“…be filled with the Spirit.” (Ephesians 5:18b, ESV)

A few years ago I was out for lunch at Boston Pizza and as I was leaving the restaurant I saw a license plate on a car that said, “God is my co-pilot”. I thought to myself, “I don’t want God being in the passenger seat of my life, I want Him in the driver’s seat!”

And that is what Paul talks about in this passage in his letter to the Ephesian believers. The reality we must grasp as believers is that the Spirit-filled life is God in the driver’s seat.

This fall we looked at Romans 12 as a church seeing what it means to live like Jesus. In Ephesians 5:15-21 we see another picture of how we are to walk in maturity in Christ as believers. This is where Paul tells us to “be filled with the Spirit.” But what does he tell us before this?

He says, “watch how you are living your life, walk in wisdom. Use your time wisely – because the days are evil!” Paul reminds us to have an eternal focus. He tells us to follow God’s will and to not get drunk.

Why does he bring this up? The issue is of control. Another translation of “be filled with the Spirit” could be “keep on being filled with the Spirit.” What does alcohol do to us if we overindulge? It takes over, it takes control. But Paul shows us the better way. He says to instead be controlled by the Holy Spirit.

He’s not saying “don’t get drunk with wine, get drunk on God” or something weird like that. He’s saying “be controlled by God and God alone.” We can and should be constantly being filled with the Spirit. Again, filled means “controlled by.” To be “filled with the Spirit” means to be constantly controlled by the Spirit in our mind, emotions, and will. And it’s not a suggestion. “Be filled with the Spirit” or “be controlled by the Spirit” is God’s command, and He expects us to obey. It also applies to all Christians – it’s a command for all believers. And because it really says, “keep being filled” – it is an experience we should enjoy constantly – it’s not just a one-time deal.

We all have the Holy Spirit as believers, but Paul is saying that we must keep yielding to the Spirit, walking with the Spirit, and ultimately keep being controlled by Him. Because we do not fill ourselves. The Spirit fills us.

The Spirit-filled life is God in the driver’s seat.