A New Community

Please open your Bibles to Ephesians 5.

Where are we heading from here through the rest of the year?

Thanksgiving followed by Advent.

Read Ephesians 5:18–21- “And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.”

Pray.

Last week- Don’t fill yourself with wine, but instead with the Spirit.

We crave excitement, we crave fulfillment. What is it about life in the Spirit that fulfills a life of excitement beyond mere drunkenness?

This is what Paul seeks to answer in the text before us this morning.

How does the death and resurrection of Jesus impact His people? How are gospel-centered and Spirit filled communities transformed by the grace of God?

What happens when a number of Spirit-filled people gather in community with one another?

What sort of words are meant to describe such a gathering?

What are the things that we are to do? Who are we called to be?

1. Spirit-filled communities worship together in song.

Ephesians 5:19- “…addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart…”

What happens when Spirit-filled people gather in community with one another? They worship together.

Let’s be specific here.

All of life is worship.

Obedience is worship. Prayer is worship. Evangelism is worship.

Worship is anytime we make much of God and keep Him at the center of our lives, our minds and our hearts.

What Paul is speaking of specifically is worshiping through song, through music and singing.

Addressing one another.

Paul first handles a horizontal aspect to musical worship.

Might be strange for us to think about, as for many of us, we consider this to be a very personal and individualistic moment.

But notice how Paul mentions worship.

Addressing- to speak or to preach.

When we sing together, it is not meant to be a personalized and individual time of worship.

The words that we sing together are meant to speak life-giving and life-sustaining truth to those around us.

Two recent memories of this being the case for me.

Eva singing in my ear.

Pastor’s Retreat in Florida.

Psalms, hymns and spiritual songs.

Psalms- The hymnal of Israel. 150 Psalms that are meant to shape all of what we sing today.

Hymns- Remember Ephesians 5:14- “Therefore it says, ‘Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead, and Christ will shine on you.’”

Or Philippians 2:5-11.

It seems that these are songs that are not psalms, but instead were already recognized in the early church as theologically rich and likely shared between the churches.

Spiritual songs- These are likely songs that sprang from a particularly spiritually rich moment in time.

Something like the Magnificat from Luke 1.

Or Hannah’s song of praise in 1 Samuel 2.

Moses’ song from Exodus 15 or Miriam’s song from the same chapter.

Making melody to the Lord with your heart.

Here is the vertical aspect of musical worship.

We are to work to make sure that the music that we sing together in worship never becomes heartless, or unfelt.

I think that we can see this taking place often in our lives. We sing because the words are provided and the musicians provide the opportunity.

But are we considering what exactly we sing?

How does this work? Let’s use an example.

Martin Nystrom in 1984- “As the deer panteth for the water, so my soul longeth after Thee; You alone are my heart’s desire and I long to worship Thee.”

Always sang this song with a glad and joyful heart.

Later lyrics- “I want You more than gold or silver; Only You can satisfy; You alone are the real joy-giver; And the apple of my eye.”

Seems like a song from the perspective of one who is glad, one who is satisfied in God.

But from where does the song come?

Psalm 42:1- “As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God.”

Here we recognize the song lyrics in the words of the Psalm, but what is this particular psalm about?

Psalm 42:7- “Deep calls to deep at the roar of your waterfalls; all your breakers and your waves have gone over me.”

Psalm 42:11- “Why are you cast down, O my soul, and why are you in turmoil within me? Hope in God; for I shall again praise him, my salvation and my God.”

This is a psalm that was written in the pit of despair, in anguish, when faith makes sense in the head but not in the heart.

Such a mentality changes the way that we sing this song. We sing not as one who is filled, but rather as one who seeks after the presence of God.

2. Spirit-filled communities are thankful together.

Ephesians 5:20- “…giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ…”

How are Spirit-filled people to gather in community with one another? With a spirit of thankfulness.

Giving thanks always and for everything.

This is a difficult word.

What is meant, and included, in always and everything?

How are we to give thanks even when things are horrible?

Are we to thank God for the difficult circumstances of life?

If we are called to give thanks in all circumstances, then we must find what is present in all circumstances and give thanks for that.

There must be something that is praiseworthy in every moment of our lives, regardless of the surrounding situations being either good or bad.

It’s the presence of God.

To God the Father in the name of Jesus.

We give thanks, then, to the Father for all that He has done for us.

Psalm 107:43- “Whoever is wise, let him attend to these things; let them consider the steadfast love of the Lord.”

Steadfast love of God, enduring, present love of God that does not dwindle.

Tied back to our worship in song.

The songs we sing together are to create within us a spirit of thankfulness.

Psalm 13- “How long, O Lord? Will you forget me forever? How long will you hide your face from me? How long must I take counsel in my soul and have sorrow in my heart all the day? How long shall my enemy be exalted over me? Consider and answer me, O Lord my God; light up my eyes, lest I sleep the sleep of death, lest my enemy say, “I have prevailed over him,” lest my foes rejoice because I am shaken. But I have trusted in your steadfast love; my heart shall rejoice in your salvation. I will sing to the Lord, because he has dealt bountifully with me.”

3. Spirit-filled communities submit to one another.

Ephesians 5:21- “…submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.”

Submit.

Sets the stage for what is coming in the rest of chapter 5 and 6.

Put yourself under; make yourself subject to one another.

To put yourself under the authority of another person- to willingly and joyfully serve.

The body of Christ is meant to be a group of Spirit-filled people seeking to serve the needs of one another.

There is no one that we are unwilling to serve.

We come into this room to serve, to do everything within us to enable others to grow in their relationship with Christ.

Romans 12:10- “Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor.”

Compete in the service of others.

Why “out of reverence for Christ”?

Jesus is the example that is ever before us.

John 13:15–17- “For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you. Truly, truly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. If you know these things, blessed are you if you do them.”

We follow this example. We revere, or respect, Jesus by being who Jesus was in His earthly ministry.

How do these words give us encouragement and challenge this morning? How are we to live among one another moving forward?

Do we prepare ourselves to gather for worship?

Midnight showings of movies.

Come into the building thinking of all the ways we need someone to care for us? Or come into the building ready to care for the needs of others?

Isn’t this the point of what Paul is laying out for the Ephesian Christians?

Gathering as a Spirit-filled people is a big deal. It’s to be a priority of our lives, not merely something to be crossed off when it’s done.

Are we ready for what is coming, have we rightly prepared ourselves, for when we enter the house of God with the people of God?