Ephesians 5:18-21 (YLT):
18 and be not drunk with wine, in which is dissoluteness, but be filled in the Spirit,
19 speaking to yourselves in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord,
20 giving thanks always for all things, in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, to the God and Father;
21 subjecting yourselves to one another in the fear of God.
In verse 18, Paul encourages the Ephesians to seek the infilling of the Spirit.
Then, he enumerates various laudable actions in the verses that follow:
- Praise the Lord (v19).
- Express gratitude to the Father, in the name of Jesus (v20).
- Be submissive to one another in the fear of God (v21).
Are the laudable actions of verses 19-21 either consequences of or conditions for being filled in the Spirit? Is there a causal relationship between being filled in the Spirit and these laudable actions? If so, what is the direction of the arrow of causation? Or should we rather see this as Paul just giving a list of things for the Ephesians to do, and the infilling of the Spirit is just one more item on the list?
A complementary question one could ask as well is: How did Paul expect the Ephesians to obey the command to be filled in the Spirit in a practical and concrete way?