priority #1 for every pastor.[1]

“submitting to one another in the fear of God.”

   Submitting is the fifth command and the fourth aspect of how a Christian is filled with the Holy Spirit in order to turn away from sin and walk worthy of his calling.  Like the first participle this participle is horizontal and relational to those in the room with us – our brothers and sisters in Christ. As we are to speak to one another, so we are to submit to one another. As singing and making melody in our hearts to the Lord and giving thanks to God lifts us up to heaven so too are we brought back to earth to submit one another.

   Again I say, that these five participles that teach us how to be filled with the Spirit are organic. They are not linear. They are not a check list to go down.  They work together and are to be practiced simultaneously.

   Now consider how this exhortation to be filled with the Holy Spirit flows into the next section in Ephesians that speaks of worthy relationships.

²² Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. (Eph. 5:22 NKJ)

  This verse immediately follows and literally says:

“wives to your own husband’s as to the Lord.”

   The first verse in the following section which contains instructions on relationships does not have a verb.  It draws it’s verb from the participle “submitting.” The filling of the Holy Spirit as expounded in 5:18-21 is as critical to the following section as it is to the previous section (4:1-5:14).

In summary, Paul is clear in Ephesians that one cannot grow in his walk with God unless he is continually filled with the Holy Spirit. The means by which the Holy Spirit comes is through singing – singing the Psalter.  This is at the heart of Paul’s view of discipleship.  If the church is to follow the Great Commission by making disciples, the church must go back to singing from the Psalter.

 

–Freddy Sloan

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[1] Christopher Ash’s two books on Teaching Psalms is an excellent place to begin.