When we consider the topic of the Holy Spirit and his work in us and in the church, we are often directed to what the apostle Paul writes in Ephesians 5:18b: “...but be filled with the Spirit.”  Nowhere else in the Bible are we directed so explicitly and forthrightly to let ourselves be filled with the Spirit.  Many, then, focus on this one central text.  In this article we will delve into that text and by this means make a contribution to the continuing thought and discussion about the longing for the Holy Spirit and about the extent to which he desires to control us.

Be filled with the Spirit! Does this mean something like, strive to be filled with the Holy Spirit?

Some understand it this way. Then, with this fulfillment, they think of a second phase in faith life.  First you come to faith and take on Christ as your Saviour.  Naturally, that does not happen outside of the Holy Spirit.  You can, of course, only come to faith through the Holy Spirit.  But with that faith alone, you have not yet arrived.  In Christ, you do not yet receive all that the Father intends for you.  There is more than Christ.  More than faith.  That is the province of the Holy Spirit.  He does not only want to live and work in you; he also wants to fill you.  He does not only bind you to Christ nor only make you a beneficiary of all his deeds of grace.  He also wants to pour out his gifts over you, things that are not necessary for salvation but will bring fullness to your life.  Faith can resemble a mustard seed, but the Spirit will see to it that you are filled with him. That fulfillment with the Spirit is revealed, according to some, in the gift of tongues.  According to another, it is revealed by progression to a sinless state.  You will become capable of doing things that ordinary Christians cannot do.  Then, particularly in speaking about this “fulfillment” to which you must open yourself and for which you must strive, you will learn, according to certain circles of people, more than in the churches who come with the gospel of Christ and with the edict, by faith alone.  Those circles of people say that that is only half of the gospel, but they come with the full gospel.  You must not stop short at the redemption and renewal received in Christ, at justification and sanctification through faith, but you must strive for the following phase, for the fulfillment with the Spirit.

Is that indeed what is meant by the apostle Paul?  If not, what is the meaning of his summons to be filled with the Spirit?

No Beginning Point and No “Second Blessing”⤒🔗

That which Paul writes in Ephesians 5, is — let us establish that immediately — not a command to open ourselves to receive the Holy Spirit.  The Ephesians to whom Paul writes were, according to chapter 1:13, already sealed with the Holy Spirit when they came to faith.  Through the Holy Spirit they gained access to the Father (2:18), “being built together into a dwelling place for God by the Spirit” (2:22), and are joined together in the unity of the Spirit (4:3-4).  Chapter 4:30 repeats that they are sealed by the Holy Spirit “for the day of redemption.”  The summons to be “filled with the Holy Spirit” is therefore not a command directed to unbelievers to open their hearts in order to receive the Holy Spirit.  The call is directed to “the saints who are in Ephesus, and are faithful in Christ Jesus” (1:1), in whom Christ chooses to dwell through his Spirit (3:16-17).

Is this “being filled” with the Spirit therefore, something like a second phase for believers?  Is it a surplus, above that which Christ gives within “ordinary faith”? No: nowhere do we find in Scripture that Christ gives a mere starting basis and that after that we must grow towards fullness which is then supplied by the Spirit.  Specifically in his letter to the Ephesians, Paul shows that it is in Christ that we receive all God’s treasures: election, redemption, being sealed to him, the fullness of his grace (1:3-14).  It is in Christ that God has shown “the immeasurable greatness of his power toward us” (1:19), and it is through Christ that that immeasurable greatness benefits us, and it is Christ who perfects us (1:22,-23).   God’s abundant  grace extends beyond what we ask in prayer and beyond that which we can even fathom, not “in the Spirit,” but in the congregation and in Christ Jesus  (3:20).  It is Christ who brings all things to fullness (4:10).  Therefore, we do not have to grow past Christ to the fullness of the Spirit, but we must grow according “to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ” (4:13). In other letters, we read the same message: “For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell” ( Colossians 1:19; 2:9); “Christ, in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge” (Colossians 2:3); and “and you have been filled in him, who is the head of all rule and authority” (Colossians 2:3). Let no one thus, with a seemingly humble manner seek all kinds of ethereal things outside of the Head, Christ (Colossians 2:18, 23).  In him we have life (John 20:31; 1 John 5:12); in him we have the Father (1 John 1:3, 2:23; 2 John 9); in him we have everything (1 Corinthians 3:22).  In him (Isaiah 11:2) we also have the Spirit.  For this there is no second phase or second blessing needed anymore.

Nevertheless, the fullness which Christ grants continues to be attacked here, and therefore requires not only effort, but makes further growth necessary.  Paul  can speak in an elated manner about being snatched up by Christ, about  fellowship in Christ’s suffering and death, and about the power of Christ’s resurrection, about knowing Christ, which transcends all other things (Philippians 3:8-12), but at the same time, he must say that he has not attained perfection (Philippians 3:12).  His life remains a “walk  by faith, not by sight” (2 Corinthians 5:7).  Also his life of faith and his new life remain imperfect because of the sin that still lives in him and brings him to actions that he would not want to do, and keeps him from actions that he heartily would desire to do.  He remains a miserable person who yearns for the complete redemption of his being in this broken world  (Romans 7:14-26).  Being filled with the Holy Spirit, then, also does not mean that you are so full with him that you grow beyond the reach of sin and there are no longer downs in your faith life.  Precisely in your weakness and guilt, the Lord repeatedly shows his grace (2 Corinthians 4:7; 12:9-10).

Being filled with the Holy Spirit is also not about a phase in which you, at a given moment, arrive, and from that point everything carries on automatically.  Paul says, in Ephesians 5, “be filled with the Spirit.”  That is not to see to it that this happens once to you, because if you are successful in that, you have entered a new and holy state of being.  No, to “be filled with the Spirit” is, noting the use of the verb, a command to repeatedly let the Spirit fill you.  It is a command that continues to go forth.  It is not accomplished by reaching a specific phase, it is a command that remains in power, repeated and lifelong for all God’s children.

Fullness of Gifts?←⤒🔗

“Be filled with the Holy Spirit.”  Is that then perhaps a command to strive for the fullness of his gifts?  I noted that some interpret it in this way.  They seek the state of being filled with the Spirit in steadily receiving more and more of his gifts.  When you open yourself adequately, the Spirit would, according to them, desire to give you all his gifts.  Thus, contrary to what the Bible teaches, the gifts of tongues and healings are seen as the highest gifts.

It is good to specifically point out that in Ephesians 5 Paul does not speak about being filled with the gifts of the Holy Spirit, but with the Holy Spirit himself!  Moreover, in the first letter to the Corinthians, where the apostle speaks at length about the gifts of the Spirit, he never uses the word “being filled”!  Besides, what clinches this is the fact that Paul points out in 1 Corinthians 12 that no one receives the totality of the gifts of the Spirit, but that God deliberately distributes different gifts in different measures to his people, so that no one could think that he or she might be self-sufficient and independent.  In the body of Christ, each of us is no more than an eye or an ear, or a hand or a foot; no more than a member of the body who is dependent on the gifts of all the members.  Paul continually makes references to this concept.  The Spirit does not make us self-satisfied individualists, but directs us, also in Ephesians 5, to turn our faces towards the fellowship with those who are being filled with the same Spirit. Speak to each other, declares Paul, in psalms, songs of praise, and spiritual songs; be subject to each other!  “Filled with the Spirit” does not mean that I have it all; I have everything.  In contrast, within the communion of saints, it drives you towards each other!

Mandate for Believers←⤒🔗

There is something else of great importance when we explain the meaning of being filled with the Spirit.  Often, it is regarded as the action of the Holy Spirit upon the believers.  The Bible does speak about the Spirit which fills certain people (Judges 6:34; 1 Chronicles 12:18; 2 Chronicles 24:20).  However, in Ephesians 5 it is about something else!  Here it is about the act of being filled with the Spirit.  That indeed refers to something that is done to us.  We become filled with the Holy Spirit.  However, I will immediately attach two remarks to this.

First: it is not about what the Spirit does to us.  Note that it does not say that we must be filled by the Holy Spirit, but with the Holy Spirit.  It is about what the Lord Jesus is doing with us.  He fills us with his Spirit  (see Acts 2:33).

Secondly: it indeed speaks about being filled, but that does not take away that the accent falls on our own activity.  Ephesians 5:18 is a command to us! The “being filled with the Spirit” is here something that we ourselves must allow to happen.

“Be filled with the Spirit” is a direct command to us!  Obviously, we cannot take it for granted that everyone who is sealed with the Holy Spirit and that everyone who belongs to the congregation and is a temple of the Spirit, is full of the Holy Spirit.  Although the Spirit wants to fill us, and it is not his fault if it is otherwise, it is obviously not standard state of affairs in the church that we all, at all times, are full of the Spirit. If that were so, Paul would not have had to exhort us!

The charge of the apostle is directed to readers in whom the Spirit of the Lord dwells, and who are anointed and sealed by the Holy Spirit.  They are, obviously, not automatically full of the Spirit, but they need to become so, every time again.  Likewise, those who have the Spirit and have been sealed by him, are, in other passages of scripture, seriously warned by Paul to not grieve the Spirit (Ephesians 4:30) and to not extinguish the Spirit (1 Thessalonians 5:19).  This shows us that the Spirit can dwell in us, and we can resist him and fill ourselves with other things: things such as fear, doubt, bitterness and anger, things such as pleasure and the things of the world, putting ourselves in bondage to forbidden things which we do not want to relinquish.  Obviously, you can belong to the church, but fence a portion of your heart off, denying access to the Holy Spirit and the will of the Spirit.  You can believe and still be so full of other things that the instruction of the Lord rebounds on your heart which is already filled to the brim.  There is no room for the Lord (see 2 Corinthians 6:12-13).  Those who, while in the church, think they can continue to sleep peacefully because all is okay, get to hear: “Awake, O sleeper, and arise from the dead”  (Ephesians 5:14).

“Be filled with the Spirit” is a command!  That means: being full of the Spirit is not automatic, not something to be taken for granted.  Even if you are a believing church member, you are still not automatically full with the Spirit.  That requires additional activity!

It is also not something that happens outside of our own responsibility.  The Lord commands us: be filled with the Holy Spirit, and when he commands us, not one of us can withdraw ourselves from that command, not even with the most pious excuse!

Being Already Filled or Becoming Filled←⤒🔗

Ephesians speaks about the state of being filled.  The Bible also mentions people who are filled with the Spirit of God.  We know that is not the standard because, also in the New Testament, it is only applied to specific persons, the seven who are called in Acts 6 to regulate the care of congregation members who are in need (6:3), and especially Stephen (6:5).  It is also said of Barnabas, the friend of Paul (Acts 11:24).  In those cases, it is about people who have been sought out and called for a special task and who have — apparent to everyone! — the necessary gifts for that task, not incidental gifts, but gifts that have been apparent throughout their lives (for Paul, see 1 Corinthians 15:10; 2 Peter 3:15).

However, as said earlier, in Ephesians 5 it is not about a command to be full, but rather a command to become filled with the Holy Spirit.  Once again, I can best explain what that means by first making it very clear what it does not mean.

Some people place all the emphasis on the word “filled.”  They designate it as the typical New Testament  character of the Holy Spirit: that he, since Pentecost, “fills” the believers.  In the old covenant, he laid hold of believers from time to time for a specific task, but in the dispensation of Pentecost, he “filled” them.  They point to Acts 2, where it says that the disciples of Christ were all filled with the Holy Spirit at Pentecost (2:4).  Quickly we begin to interpret this as being full with something — or, thinking further — of enthusiasm and inspiration — the distinguishing mark of having been filled with the Holy Spirit.

Still, we must be careful lest we see that as the difference between the old dispensation and the Pentecost dispensation.  In the first place, not every “being full” is of itself and automatically positive.  The Bible recognizes being full and enthusiastic  about wrong or superficial things.  We must always test the fullness to see if it is from God; am I full of the Spirit or am I full of something else?  Paul identifies alcohol in Ephesians 5 which fills you and brings you under its influence; do not be drunk on wine, but be filled with the Spirit.

Also, “filled with the Spirit” is not something typical of the New Testament.  Also in the Old Testament, we read about people who were filled with God’s Spirit: Bezalel, who was to craft the tabernacle was filled with God’s Spirit (Exodus 31:3); Joshua, the successor to Moses, was full of the spirit of wisdom (Deuteronomy 34:9); the judge Gideon was filled with the Spirit of the Lord in his battle against Midian and Amalek (Judges 6:34); the Spirit filled Amasai, one of David’s strong men (1 Chronicles 12:18), and he filled Zechariah, the son of Jehoiada the priest to prophesy (2 Chronicles 24:20).  It is therefore not typical only of the New Testament to be filled with the Spirit of the Lord!  What is noteworthy in Acts 2 is not that people were filled with the Holy Spirit, but the fact that all of the people were filled with the Holy Spirit.  This is the new element at Pentecost.  All were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak of God’s mighty deeds and began to prophesy: old and young, even male and female slaves.

There is one more understanding that needs to be refuted, namely that “being filled with the Spirit” would mean that an increasingly large portion of the Holy Spirit would come to dwell in us, or would amplify his dwelling place in us, as if he first comes to dwell in us only partially, and then slowly dwells in us more and more.  That is impossible.  The Spirit is a Person and not a substance which you would be able to receive, first partially, and later more, and perhaps still later completely (see L. Floor in his commentary on Ephesians 5:18). You have received the Spirit or you have not received the Spirit.  Being filled with the Holy Spirit does not happen by being externally poured full with the Spirit.  The Spirit is not far away, but close by; in our mouth and in our heart (see Romans 10:8).  Paul is concerned with the Spirit who dwells in us and who wants to fill us from the inside out, who does not let us push him away into a corner, but who wants to claim our whole person.  The call “be filled with the Spirit” does not have, as background, that there is something missing within the Spirit dwelling in us, but rather that we do not give him the space that is due him.  It is that we are too full with other things and relegate him to a corner of our lives. “Be filled with the Spirit” means to let him work freely and fully in you.

For Concrete Service←⤒🔗

“Be filled with the Spirit” is, for Paul, not a dissociated and independent pronouncement on which, for example, you would base a dogmatic lecture entitled: ”being filled with the Spirit.”  The command is placed in a very concrete context: 

Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.  Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.  And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ. Ephesians 5:15-21

The command to be filled with the Spirit is placed in the framework of the call to a new and holy life.  That is what Ephesians 5 is about.  With our eyes focused on that, we must let ourselves be filled with the Spirit.  Rightly, it has been pointed out that “being filled with the Spirit” is about the source from which our new life must spring forth.  He must give us the necessary strength.  He must teach us and bring us to that goal.  This is not only pointed out in Ephesians 5, but is often mentioned in Scripture.  It is always with an eye on a specific activity or task to be fulfilled when someone is filled with the Spirit.  John the Baptist was filled with the Holy Spirit to prepare the people for the coming of the Christ (Luke 1:15-17). Zechariah was filled with the Holy Spirit to raise his song of praise (Luke 1:67).  Elizabeth was filled with the Spirit, to greet Mary, the mother of her Lord (Luke 1:41-42). The disciples, on the day of Pentecost, were filled with the Spirit to be able to speak in many languages (Acts 2:4). The disciples in Jerusalem were filled with the Spirit and began to speak the Word of God boldly (Acts 4:31). The seven, of whom Stephen was one, were full with the Spirit to be fully alive to their task in the congregation  (Acts 6:3). Paul was filled with the Spirit for his task in the preaching of the gospel of Christ (Acts 9:15-17). Already in the Old Testament, it was this way.   Bezalel, Joshua, Gideon, Amasai, and Zechariah were filled with the Holy Spirit in order to be able to accomplish the specific tasks given by God.  Thus, we never see “being filled by the Spirit” occurring in private, as an end in itself.  It  always occurs in company, in connection with a concrete service which the Lord gives to someone to accomplish.

It is also this way in Ephesians 5.  The Ephesians must not find the source of their joy in alcohol or in any other kind of worldly entertainments or substances.  Through the Holy Spirit, they must be motivated to sing and praise God and to live a life characterized by respect for each other.  Being filled with the Spirit is not the highest goal; rather, it serves another purpose.  It belongs to the framework of preparation to follow the command we receive from the Lord Jesus, the command to serve him in a special way.

The apostle wants us to dwell on the joy and on the thanks to which we are called, focused thanks and joy, focused on God, praising and glorifying him.  This is not a “raise the roof” joy, not a joyous self-expression, not an appropriating to yourself the tunes of the world’s alcohol and drug milieus, but praise to the glory of God.  It must be real praise and real joy, no muttering or sour faces.  It is not speaking about psalms and hymns, but about speaking in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs.  It is not singing in a show of piety, but singing from the heart in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

This is not something ordinary, something you can just do in your own strength.  It does not happen by itself.  It cannot come forth from a divided heart.  It is only possible in Christ, and indeed, you do need the Holy Spirit for it.  He must fill you for it.  You must give him room, not cause him sorrow or drive him out.  You cannot let your heart remain full of those things that preclude him, but you must allow him to fill you.  That means doing away with the ballast of sin that blocks your path; you must be focused on the will of the Lord.  Allow yourself to be addressed by the Holy Spirit. Listen to the Word that he brings. Above all, pray that you may be filled with him.  Pray for a heart that is totally dedicated to the fear of God’s Name.  How would the Spirit be able to fill you if you did not pray, or  if you ignored the sins of which you are aware?  Put away all superficiality, all lethargy, as a matter of course.  This is essential in order to let yourself be filled again and again by the Spirit, and by nothing and no one less!  True joy in God, an attitude of service, a holy life: these are not something common.  Rather, they are fruits of the Spirit with which you must be filled, fruits from an undivided heart.

Command and Promise←⤒🔗

Paul gives us a command: “be filled with the Spirit!”  For us, a command is often a “have to” that we do not enjoy.  However, this command is a gift!

The question has arisen: how can we be commanded to be filled with the Spirit?  For us that is totally impossible, to be filled with the Spirit.  Does the Spirit himself not have to do this, or the Lord?!

Still, this is the way in which the apostle writes it: “be filled with the Spirit”!  Of course Paul knows that it is the Lord who must fill us with his Spirit.  Not without purpose, he writes: “become filled with the Spirit”!  The apostle knows of the omnipotence and of the work of the Lord.  But at the same time, it is also a command to us: “be filled with the Spirit”!  This points to the fact that God has promised his Spirit and the working of his Spirit to all of us.  To all of us!  Truly, not just to the odd individual, but to us all, even as it is stated in Acts 2:4: “And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit.”  The Lord would not command us to let ourselves be filled with the Spirit if he had not already declared the fulfillment for us, if he had not promised us his Spirit, and if we could not appeal to him on the basis of his promise.

That is amazingly wonderful; from the Lord himself we receive the command to let ourselves be filled with the Holy Spirit!  That means that he desires to give his Spirit, and that he, through his Spirit, will fill us in such a way that we begin to do what he commands us to do.  This applies to anyone who believes!  This is the treasure which Christ has purchased for us, he who possesses the Spirit in all its fullness (Isaiah 11:2)  in order to pour it out on all who believed at Pentecost (Acts 2:33).  The Lord desires to give us the strength necessary to live in his service and to do what pleases him.  He does not do this in the manner of once given and that is all there is, but rather, in the way of time and again letting us be filled with the Spirit.

How do you do that — let yourself be filled with the Spirit?  Not by filling all your leisure time with sports, sex, and movies, but by focusing yourself to understand what the will of the Father is (Ephesians 5:17), praying, reading, meditating on God’s Word; by seizing God’s promises every time you are going to do something, by asking the Lord for his Spirit, by desiring to hear from the Word of the Lord what his will is.  Then the Lord promises to fill us with his Spirit.  Then the fulfillment will show on the outside, in the light, not in spectacular things, but certainly in things that we cannot possibly do in ourselves and that therefore are spectacular: singing, thanking God, being willing to be the least and servant of all.  In those very “common” things, the power of the fullness of the Spirit is revealed!  Let no one underestimate it!  Let no one despise it! It is the fruit of the Spirit.

The Power of the Spirit←⤒🔗

One more thing…. Paul writes, “be filled with the Spirit.”  At times, we carry so much baggage that hinders us or even seems to make it impossible to be filled.   How earnestly one can desire  to do God’s will, but repeatedly have the feeling of falling short.  Exactly then, it is important to know that the Lord commands us — and also promises us! — that he will fill us with his Spirit: his Spirit, not just human strength or piety which, against sin, the devil and disbelief, will not stand;  his Spirit, who raised the dead to life and who has the strength portrayed in creation, to make a world out of nothing (Eph. 2:1-10, Canons of Dort Chapter IV, Article 12)!  He makes us into people who are different from those who do not know Christ (Ephesians 4:20).  That gives us courage.   From our side, we fall and stand up, but the Spirit is mighty.  He puts in place that which we regarded as impossible.  He allows us to do things that we in ourselves cannot do and which do not happen by themselves.

“Be filled with the Spirit.”  Ephesians 5 places this in opposition to being filled with wine.  That drinking leads to nothing.  You become drunk and all that remains is intoxication and a hangover.  It renders nothing positive or enduring.  However, being filled with the Spirit does lead somewhere.  It brings you to joy and praise.  You begin to speak and sing about the great deeds of God.  You learn to humble yourself and to serve in the congregation and in the community.

Yes, also in society, for the radius of action by the Spirit is not limited to the church.  His work shines to the outside, and the day will come that the Spirit will fill the heavens and the earth with wisdom and peace, with righteousness and knowledge of the Lord. Then Christ will bring all things to fullness, and heaven and earth will be filled with the glory of our God (Isaiah 11:6-10).  Then he will be all in all!