Garry spoke tonight on living a Spirit-filled life from Ephesians 5:15-33. Paul, in this letter, is writing to Christians in whom the Holy Spirit dwells (Eph 1:13-14), but urges them to be continually filled with the Spirit. This phrase is frequently used in the book of Acts to describe what happens when people come to faith (see Acts 2:1-3, Acts 13:49-52). Paul frequently uses the word ‘fill’ when talking about the Holy Spirit (see Col 1:9) and there is the implication that there is no lack when we are filled with the Holy Spirit. When we are filled with joy, there is nothing lacking in our joy; when we are filled with spiritual knowledge, there are no omissions. To be filled with the Holy Spirit means He gives us what we don’t have and need.

Paul contrasts this experience with that of being drunk. When we are drunk, we lose control, for alcohol is a disabler. The Holy Spirit, in contrast, is an enabler. Speaking in other languages (see Acts 2:4) enables us to connect with God and is one way of encouraging and strengthening faith. At times, this ability from God acts as a message to others; then the gift of interpretation is also needed. Prophecy too is a gift from the Holy Spirit, as is a message of wisdom (see Luke 21:12-15) or knowledge which could not be naturally discerned. (John 4:16-18).The Holy Spirit also enables us through gifts of healing and miraculous powers (see Mark 4:35-41). At times, the Holy Spirit can give us the gift of faith and also enables us to distinguish between spirits.

We all need God’s power to be witnesses. Acts 1:8 tells us that this power comes as the Holy Spirit fills us. We need to pray for a constant filling of the Spirit, for we need His gifts to be effective witnesses and disciples of Jesus.

This morning we looked at the subject of God’s judgment. When we read verses about God repaying people ‘according to what they have done’ (see Prov 24:12, also Rom 2:6-11, Ps 62:12, Rev 20:13), it can lead us to feel very fearful about judgment, which we largely associate with ideas of punishment more than reward. Passages such as Deuteronomy 28 make it clear that there were blessings and curses promised for obedience and disobedience, and we can easily end up thinking that it’s all down to us – how well we live, how good we are. The problem with that kind of thinking is that we are never good enough! Rom 3:23 makes it plain that we have all sinned and missed God’s mark, following the law perfectly has only ever been achieved by Jesus (see Rom 3:10-25, Isaiah 64:6-7). God’s plan of salvation relied on God’s own righteousness (see Isaiah 59:16-17) and we are saved only through God’s grace and faith (see Eph 2:8-9).

If we wish to avoid condemnation in God’s final judgment at the great white throne, we must respond to His free gift of eternal life through the death and resurrection of Jesus (see John 3:17, 36). What God is looking for is a faith response to Jesus which is then outworked in our daily lives.

Eph 2:10 makes it plain that good works will follow on from salvation, and that there is a judgment to come for believers which is more like an ‘awards’ ceremony than a place of punishment (see 1 Cor 3:10-14, 2 Cor 5:10). John assures us that God is love and therefore we do not need to fear punishment (see 1 John 4:16-18). Paul spoke confidently about the crown of righteousness awaiting him from the righteous Judge. (2 Tim 4:8) God rewards those who earnestly seek Him. (Heb 11:6) He has promised us a rich inheritance as a reward for faithfulness and obedience. (Col 3:24) Paul gives us a simple rule of thumb for how to live: ‘Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people, because you know that the Lord will reward each one for whatever good they do, whether they are slave or free.’ (Eph 6:7-8) May we all serve the Lord wholeheartedly and wait patiently for His abundant rewards.

To lament means to express deep sorrow, grief, or regret (often through tears). We much prefer celebration to lament, but the truth is that sorrow, grief and regret will inevitably come our way at some point in life, and we do well to be prepared for these and to know how to respond biblically to them. The Bible has plenty to say about lament, with over a third of the book of Psalms being psalms of lament, and with a whole book devoted to the subject (Lamentations). It is not surprising that David the poet reacted to the deaths of Saul and his sons with a lament. (2 Samuel 1:17-27) Moreover, he wanted this lament to be taught to all Israel, for if we do not learn how to lament properly, we will never fully engage with God and suffering and will only know how to follow the ways of the world, which involve denial and distraction.

David grieves deeply for Saul and Jonathan (2 Samuel 1:11-12). He urges all to weep for the ‘gazelle’, the one anointed by God, and three times in the lament cries out ‘How the mighty have fallen!’ (2 Sam 1:19, 25, 27) He does not focus on Saul’s sins or the personal injury he has himself suffered at Saul’s hand. Instead, he remembers all Saul and Jonathan achieved and articulates the deep loss and sorrow he feels.

We need to learn to express emotions within the framework of Biblical lament, so that we are not left without hope at times of great anguish and despair. Biblical lament starts with a direct address to God (e.g. Ps 12:1-2) and involves complaint (see Ps 86:14). But there is also a direct appeal to God for help (e.g. Ps 44:23) and affirmations of trust in God (e.g. Ps 13:5). Psalms of lament generally follow a pattern that begins with suffering and ends with glory. Usually, these songs start on a negative, complaining note, but they end on a positive, faith-filled note.

The book of Lamentations, written during Israel’s exile, is written as an acrostic poem, the form itself reminding us that whilst suffering and grief seem endless, there is, in fact, an end to them. Lament enables us to ask hard questions and tackle painful subjects. It does not necessarily provide neat answers, but reminds us that God is with us at all times. Our Saviour, after all, is ‘a man of suffering, and familiar with pain’, ‘a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief.’ (Is 53:3)

As we enter the new book (2 Samuel) and a new era (David is finally about to become king!), we pause at the enormity of death and weep at the loss of so many with David. David is such a human character in the Bible. We identify with his strengths and weaknesses; we see here no relief or joy at the death of Saul and his family, even though this had long been predicted, but instead, see the humility and compassion which set him apart as a man after God’s own heart. For all of us, being human will mean dealing with sorrow, grief, regret and guilt. It will mean coming to terms with a wide range of emotions and learning to walk through these within the Biblical framework which does not deny pain or the reality of suffering. As Rend Collective put it, sorrow is real, but God will not let it break us (‘True In The Light’). Lament is the Biblical way of dealing with sorrow, and before we move on to rejoice at the fulfilment of God’s word in seeing David crowned king, we do well to pause and learn from how he reacted to grief.

It’s always a huge pleasure and privilege to hold a baptismal service, for in it we celebrate new life in Jesus. In our church we don’t baptise babies because we feel that baptism is for those who have made a conscious decision to follow Jesus (which babies obviously can’t do; we dedicate them to the Lord instead, asking for God’s blessing on their lives.) Yesterday we had the joy of baptising five church members, celebrating their decision to follow Jesus and baptising them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, as Jesus commanded us to. (Matt 28:18-20)

It was wonderful to have friends and family join us for this service and to sing God’s praises.

Baptism is a sacrament and a symbolic act linked to the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ (Rom 6:1-11) where going down under the water represents death to the old life, to our sinful independent state and coming up from the water represents the new life we now possess thanks to Christ’s resurrection. All of us must be born again to become part of God’s family (John 3:3, John 1:12), and this is a cause for great celebration. As with so many other celebrations, this invnolved food and gifts!