Walking after the Spirit

Background Scripture: Romans 8; 1 Corinthians 2:9-16
Lesson Scripture: Romans 8:1-14

Introduction

God dwells in infinity and transcends time and space. His eternal Being defies our finite, human understanding. God is triune—three distinct persons entwined in one, being a supreme Godhead who encompasses all the bounds of humanity’s needs. This sovereign and holy God sent Jesus, a part of Himself, to dwell in human form on this earth. While He was here, He taught us a new way of living and completed the plan of salvation. Jesus dwelt here for a time, but He could not stay here, because God had a better plan. Jesus said it was desirable for us that He would go away; his Father would then send the Spirit of truth to dwell with us constantly. One of the Spirit’s greatest blessings is that every believer on the face of the earth, no matter where they are, can always experience his benevolent favor.

When God formed man, He breathed into him the breath of life. The Comforter is also the breath of God, giving life to the spiritual man. The Holy Spirit is the whisper you hear behind you that says, “This is the way, walk ye in it” (Isa. 30:21). This lesson is about understanding and following that gentle voice of God.

Key Verse

This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh (Gal. 5:16).

Lesson Scripture

Studying the Lesson

Chapter 7 of Romans bemoans the Christian’s predicament of being in a body of flesh: the desire to do good but finding that the failure or inability to carry it out is all too real. Chapter 8 then follows with an explanation of the consolation that believers have in Christ Jesus the Lord. When we are forgiven of our sins, God sends a part of Himself to dwell with us. When his Spirit dwells within us, we become a new person in Christ, and guilt and blame are no longer a part of us. We are no longer helplessly captive to the impulses of sin that Paul was speaking about in the previous chapter. He clearly explains what it means to have a spiritual mind, to be free from following the inclinations and feelings of our flesh. God has promised blessings beyond comprehension to those who choose to love and serve Him (1 Cor. 2:9). The seal of God’s Spirit is the assurance that we have been saved and that He is able to keep us in that state to the end. Being free and guiltless before God is the believer’s consolation. “If the Son therefore shall make you free, ye shall be free indeed” (John 8:36).

With God’s Spirit dwelling in us, the desires of the flesh have been subdued and killed, and we are given a spiritual mind. We now long to grow closer to God and to understand his ways better. Satan will continue to trouble us, though, because we are living on this earth, which is his domain. Our life is different from that of a person without the Holy Spirit because God’s Spirit gives us protection against the devil’s onslaughts.

When God told Noah how to build the ark, He told him to pitch it within and without. The pitch was likely made from resin collected from trees, and when charcoal from the same trees was boiled with the resin, it produced an effective waterproofing. The Holy Spirit dwelling within us acts the same way as this pitch. The Spirit protects us from the temptations of the flesh on the outside that want an inroad and keeps us clean on the inside.

How can God’s children better understand that we do not need to fall anymore? When we live our days feeling like we are in continual defeat, we are underestimating the power we have of God dwelling in us. We have become the children of God and are deeply indebted for all we have received. Abba is an Aramaic word that means father. It expresses affection, confidence, and trust and denotes an intimate relationship with God. From the depths of our being, our heart swells in thanksgiving, and we cry, “Abba, thank you for saving me and giving me power to live in your will!” There is nothing more to fear, and all bondage is gone.

It is here we are blessed, and when we begin to stray from this place, we leave the way of true happiness. We should not try to appease our flesh while we endeavor to live a life that is pleasing to God.

Practical Truths for Today

Following always means giving up independence. Too often we want to be in control, but it is only in learning to follow that we can responsibly take up leadership. We need leaders in the church, and we need to be confident they are led of the Spirit. When we follow God, we do not need to decide which way to go for ourselves, because our Savior chooses the path. It is a good path, and the route is preplanned for us. We have the best leader when we follow God’s Spirit. There is rest in simply laying down our will and following.

Going on a trip with multiple vehicles in the days before GPS or cell phones meant it was imperative to keep the lead vehicle in view. It was best to follow closely, or you could easily become separated and lost. We often sing the old hymns that convey the concept of closeness. Near to Jesus is the safest place to be. There is always room to get closer to God, and with the Holy Spirit leading us, we find rest in following close. He will lead us on a safe route that He has personally designed for each of us. As long as we are in this world, we are susceptible to straying, but God is greater than our hearts, and He has promised that He will keep us.

Making right choices is still our responsibility; we are not automatically kept from sin solely on the merit of being called a Christian. If we allow ourselves to be influenced by the world’s attractions, we can veer off the path. These enticements appeal to our senses, and as we consider them, we may convince ourselves there is not much harm in them. Others may be doing similar things, and what was once questionable soon seems quite acceptable. Small deviations will draw us away and cause us to become less keen to the voice of the Spirit. The Lord would like to keep us in perfect peace, and our choices either hinder or assure us of that peace. As we become acquainted with the true essence of peace and happiness, our soul yearns for our Maker, and we earnestly listen for his promptings in all our decisions.

The Holy Spirit reproves us of sin, comforts us when we do right, and guides us into truth. God’s Spirit dwells in light, and He always gives light so we can see our path. We cannot see to follow if we are in the dark. There are many spirits that have gone out into the world (1 John 4:1), and we need to be acquainted with the voice of the Spirit so we can understand truth. Proverbs 23:23 instructs us to “buy the truth, and sell it not.” The wise man reinforces this by telling us to listen to instruction. God’s Spirit will keep us from turning to the right or the left by helping us to discern truth. The many other voices begging for our attention will lead us into uncertainty and confusion if we do not have a clear understanding of truth. A prerequisite for staying connected to the Spirit is spending time with the Word. It should be a daily time of refreshing, a time of gaining strength and courage, and a time of worship and praise for our Creator who oversees the universe. It is good to include some time of meditation and quietly listening during our time of devotion before heading into the clamor of life. As we go about our day, we could be more aware of the Spirit’s presence and recall the impressions that we gained in those quiet times.

Satan will try to trip us up. Our guide wants to lead us safely around those roadblocks. With our human tendencies, the way may not be as clear as we would like, and we may indeed falter. We do not immediately lose our salvation when we falter, nor does it mean that the Spirit has left us; God may be wanting to draw us closer to Him so we can trust Him more. Even when our direction is not so clear, we can still have a desire to do the will of God. That is from the Holy Spirit (1 John 2:20), and we can confidently follow the way that leads into light. The church seeks to understand the Word of God and the Spirit’s direction. Therefore, there is safety in placing our trust in the church and our brothers and sisters. As we are secure in the kingdom, there will be times that we are active and busy, and there will be times of rest and refreshment. The Spirit is God’s voice here on the earth, and we can be assured that we are in the place He wants us. Doubts and troubling thoughts about what our place is are erased as we trust his leading, and we can enjoy the moment we find ourselves in. On the other hand, we can continue to try to figure out our path on our own and fail to see the beauty in giving complete control over to the One who knows and has charted our journey from the beginning to the end.

Questions

1. The Spirit does not speak loudly. Do we find Him hard to understand, or why do we sometimes not have clear direction?
2. How can we help our brothers and sisters who do not seem to have solid conviction in following the Spirit and being in unity with the brotherhood?
3. After the Holy Spirit was poured out, the new disciples had everything in common. How could we promote a closer fellowship in our congregations so we could help each other face the evils of our day?
4. How do we reconcile being delivered from the flesh and saved completely, yet we are still prone to fall?

Source: COGICM Daily Bible Readings (Daily Bible Readings, PO Box 124, Glenn, CA 95943).