Paul wrote to the saints at Colossi (3:1), “If then you were raised with Christ, seek those things which are above, where Christ is, sitting at the right hand of God… then at (3:2)… Set your mind on things above, not on things on the earth.” Now in this lesson we look to verses 18 through 21 Paul gives us this list so that we can know being filled with the Spirit looks like: “And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit” (Eph. 5:18). Notice that Paul begins here with “AND”. He is connecting this statement with don’t be foolish, walk with wisdom, seek the will of the Lord and make the best use of your time. To the church at Corinth Paul wrote, “9 Do you not know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Do not be deceived. Neither fornicators, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor [b]homosexuals, nor [c]sodomites, 10 nor thieves, nor covetous, nor drunkards, nor revilers, nor extortioners will inherit the kingdom of God.” (1 Cor. 6:9-10).
Of all these sins Paul chose to use being drunk here – why? Little doubt that Paul’s words were meant as encouraging Christians here—I mean you really have to “twist the scripture” to do that. In verse 18 the Greek word [ἀσωτία] translated “dissipation” a very interesting compound word: The word SODZO which means “I save, heal, preserve, rescue” is used in reference to Messiah’s birth: Matthew records, “And she will bring forth a Son, and you shall call His name [a]Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.” (Matt. 1:21). But Paul used the negative form A—SOTIA meaning the exact opposite. Translated as “debauchery” (ESV), debauchery is defined as: “bad or immoral behavior that involves sex, drugs, alcohol, etc.” [Britannica Dictionary]. Chapter 2:5, God “made us alive together with Christ”—alive from this kind of behavior – and it took the blood of His only Son to accomplish that—why would you waste one minute of your life this way?
This is an example of not being filled with the Spirit. It is not making the most of what little time God has blessed us with. Therefore brethren, instead of being drunk which will lead you into bad or immoral behavior that involves sex, drugs, and more alcohol—and many regrets—the greatest would be the loss of one’s soul to Satan.
Instead of that wasteful conduct—instead of being filled with alcohol Paul says, “be filled with the Spirit” . The contrast between the two is very important. Paul uses drunkenness in contrast to spiritual behavior to teach this very important lesson…