Are You Walking in the Holy Spirit
May 31, 2022
1 Comment
Are You Walking in the Holy Spirit?
By Bethany Marinelli
The other day I completely lost my cool with my son in a parking lot. As I shouted at him, a lady turned her head and looked at me. I immediately felt ashamed. I was not walking in the Holy Spirit.
You know your Christian life should be like Jesus. But it’s just so hard! Driving on the interstate is stressful. You are on your last nerve with your children. The temptation of sin is so strong. You are stuck in making a big decision. You are trying your hardest, but you can’t seem to measure up.
The gift of salvation is free. You did nothing to earn God’s forgiveness, and your salvation came with another gift: the Holy Spirit—Christ living in you. The Holy Spirit is the helper that allows you to live in Christ’s freedom. The Holy Spirit helps you remain levelheaded in bumper-to-bumper traffic or with your disobedient child. He helps you to resist temptation and make a better choice. He gives you wisdom in that big decision.
In Ephesians 4:11-16, we learn God has called Christians to work together to bring God glory, build his kingdom, and glorify him in all we do so that others might be saved. We cannot do these things independently; he equips us through the Holy Spirit. Jesus’ disciples were worried they couldn’t carry on his work on their own after he was gone. They were right, but Jesus wasn’t worried. He had a plan;
"But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, he will teach you all things and bring to your remembrance all that I have said to you" John 14:26 (ESV).
Ephesians 4 continues to exhort us to walk, not as unbelievers “in the futility of their minds” (vs 17), but in the new life we received when we accepted God’s gift of salvation.
"Put off, concerning your former conduct, the old man which grows corrupt according to the deceitful lusts, and be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness" Ephesians 4:22-24 (NKJV).
God’s Spirit lives in us and renews us as we walk out each day as believers. Walking in the Spirit is a choice. We can ignore him and make the wrong choice, indulge in that sin, lose our cool, or let anxiety take over anyway, or we can ask God to fill us with his Spirit to empower us to overcome the sin that seems to hold us captive.
"But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh … But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law" Galatians 5:16, 22-23 (ESV).
Satan has already lost the battle for your soul. That doesn’t mean he’s out of your life completely. He continually tries to draw us away from God. And if he can draw us away, then he damages our influence on others. But God always overcomes Satan.
Imagine a large room with no windows. The room is completely dark. Now light a match in that room. The light from the match, that one tiny match, pierces through the darkness. You can see the light from everywhere in the room. God is light, and nothing can put out his flame.
"The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it" John 1:5 (ESV).
So, while Satan tempts us away from God, we have a powerful weapon against him. The light of Christ—the Holy Spirit—lives in us. We can let the tiny match remain a single flame or touch the match to a pile of wood and tinder and let the light illuminate the whole room. The question is, where do we get wood and tinder? Through prayer (John 14:14), Bible study (Hebrews 4:12) and fellowship with the body of Christ (1 Corinthians 12: 12, 14). By engaging with God in these ways, we ignite the Holy Spirit in our lives, and we become daily surrendered to Christ.
Our nature is to try to live our daily life on our own strength, but we can’t measure up to how Christ has called us to live on our own. We need a helper. We need the Holy Spirit that dwells in us to live as Jesus lived. The temptation to do things our way comes at every turn—the guy who cut you off in traffic, the child who refuses to obey, that vice that constantly tempts you, or the temptation to make a choice that serves you and not God. By making a conscious effort to walk in the Holy Spirit, we emulate Christ and live in his freedom daily. When we walk in the Spirit, others notice and are subsequently drawn closer to him. Are you walking in the Holy Spirit?
Related Resource:
Jesus calls the Holy Spirit a "gift" who will guide us, lead us, and empower us. Yet many believers don't experience the power and presence of the Holy Spirit in their lives. This unique Christian small group Bible study provides a space in which we can explore what it truly means to "walk in the Spirit" on a daily basis. The Spirit-Filled Life small group curriculum centers on a 6-part video teaching series examining the life-giving and creative work of the Holy Spirit in our lives. Begin to experience the gift today!
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Barbara Yoder
June 03, 2022
I have for a number of years felt a special closeness to the Holy Spirit. I have a symbol of the Holy Spirit outside above my garage. It was made by an artisan in Haiti out of reclaimed metal. I do want to say that it has made no difference in the letters I get from the HOA. 😊