Ephesians 5:18 Don’t be drunk with wine, because that will ruin your life. Instead, be filled with the Holy Spirit. Some people are looking for a temporary "buzz" for their life and that search is even tried in the spirit world. If you are looking for a better "feeling" from a bottle of alcohol or some kind of pill you are searching in the wrong place. An alcoholic beverage might give you a calming feeling and help you handle life a little better for a while, but you will soon have to drink more and more and when you realize the alcohol is now controlling your life you can't get away from it. Maybe your "buzz" comes from trying to be the "latest greatest" and trying to elevate yourself by being the most trendy person in your little group of friends. I knew a guy who always had friends around him who were a little nerdy and not as good looking so he would always shine out as the best. That is so sick!! Maybe you have sold your soul to wealth and position and felt that it would make you feel better or more in charge of your life and you are still "soul sick" and unhappy. Here are some of the results of trying to fill the God-sized void in your life with wealth.
*Perhaps the most famous gold strike in American history occurred in January 1848 when a man named John Marshall found gold at Sutter's Mill in northern California. The find set off a gold rush that reached a frenzied pitch and even attracted prospectors from Europe--but it ruined Marshall and John Stutter, the man who owned the land where gold lay for the taking. Sutter's land was overrun by gold seekers, his cattle were stolen, and he was driven into bankruptcy. Marshall died drunken and penniless.
*Paul wrote the following words to Timothy in 1 Timothy 6:17 Teach those who are rich in this world not to be proud and not to trust in their money, which is so unreliable. Their trust should be in God, who richly gives us all we need for our enjoyment.
The rich young ruler went away very sad because he missed the point of what Jesus was saying. Perhaps you have missed the point of what Jesus wants to show you in this relationship He has established with you through your faith. When we surrender to Jesus He replaces our desires with His perfect desires, and money and position are not any of them. We are to pursue God and Him alone. Oh he may bless you financially and that burden will be one that God will help you handle, but only through the power of the Holy Spirit.
There are so many other things that are vying for our time and our commitment and that is why we must be filled with the Spirit of God. We must never get the "cart before the horse" in our lives, meaning we need to let God guide us in all circumstances. Humanism and worldliness are so prevalent and so easy to fall into, so we must be filled with the Spirit. In the true meaning of the scripture, in the above Ephesians verses, we are commanded to keep being filled. The Spirit-Filled life is a reality for followers of Jesus and in fact, we cannot live the life God has called us to without being filled constantly. Almost every morning I begin the day by asking God to fill me with His Spirit....and He does it. When I "forget" my day quickly goes somewhere God doesn't want it to go. In essence, I am going into my daily battle without my weapons and defeat is on my horizon. But there is never a time that should happen, so be filled with the Spirit.
When we are religious we will make a commitment to be more holy and that is a laughing matter because we can do nothing on our own. It is in our realization of how weak we are that we realize just how strong our God really is and how much He wants to give us His power. We receive that power for living only through the Spirit of God. God's Spirit is real and powerful and the boldness He gives through the Spirit was seen in Acts 4:31 After this prayer, the meeting place shook, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit. Then they preached the word of God with boldness. Without that experience, the gospel would not have been shared with boldness and that is what is happening in churches today because we are not praying for the Holy Spirit to move. C'mon. You know it is true, so be filled with the Holy Spirit and your life will NEVER be the same!!! GOD PROMISES!!
In your relationship with God if you will search His Word He will show you all of these things as Paul wrote to the church in Colossae in Colossians 1:25 God has given me the responsibility of serving his church by proclaiming his entire message to you.26 This message was kept secret for centuries and generations past, but now it has been revealed to God’s people.
The Pilgrimage Continues
David Warren
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