Purified - 1a

15 Be careful then how you live, not as unwise people but as wise, 16 making the most of the time, because the days are evil. 17 So do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. 18 Do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery; but be filled with the Spirit, 19 as you sing psalms and hymns and spiritual songs among yourselves, singing and making melody to the Lord in your hearts, 20 giving thanks to God the Father at all times and for everything in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ.

Today’s sermon leveraged Paul’s analogy of being filled with the Spirit as being similar to being filled with wine – that we don’t have control of our words, or actions, or even our thoughts. In fact, the more we surrender to the Spirit and permit God to live in us, the closer we come to the heart of Christ. We considered a term – LUI (Living Under the Influence).

Living Under the Influence, unlike a DUI (Driving Under the Influence), is something we should be striving for. Living Under the Influence of the indwelling and ever-present Spirit of God within us restores the relationship that God intended at the very Creation. God breathed in his Spirit and seeks to restore that perfect union with each person as God had with Adam and Eve.

Living Under the Influence also opens our perspectives to God’s kingdom instead of being manipulated by the “wisdom of this world.” So, how do you escape the wisdom of the world and live for the glory of God’s reign and let the world know that you carry the divine relationship in your heart?