The Good Shepherd Fills
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HE LEADS ME
Sermon 2: The Good Shepherd Fills
Text: Ephesians 5:15–21
Main Idea
A mark of God's will is a life continually filled by the Holy Spirit.
Opening Story
The Smartphone Battery
"Every one of us has experienced this.
You leave the house.
Your phone says 100%.
By lunch...
67%.
Mid-afternoon...
29%.
Then...
That dreaded red battery.
Nothing changed about the phone.
It still knows what it's supposed to do.
It just doesn't have the power to do it much longer.
A lot of Christians live exactly like that.
They know Scripture.
They know what's right.
They know what God wants.
They're just spiritually running on 9%.
Paul says...
God never intended His people to live that way."
"Last week we learned something incredibly freeing.
God's will is that people come to salvation through Jesus Christ.
But here's the question that naturally follows.
Once I've answered His call...
How do I keep following Him?
How do I resist temptation?
How do I forgive difficult people?
How do I make wise decisions?
How do I keep from drifting?
That's exactly where Paul takes us today."
The Good Shepherd Calls Us to Walk Wisely
Pay careful attention, then, to how you walk—not as unwise people but as wise—making the most of the time, because the days are evil. So don’t be foolish, but understand what the Lord’s will is.
God's will is discovered by those who walk wisely according to His revealed truth.
Sticky Statement
Explanation
Paul begins with a command to "look carefully then how you walk." The image is of someone paying close attention to each step they take.
The Christian life is not meant to drift aimlessly but to be lived intentionally.
Paul contrasts two kinds of people:
the wise and the foolish.
Wisdom, in Scripture, is not measured by intelligence but by living in light of God's revealed truth.
Paul then says believers are to be "making the best use of the time, because the days are evil." The word translated "time" (kairos) refers not merely to passing minutes but to God-given opportunities.
The evil age constantly presses believers toward distraction, compromise, and wasted lives. Therefore, God's people must seize every opportunity to glorify Christ.
Notice the word picture Paul uses here: “walk.”
That word matters.
For us, walking is usually something we do for exercise.
For Paul's audience, walking was simply a way of life.
It was how you got from one place to another.
You walked to work.
You walked to the market.
You walked to hear the news.
You walked to see your neighbor.
Walking was woven into the ordinary rhythm of everyday life.
So when Paul says, “Pay careful attention, then, to how you walk,” he's not talking about what you do for an hour on Sunday morning.
He's talking about the direction and pattern of your entire life.
And there's something else about walking that I think makes Paul's picture so powerful.
Walking is active.
You cannot walk while lying down.
Walking requires you to get up, take a step, and then take another one.
Sometimes the road is easy.
Sometimes it's uphill.
Sometimes you're tired.
Sometimes you'd rather stop.
But walking requires movement, effort, and endurance.
That's a pretty good picture of following Jesus.
God's will for us isn't spiritual passivity.
We don't simply sit around waiting for God to make us wise.
We actively pursue Him.
We walk in His Word.
We walk in His wisdom.
We walk under the influence and direction of His Spirit.
And then tomorrow morning, we get up and walk with Him again.
That's why I love Paul's language here. He's not describing a spiritual moment;
he's describing a way of life.
And notice where the walk eventually takes us in this passage.
Paul begins,
“Pay careful attention to how you walk,” and eventually commands, “Be filled by the Spirit.”
That's the life God desires for us:
a daily, deliberate,
enduring walk
increasingly governed by the wisdom of His Word and the influence of His Spirit.
You don't accidentally walk with God.
You walk with Him one faithful step at a time.
Verse 17 brings the thought to its climax:
"Do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is."
Notice Paul does not direct believers to search for mystical signs or hidden messages.
Rather, he calls them to understand what God has already revealed.
As F.F. Bruce noted,
understanding God's will comes through paying attention to God's Word and applying it through the wisdom supplied by the Spirit.
Likewise, John Stott emphasizes that Christian maturity is grounded in truth rather than instability or every new idea that comes along.
Proverbs 3:5–6 teaches trust in the Lord over self-reliance.
Then you will find favor and high regard
with God and people.
Trust in the Lord with all your heart,
and do not rely on your own understanding;
in all your ways know him,
and he will make your paths straight.
Romans 12:1–2 connects a renewed mind with discerning God's will.
Therefore, brothers and sisters, in view of the mercies of God, I urge you to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and pleasing to God; this is your true worship. Do not be conformed to this age, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind, so that you may discern what is the good, pleasing, and perfect will of God.
Colossians 4:5 urges believers to walk in wisdom toward outsiders, making the best use of the time.
Act wisely toward outsiders, making the most of the time.
Illustration
Imagine a hiker standing at the entrance pf a trail leading to a dense forest.
He has two options.
One is to wander wherever his instincts lead him, hoping he'll eventually arrive at the destination.
The other is to follow a well-marked trail designed by someone who knows the terrain.
Most of us would never trust ourselves in the wilderness, yet we often do exactly that with life.
We ask God for a map to the future while ignoring the trail He has already marked in His Word.
Wisdom is not discovering a hidden path; it is faithfully walking the one God has revealed.
Argumentation
A skeptic might say:
"If God wants me to know His will, why doesn't He simply tell me every decision I should make?"
Because God's greatest concern is not creating robots, but mature disciples.
A loving father doesn't dictate every decision his adult child makes;
he forms their character so they can make wise decisions.
Likewise,
God has given us
His Word,
His Spirit,
and His wisdom
so that we grow in discernment rather than dependence on signs or impressions.
God's will becomes clearer when God's Word shapes your walk.
Application
For Paul's Audience
The Ephesian believers lived in a city saturated with pagan worship, magic, and competing philosophies. They were not to drift with the culture but to walk wisely according to God's revealed truth, recognizing every opportunity to live distinctly for Christ.
For Us
Many Christians spend more time searching YouTube, podcasts, and social media for answers than they spend in God's Word. We ask, "God, what's Your will?" while neglecting the very place He has revealed it.
If God's Word shapes your daily walk, you'll find that many of life's decisions become matters of wisdom rather than confusion.
2. The Good Shepherd Fills His People
And don’t get drunk with wine, which leads to reckless living, but be filled by the Spirit:
God calls believers to continually yield themselves to the controlling influence of His Spirit.
Explanation
Then Paul gets even more specific in verse 18:
“Do not get drunk with wine, which leads to reckless living, but be filled by the Spirit.”
Now, why would Paul put those two things beside each other?
Because being filled isn't primarily about volume; it's about influence.
When someone is drunk, we say they're under the influence.
Something has gotten hold of them.
It begins affecting
the way they think,
the way they speak,
the decisions they make,
even the way they walk.
Paul says, “Don't surrender yourself to that influence. Be filled by the Spirit.”
And here's where I think our culture makes this incredibly relevant.
The world is constantly offering us substitutes for what only the Spirit of God can produce.
It says, “If you drink enough, you'll find joy.”
“If you make enough money, you'll find peace.”
“If you get enough attention, you'll feel significant.”
“If you find the right relationship, you'll finally be whole.”
“If you can escape for a while, you'll finally be free.”
The world keeps promising the experience of a Spirit-filled life without surrendering to the Spirit who gives life.
And the world’s ways never deliver.
Isn't it interesting that Paul says the Spirit-filled life eventually produces
singing,
thanksgiving,
worship,
and healthy relationships?
There is joy here. There is a heart with a melody in it. There is gratitude. There is community.
The world promises some of those same things.
It just can't sustain them.
So when Paul says, “Be filled by the Spirit,” he's not telling Christians that we need to somehow get more of the Holy Spirit.
If you belong to Christ, the Spirit of God dwells within you.
The question isn't simply, “How much of the Spirit do I have?”
The better question is:
“How much of me does the Spirit have?”
And that's where this gets very practical.
Because the Holy Spirit doesn't just want influence over your Sunday morning.
He wants your Tuesday night too.
He wants influence over the thoughts nobody else hears.
He wants influence over what you watch when nobody else is around.
He wants influence over your budget—what you earn, what you spend, what you give, and what you think will make you secure.
He wants influence over your marriage.
Your dating relationships.
Your friendships.
Your parenting.
Your temper.
Your sexuality.
Your calendar.
Your ambitions.
Your conversations.
The parts of your life everybody sees—and the parts nobody sees.
Because being filled with the Spirit isn't adding a little more God to the life I've already decided to live.
It's increasingly surrendering the life I have to His influence.
And notice Paul's language: “Be filled.”
This isn't intended to describe one extraordinary spiritual experience that happened years ago. This is to characterize the continuing life of the believer.
Again and again, I surrender.
Again and again, I listen.
Again and again, I bring my desires underneath His Word.
Again and again, I say, “Holy Spirit, I want Your influence here too.”
That's God's desire for us.
Not merely Spirit-filled Sundays. Spirit-filled lives.
Galatians 5:16–25, where walking by the Spirit contrasts with gratifying the flesh;
I say, then, walk by the Spirit and you will certainly not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh desires what is against the Spirit, and the Spirit desires what is against the flesh; these are opposed to each other, so that you don’t do what you want. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.
Now the works of the flesh are obvious: sexual immorality, moral impurity, promiscuity, idolatry, sorcery, hatreds, strife, jealousy, outbursts of anger, selfish ambitions, dissensions, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and anything similar. I am warning you about these things—as I warned you before—that those who practice such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. The law is not against such things. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.
Romans 8:5–14, Insists our life be set according to the Spirit;
For those who live according to the flesh have their minds set on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit have their minds set on the things of the Spirit. Now the mindset of the flesh is death, but the mindset of the Spirit is life and peace. The mindset of the flesh is hostile to God because it does not submit to God’s law. Indeed, it is unable to do so. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. You, however, are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God lives in you. If anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to him. Now if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit gives life because of righteousness. And if the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead lives in you, then he who raised Christ from the dead will also bring your mortal bodies to life through his Spirit who lives in you.
So then, brothers and sisters, we are not obligated to the flesh to live according to the flesh, because if you live according to the flesh, you are going to die. But if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For all those led by God’s Spirit are God’s sons.
Illustration
Think about the cruise control feature in a vehicle versus someone operating the steering wheel.
Cruise control only maintains speed.
The driver determines direction.
Many Christians want the Holy Spirit to function like cruise control—give them a little help while they remain in charge.
But Paul presents something entirely different.
The Spirit is not our assistant.
He is the One to whom we willingly surrender the steering wheel.
Argumentation
Some object:
"Isn't talk about the Holy Spirit too subjective?"
How you encounter the Spirit vs who I encounter Him.
Paul actually removes the subjectivity.
He doesn't say, "Feel the Spirit."
He doesn't say, "Wait for an experience."
He says, "Be continually filled."
Then he immediately describes what that life looks like. Spirit-filling is not measured by extraordinary experiences but by ordinary obedience- supplied by God- that consistently reflects Christ.
The Spirit-filled life isn't about getting more of the Spirit—it's about the Spirit getting more of you.
Application
For Paul's Audience
The Ephesians lived among the drunken festivals of pagan worship, where intoxication was often associated with religious devotion.
Paul tells them the Christian's joy and power come not from altered consciousness,
but from continual surrender to the Holy Spirit.
For Us
Ask yourself:
Who is shaping my decisions?
Who is influencing my attitudes?
What controls my emotions, my speech, my priorities?
Every day we surrender ourselves to something.
God's will is that we continually surrender ourselves to His Spirit.
3. The Good Shepherd Produces a New Song
speaking to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing and making music with your heart to the Lord, giving thanks always for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another in the fear of Christ.
The Holy Spirit transforms the believer's relationships, worship, gratitude, and humility.
Explanation
And here's what I love about Paul: he doesn't leave “be filled by the Spirit” as some vague spiritual idea.
He shows us what it looks like.
He says we begin speaking to one another in psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs. We sing and make music from our hearts to the Lord.
We give thanks always for everything.
And then he says we submit to one another in the fear of Christ.
In other words, the Spirit's influence eventually becomes visible.
You may not be able to see the Holy Spirit, but you ought to be able to see what happens when a life is surrendered to Him.
And notice where it shows up.
It shows up in what comes out of our mouths.
It shows up in what fills our hearts.
It shows up in how we respond to our circumstances.
And it shows up in how we treat other people.
That's important because sometimes we make being “Spirit-filled” seem private—something happening between me and God.
Paul doesn't.
The Spirit certainly changes what happens inside of me,
but eventually what He's doing inside of me starts showing up around me.
My worship changes.
My attitude changes.
My gratitude changes.
My relationships change.
Think about the contrast Paul has been building.
The influences of this world tell us, “Make life about you.”
Protect your preferences.
Demand your rights.
Complain when life doesn't go your way.
Use other people to get what you want.
But when the Spirit has increasing influence over our lives, He begins turning all of that upside down.
Instead of constantly asking,
“What do I want?” I begin asking, “What honors Christ?”
Instead of needing everything to go my way,
I can give thanks even when life doesn't go my way.
Instead of entering relationships asking,
“What can you do for me?” I begin asking, “How can I serve you?”
That's why Paul eventually arrives at verse 21:
“Submitting to one another in the fear of Christ.”
Submission isn't weakness.
It isn't pretending everyone else is right.
And it certainly doesn't mean allowing sin or abuse.
It means that because Christ is Lord, I don't have to be.
I don't have to win every argument.
I don't have to get my way.
I don't have to make every relationship revolve around me.
The Spirit is producing in us the humility of Jesus.
And notice how beautifully this whole passage comes together.
Paul began by telling us to walk carefully.
Then he told us to be filled by the Spirit.
And now he shows us the evidence of that filling.
A Spirit-filled person increasingly has
a song toward God,
gratitude toward life,
and humility toward others.
That's what God's leadership begins producing in us.
And church, none of this happens because we grit our teeth and try harder to act spiritual.
It happens as we continually surrender more of ourselves to the influence of the Spirit.
Remember what we said:
The question isn't merely,
“How much of the Spirit do I have?”
It's,“How much of me does the Spirit have?”
Because when He gets your Sunday morning and your Tuesday night...
when He gets your thought life and your checkbook...
your marriage and your friendships...
your disappointments and your ambitions...
your private life and your public life...
eventually people around you begin experiencing the difference.
A Spirit-filled life doesn't stay hidden. It spills over.
Colossians 3:16–17 shows that Spirit-filling and letting the Word of Christ dwell richly produce remarkably similar results, reminding us that the Spirit works through God's Word.
Let the word of Christ dwell richly among you, in all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another through psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. And whatever you do, in word or in deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.
Illustration
Have you ever walked into a home and immediately sensed the atmosphere?
Some homes feel tense.
Others feel peaceful.
Nothing had to be explained.
You could feel it.
The Holy Spirit changes the atmosphere of a life.
You don’t become perfect, but Christ increasingly shapes everything you say, everything you value, and every relationship you enter.
Argumentation
Someone may say:
"I know Christians who claim to be filled with the Spirit, yet they're arrogant, divisive, or constantly complaining."
Paul would agree that's a contradiction.
He doesn't point to dramatic experiences as evidence of Spirit-filling.
He points to joyful worship, thankful hearts, and humble relationships.
The true evidence is not how loudly someone worships but how faithfully they resemble Christ.
When the Spirit fills your heart, Christ overflows into every part of your life.
Application
For Paul's Audience
The Ephesian church was called to become a community that stood in sharp contrast to the selfishness and immorality of its surrounding culture.
Their worship, gratitude, and mutual submission would bear witness to the transforming power of the gospel.
Imagine what our homes would look like if every family member daily yielded to the Holy Spirit.
Imagine our marriages.
Imagine our Rock Groups.
Imagine our worship gatherings.
People wouldn't simply notice giftedness, though we have a lot of gifted people here.
People would notice Jesus.
Because when the Holy Spirit fills a believer, Christ becomes increasingly visible.
Conclusion
As we close today, I want you to understand:
God never commands what He does not also empower.
Instead of waking up tomorrow thinking,
"I've got to be a better husband."
or
"I've got to be a better wife."
or
"I've got to be a better parent."
or
"I've got to be a better Christian."
What if instead, You woke up with a different prayer.
"Holy Spirit, fill me today. Lead me today. Produce in me what I can’t produce on my own."
Here is what that prayer would begin to do in your life
You’d begin to make decisions not out of fear, but wisdom.
You’d begin to respond to conflict with gentleness instead of anger.
Temptation would begin to loose its grip because you're walking with the Spirit instead of feeding the flesh.
Gratitude would replace constant frustration.
Worship would become more than songs on Sunday because your heart is already singing throughout the week.
Gospel Invitation
Maybe today you've realized something.
You've spent your life trying to become a better person.
You've tried harder.
Worked harder.
Promised yourself you'd do better.
Maybe you've even become religious.
But if y’ou’re honest...
You still find yourself drifting.
That's because Christianity isn't first about self-improvement.
It's about new life.
Paul doesn't tell spiritually dead people to be filled with the Spirit.
The Spirit first gives life through faith in Jesus Christ.
The same Savior who died for your sins and rose again now offers you something religion never can.
Forgiveness.
Reconciliation with God.
A new heart.
And the gift of His Holy Spirit.
The Good Shepherd who called sinners to Himself now calls you.
Turn from trusting yourself.
Place your faith in Jesus Christ alone.
Receive the forgiveness He purchased through His death and resurrection.
And discover what it means not merely to know God's will...
But to walk with the One who gives you power to live it.
"Last week we learned that the Good Shepherd calls His sheep.
Today we've learned that He doesn't leave them to follow Him alone.
He fills them with His Spirit.
And next week...
We'll discover that the Shepherd who fills us is also committed to changing us."
Church...
