How to Check And See If You Are Filled with God’s
Holy Spirit
Ephesians 5:18
Pastor
Craig Ledbetter
Oct 5, 2014
PM
Bible
Baptist Church, Ballincollig, Cork, Ireland
I.
Introduction (Ephesians 5:18)
A.
These have been some very practical lessons on living the Christian life
B.
We have learned about
1.
Memorizing and meditating on Scripture
2.
Personalising Scripture as we read it
3.
Walking in the Spirit
4.
And now, learning about being FILLED with God’s Holy Spirit
C.
The Christian life is SPIRITUAL as much as it is PHYSICAL
D.
And if you and I are not right SPIRITUALLY, nothing we do in the flesh
will amount to anything
II.
Review
A.
You GET
the Holy Spirit at Salvation
1.
You received Christ Himself (John 1:10-12)
2.
God the Father moved into you, spiritually (John
14:23)
3.
And the Holy Spirit came along too (John 14:17)
B.
You CANNOT
Lose the Holy Spirit’s Presence – not in total
1.
The Holy Spirit lives permanently in every Christian.
a.
Eph 1:13,14 “after that ye believed, ye were
sealed with that holy Spirit of
promise, Which is the earnest (only the BEGINNING) of our inheritance until
the redemption of the purchased possession (which is US)”
2.
Our good works could not earn His grace before we
were saved, and neither can our good works earn us His grace now that we are
saved (Romans 4:1-5; 5:1-11). If our good works could not save, and cannot
presently save us, then neither can our struggles with the flesh condemn us to
hell. If Jesus died for us when were yet enemies of God, how much more will He
now work with us after we have become born again (Romans 5:8-11)?
C.
His
Presence is Important Because…
1.
He seals you – secures you for heaven! Without Him
you have no assurance, no security
2.
He helps you pray – don’t forget just how important
HE is to your and my praying! Without Him, our prayers are dead!!!
3.
He strengthens you (Eph 3:16,17)
4.
And He FILLS you so that you can walk with God in
this world – so that you can be holy!
5.
You cannot live without Him – any more than
a.
A candle can burn without oil
b.
Or a car engine could run without oil
c.
You may be able for a little while, but after that,
you are crocked!
D.
Amazingly, He wants to FILL us! (Eph 5:18)
E.
But you
CAN LIMIT His work in your life, and limit His fullness in your life (Psalm
78:41). There is no Calvinism in the Bible!
F.
How?
1.
By not caring about HIS feelings – grieving
(Gen 6:6; 18:20; Eph 4:30)
2.
By not yielding to His tugging to humble yourself
(John 16:8; Act 7:51)
3.
By not honouring and worshipping Jesus
(John
16:13,14)
4.
By abusing your body
(1Cor 6:19,20). If you are born again, your body is OWNED by God, and is a place
of worship and holiness – not for abuse with DRUGS or HARLOTS
III.
Message
A.
We are always filled with some spirit! And it naturally will NOT be God’s
Holy Spirit – THAT takes effort!
B.
Test to
see if you are FULL of Him, or FULL of YOURSELF!
1.
God will test your fullness (Dt 8:2, “to
know what was in thine heart”)
a.
By allowing troubles into your life, pressures
b.
God allowed Israel to hunger and thirst and do
without.
c.
To show them what was in their hearts!
d.
God allows false prophets to prove, test, His
people’s commitment to truth and sound doctrine (Dt 13:3)
2.
Satan will test your fullness
a.
By trying to deceive you into yielding to another
spirit (2Cor 11:2-4)
b.
Only a Christian, full of the Holy Spirit can discern
false spirits, and resist the devil (1John 4:1; Rev 2:2)
3.
YOU yourself should test your level of fullness, and
be very aware of how LOW it is, and maintain a high level of fullness!
C.
Examples
of Spiritually Full People
1.
Stephen (Acts 6:5)
2.
Jesus (Luke 4:1)
3.
Barnabas (Acts 11:22-24)
4.
The 120 in the upper room (Acts 4:21)
5.
Not just in Bible times, but throughout history,
there have been people who have experienced the fullness of the Holy Spirit –
and without speaking in tongues!
D.
What it is
like when you are full of the Holy Spirit
(Acts 4:31-37)
1.
You pray instead of complain - when they had prayed
(4:31)
2.
Everyone will know you are full - the place was
shaken (4:31)
3.
You love being together with other believers –
assembled (4:31)
4.
You are bold, courageous in telling what God says
(4:31) - they spake the word of God with boldness
5.
Unity amongst the believers (4:32) - And the
multitude of them that believed were of one heart and of one soul
6.
Powerful demonstration of Christian living (4:33;
16:26) - God showed Himself mighty in their midst
7.
Great grace was present
(4:33) – overlooking things – not knit-picking and fault finding, but
great love of each other!
8.
Give stuff away (4:32,34-37) - neither said any of
them that ought of the things which he possessed was his own; but they had all
things common
9.
You are joyful – praising God – believing God
(5:40-42)
a.
Act 13:52
And the disciples were filled with joy, and with the Holy Ghost.
b.
Rom 14:17
For the kingdom of God is not meat and drink; but righteousness, and peace, and
joy in the Holy Ghost.
c.
Rom 15:13
Now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may
abound in hope, through the power of the Holy Ghost.
d.
1Thes 1:6
And ye became followers of us, and of the Lord, having received the word in much
affliction, with joy of the Holy Ghost:
E.
Quiz -
Take note of the level of His fullness in you!
1.
How
quick do you complain? How long is it between praises?
2.
How
does everyone see you? Full of Christ, or of yourself?
Ask someone who knows you WHAT spirit are you
known for? Because THAT is what you are full of?
3.
How
often do you make the sacrifice to be together with other believers?
4.
Do
you find courage as you obey God and preach the Gospel?
5.
Are
you a loner as a believer, or seeking Biblical unity under your pastor, with
every other believer?
6.
How
hard is it for you to give your money away?
7.
Do amazing
things happen around you?
8.
How
is your JOY level?
IV.
Final Questions
A.
WHEN do
you GET the Holy Spirit? at Salvation
B.
Can You
LOSE the Holy Spirit’s Presence? No
C.
Why is His
Presence Important in the life of a Christian?
1.
He seals you – secures you for heaven! Without Him
you have no assurance, no security
2.
He helps you pray – don’t forget just how important
HE is to your and my praying! Without Him, our prayers are dead!!!
3.
He strengthens you
4.
And He FILLS you so that you can walk with God in
this world – so that you can be holy!
5.
You cannot live without Him – any more than
D.
What CAN
you do to the Almighty Holy Spirit in your life?
1.
Grieve Him
2.
Frustrate Him
3.
Quench Him
4.
Drain Him
E.
How?
1.
By not caring about HIS feelings – grieving
2.
By not yielding to His tugging to humble yourself
3.
By not honouring and worshipping Jesus
4.
By abusing your body
F.
Who Will
or Should Test to see if you are FULL of the Holy Spirit?
1.
God will test your fullness (Dt 8:2, “to
know what was in thine heart”)
2.
Satan will test your fullness
3.
YOU yourself should test your level of fullness, and
be very aware of how LOW it is, and maintain a high level of fullness!
G.
Tonight
you have been given some questions to ask yourself throughout the week to see if
you are full or on empty!