Growing up in a Baptist church, I was reminded often of the things that I was supposed to do and the things I wasn’t supposed to do as a Christian.  Given all the sermons on obedience and a denial of the flesh, I do not remember hearing a single sermon on what “walking in the Spirit” means.  I think the Holy Spirit talk kind of freaked out the Baptist.  They wanted to acknowledge the Holy Spirit exists, but not much more because then they might have people start dancing up and down the aisles or something.  I don’t know.   I do know that in Galatians 5:16 God tells us “But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.”  Notice it does not say “Do not gratify the desires of the flesh, and then you will be walking by the Spirit”.  No.  Walking by the Spirit is the means, the foundation by which we will not gratify the desires of the flesh.  How important then is it to rightly understand what this means, for those of us who love God and want more of Him/less of sin in our lives?

I’m going to look at two different sections of scripture to try to give an answer to the question “What does it mean to walk in the Spirit”.  The first begins with the scripture above in Galatians 5:16-25 – “But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh.  For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.  But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.  Now the works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.  But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law.  And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.  If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit.  Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.”

This is a big chunk of scripture where God is telling us a lot.  God begins by telling us what we already know about our fleshly desires – that they are at war with God.  That is our sinful nature; what Christ died to free us from.  It’s also important to note that God is speaking to Christians, because only Christians would want to pursue God and His righteousness instead of their sin and it’s desires.  We’re then told what the outward manifestations are of our flesh and the Spirit are, so that we can rightly divide which is which.  This is important, because people are emotional creatures, and we are prone to deceive ourselves.  The grounding, the foundation of our battle to war against our flesh is the gospel of Jesus Christ, that our sin was placed on Jesus on the cross, and that it was crucified with Him.  So the power of sin to enslave us has died, with Christ.  That is our faith and hope, that our identity is found in Christ, in His death, burial, and resurrection.  That faith and hope in the grace extended to us in Christ, and submission to Him to lead us into righteousness is what is meant by walking in the Spirit.  The term “walking” is used because it was understood that this would not be a sprint, but that it was to be a day to day, moment to moment, decision to set our minds on the finished work of Jesus, who we are in Him, and to pursue His Kingdom and Righteousness.

Let’s take a look at another section of scripture that talks about walking by the Spirit.  The message is going to be very similar to the one above, but hopefully through repetition and context we can press this truth into our hearts to a greater degree.

Romans 8:1-11 – “There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.  For the law of the Spirit of life has set you free in Christ Jesus from the law of sin and death. For God has done what the law, weakened by the flesh, could not do. By sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh and for sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, in order that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to the flesh but according to the Spirit. For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit.  For to set the mind on the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace.  For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot.  Those who are in the flesh cannot please God.  You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.  But if Christ is in you, although the body is dead because of sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness.  If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit who dwells in you.”

The message in Romans likewise describes a battle that is at war between our flesh and that Spirit.  Again Christians, the foundation of our “walking in the Spirit” is the gospel.  The passage opens up with the gospel, that God has declared us righteous through the death of Jesus, burial, and resurrection of Jesus and therefore we are without condemnation.  We have peace with God.  We are no longer at war with Him, but we war with Him for His Kingdom.  Romans here is helpful because it says that part of walking by the Spirit is “to set the mind on the Spirit”.  This is similar where in Colossians 3:1-3 – “If then you have been raised with Christ, seek the things that are above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God.  Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.  For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God.”  So walking by the Spirit has its grounding in the gospel and our identity with Christ, in order that our pursuits are in line with that reality.

Having explained what walking in the Spirit is, how do we do this?  First we must acknowledge that walking by the Spirit is not a one time event, but a way of life for a Christian.  The fact that “walking by the Spirit” is an exhortation implies that it requires effort on the part of a Christian.  So then, for Christians our exhortation is to press on to know Jesus and the Gospel more.  There is no end to this, because God is infinite, our sin against God is infinite, and our salvation through Jesus is infinite in worth.  We are to press into our heart and mind the truths of the gospel, that we have been reconciled to God, and our identity is not longer in this world or our sin, but with God.  Having armed yourself with both the knowledge of God and your identity in Him, you are then to seek His will in pressing back darkness, pursuing righteousness, and pursuing the Kingdom of God.  More than mere steps to be followed we’re seeking a manifestation of Christ in us; a changed condition and inclination of our hearts and mind.

All of this is not meant to be a burden, but you are pursuing freedom from sin to pursue joy in your relationship with God.  My hope for us all is that the grace and mercy of God would be tangibly felt, that we would embrace our salvation in Jesus with the fervor that is due its infinite worth, and the passion that is due joy in the perfections of Jesus.  We, like Jesus, do not pursue obedience for its own sake, but we pursue it for the joy set before us.  Hebrews 12:1-2 – “Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us,  looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God.”  We are the adopted sons and daughters of the living God.  Walk in that truth, and pursue the peace and joy that is ours through the finished work of Jesus.  Let us live our lives for Him who set us free, for His name, under His grace, in His power, and for the joy found in Him.

Grace and Peace,

Adam