HOW TO HAVE A SPIRIT FILLED LIFE (Ephesians 5:18)

HOW TO HAVE A SPIRIT FILLED LIFE (EPHESIANS 5:18)

I want you to imagine a man who buys a car.  Now, this man has never owned a car before, and he doesn’t understand anything about a car. But finally, he gets enough money to buy a brand-new car. And so, he is very happy with this car. He shows it off to his friends. He shows them the beautiful paint job. He shows them the soft upholstery. He has them sit in the car and listen to the stereo music.  He shows them all of the amenities of this car. 

But there is one thing he doesn’t understand about it: he doesn’t understand that it has an engine in it.  And so, everywhere he goes, he has to push it. Now, every so often, he is going downhill so he can get in and coast, but that doesn’t thrill him too much because he knows he is going to have to push it up the next hill. And this car that is supposed to be a blessing to him has become a burden to him. And rather than it carrying him, he is pushing it. He is very proud of it, very grateful to have it—most of the time. But sometimes he wishes he didn’t have it at all.

And then, somebody says to him, “You know, there is something you don’t understand about this car,” and they show him a thing called the ignition button on the dash, and they say, “Push that button right there.” And he pushes it and hears this surge of power. He says, “What is that?” “Well, that is the engine. That is the motor. Now put it in drive, and push that pedal down there.” And when he does, it roars away in a surge of power. And he says, “Wow, this is wonderful! This is glorious! Why didn’t somebody tell me this sooner?”

You say, “Now, bro. Keith, really, that is kind of dumb. I mean, that is a stupid story. Nobody could be that dumb.” And you’re right, unless it is the Christian who does not understand the ministry of the Holy Spirit.  Now, when God saved you, God gave you a faith with an engine in it. And there are many people who are pushing their faith, rather than letting their faith carry them. And the faith—the salvation—that was meant to be a blessing, has almost become a burden to them. And they’re grateful they’re saved, but secretly, they think, “This being a Christian is such a difficult thing to do.”

Well, today, I want us to discover the ignition button to this thing called Christianity.

Click on the play button to hear a message on how the Bible teaches clearly that being filled with the Holy Spirit is a requirement for living a victorious Christian life.  

This is a live recording of The Master’s Class Bible Study at LifeChange Church Wichita, KS.

Amen.