As I said, on first glance I don't see this verse as a testimony to the Holy Spirit's role in our lives. But then I got up on a higher point of view, gaining additional sight, and realized a very spiritual truth.
The Holy Spirit enables us to do what we cannot, in our human flesh, accomplish. Thinking on that, and looking at this verse, what power are we given by the filling of the Spirit? The power to be continuously thankful, for everything.
That kind of thankfulness is not human --- generally, we are dwelling on the latest thing that just went wrong in our lives. How many times do we hear people say, "The way my life is going....", or, "well, that's just my luck....", or, "if it's going to happen, it will happen to me!" We quote Murphy's Law ("whatever can go wrong, will") and apply it to our lives.
But in Ephesians 5:20, following our instruction in 5:18 to be "filled with the Spirit", we are told to give thanks always for everything. The kind of heart that can be thankful in every circumstance is a heart that has been given over to the Spirit of God. A heart that has allowed the Spirit to transform it from one of hardness to pliability. A heart that does not harden with cynicism and bitterness when something goes wrong, but tenderly reviews how faithful God has been in troubled times before, and trusts that He will again be just as faithful. A heart that understands God will walk beside and teach lessons that would otherwise never be learned. Because, just as we are told in Ezekiel 11:19, the Spirit replaces our hearts...
With the Spirit controlling us, we're at a higher point! We can see things clearer and we can know who is in control. We know that we are not defeated...that the Victor is on our side, and that we have been blessed beyond measure by the gift of Jesus. When we have a gift of that magnitude, there should be nothing that distracts us from thankfulness. And when we are in the middle of the very best of times, we will not be distracted by feelings of pride or accomplishment. We will again turn our hearts toward God our Father, and say, "Thank You!"
We can give thanks for everything, always, to our Father, because He has given us everything in Jesus!
The Holy Spirit enables us to do what we cannot, in our human flesh, accomplish. Thinking on that, and looking at this verse, what power are we given by the filling of the Spirit? The power to be continuously thankful, for everything.
That kind of thankfulness is not human --- generally, we are dwelling on the latest thing that just went wrong in our lives. How many times do we hear people say, "The way my life is going....", or, "well, that's just my luck....", or, "if it's going to happen, it will happen to me!" We quote Murphy's Law ("whatever can go wrong, will") and apply it to our lives.
But in Ephesians 5:20, following our instruction in 5:18 to be "filled with the Spirit", we are told to give thanks always for everything. The kind of heart that can be thankful in every circumstance is a heart that has been given over to the Spirit of God. A heart that has allowed the Spirit to transform it from one of hardness to pliability. A heart that does not harden with cynicism and bitterness when something goes wrong, but tenderly reviews how faithful God has been in troubled times before, and trusts that He will again be just as faithful. A heart that understands God will walk beside and teach lessons that would otherwise never be learned. Because, just as we are told in Ezekiel 11:19, the Spirit replaces our hearts...And I will give them singleness of heart and put a new spirit within them. I will take away their hearts of stone and give them tender hearts instead.
Without a spiritual heart transplant, there is no way that our human hearts can feel the kind of thankfulness that Paul expresses in our verse of this week. Because we will fall into a spirit of defeat when bad things happen. Listen to what Robert J. Morgan includes in his text for this verse:
We all have terrible, horrible, no good, very bad days. We all have stormy days. But when we're filled with the Spirit---when we've placed every part and parcel of our lives under the control of Jesus Christ---it affects our attitude. We fly at a higher altitude. We find ourselves always giving thanks to God the Father through our Lord Jesus Christ.
After all, if all things work together for good, as Romans 8:28 promises, why not always give thanks in all things?
With the Spirit controlling us, we're at a higher point! We can see things clearer and we can know who is in control. We know that we are not defeated...that the Victor is on our side, and that we have been blessed beyond measure by the gift of Jesus. When we have a gift of that magnitude, there should be nothing that distracts us from thankfulness. And when we are in the middle of the very best of times, we will not be distracted by feelings of pride or accomplishment. We will again turn our hearts toward God our Father, and say, "Thank You!"
We can give thanks for everything, always, to our Father, because He has given us everything in Jesus!
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