The Spirit's Ministry - Tongues and Prophecy

. . . but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit . . . (NASB) Eph. 5:17-18

To be filled with the Holy Spirit means that the Holy Spirit has complete control of us. Notice God’s illustration in Eph. 5:17-18. He commands us to not become drunk with wine but to be drunk with the Holy Spirit. To be drunk means that wine has taken control of our senses. That illustrates the meaning of the Greek word “filled.” It means “to make full, complete.” It was also used to refer to someone who was filled full of food. The will of God is that we be filled full of the Holy Spirit or controlled by Him. When we allow this to happen, we will be . . .

. . . speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord; always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father; and be subject to one another in the fear of Christ. (NASB) Eph. 5:19-21

Constant Filling Is Walking. To be filled is God’s will and to walk in the Spirit has a great spiritual benefit - a life increasingly filled with holiness. To be constantly filled with the Spirit results in victory over sin, peace and joy in the heart, and submission/humility towards others. But in order to be filled with the Spirit, we must ask God to have the Holy Spirit take control of us – “to fill us” - just as the apostle Paul prayed for the Ephesians. One must want Him to take over his/her life. It is also important to remember that in order to continue being “filled with” or “walking in” the Spirit, you must confess your sins to God the Father every time you realize that you have sinned and ask the Holy Spirit to take control of your life again. One should also spend as much time reading, studying, and meditating upon the Bible as he/she can. This is what it means to live our life in the Spirit of God. The Holy Spirit changes lives gradually, gives us increasing victory over sin, provides peace and joy in our hearts and gives us a tremendous longing to know Him. We will never be perfect. Even though you will still sin, you will see God at work.

It is important to notice that neither Galatians 5:16-23 nor Ephesians 5:17-6:5 describes anything out of the ordinary. What happens when the Holy Spirit takes control is described in Eph. 5:19-21.

The last part of the passage refers to submission, and the Holy Spirit provides an example in verse 22 - wives submitting to husbands. Husbands will also love their wives (Eph. 5:22), children will obey their parents (Eph. 6:1), and servants will cooperate with their employers (Eph. 6:5). These are the deeds that result from the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22-23). Galatians 5:22-23 describes the result of a day-by-day filling of the Spirit, that is, walking in the Spirit, in verses 22-23, and Eph. 5:17-6:5 describes the deeds of the Spirit.

Evidence of the Spirit. Some years ago a Calvary Chapel pastor told his congregation that he had been asked, “What is the evidence that I have the Holy Spirit?” He responded that the fruit of the Spirit described in Gal. 5:22-23 was the most important evidence - love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Ephesians 5:19-21 gives us a second list.

Spiritual gifts are supernatural abilities that the Holy Spirit gives to each person who believes in and follows Jesus Christ (1 Cor. 12:11). The supernatural abilities include such things as teaching, leading, financial giving, speaking in tongues, healing, and mercy, for example. Two lists of them can be found in 1 Corinthians 12:7-10, 28 and Romans 12:6-8. Some have said that these spiritual gifts are a sign or an indication that a person belongs to God. If so, how does one determine if a person has a spiritual gift or just a natural ability? How do we know that a gifted teacher is spirit filled or anointed (1 John 2:20), a highly trained professional, or someone with natural ability? The answer is found in their personal walks with God and the spiritual growth of those who interact with them. The answer is not found in how many follow them.

Some claim that the gift of tongues - speaking in tongues - is a sign that a person belongs to God. Ecstatic speech has been identified in many parts of world in various religions. Others in the world display ecstatic speech and they do not belong to God. So how do we know the genuine signs from the false? It is important to note that the Bible never tells us in specific words that tongues or another spiritual gift is a proof that someone belongs to God. In fact, we are given other signs or indicators to look for.

Listen to the Apostle John who wrote these words,

These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, so that you may know that you have eternal life. (NASB) 1 John 5:13

What did he write or record for us? What were the “things” or “the signs” that a person belongs to God? What did he record? Here is a series of evidences that a person belongs to God: 1) he or she believes that Jesus was God (1 John 4:2 ), 2) he or she obeys God (1 John 3:24), 3) he or she loves others (1 John 4:8 ), 4) he or she confesses their sins to God (1 John 1:9), and 5) he or she seeks to be holy (1 John 3:10). The entire book of 1 John was written with a series of evidences, marks, or signs that a person is a Christian.

We know by this that He abides in us, by the Spirit whom He has given us. (NASB) 1 John 3:24

It is extremely interesting to note that while spiritual gifts, such as teaching, tongues, or mercy are not mentioned as evidence that a person is a Christian, the evidences of the fruit of the Spirit are listed - most notably love. Why did the Apostle John not mention spiritual gifts and instead list other criteria?

When Jesus told the parable of the sower of the seed in Matthew 13:18-23, He described four different kinds of seed. Some fell beside the road, on rocky places, among thorns, and on good soil. The seed that fell on good soil represented those who hear the good news from the Bible about Jesus Christ, believe in Him and follow. This seed produces a lot of fruit, “some a hundredfold, some sixty, and some thirty.” To what type of fruit was Jesus referring? A quick word study of the New Testament reveals that fruit refers to the fruit of the Spirit (Rom. 7:4-6; 15:28; Eph. 5:9; Phil. 1:11; Heb. 12:11; 13:15; James 3:18). Once again none of the spiritual gifts are referred to or used as a proof that a person is a Christian outside of the book of Acts. In Acts it is clear on two occasions that tongues were used to prove that salvation had been offered to two groups of people the Jews hated: Samaritans (Acts 8:18) and the Gentiles (Acts 10:44). But the gift of tongues was not automatically displayed when the Samaritans believed. It occurred only after the apostle Paul appeared. This indicates that a person could believe in Jesus Christ and not necessarily speak in tongues.

These are important points because they indicate that the apostles looked to other signs or indications that a person was a Christian and not to spiritual gifts. They looked to the signs of the fruit or the work of the Holy Spirit in the life of a person.

Summary. We need the Holy Spirit to help us understand that we are sinners, lead us to God, give us faith to believe, place us into the family of God, seal us, regenerates us, help us pray, help us understand the Bible, empower us for ministry, change our lives, help us minister to others through His spiritual gifts, and display the fruit of the Spirit in our lives. The Holy Spirit is essential to every Christian. That is why we are commanded to walk in the Spirit and to be filled with the Spirit. The result of both of these is victory over sin, submission, peace, joy, singing, time in the Word of God and love. We can thank the Holy Spirit for His ministry in our lives.