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DO THE WALK!
"Ye are witnesses, and God also, how holily and
justly and unblamably we behaved ourselves among you that
believe: As ye know how we exhorted and comforted and charged every one
of you, as a father doth his children, That ye would walk worthy of God, who hath called you unto his
kingdom and glory." 1Thessalonians 2:10-12
In scripture,
walking is used as a metaphor of life. It speaks of how we
behave, what we pursue, and to who (or what) we are devoted to.
-Walking in
darkness (1 John 1)
-Walking in the
Light (1 John 1)
-Walking by Faith
(2 Cor. 5)
-Walking Through
Fire (Isa 43)
-Walking After
the Flesh (Rom 8)
-Walking After
the Spirit (Rom 8)
Where God is
concerned, there are three dimensions of walking in the
scriptures that I want to draw your attention to today:
-Walking After
the Lord
-Walking Before
the Lord
-Walking With the
Lord
I. Walk After the
Lord
Deut 13:4
"Ye shall walk after the LORD your God, and fear him, and keep
his commandments, and obey his voice, and ye shall serve him,
and cleave unto him."
No less than 13
times in the gospels there is record of Jesus saying the words
"follow me", words that literally can be rendered
"walk after me."
John 12:26
"If any man serve me, let him follow me; and where I am, there
shall also my servant be: if any man serve me, him will my
Father honour."
Walking after
the Lord speaks of:
-Trust (He
leads me beside still waters)
-Dependence (He
sustains me where He leads me)
-Commitment (I
have forsaken all others to follow Him)
-Passion (As
the deer pants after the water brooks)
-Obedience (I
watch His example, and do as He does)
II. Walking
Before the Lord
Gen 17:1
"And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD
appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I am the Almighty
God; walk before me, and be thou perfect."
Still in the
realm of obedience, walking before the Lord adds the dimension
of understanding. "Walk after me" has the
connotation of "do as I do" whereas "walk
before me" has the connotation of "do as I have
taught you."
-Riding a Bike
(Look at me!)
-Doing it
Myself (I can't see Daddy right now)
"Behold, I go forward, but he is not there; and
backward, but I cannot perceive him: On the left hand, where he doth work, but I cannot behold him:
he hideth himself on the right hand, that I cannot see him:
But he knoweth the way that I take: when he hath tried
me, I shall come forth as gold." Job 23:8-10
Sometimes walking
with the Lord can feel like a one man path.
-Yes He promised
to never leave us or forsake us.
But the scripture
makes it clear that there are times when God will withdraw the
sense of His presence from us, to test us, to see what is in our
hearts, to reveal our convictions, or lack thereof.
2
Chronicles 32:31 "Howbeit in the business of the ambassadors of the
princes of Babylon, who sent unto him to enquire of the wonder
that was done in the land, God left him, to try him,
that he might know all that was in his heart."
If it can be said
that walking after the Lord deals with our commitment
to following God, then walking before the Lord can be
said to focus on our consecration to serving him.
-Even if I can't
see him up ahead, leading the way, I am going to be found
faithful.
Confidence, even
boldness, are suggested in this realm of walking. He has
instructed me, and more also, He has commissioned me. I have His
Word, and I am living according to His perfect Will, so I can
walk this walk, even when I can't see Him up ahead.
III. Walking With
the Lord
The Bible says of
only two people that they "walked with God."
-Enoch and Noah
Walk After -
Commitment
Walk Before -
Consecration
Walk With -
Connection
God wants to have
communion with us. To know us. To fellowship with us.
Walking with
someone speaks of camaraderie, companionship and unity.
Amos 3:3 says
"Can two walk together, except they be agreed?"
One man comments
on this verse: "Think not to have God with thee, unless
thou art with God."
Footprints in the
sand. He walks with us, he carries us.
In order to walk
with God, we must:
-Worship Him
reverently
-Serve Him
wholeheartedly
-Love Him
completely
-Seek Him
exclusively
Seek times of
fellowship with God when you don't ask for anything. I just want
to spend time with you. I just want to crawl up into my daddy's
lap and love on him for a while.
GOD IS A SPIRIT.
He can be before me, behind me, and beside me all at the same
time.
IV. Walking IN
the Spirit
Gal 5:16
"This
I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust
of the flesh."
Not only can he
walk before me, behind me, and beside me all at the same time,
but by the miracle of His grace, He walks INSIDE me!
"And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye
are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will
dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their
God, and they shall be my people. Wherefore come out from among them, and be ye separate, saith
the Lord, and touch not the unclean thing; and I will
receive you, And will be a Father unto you, and ye shall be my sons and
daughters, saith the Lord Almighty." 2 Corinthians 6:16-18
Walk in the
spirit means literally to "keep in step with the
spirit."
Closing Verse:
Isa 40:31
"But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their
strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall
run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not
faint."
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