Walking by the Spirit, Part 2
Galatians 5:19-21
We're continuing our series tonight in the book of Galatians and I draw your attention to Chapter 5 for our study, and this is part two in the look at walking by the Spirit. Galatians Chapter 5 and we'll be looking at verses 16-25 in the subject of walking by the Spirit. Now the passage that we are looking at Galatians 5 is the primary passage in the scripture on the subject of walking by the Spirit, which is, of course, a very, very basic concept to the Christian life. And as we come to Galatians 5 and as we are introduced to the idea of walking by the Spirit, that is not to say that we are introduced to the concept of walking. For the idea of walking in the Christian life is frequently discussed in the New Testament.
I notice when Ralph shared his testimony he made reference to his walk as a Christian and we talk about the walk of the Christian. Because this is a very familiar term in the New Testament. Now the word walk or walking is used in reference to the practical daily life of the believer. If you wanted to use a contemporary synonym for walk, you could call it lifestyle. The believer's lifestyle. The believer's walk, his daily pattern. Now as I started to think about this and getting into the whole subject, I got stuck on the word walk at the very beginning of verse 16. And I decided well, I'm going to trace that word all around the New Testament and see if I can come up with a sort of a mini theology on walking. A guide of walking theology, what does it mean when it talks about the Christian walk? And I found some very interesting things that are very, very basic and very important.
First of all, and we'll cover several items, but first of all this is all introduction and we may never get passed it so don't worry. But anyway, first of all, in the concept of walk there are some general commands in the Bible in the New Testament. And I say general insofar as they simply exhort us to walk. In 1 Thessalonians, for example, verse 12 of Chapter 2, the Bible says, "That ye should walk worthy of God who hath called you unto His kingdom and glory."
Now as a general statement that you are to walk worthy of God who has called you. In Colossians 1:10, it says, "That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing." And again, you have this general idea of walking worthy. In Ephesians, and you may be more familiar with this, Chapter 4, verse 1. "I therefore the prisoner of the Lord beseech you that you walk worthy of the vocation to which you're called." Three times generally the Holy Spirit tells us to walk worthy of our calling. And what that simply means is let your practice match your position. If you are a new creature in Christ, if you are uniquely set apart unto God, if you are holy, if you are all things become new, then you ought to act like it. So walk worthy, that is walk in accord with who you are. If a man is a king, we expect him to act like a king. If a man is a dignitary, we expect him to act like a dignitary. That's the same idea.
Because of who you are this is how you are to behave, walk worthy. So there are general commands that the daily pattern of the believer, his lifestyle is to be at least the equivalent or as close to it as is humanly possible in the strength of the Spirit to his position as is possible. Now secondly, in addition to some general commands, there are some very specific commands about our walk. And this gets into the idea of specifically what we do. Now as long as you're in Ephesians 4, let's stay there for a minute. Look at verse 2.
Now he says "walk worthy." Well, what does that mean? Well, let me give you a little walking theology. If you've got a pencil you can jot these things down. Here's a little theology of the Christians walk. First of all, walk in humility. Walk in humility. Our lifestyle is to be characterized by humility, verse 2. "With all lowliness and meekness, with longsuffering forbearing one another in love." That means you don't get angry at other people. You tolerate them lovingly. "Endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit and the bond of peace." Now there's only one thing that makes for unity and that's love, and there's only one that makes for love and that's humility. And we've seen that time and time again.
So a worthy walk then is to walk in humility. To walk in humility. Secondly, walk pure, walk pure. Not only walk in humility, but the New Testament exhorts the believer to walk pure or to have a pure lifestyle. Romans 13:13 says "Let us walk honestly as in the daytime, not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy." He's talking about purity. Walk in the purity. Walk pure.
Thirdly, the Christian's walk is to walk content, to walk content. Now this is most interesting, but to illustrate this to you and this is only an illustration of walking content, and we could illustrate that a lot of ways and whatsoever state you are to be content. But the idea of walking is interesting, because it's used in 1 Corinthians 7:17. Now any of you that have gone through any marital trouble or recently been married or any kind of marital counseling, you probably wound your around to 1 Corinthians 7. Because 1 Corinthians 7 is all about marriage and the believer and the marriage between two believers and a marriage between a believer and an unbeliever and unmarried women and a lot of things are talked about there.
But a most interesting statement is made in verse 17 of 1 Corinthians 7 says this. "But as God as distributed to every man, as the Lord has called everyone so let him walk." And in that passage it has direct relation to marital status. And what it's saying is this, so you get saved and you've got an unsaved spouse. That is no grounds to dissolve the marriage. But you are to be content to walk in the very way which God has called you or the very way that God has dealt with you. If you are married to an unbeliever, you become saved, you continue to be married to an unbeliever. You don't violate the marriage on a spiritual basis or a so-called spiritual basis, which would be unspiritual.
And so as an illustration he is saying be content even in that union, for God has dealt that to you. God knows that when He redeems you, you have an unsaved partner. So you are to be content in one sense with your marital status and that illustrates to me the idea of walking content. And another point, we are to walk in faith. We are to walk in faith. 2 Corinthians 5:7 says, "For we walk by," what, "faith and not," what, "by sight." So the believer is not to judge the things that are happening by what he sees happening, but he is to judge all things in terms of his faith in God. He sees all things from the heavenly side.
He interprets everything celestially. He sees God at work. Has the circumstances. So we are to walk in faith. Another thing about our walk, we are to walk in good works. We are to walk in good works. I just read you Colossians 1:10 which says we are to walk fruitfully unto all good works well pleasing in His sight. But Ephesians 2:10 perhaps gives us another look at it. "For we are His workmanship created in Christ Jesus unto good works which God has before ordained that you should," what, "walk in them." So the lifestyle of a Christian is good works.
The lifestyle of a Christian then is humility, purity, contentedness, faith, and good works. Let me give you another interesting one. Turn in your Bibles to Ephesians 4, if you're not still there, verse 17. And we'll jump in at this point. In Ephesians 4:17 we find that the Christian is to walk, now listen to this one, "to walk differently." We are to walk differently. Look at verse 17. "This I say therefore and testify in the Lord that you henceforth walk not as heathen walk." The word other doesn't appear in the best manuscripts. And Gentiles ethnic can be translated pagans or heathens or Gentiles or Greeks or any of those terms. "But you are to walk not as heathen walk in the vanity of their minds."
So you're to walk differently. You are not be like the system. You're not to be like the world. It's a different walk. And he goes on to contrast it. You look at the old walk and the new walk contrasted in the passage. Let me just give you an idea of what I mean. At the end of verse 17 it says that the old walk was in the vanity of their minds, self-centered, vanity, pride in their own thoughts. The old walk self-centered. Look at verse 20. The new walk "You have not so learned Christ." Christ never taught you self-centeredness. It's a Christ-centered walk.
The old walk is self-centered, the new walk is Christ-centered. Secondly, the old walk is ignorant, verse 18. Having the understanding darkened. Be alienated from the life of God through the ignorance that is in them because of the blindness of their heart. The old walk is ignorant. The new walk is in knowledge. Look at verse 21, "If so be that you have heard Him and been taught by Him as the truth is in Jesus." Here's knowledge. We have heard, we have been taught the truth. So the old walk is ignorant, the new walk is knowledge.
Thirdly, the old walk is shameless, verse 19. "Who being past feeling," no longer sensitive conscience, "have given themselves over unto lasciviousness to work all uncleanness with greediness." They chase after uncleanness, they're greedy for it. Shameless. The new walk is with a sensitivity to sin. Verse 22, "You put off concerning the former manner of life," the former lifestyle. "The old man corrupt according to the deceitful lusts."
It's different, it's not shameless. It's sensitive to sin. Then fourthly the old walk is a reprobate mind. It's the kind of mind that is completely given over to evil at the end of verse 19. To work all uncleanness with greediness. It's just gone. There's no bounds anymore. There's no limits on it. Whereas in verse 23, it's a new mind. "Renewed in the Spirit of your mind." So the old walk and the new walk are diametrically opposed. We walk differently.
Let me give you another concept in our mini theology on walking. We are to walk separated. We are to walk separated. And to illustrate that I draw your attention to 2 Thessalonians 3, verse 6 and here we're not talking about apart from the world. We're talking about apart from other Christians. Did you know that there are times when you separate yourself from other Christians? Yes, 2 Thessalonians 3:6, "We command you brethren," this isn't an option. "We command you brethren in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ that you withdraw yourselves from every brother that walks disorderly and not after the tradition which you received of us. For you yourselves know how you ought to follow us. For we behave not ourselves disorderly among you."
In verse 11, he says, "And we hear that there are some who walk among you disorderly working not at all, but are busy bodies." That's one good illustration of disorderly being a busy body. You're to walk separated from Christians living in sin. It's a separated walk. Let me give you another one. You're to walk in love. Are you still in Ephesians? Look at Ephesians 5:2. You're to walk in love, the lifestyle of love. Verse 2 of Ephesians 5 puts it very clear. "And walk in love as Christ also hath loved us and given Himself for us an offering an sacrifice to God." Now you say what kind of love? The kind of love that sacrifices itself. That's the kind of love. You're to walk in terms of self sacrifice, not physical love.
That's verse 3. "Not fornication and uncleanness and all that. That's what the world thinks love is. You're to love as Christ loved in the sacrifice of yourself. Same Chapter, look at this. You're to walk in light, verse 8. "For you were once darkness, but now are you light in the Lord. Walk as children of light." So we're to walk in light as well as in love. He's not done. Look at verse 15. You're to walk in wisdom. "See then that you walk circumspectly." The word means exactly or carefully or accurately, meticulously.
You are to walk carefully, meticulously following the Christian principles, not as fools, but as wise redeeming the time because the days are evil. And that same injunction is repeated in Coloss