In the previous blog we saw that Paul states in Ephesians 5 that the days in which we live are evil and that we should therefore redeem the time. It takes wisdom not to go along with the foolishness and folly of the world. And if we want to reach others with the word, it takes wisdom to know what we say, to whom, when and how.
Ephesians 5
17 Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is.
18 And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation, but be filled with the spirit,
19 speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making music in your heart to the Lord.
the will of the Lord
From the structure of the sentences, we can see that Paul’s explanation continues. Verse 17: “Therefore do not be unwise….” And verse 18: “and do not get drunk….., but be filled with spirit”.
Whoever is wise understands what the will of the Lord is. This goes beyond knowing what the will of the Lord is. If we understand what His will is, we know why He wants it. In Ephesians 1:9 it was already about the secret of His will. God wants to bring all creation, both what is in the heavens and what is on earth, together under one Head in Christ.
secret
That everything would be given to the Messiah was no secret. The Hebrew prophets already spoke of that. The secret that Paul reveals is that Christ consists of Head and body, the ecclesia (1:11; 1:22-23). That was hidden until then. If we understand what the will of the Lord is, this gives wisdom and enlightens our hearts. It gives a view of great hope and insight into a God who loves His creation unconditionally.
filled in spirit
There is nothing wrong with drinking wine, the Bible is very positive about wine, because it is a representation of spirit and life. But getting drunk with wine gives licentiousness. In contrast to getting filled with wine, we would be filled with that which wine is a picture of, of spirit. But how are we filled in spirit? We also find a parallel to this section in the letter to Colossians, through which we see what it means to be filled in spirit.
Colossians 3
16 Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly in all wisdom, teaching and exhorting one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with grace in your hearts to God.
Where Ephesians 5:18 speaks of being filled with the spirit, Col.3:16 says that the word of Christ would dwell in us richly. Spirit and word are one. And just as wine delights and loosens the tongue and makes it sing, so the spirit delights and makes us speak and sing of Him. Music is a type of the word of God. It touches the heart, is harmonious and joyful!