Husbands, love your wives ...'

Husbands, love your wives ...'

It is quite obvious to the reader that Paul is traversing the same

ground in Colossians 3:16 -19 that he traverses in Ephesians 5:18 -25, but

without slavish repetition.  He `explains' to all those who put into practice

1 Corinthians 2:13 that to be `filled with the Spirit' is to `let the word of

Christ dwell in us richly in all wisdom', and has no reference to Pentecost,

to Mark 16, or to 1 Corinthians 12 which belong to different dispensations.

A further comparison will enlighten us more.  The words used in

Ephesians 5:18 are plerousthe en Pneumati, and we draw attention to the

preposition en which means `in' or `by' and is translated here `with'.  In

Colossians 1:9, where the apostle means that the saints should be filled with

wisdom, no preposition is needed.  The same is true in Romans 1:29 and Acts

13:52.  The usage of en to indicate `by' is seen in 1 Corinthians 7:14

`Sanctified by (en) the wife', `Sanctified by (en) the husband'.  We are

`made nigh by (en) the blood of Christ' (Eph. 2:13).  `By (en) the sleight of

men' (Eph. 4:14).  `And have been taught by (en) Him' (Eph. 4:21).  `Whereby

(en) ye are sealed' (Eph. 4:30).  The Spirit Who fills the believer in

Ephesians 5:18, fills him, not with Himself or His gifts, but fills him with

the Word of Christ, that, and not 1 Corinthians 12 should be our equivalent

to Pentecost.  If your hostess should say to you `Let me fill your cup With

This Teapot', you would surely not stare and expect some magical performance.

The teapot would not enter the cup; it would be the instrument whereby the

cup was filled With Tea.  Please pardon such a homely illustration, but

it is entirely on all fours with the apostle's meaning, Ephesians 5:18,19 can

only be understood when it is read in the light of Colossians 3:16.  To

ignore this check, opens the door to extravagances and to undispensational

As an appendix to the above, we draw attention to the fact that

supernatural `gifts' as associated with Pentecost and with 1 Corinthians 12,

are referred to in the original by the Greek word charisma.

`I may impart unto you some spiritual gift' (Rom. 1:11).

`There are diversities of gifts ... gifts of healing' (1 Cor. 12:4,9).

In Ephesians 4, where the ascended Christ is said to give gifts unto

men (Eph. 4:8), the Greek word is doma, which occurs elsewhere in Matthew

7:11; Luke 11:13 and Philippians 4:17, and is never used of `the gifts of the

Spirit'.  These `gifts' in Ephesians 4 are `men'.

`And He gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists;

and some, pastors and teachers' (Eph. 4:11),

which are pointedly differentiated twice over by the apostle in 1 Corinthians

12, where he says:

`First apostles, Secondarily prophets, Thirdly teachers' (1 Cor.

and the evangelist and pastor are omitted.  To some, such distinctions will

be brushed aside as trivial, but to those who realize that they are handling