Walking in the Spirit
16 I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.
What is meant by "walking"? What is the role of the Holy Spirit in our walk?
To "walk" indicates our life activities -- a “way” of life to be “walked.” Who is our walking partner?
Enoch walked with God, he learned how to commune with God through every facet of life.
Christ is not physically on earth now, but He is still walking with us through the Holy Spirit.
"Christ instructed His disciples regarding a most essential and complete gift which He was to bestow upon His followers--the gift that would bring within their reach the boundless resources of His grace. {AA 47.1}
The Holy Spirit works in us by bringing to mind, vividly and often, the precious truths concerning God's saving operations in the plan of redemption. We would forget the truths of God, which we neglect to obey, and for us his rich promises would lose their efficiency, were it not for the Holy Spirit working upon our hearts; he takes of the things of God, and presents them anew to our minds. {RH, August 25, 1891 par. 6}
"When He, the Spirit of truth, is come," said Jesus, "He will guide you into all truth." {DA 670.3} "The Comforter is called "the Spirit of truth." His work is to define and maintain the truth. He first dwells in the heart as the Spirit of truth, and thus He becomes the Comforter. There is comfort and peace in the truth, but no real peace or comfort can be found in falsehood. ..Through the Scriptures the Holy Spirit speaks to the mind, and impresses truth upon the heart. He exposes error, and expels it from the soul. It is by the Spirit of truth, working through the word of God, that Christ subdues His chosen people to Himself. {DA 671.1} "In describing to His disciples the office work of the Holy Spirit, Jesus sought to inspire them with the joy and hope that inspired His own heart. He rejoiced because of the abundant help He had provided for His church. The Holy Spirit was the highest of all gifts that He could solicit from His Father for the exaltation of His people. The Spirit was to be given as a regenerating agent, and without this the sacrifice of Christ would have been of no avail. The power of evil had been strengthening for centuries, and the submission of men to this satanic captivity was amazing. Sin could be resisted and overcome only through the mighty agency of the Third Person of the Godhead, who would come with no modified energy, but in the fullness of divine power. "It is the Spirit that makes effectual what has been wrought out by the world's Redeemer. It is by the Spirit that the heart is made pure. Through the Spirit the believer becomes a partaker of the divine nature. {DA 671.2}
Walking in the Spirit is living our lives with a conscious realization of God's presence. God, through His Spirit, is our walking partner!
“Being led by the Spirit” in verse 18. The phrase, “being led by the Spirit,” means the Holy Spirit is leading, we aren't "using" the Holy Spirit, the Holy Spirit is the One Who takes the initiative in the life of a Christian. We don’t lead him; he leads us.
He impresses the meaning of scripture upon our minds; He awakens love for Christ and the desire to honor and obey Him; He reveals the paths to take, magnifying the law in its goodness, He leads us to develop godly attitudes. We are being led to put to death the deeds of flesh and to walk as children of God, in the presence of God.
“Being led by the Spirit” refers to the Spirit’s initiative and enablement. “Walking by the Spirit” refers to our resulting behavior.
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