Along with God, our Heavenly Father, and Jesus Christ, His only begotten Son, the Holy Spirit is a member of the Holy Trinity. He is more than an influence or power; the Holy Spirit is a person more real than you and I. He is the promise of the Father, and His gift to all that have been born again and have accepted Jesus Christ as their personal Lord and Savior. 2Corinthians 5:17 (NLT) tells us, “This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!” Although we are new creatures in Christ, we look the same, and our souls do not change immediately. We may have the same thoughts and feelings as we did before we accepted Christ, but make no mistake, accepting him as Lord supernaturally changes us, and we begin the spiritual journey of walking in the Spirit moment by moment.
What does it mean to walk in the Spirit?
In Galatians 5:16 (NKJV), The Apostle Paul tells us a very important truth about walking in the Spirit. This verse says, “I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.” Most people live their lives based on how they feel and think, without regard for their real selves. This is walking in the flesh. It’s neglecting what God wants to do on the inside of our hearts and souls. We are spiritual beings made in the image of God (Genesis 1:26-27). 1Corinthians 6:19 affirms that our bodies are the temple of the Living God. The body comes equipped with its own set of impulses, cravings, and desires; it wants what it wants when it wants it. The temptation is to let the body go outside its function as the temple of God, and allow it govern. That’s the definition of a life gone wrong.
God warns us in Romans 12:2 not to be conformed to this world, but to be transformed by renewing our minds to His Word. When we do this, we prove God’s good, acceptable, and perfect Will. The life that God wants for us is stupendous! It’s extraordinary! Our destiny is to have abundance in every aspect of our beings! A person cannot rise above that which they don’t know or haven’t been taught. If your vision of where God wants to take you and what He desires for you is small, or if you truly don’t believe that He desires the best for you, then it would be incredibly challenging for you to rise higher than the limitations you’ve set in your mind. If you believe that you can never have more out of life, and that no matter what, you will always run into roadblocks and obstacles that keep you down, the only way for you to rise higher is to change your thoughts by renewing your mind to God’s Word.
To walk by the Spirit is to not only change your mind, but it is a surrendering of your will, to the point that the Spirit changes your heart. God has placed the gift of Holy Spirit deep within. There, he can do a transformative work in us, but only if we will allow him. He will not overstep our wills and start throwing the bad stuff out of our hearts, and putting the good stuff inside them. It is our decision to surrender to him and allow him to lead, guide, and direct our lives.
Why do you need to be led?
1Corinthians 6:19 tells us that we do not belong to ourselves. We were purchased with a price by the sacrifice of Jesus Christ. God created us and we have a purpose. As Christians, we cannot have a take-it-as-it-comes approach to life. We have a race to run. Hebrews 12:1 (NLT) tells us, “Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a huge crowd of witnesses to the life of faith, let us strip off every weight that slows us down, especially the sin that so easily trips us up. And let us run with endurance the race God has set before us.” A self-indulgent, me-oriented existence of sin and selfishness is destructive; it weighs us down and causes us to miss many things that life offers. God demands that we strip off this false veneer and get busy running the race that HE has placed before us.
Each of us has a race, a calling to fulfill. Right now, you may not know exactly what it is, but you can best believe that the Spirit that indwells you knows. John 16:13 tells us that he, the Spirit, will guide us into all truth. He will tell us what he hears from Jesus Christ, the Lord and head of our lives. Romans 8:14(NLT) states “For all who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God.” This is the defining characteristic of Christians. We are children of God, and we are led by the spirit. We are not leading our lives, but instead we’re walking by faith and following the directions of Heavenly Father.
We should live each moment in total dependency on the leadership of the indwelling Holy Spirit. Proverbs 3:5(NLT) tells us, “Trust in the LORD with all your heart; do not depend on your own understanding.” The flesh cannot lead us into the destiny God has for us. Only the Spirit can do this. As we renew our minds to God’s Word, and allow the Spirit to transform us inside out, we will prove that God’s Will and Plan for our lives is perfect! He will reward us with treasures, and we’ll witness growth and prosperity beyond our expectations if we will follow the Spirit. He will lead us to infinite possibilities in Christ!■
Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
“Letting the Holy Spirit Lead You” written by JMack. 4theChristianMan.Com© 2017. All rights reserved. All praise and honor to God through Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.