The sermon, 'Two Controlling Influences and Their Destinations' by Jason Dohm, discusses the competing influences of intoxicating substances and the Holy Spirit. It emphasizes the biblical teaching that while wine is not forbidden, drunkenness leads to dissipation, or an abandoned life, lowering natural inhibitions and leading to behavior inconsistent with Christian living. Conversely, the Holy Spirit offers a controlling influence that believers should seek in greater measures, as it leads to a life filled with singing, gratitude, and mutual submission. The sermon urges believers not to be content with their current measure of the Holy Spirit, suggesting that greater fulfillment is available and necessary for spiritual growth. It highlights singing as both a form of speaking to one another and an expression of heartfelt praise to God. Furthermore, the sermon discusses the importance of always giving thanks and the role of mutual submission in Christian relationships, underscoring the influence of the Holy Spirit in guiding believers towards these practices. The sermon concludes with practical applications, encouraging believers to seek more of the Holy Spirit, improve their engagement in singing, and apply the teachings of Ephesians 5:15-21 in their relationships.

We pick a recitation text every quarter, so we're reciting it together for 13 weeks in a row. And it's almost always a text that will be preached on at some point during the quarter. And I always love it when those things collide on a Sunday because I feel like it gives me an opportunity to give an understanding at a greater depth of the thing that we've already been reciting together. So you have bought my hours and sent me off to study a text at a depth and to get a deep understanding of it, and then to come, hopefully, impart that depth of understanding. I'm excited to be preaching on a recitation text, and I hope that when we recite it going forward, it'll just mean a deeper thing to us.

Deeper truths will come to mind as we recite them going forward. The title of the sermon this morning is two controlling influences and their destinations. Paul sets before us, controlling influences, competing controlling influences and where they take you. That's essentially what our text is about today. Last week was about walking carefully and with holy forethought.

Man, do I wish I had thought of that particular phrase last week. I'm a week late with that one. But it really, it's not just forethought. Think ahead kids. It's holy forethought.

It's minds calibrated to the Word of God, trained by the Word of God to think about the life that we're leading and the things that we ought to do with our time. So last week's text was about walking patterns of life, walking carefully and with holy forethought, using time well and recognizing, seizing, and multiplying opportunities for Jesus' kingdom. That all falls under the heading of redeeming the time. And then the text ended with, understand what the will of the Lord is. This is all part of understanding what God wants our lives to be like, to be about.

And in our text today, Paul is just going to build on that. So this is all, today's sermon will all be under the heading, understanding what the will of the Lord is. This is all about grasping what God desires to develop in us and to see on display in our lives. So as we come to the text, let's pray that God would help us. God, we ought to be controlled by you.

Nothing is more fitting than we would be yielding ourselves to your controlling influence. And we want to be controlled by you. And it grieves us when we see ourselves under other influences. And so, God, I pray that you would use the time of the preaching of your Word to move us forward, to give us progress, and that we would so happily yield ourselves to your control. Give us hearts that want to be led by you, controlled by you.

In Jesus' name we pray, Amen. We are going to subdivide the text. There's going to be just a little bit of the text and then the rest of the text. So it's quite unbalanced today. The preaching is unbalanced today.

We're going to start by just looking at a couple of phrases. So hopefully you're in Ephesians chapter 5, and I'm going to reread the beginning of verse 18 and break off in the middle of that verse and then then we'll tackle the rest later. Ephesians 5 verse 18 Paul writes, and do not be drunk with wine in which is dissipation but be filled with the Spirit." Don't be drunk with wine because that is dissipation but be filled with the spirit. So in this verse, Paul teaches us that intoxicating drink leads to abandoned living. So if you're taking notes on the handout and filling in the blanks, Abandoned fills in the blank.

Intoxicating drink leads to abandoned living. Drunkenness is a state in which you take something into your body which significantly changes the way you think and the way you act from what it normally is. You take it into your system, and your thinking changes, sometimes imperceptibly to you, but it changes, and your behavior changes, sometimes imperceptibly to you, but it changes. The people around you are very aware of it, but you might be completely unaware of the change. God has made us with natural Inhibitions, a sense of what's right, what's wrong, what's appropriate, what's not appropriate.

And these substances, wine is the one listed here, named here. These substances, when they come into our body, if they come in a significant amount, they are natural inhibitions which God has given us to just have obvious to us what's right, what's wrong, what's appropriate, what's inappropriate. That Natural inhibition comes down and down and down until we lose this distinction between right and wrong, appropriate and inappropriate. Paul says, don't do that! And do not be drunk with wine.

Wine can be a controlling influence. Wine can take you over. Wine can control you, and believers are not to be controlled by it. I say can be a controlling influence, because the Word of God doesn't forbid drinking wine, but it does forbid drunkenness, which is the excessive consuming to excess. The Word of God doesn't forbid drinking wine, but it does forbid drunkenness or drinking an excess of wine.

Listen to Proverbs 20 verse 1. We could actually easily spend the whole week on the Bible's teaching on wine and intoxicating drink. I'll let Proverbs 20 verse 1 just be sort of a representative of what the scriptures teach about wine in excess. Proverbs 20 verse 1 says, wine is a mocker, strong drink is a brawler, and whoever is led astray by it is not wise. You might not be a mocker, but when you drink a wine to excess, you'll be a mocker.

You might not normally be a brawler, a fighter, but when you take in an excess of wine, your thinking changes, your behavior changes, your natural inhibitions come down, and you'll be a brawler, though you never were before that. Whoever is led astray by it is wise. So that brings us to right where Paul has us. And do not be drunk with wine in which is dissipation. People who drink wine to excess are led astray by it.

It's the nature of an excess of this substance that you bring into your body. So Paul says, do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation. We have the controlling influence, drinking an excess of wine, and we have the destination, the pathway, it takes you somewhere, and that somewhere is to dissipation. Now dissipation is not a word that we use, what does dissipation mean? It means an abandoned life.

And Paul has already described this really well in Ephesians chapter 4. Flip back to Ephesians chapter 4 verse 19. I think if you were trying to produce a definition of dissipation or a definition of an abandoned life. You couldn't do better than Paul has done in Ephesians 4 verse 19. In Ephesians 4 19, Paul has just said, don't walk like the Gentiles walk.

Have a different pattern of life from your old Gentile pagan pattern of life. And then he says this in verse 19, describing that old state, who being past feeling, have given themselves over to lewdness. That is an abandoned life. Have given themselves over to lewdness to work all uncleanness with greediness. When you are brought by an excess of wine into dissipation, into an abandoned life, you're giving yourself over to all these things that are inconsistent with the Christian life.

So we're coming out of Paul saying, Christians, believers, put off the old man. Those things are not to characterize you anymore. Put on the new man. This is all part of putting off the old man. That abandoned life where you slavishly served the inclinations which came all too naturally to you put away any sort of slavish serving of those old inclinations.

The wine goes in, your thinking and behavior changes, the natural inhibitions come down, and this controlling influence returns you to your unbelieving disposition. It makes you as if you were an unbeliever again because these good, God-given natural inhibitions have been lowered to the point of ineffective. Paul doesn't stop at telling the Ephesians what not to do, he also tells them what to do. And do not be drunk with wine in which is dissipation, but be filled with the Holy Spirit. Be filled with the Spirit.

Not a little of the Spirit, filled with the Spirit, filled to fullness with the Spirit of God. Now, every believer is sealed with the Spirit. He said that in chapter 1. Marked out by God and stamped as being the property of God. Being His, made holy, set apart to him, sealed by the Spirit.

And every believer is indwelled by the Holy Spirit. Listen to the same Paul. So the same Paul who wrote the letter to the Ephesians also wrote a letter to the Romans. Listen to this same Paul in Romans 8 verse 9. Romans 8 verse 9, Paul writes, But you are not in the flesh, but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you.

Now listen to this. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not his. He is not God's. If the Spirit does not indwell you, you don't belong to God. And so the reverse is true.

If you belong to God, then you are indwelled by the Spirit So what Paul is writing in our text isn't to call into question whether the aphesian believers are really believers it is to communicate that we can have greater measures of the Holy Spirit. Brethren, this is really important for us. Paul is teaching us here that greater measures of the Holy Spirit fullness being filled with the Spirit is available to his people and and we should seek to be filled with the Holy Spirit. Says who? Says Jesus.

Turn to Luke 11. Verses 9-13. 9-13. Listen to what Jesus says in Luke 11, verses 9-13. Jesus says, So I say to you, Ask, and it will be given to you.

Seek, and you will find. Knock, and it will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives, and he who seeks finds, and to him who knocks it will be opened. If a son asks for bread from any father among you will he give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish will he give him a serpent instead of a fish?

Or if he asks for an egg Will he offer him a scorpion? If you then being evil know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him? So, I mean, he's talking about people who are calling on their Father. This is about believers. This is not about unbelievers asking to be saved.

This is about the children of God going to their Father and asking for the Holy Spirit. Not to be saved, to be indwelled by the Holy Spirit. Believers are that. But asking for an increase of measure in the Holy Spirit. How much more will your Heavenly Father who has this giving predisposition, ready, waiting to be asked, wanting to give, how much more will this Heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him, brothers and sisters.

We can have greater measures of the Holy Spirit. We can be filled with the Holy Spirit. Listen to this note from the ESV Study Bible. I thought this was helpful. Actually a number of commentators make the same remark, but this one was good and concise.

ESV Study Bible says, the command in Greek is a present imperative and does not describe a one-time filling but a regular pattern of life. In other words, a filling and a filling and a filling and a filling and a filling. How much do you need the Holy Spirit? Well, every day, all day, you need the Holy Spirit. God has told us, Jesus as God has told us, to ask our Father for the Holy Spirit.

Paul is teaching the same thing here, that we would be filled with the Holy Spirit. Not once, but seeking an increased measure of the Holy Spirit. Paul's counsel is, do not grieve the Holy Spirit, that was chapter 4 verse 30. We could add to do not quench the Holy Spirit from 1 Thessalonians, but be filled with the Spirit. Don't grieve the Spirit, offending the Spirit, making the Spirit sorrow, but be filled with the Spirit, seeking greater measures of this controlling influence.

The Holy Spirit is the controlling influence we should seek and yield ourselves to. And as believers do so, He, the Holy Spirit, also takes us to a destination. So we saw there's this controlling influence, excess of wine, it takes you to a destination, to abandon living. But there's a second controlling influence, the Holy Spirit, and we've been content with too little. So one of the things I came here to do today is to point my bony finger at you to say you have been too satisfied with the measure of the Holy Spirit that you have.

And so have you. And so have you. And so have you. And I already pointed my bony finger at myself multiple times this week, so I've gotten the same treatment I came prepared to give to you. But if there's one thing that we draw out of this sermon, I want to say this.

Don't be content with so little of the Holy Spirit. There is more. There is a greater measure. And we need it to live for God in this world. And we'll be the happier for being under the influence of the Holy Spirit of God, producing fruit in our lives and giving us power to do the work that God has given us to do in this world.

We need Him. We need Him in greater measure than we've ever experienced him before. We need him. Moving on. So I only went a little way into verse 18.

So I'm just going to start at the beginning of 18 and we'll read the whole text. So hopefully you're back in Ephesians 5. I'll start in verse 18. Do not be drunk with wine in witch's dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in Psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord. Giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another in the fear of God." Wow, that's a mouthful.

In this section, Paul teaches us that the Holy Spirit leads us to all manner of wonderful things. He gives us three, calls out three, but it's a list of wonderful things. The Holy Spirit is this controlling influence that leads us into all manner of wonderful things. I don't believe this is intended to be a comprehensive list to tell us every single thing that the Holy Spirit as a controlling influence would lead us into, but it's still an expansive list. Sort of a deep and wide list and it's a wonderful list.

Three things number one singing number two giving thanks number three submitting to one another. Let's take them one at a time. Number one, singing. How strange. Paul says, yield yourself to the controlling influence of the Holy Spirit So he can lead you into, wait for it, singing.

Okay, hear Paul out. Hear what he says about singing. First, singing is actually speaking to one another. Paul says something almost exactly the same but with enough shade of difference that it adds texture to what he's saying here in Colossians 3.16. So listen to what he says in Colossians 3.16.

He says, let the word of Christ dwell in you richly, in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in Psalms and hymns and spiritual songs. So let me set these two things side by side. Our text, speaking to one another in Psalms and hymns and spiritual songs and then in Colossians 3.16 let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and admonishing one another in Psalms and hymns and spiritual songs. God intends for singing to be a vehicle for the word of Christ to dwell in us richly. God intends for our singing to be a vehicle, an instrument, a channel for the Word of Christ to dwell in us richly." I just love that phrase, to dwell in us richly.

Do you want the word of Christ to dwell in you richly? I just find that that really doesn't characterize me. When you cut me, I believe the word of Christ. It's dwelling in me richly. But I want that.

God has designed our singing to be a vehicle, an instrument, a channel for that purpose. We speak to one another, we teach one another, we admonish one another by singing these Psalms and hymns and spiritual songs. God intends this horizontal aspect of singing for our mutual benefit. Horizontal aspect, meaning Christian to Christian, believer to believer, on the earthly plane, person to person, teaching and admonishing one another. We're speaking the truths of God to each other, so that the Word of Christ might dwell in us richly, corporately.

Mutual benefit. When we look at Ephesians 5 and when we look at Colossians 3 and just put these side by side, we find that we have a repeated use of these three terms. Psalms and hymns and spiritual songs. Same three terms in the same order. When you look at the words, Psalms is the word overwhelmingly used for the Old Testament Psalms.

So if you just look at the New Testament usage of the term that Paul is using here, and just see other places in the New Testament, where is it used, what does it mean? It means Old Testament Psalms. The Bible has a songbook. The Bible has a songbook. How many of the Psalms are headed to the chief musician set to Alamoth or something?

The Bible has given us a song book, and we ought to be singing those songs. Hymns, you look at that Greek word, it simply means songs of praise. Praise songs! Songs of praise to God. And then spiritual songs is a very, very literal translation of those two Greek words.

It means spiritual songs. And It's just songs with spiritual content. Calvin is funny in his comments on this. He says, of all the songs that are sung in the world, precious few have spiritual content. But the songs that the people of God sing ought to be songs with spiritual truth, with spiritual content.

Think of all the songs that are out there. Turn on a radio. Do they have spiritual content? I doubt it. I doubt it.

But the people of God sing spiritual songs, songs that are filled with spiritual things, with spiritual truths. So we're given in these three terms, Psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, a full range of singing with which we can speak to one another, teach one another, admonish one another, be used in each other's life as a vehicle so that the Word of Christ might dwell richly in us. So that's First, singing is actually speaking to one another. Second, Paul teaches us that singing is a pouring out of our hearts in praise and love to God. Singing is not supposed to be just what's happening on the lips, from the lips, but it actually starts in the heart and then comes out the mouth.

It is a pouring out of our hearts in praise and love to God. Paul says singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord. In your heart to the Lord. How can there be melody in the heart? I know how there can be melody on the lips or on instruments, but how can it be in your heart?

I think the message is, it's a heart that is singing. You know what I mean when I say that? My heart sings because of the goodness of God. His praise is on my lips. Words of love toward him are on my lips because my heart is singing." Listen to what Paul says in Colossians 3.16.

So that was just the verse I quoted with speaking to one another. But Colossians 3.16 continues with Paul saying, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. So that's another way to develop this thought of singing with melody in our hearts to the Lord, singing with grace in your hearts to the Lord. So as a believer you have this grace in your heart and it sets your heart singing. God intends this vertical aspect, earth to heaven, me to God, my heart communing with God and erupting in praise and expressions of love through singing that starts in the heart.

God intends this vertical aspect of singing as an outlet for expressing heartfelt love and praise to God. I hope you need an outlet. I hope you need an outlet. I hope you need an outlet. This reminds me of John Piper's tagline.

Here's John Piper's tagline. God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him. So according to Piper, when does God get the most glory from me? Oh, when I'm just satisfied in Him. My heart is singing.

My heart is full of love and praise for God. And it needs to vent. The pressure is building. Praise to God, love to God is building up in my heart. It needs a vent.

So singing is a way to give vent to that, to our satisfaction in God. Singing is a way to give voice to that. When the pressure builds, like the pressure of praise builds in my heart, I can't be silent. Any longer, singing gives us a way to vent that. It is a sign of being filled with the Spirit when we engage in corporately edifying, speaking to one another, heart engaged singing.

It's a sign of being filled with the Spirit. So friends, here's a question of application. Are you undervaluing singing? Are you undervaluing singing? Now you know I love some preaching.

You know I'm not likely to undervalue preaching, but this is not the only thing that we come together for, far from it. Our singing is an important point where we are speaking to each other's spiritual truths. We're teaching and admonishing one another. We're being a vehicle, an instrument, a channel in each other's lives so that the word of Christ might dwell richly within us. And it's giving us this opportunity to vent.

Hopefully you need a vent. The pressure is built up and you need to vent your praise and love for God. It just gives you a way to not be silent another second, but just say it to God. Sing it to God. Because your hearts sing to God.

Let me leave you with two thoughts on this subject. In the form of two verses. So the first is Acts 16 25. Acts 16 25, but at midnight Paul and Silas were praying and singing hymns to God. And the prisoners were listening to them.

Paul is a man who is caught practicing what he preaches late at night in prison. They're praying, but they're singing. They're actually speaking to one another, but they're actually speaking to our fellow prisoners, undoubtedly unbelieving prisoners who we're listening on to. Secondly, Revelation 5 verse 9, probably this church's favorite chapter in the Bible now, is the thought of every tribe, tongue, people and nation praising the Lord. Here it is, Revelation 5 verse 9, and they sang a new song saying, you are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals for you were slain and have redeemed us to God by your blood out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation.

They're singing that as a song. I got news for you. If you don't like singing, you're out of luck. You're out of luck. This is going to be an eternal preoccupation.

An eternal occupation and an eternal preoccupation for the people of God. And I'm sure we'll all hit every note in heaven. But we're going to be singing in heaven and we'll need to vent the love and the praise that we have through all eternity and God gives us singing as a way to vent the build up of love and praise to God. So that was number one, singing. Number two, giving thanks.

Look again at verse 20. Giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. Look at how unceasing Paul wants the expression of our gratefulness to God to be. Unceasing, never stopping, always for all things. So he gives us timing and substance.

What's the timing? Always. What's the substance? All things. It's quite comprehensive.

All things. It's quite comprehensive. Consider Romans 828. Romans 828 sets us where we need to be. And we know that All things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose.

The Bible paints a picture of an all-knowing, almighty, sovereign King. And the subjects of his kingdom don't always know what he's up to don't always understand what he's up to but the subject of his kingdom who know him well know that that nothing is beyond his reach to do, and that he's always working things out to the ultimate good, perfectly wise end. And so even in hardship, and trials, and difficulties, they know that the king is doing exactly the right thing at exactly the right time for their good and his own honor in the world. I hope God is teaching, training you to live like that. Not having that disposition is so depressing and hard.

But being able to not have to understand everything and not have to just slap his smiley face on trials and difficulties as if they're not really hard, as if they're not really devastating, but just to be able to say I don't understand and these are real hardships but the King nothing is ever beyond his ability to do what pleases him. And the things that please him are all wise and good for me. So even these hardships that he's brought into my life are good for me, are going to result in good in my life. So God thank you. Thank you for knowing all the things that I don't know, for understanding all the things that I don't understand, and I trust you and I rest in you.

God is training us to be like that. Which is why it's not insanity to say, give thanks for always for all things. There's nothing that we can't give thanks for or shouldn't give thanks for. Because that's not just a happy view of life, an optimistic view of life. That is truth from scripture, friends.

It really is. Paul gives two qualifiers to make sure this is right. So here are the qualifiers. To God the Father. Not just a nebulous, thankful disposition.

I'm just thankful. I'm just a thankful kind of person. No, no, no. We have an object to thank. God, we thank, we have a Father in Heaven.

Our Father who is in Heaven. Who has a holy name. That is who we're thanking. And we thank him, the object of our thanksgiving, God our Father, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ. So let's reach back to Ephesians chapter 1 verse 3.

I think Ephesians chapter 1 verse 3 explains this beautifully. Look back to that. Paul wrote there, Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. So Paul is blessing God the Father. The Father of Jesus, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ.

In other words, it was our Father's idea to send his son Jesus to go secure every spiritual blessing by living and dying for us. So our thanks to God is in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ by whom every spiritual blessing is secured for us. They come to us through Jesus' person and work. So when we're giving thanks to God, it ought to be in Jesus' name. His person and work secured every spiritual blessing for us.

Listen to what Paul says in 1 Thessalonians 5 verse 18. 1 Thessalonians 5 verse 18. Paul writes, In everything give thanks, For this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you." That knits together perfectly with our text, because the verse right before our text was about understanding what the will of the Lord is. He tells you explicitly one of the things that is the will of the Lord for you. In everything give thanks for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

It is a sign of being filled with the Spirit when we always give thanks to God for all things in the name of Jesus. It's just a sign. When that is flourishing in your life, it is a sign of being filled with the Spirit, of having a great measure of the Spirit of God. This controlling influence who has led you into that. You didn't get there by yourself.

It's a sign that the Spirit brought you there. So number one was singing, number two was giving thanks, number three is submitting to one another. Look again at verse 21. Submitting to one another in the fear of God. This is a bridge verse.

What do I mean by a bridge verse? Well, it concludes our section. It belongs in the sermon text. It is describing an evidence of being filled with the Spirit. It is a destination that this controlling influence, the Spirit of God, brings us to, submitting to one another in the fear of God and it also is setting up the next sections So chapter 5 verse 22 through chapter 6 verse 9 are set up by this verse.

Chapter 5, 22 through verses 6, 9 is all about specific relationships which have authority and submission. The husband-wife relationship, the parent-child relationship, the master-bond servant relationship, outlying the mutual duties towards one another in those relationships. So it is a perfect way to finish off where we've been, and a perfect way to set up where we're headed. Paul gives the what and the why. What?

Submitting to one another. Why? Because believers have this deep reverence for God and His Lordship out of the fear of God. The first thing that I should say is that the admonition to submit to one another does not invalidate everything that comes after it. Sometimes used to invalidate the specific things that Paul is going to say about the marriage relationship, about the parent-child relationship, about the master.

Like, well, we're just submitting to each other, so none of these specific things that God says matters because it's really all just, I submit to you, you submit to me. This verse doesn't invalidate that. A few weeks ago we had a sermon devoted to principles of Bible interpretation. How do you handle scripture accurately? One of the points from that was a specific text interpret the general text.

More specific, More focused texts on a particular thing are used to interpret and set the boundaries for more general texts on the same topic but more generally, not the other way around. You don't invalidate the specific text by imposing the generality of the general text on it. What Paul is teaching here in the admonition that we submit to one another, is exactly what Jesus taught. Let's look at both Jesus' doctrine and life. I think they're both on display in a wonderful way in Matthew chapter 20.

In Matthew chapter 20. So please turn to Matthew chapter 20. We'll be in Matthew chapter 20 verses 25 through 28. This comes right on the heels of the request for James and John, These two brothers who were disciples of Jesus, the request that they be given the seat on his right hand and his left hand in his kingdom. And the other disciples are not happy and express their unhappiness.

And this brings us to where we are in Matthew 20 verses 25 through 28. Follow along. But Jesus called them to himself and said, You know that the rulers of the Gentiles lorded over them, And those who are great exercise authority over them. Yet it shall not be so among you. But whoever desires to become great among you, let him be your servant.

And whoever desires to be first among you, let him be your slave. Just as the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve and to give his life a ransom for many. These are the apostles. They gave us, authoritatively, the New Testament. They led the church in Jerusalem.

They exercised authority over the church in Jerusalem. They directed missions movements. So these are men who rightly understood Jesus and did exercise authority. But Jesus taught them the nature of authority and he taught it to them principally. Yes, through his doctrine there are truths that he expresses in an explicit way here.

But he points to his life just as the Son of Man did not come to be served. Jesus didn't leave heaven to be served by men. He didn't need to be served by anyone. If he was hungry, he wouldn't tell us that Psalm 50. He needed nothing that drew him from heaven to be served by mankind.

He came to serve and to give his life. That is the foundation for leadership in the kingdom of God. Listen to what Paul says in two other places Galatians 5 13 Galatians chapter 5 verse 13 Paul writes for you brethren have been called to Liberty Only do not use liberty as an opportunity for the flesh, but through love serve one another." So he's saying there, don't use anything in the kingdom to take advantage of one another. Instead of exploiting through love, serve each other. So that is a general text about how brethren treat each other.

It's not exploitative in any way. It is serving through love. That applies to every brother and sister in Christ in the world. It's a foundational relational commandment and principle to be honored among all Christians. Listen to Philippians 2 verse 3.

Philippians chapter 2 verse 3. Paul writes, let nothing be done through selfish ambition or conceit, but in lowliness of mind, esteem others better than himself. Better than himself. So our natures mesh well with selfish ambition and conceit, but we're warned against that and told to arm ourselves with a disposition of lowliness in mind, esteeming others better than myself, better than yourself. A humble mind that thinks better of your sister in the Lord than you think of yourself.

That thinks better of your brother in the Lord than you think of yourself. So, selfish ambition away with you, conceit away with you, humility and esteeming others, preferring others to yourself is the way of this kingdom. So this is the foundation of all Christian relationships with no exemptions between brothers and sisters in the Lord. And the more specific relationships, husband-wife, parent-child, master-bond servant, are built on that foundation. So it's not that relationship instead of the brotherhood relationship, it's that relationship built on top of the foundational brotherhood relationship where we submit to one another.

It doesn't invalidate the things that Paul is getting ready to say. They're in force, But they are built on this disposition towards one another. It makes all the difference in the world. So just as it's right for me to say that mutual submission does not invalidate the very real authority and submission that are called for in the husband-wife relationship, the parent-child relationship, and the master- bond-servant relationship. It is also essential for me to say All of these things are built upon a general relational foundation that is marked by serving one another through love, that is marked by humility, that is marked by esteeming my brother or my sister better than myself.

Listen to what Calvin said. I think if you read this quote and you asked people who said it, if you gave people ten guesses, they wouldn't guess Calvin. But this is what Calvin believed and taught, and it's Wonderful. Listen to this. I picture Calvin as sort of having a hard edge.

But this doesn't make it sound like that at all. Yeah, I think you would want this man as your pastor, based on what he says here. John Calvin says, God has bound us so strongly to each other that no man ought to endeavor to avoid subjection. And where love reigns mutual services will be rendered. I do not accept even kings or governors.

So Calvin says no exceptions. King, you're no exception to this. You should not endeavor to avoid subjection. But love should reign in and through you and mutual services, you are bound to mutual services to your subjects. Do not accept even kings or governors whose very authority is held for the service of the community." In other words, Why are you king for the service of the community?

Governor, why are you governor for the service of the community? He ends by saying this, It is highly proper that all should be exhorted to be subject to each other in their turn. That brings us to the why. In the fear of God. The Bible teaches that authority must be undertaken in the fear of God.

All authority is delegated authority. No authority is inherent authority. What do I mean by that? People who have authority only have it because God has intended for them to be in a position of blessing to the ones who are under authority. So kings are all under kings.

Under who? Under God, under the King of Kings. And fathers are all under fathers. Under who? Under our Father in heaven who has all authority.

And shepherds in a local church are all under shepherds. Under who? Under the chief shepherd. This is 1 Peter chapter 5. All of this is explicit.

None of this is implied in the Bible. All of it is explicit in the Bible. It's clearly and openly taught in the Bible. The exercise of all authority must be undertaken under the fear of God. Authorities must fear God and govern according to His code book.

And all submission is actually submission to God. When we submit to the civil authority, it's actually obeying God. When a wife submits to her husband, it's actually obedience to God. When people in a church submit to the authorities in that church, it's actually obedience to God. Their submission is undertaken in the fear of God.

So looking across the entirety, so what is taught in our text, submit to one another and what is taught in the text to come, how husbands and wives ought to relate to each other, how parents and children ought to relate to each other, how masters and bond servants ought to relate to each other. The teaching is this. In the kingdom, there are specific relationships of authority and submission, but they are to be undertaken in a spirit of mutual submission. This is the teaching. Applications.

Applications. OK, first I'm checking homework for you who were here last week. Here was the homework from last week. A question for you to answer. What are two ways, so I was looking for something concrete, like two ways, what are two ways that I can collect up and guard the time that God has given me to seize and expand kingdom opportunities.

So I'm not looking for a show of hands or anything like that, but did you do your homework? Hey, I did my homework. And you can ask me about it later if you want to, but I did my homework. I had two very concrete things that I wanted to do to collect up and to guard time better than I have been in order to seize and expand kingdom opportunities. So it worked and I'm encouraged and I'm going to try to keep the momentum going.

I didn't climb Mount Everest last week, but I did identify two things and I did it and it was good. So that's progress on my homework. I might ask you. You might not want to sit with me at lunch. All right, applications.

I'll give you three. As of this moment, seek greater measures of the Holy Spirit. If greater measures of the Holy Spirit are not available to the people of God, I have no idea what Luke 11 means when Jesus tells us to ask our Father for the Holy Spirit. It's nonsensical to me. I don't know what it means.

And if greater measures are available, why would we not go for them? Be filled with the Spirit. There are two ways to go about this. As God would give you grace, identify and eliminate things which grieve and quench the Spirit. No point going and asking for more of the Holy Spirit if the patterns of your life grieve and quench the Holy Spirit.

I've got these patterns, I'm not parting from them. They grieve your spirit, they quench your spirit. God, please give me more of your Spirit. Good luck with that. But simultaneously ask.

Ask your Father. He is predisposed to pour it out on you, to give you the greater measure that you ask for. He's predisposed to it. If he's not predisposed to give you what you asked for there, I also don't know what Luke 11 means. Number two, up your singing game.

Up your game in the category of singing. Some of us grew up in singing families, some of us didn't. It's a different world for people who grew up in homes where there wasn't singing. It doesn't come naturally, it feels awkward. I get it, I understand it.

You don't feel like you're a good singer. Paul is identifying singing as an important category for speaking to one another and venting our praise and love to God. We can't afford to ignore it just because I didn't grow up in a singing family. I did I did grow up in a singing family Just because you didn't Singing in the Old Testament in the New Testament is not some sort of bolt on that you do in worship. It's very near the core of things.

It's very near the core of things. Number three. So that was number two. Up your singing game. Number three.

Let your memorization of this quarter's recitation text, which is Ephesians 5, 15-21, affect the texture of your relationships with respect to submitting to one another. So here's what I'm saying. It's a complicated way of saying this. I'll try to say it more simply. We're memorizing something and it ends with submitting to one another in the fear of God.

So let our memorization of that make it top of mind for you in your relationships. Having more of a disposition to Serve one another from love. To be very humble and prefer the other above yourself. To relate to brothers and sisters, especially in Christ, in that way. Because it's top of mind, because we're memorizing it.

God, thank you for your word. We need every word of it, every syllable of it, every verb tense of it. And I pray that we would love it and honor it by obeying it and growing from it. In Jesus' name, Amen.