David Jeremiah - Walking In The Spirit
- Watch
- Donate
If you have ever watched a halftime show at a basketball game, you know just how hard they try to keep the crowd entertained. I mean, there are Frisbee- catching dogs and trampoline dunkers and even dancing unicyclists. But at a recent Las Vegas game where the Aces play, the stars of the show were barely 2 feet tall, and they were still in diapers. It was the baby crawl race. Ten little ones lined up at the free throw line while parents waved toys, rattled keys, and made noises they never make in public anywhere else. The crowd was roaring. The players on the bench were having a great time.
And then something unexpected happened. One baby girl stopped crawling halfway across the floor. She wobbled for a moment as if she couldn’t decide what to do next. And then, to everyone’s amazement, she stood up. Cameras came out. The whole arena held their breath. She took one step and then another. And suddenly, she was walking right into her mother’s arms. Every parent remembers that moment. Hopefully, not in public like that, but I’ve been going through that, watching my great-grandson, David Jay, learn to walk. At first, it was a little uncertain, but now he walks everywhere, and you better watch out because he will be out of your sight before you know it. He can literally walk.
The Bible talks about another kind of walking. It actually calls the Christian life a walk. It says in Galatians 5:16, «Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.» Now, we all know what it means to walk. I mean, we learned that before our second birthday. But what does it mean to walk in the Spirit? How do you do that? Well, the long and short of it is that to walk in the Spirit means to live every day in dependence upon God. It is fellowship and reliance on the Holy Spirit to do what He came to do and what He alone can do. Sometimes we get the idea, if we’re honest, that the Christian life is a matter of grim determination.
I read a book not too many years ago called «Grit.» I think some people think the Christian life is grit-just working as hard as you can. You were taught at some point in your life to get up in the morning, square your shoulders, tighten your belt, draw in three deep breaths, and determine in your heart, «I’m going to live for Jesus,» even if it kills me. And it just might. As worthy as that goal might sound, it is not the way the Lord intended us to live the Christian life. Keep that up for very long, and you’ll be exhausted, and you’ll be looking for a way to resign. I had a lady one day come into my office with her Bible and hand it to me. She said, «I’m turning this in. I can’t do this life. It’s too hard.» She turned in her Bible.
Have you ever heard of anything such as that? And if you’re not careful-if you try to do the Christian life in your own strength-you’ll come to the place where you’ll want to turn in your Bible. What a vast difference there is between determining and depending, and between trying and trusting. If I understand anything at all about the Word of God and about the ministry of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer, that relationship is one of depending on Him to do His work through us. It is not our trying to somehow manufacture the evidences of the Holy Spirit through our own energy and determination.
And there are reasons why trying to live the Christian life in our own resolve and strength won’t work. It never has worked. It’s not working now, and it never will work. Instead of walking in the Spirit, we’ll find ourselves staggering, lurching, wandering, or even tripping and falling. But if we can learn the secret that is in Galatians 5:16, what a difference it will make! We can begin enjoying a lifestyle that is more characterized by victory and joy and a sense of being in the center of where God wants us to be. The Spirit-filled walk is the only option for Christians. And let me give you some reasons for that in case you don’t believe me, first of all, because of the demands of the Christian life.
How many of you know the Christian life isn’t hard-it’s impossible? Watchman Nee once wrote a book called «The Normal Christian Life.» But the fact is there’s no such thing as a normal Christian life. The Christian life puts a lot of demands on us, with none greater than the demand to walk with Jesus. I once took a pencil and a yellow pad and listed every New Testament instance of the little word «walk.» I won’t give you all of them, but let me just read a few of them, and you’ll see what I’m talking about. Think of what you’re required to do wrapped around the word «walk.» Walk in good works, for we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works that we should walk in them. We’re to walk in good works.
Romans 13:13: «Let us walk properly as in the day.» 2 Corinthians 5:7: «For we walk by faith, not by sight.» Ephesians 5:2: «Walk in love as Christ also has loved us.» Ephesians 5:8: «Walk as children of light.» We’re to walk worthy of the Lord, according to Colossians 1:10. We’re to walk as Jesus walked, according to 1 John 2:6. And there are many more instances of what it means to walk. Let’s be honest-can we possibly obey all those commands in our own strength, in our own ability? What we’re called to do isn’t easy. And that was just one word in scripture. There are many more ways we could illustrate this. The expectations are high, and it’s easy to feel overwhelmed by all of it. And I have felt that way on occasion, as you all have too. But there’s another reason why the Spirit-filled walk is the only option we have if we’re going to be victorious as Christians, and that’s the determination of our enemy. It’s bad enough that the requirements are so high that we can’t meet them. But add to that the fact that we have someone pursuing us and laying traps for us along the way. We have a determined enemy. He is real. He is after us. His whole goal, his whole reason for existence, is to undermine God’s people. He will go to any lengths to do that. You know who I’m talking about-he is the devil. He is Satan. He is the adversary, and he has a team.
I want you to hear this in the Living Translation of the Bible because it will help you understand what I mean. This is Ephesians 6:12: «For we are not fighting against people made out of flesh and blood, but against persons without bodies-the evil rulers of the unseen world, those mighty satanic beings and great evil princes of darkness who rule this world, and against huge numbers of wicked spirits in the spirit world.» Satan is an ancient and powerful foe, and he has vast resources and bitter hatred of Jesus and all who belong to Him.
Do you know why persecution happens against Christians? Because of the hatred people have for Jesus. If you’re a Jesus person, you will be a target somewhere along the way. And the persecution is growing in our culture, in our nation. You know that every time you turn around, there’s some evidence of the hatred people have for those who follow Jesus. I become very concerned, however, when I hear people joking or speaking flippantly about Satan. Don’t ever do that. Don’t ever joke about Satan; he is no joke.
I promise you I’m not saying that we should give him credit-he doesn’t need it. But we must also bear in mind that he is a fierce, formidable enemy. And we shouldn’t overestimate his influence on our lives, but it’s easy and dangerous to underestimate him. Do not underestimate him. 1 Peter 5: 8 says that Satan is like a roaring lion prowling, seeking whom he may devour. And many of God’s people are being devoured. Have you noticed? It’s more and more evident to us as we just watch what’s happening. He devours their influence. He devours their marriage. He devours their children. He devours their opportunities for ministry and service. They are literally being eaten alive.
And Revelation 12:9 tells us that he is the great dragon, the serpent of old, the devil and Satan who deceives the whole world. He’s a dangerous, devious enemy, and his goal is to undermine and neutralize God’s people. I mean, Satan doesn’t waste any time with people who aren’t Christians. Why should he do that? He’s already got them! They’re already on his side of the ledger, and they’re already, whether they know it or not, doing his will. But once you become a Christian, once you become a part of God’s family, you can count on a new relationship with Satan-you can count on it. You’re no longer on the safe column of his ledger. He put you on his hit list, and he’ll be after you throughout all of your life as a Christian. Do you remember the conversation that Jesus had with Peter? Shortly before He went to the cross, Jesus looked into His friend’s eyes, and He said, «Simon, Simon, indeed Satan has asked for you that he may sift you as wheat. But I have prayed for you that your faith should not fail.» That’s what Satan wants to do. He wants to get his hands on our lives. He wants to shake us and sift us and unsettle us.
And in 2 Corinthians 2:11, Paul says that Satan utilizes schemes or devices, as the King James puts it. The word «scheme» means the same thing as «strategy.» In other words, listen to this: Paul is saying that we shouldn’t be ignorant of Satan’s strategies to undercut our lives and destroy us. If you could sneak into Satan’s office and take a peek into his files, you might be surprised to find a file folder with your name on it. And inside that file are all the strategies he’s tried to use on you-the ones that worked and the ones that didn’t work. And he doesn’t waste time with the ones that don’t work. Instead, he uses variations on the strategies that have caused you to stumble in the past.
As long as you let them keep working, he’ll keep working them. Somewhere in that file cabinet, there’s a file labeled «Jeremiah David.» In this file, I don’t know what’s for sure there, but I wouldn’t be surprised if there was a notation that reads something like this: «Subject may be prone to discouragement, especially if he becomes overly weary. This has worked several times before and seems a promising method of attack. Suggestion: Make sure he stays very busy, overcommitted, and physically tired. At all costs, keep him from extended times of Bible reading and prayer.»
So what is Satan’s strategy for me? He looks for ways to discourage me, and he will use whatever people. Did you know people can be a discouragement? I get emails, and it’s not just people-circumstances can take this into your life and achieve Satan’s goal. It’s the same for you. Maybe your file says frequently tempted to gossip or quick-tempered, or prone to coveting and jealousy, or weak in the area of lust. Don’t kid yourself; he knows very well where your vulnerabilities lie. It’s all in his file. You’ve heard perhaps that God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life. That is absolutely true. But it’s also true that Satan hates you and has a plan and strategy to destroy your life. And the Bible says he goes around like a roaring lion seeking to do that. But I have good news for you all; we will remember this as we leave today: He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world. Amen? So we have a victory in Jesus Christ!
So first of all, we need the Holy Spirit to control our life because of the demands of the Christian life, because of the determination of our enemy, and because of the destructive influence of the flesh. You know the Bible speaks of the flesh and of the devil. Galatians 5:16 says this: «Walk in the Spirit, and you will not fulfill the lust of the flesh.» What does that mean? What does the word flesh mean? It means life apart from God. Here’s a way you can remember the meaning of the word flesh-I’ll put it up on the board. Take the «H» off of the end of it and read it backward. And what do you get? Itself. The flesh is yourself without God.
Your flesh is what you were before you became a Christian. It’s not the bones and structure of your body. The word itself means to have a life where God is no longer an influence. Before you were saved, you were totally flesh; you didn’t have spirit. But when you became a Christian, God gave you a new nature. But listen to me, friends; God didn’t take away the old nature. You still have the old nature! If you don’t believe me, poke your wife and ask her if it’s true. She will tell you the old nature still exists. And the Bible teaches us that if we are not careful, the flesh can take over and give us a great deal of trouble. The Bible says, «Walk in the Spirit, and you will not fulfill the lust of the flesh.»
For all intents and purposes, some Christians are practical atheists. They live their lives as if there were no God. They are Christians; yeah, they’ve trusted Christ -that’s true. But somehow they’ve gotten away from walking with the Lord, and they are walking in their old flesh nature. Listen to me; the flesh is what you were before God. The flesh is what you were before Christ came to live within your life. The flesh can have great power over you. You don’t lose your flesh when Christ comes to live within you. You carry that same unredeemed flesh with you until you step into the resurrection body when the Lord comes back. But if you surrender to Jesus Christ and allow the Holy Spirit to take control, He begins to rule and reign in your life. That spiritual maturity never develops without conflict.
You say, «You mean as a Christian I’m going to have conflict?» Well, read verse 17 of the same fifth chapter: «For the flesh desires what is contrary to the Spirit, and the Spirit desires what is contrary to the flesh, and they are in conflict with each other so that you are not able to do whatever you want.» Does anybody understand that there’s conflict within us between knowing that Jesus has died for us and wants us to live for Him, and the realization that we have these old life patterns that once in a while stick up their ugly heads and want to regain control of our life? And if we’re not careful, we push the Holy Spirit off the throne, and we let the flesh take its position again. Sometimes people ask me, «Why is the flesh so stubborn? Why is the flesh so powerful? Why is there such a tug on the people of God? After all, we’re saved!» Why should we have to deal with the flesh? Let me give you several ideas to consider.
This one I had never thought about before: it is physical age versus spiritual age. Let me explain what I mean. I trusted Jesus Christ at the age of 15, which means that my flesh had a 15-year head start. Maybe your flesh had a 30 or a 50-year head start. If you were saved at the age of 50, your flesh ruled in your life for half a century. Why is the battle so hard? Because the flesh was running before the Spirit ever showed up! You say, «Well, when the Holy Spirit came, didn’t He just erase all that?» Before we were saved, we formed habits and reactions and thought patterns that cut deep grooves into our lives. Becoming a Christian doesn’t instantly erase all those ruts.
In parts of the American West, we can still see wagon tracks from the Oregon Trail, and no wagons have passed in over a century, but the grooves are still etched in the ground. It’s the same with old patterns of sin. We may have turned in a new direction, but the old tracks remain. And if we’re not careful, our wheels can slide back into the old ruts. You may have gone places, practiced habits, or seen things before Christ that you now reject, yet the memories linger. You might be in worship when an old image or an old craving suddenly flashes into your mind. That’s the flesh. That’s the enemy trying to pull you back into familiar ruts.
And there’s another reason the struggle can feel strong, and that’s the influence of our culture. You say, «Why do we have such a hard time as Christians?» Because many of us lived lives before we became Christians that dug deep ruts into our patterns of life. And the second reason is because of the influence of our culture. What message does the culture promote today-the Spirit or the flesh? Are you kidding me? Growing spiritually doesn’t come easy. Take Sunday morning, for instance. Let’s do that since we’re all here together. It takes effort to join your local community for worship. So you set the alarm, drag yourself out of bed, get the kids ready, drive across town, find a parking spot, and finally get into the church and sit down hoping to hear from God’s Spirit. That takes a little effort on your part to do that.
But the flesh? The flesh doesn’t take any effort at all! It’s easy. You don’t have to plan for it or put it on your calendar. The moment you flip on the TV or unlock your phone, it’s there, parading itself, calling for your attention, trying to shape the way you think and the way that you feel. It hardly seems fair. I mean, what takes discipline to build can be undone with hardly any effort at all. As believers, we are pulled in every direction. We want a life dominated by the Spirit, but the enticements of the flesh surround us. Soon we feel guilty, defeated, and confused. «It must be me!» we think. «Something must be wrong with me.» If we don’t understand the nature of that struggle, it’s easy to grow discouraged and think there’s no hope.
But there is an answer, and it begins with recognizing that there is a battle going on, and understanding that battle is real. If you have come here to church today and you don’t understand why there’s conflict in your life, and you’re a Christian, well, welcome to the Christian life! Because conflict in your spirit is part of it and will be so till you drag your weary feet into heaven someday.
And then there’s the incompatibility of our lifestyle with the world’s. Another reason we feel the pull of the flesh is simple-the moment you come to Christ, you’re no longer in step with the world. Your direction changes. Your values shift. The current that once carried you now runs against you. And that’s not a flaw; it’s evidence that you have become something new and unusual. Did you know being a Christian makes you an unusual person and in the minority? A.W. Tozer wrote this: «A true Christian is an unusual person. He loves someone he has never seen and speaks with Him daily, though he cannot see Him. He expects heaven because of another’s merit. He empties himself to be filled. He admits he’s wrong in order to be made right. He goes down to rise up. He is strongest when he is weakest. He gives to keep. He dies to live. He sees and knows what others say is impossible.»
The Christian life is totally against the grain of everything else in your life. If you’re going to be a Christian and think you can just be a Christian and make a few adjustments, it’s not going to happen. To be a Christian is life-changing. The Bible says old things begin to pass away, and all things become new. The Christian life doesn’t fit with the world around you. We’re different now because of Jesus. And that’s a good thing! And I’m not saying we should hide or act like we’re not Christians or cover up our faith; our goals, our desires, the way we think, doesn’t match with the world anymore. And that’s proof that God is at work with you.
I’m trying to help you understand the conflict is a testimony to the reality of your faith. If you’re a Christian and you have no conflict, you better examine whether or not you’re in the faith. Because conflict in the Christian life, in your spirit, doing the right things, following Jesus, is part of the journey.
And then there’s the irresponsibility of our lives. Sometimes defeat comes not because the battle is unwinnable, but because we neglect the resources that God has given us. We starve our souls from Scripture. We ignore the Spirit’s nudges. We drift instead of walk. What did Paul say? He said, «Walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh.» Now, if you want a good picture of what it’s like to walk in the flesh, all you have to do is read on in the fifth chapter of Galatians. Here you will get a list of what it’s like to live in the flesh. I’m going to read it to you; you follow it.
«Now the works of the flesh are evident: which are adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lewdness, idolatry, sorcery, hatred, contentions, jealousies, outbursts of wrath, selfish ambitions, dissensions, heresies, envy, murders, drunkenness, revilries, and the like.» It’s almost like here’s a sketch of life with God moved out. Here is what life is like when there’s no God. When there’s no God in your life, or when He’s not operating in your life, this is what happens when God-one of the reasons why, after the rapture, the tribulation period takes place, and all hell breaks loose on the earth.
You know why? The Holy Spirit is removed. When you go to heaven, the Holy Spirit goes to heaven with you. And here is this earth with no restriction or restraint. No wonder it falls apart! No wonder it goes to hell in a handbasket! So that reminds us that we need help. The Christian life is more difficult than any of us can ever live in our own strength. You can’t just get up in the morning and say three times over, «I’m going to be a good Christian today.» How many of you know that doesn’t work anywhere?
Listen to the passage of Scripture; it says, «If you walk in the Spirit, you won’t succumb to the lust of the flesh.» Even modern writers on habit forming teach us that you can’t break an old habit by denying the habit. You can’t say, if you’re trying to lose weight, «I will not eat that doughnut. I will not eat that doughnut. I will not eat that doughnut. I will not eat that doughnut.» And an hour later, you’ve scrunched half of the box down! You don’t break an old habit by denying it; you break old habits by creating new habits that are greater than the one that you’re trying to break. The Bible says if you want to not be fulfilled with lust, you have to walk in the Spirit. Keep going in the direction of God, and you won’t be going in the other direction. Concentrate on what you’re going to do, not what you’re not going to do.
Bill Bright was the founder of Campus Crusade for Christ, and he was in his heyday when I was a young pastor. Campus Crusade was an amazing organization and still is, but it doesn’t have all the vibrancy that it had back then. I had many instances when Campus Crusade was a vital part of my life. I used to take my family to Ocean City in New Jersey, and every year, Campus Crusade had their conference there, and they would fill the boardwalks with young people who were witnessing. There was a big church there, and on Sunday you would go there, and all these kids would be there who had been witnessing all week, and it was an amazing thing! When I was trying to learn how to share my faith one time, I got on an airplane from Fort Wayne and flew out here to where the headquarters is and spent a week learning how to share your faith. I learned the four spiritual laws before I was very long in the faith.
I also found out that there was another thing Bill Bright was really passionate about, and that was the filling of the Holy Spirit. Bill Bright used a word picture about walking in the Spirit that has stayed with me for years. I have discovered it is still available in a little track form, and if I can get some, I’ll bring them to you. But he wants something like this: If you ask the Spirit of God to control your life, He does. And life is better than it has ever been before. You experience joy, power, and a perspective. But along the way, sin re-enters the picture. It’s like a black splotch on a white piece of linen. You do something that grieves or quenches the wonderful Holy Spirit who has been given to you, and in a sense, you push Him off the throne of your life. You allow the old flesh nature back in control.
What do you experience then? You experience discouragement and struggles and sadness. That’s where Dr. Bright’s little word picture comes in. He called it spiritual breathing. Here’s how it works. Think of normal physical breathing. What does it involve? Just two things: inhaling fresh air and exhaling bad air. And what do we do all day long, all night long? I can guarantee you that if you’re listening to these words right now, you are engaged in the business of inhaling and exhaling. Spiritual breathing is a similar process. It is exhaling the impure and inhaling the pure. It is rejecting the bad and embracing the good. It works like this: When you become aware of sin in your life, you deal with it at that very moment. Wherever you are-in the car, at home, at the office, wherever -let’s just say you just screamed at one of your kids in anger. Maybe they pushed every button you have and a few you didn’t even know existed. But you’re supposed to be living in the Spirit, right?
What do you do when you become aware of your sin? Well, you can spend the rest of the day, as we often do, justifying what we’ve done. I mean, after all, you’ve worked hard as a slave for those kids, and they ought to show you a little more respect and appreciation and consideration, right? But in your heart, you know you’ve sinned. You know that you have grieved the Holy Spirit of God. He’s made you aware of this, and He wants you to immediately confess it and seek forgiveness. Enter 1 John 1:9, written to Christian believers. And here’s what it says: «If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.» Now, the word, first of all, is in the plural, so it’s not the sin nature; it’s the individual sins that he’s talking about.
He’s saying, if we’re going along, and we do something that we shouldn’t do, we know it’s sinful; the first thing we should do is stop in that moment and confess our sin to God. What are we doing? We’re exhaling that sin. We’re asking God for forgiveness. And listen to this-this is what the Scripture says. Did you ever notice it? It says if you confess the sins you know, God will forgive you of all unrighteousness. That’s what it says! I’m not making this up; it’s true. You’re not responsible for the things you don’t know; you’re responsible for the things you do know. And if you confess the sins that you know, He is faithful and just to cleanse you from — all unrighteousness- not part, not the unrighteousness that you were aware of, but all your unrighteousness-He will forgive you!
You say, «Well, am I a Christian? Why do I need to be forgiven by God?» Because while your relationship isn’t affected, your fellowship is affected. If you have sin in your life as a Christian, you don’t lose your relationship with God, but you lose your fellowship with Him. And I’ve told you before that there is no more miserable person on the face of God’s earth than somebody who is out of fellowship with God who is a Christian. And you know why? People who aren’t Christians don’t know the joy of fellowship with God. So if they aren’t in fellowship with God, it’s no big deal. But you’re a Christian, and you know what it’s like to have sweet fellowship with God. Now you’ve violated the covenant of holiness, and it’s gone. And you not only feel sorry for your sin, but you feel sad because you’ve lost, as it says in the Old Testament, «Restore unto me the joy of my salvation.» You say, «Lord, I agree with you that what I just did was wrong. I have sinned. I ask that you would forgive me for that sin.»
What have you done? You just exhaled the impurity in your heart. Then you say, «Lord, I want you to be in control of my life once again. I want you to be the one who guides me in all that I do. Please fill me again with your Holy Spirit.» That’s inhaling. Well, you say, «How often do I have to do that?» As often as necessary. Well, you protest, «I’d be praying all day long, pastor!» Then pray all day long! Let me tell you what will happen in your life as you begin to practice this principle. At first, it will seem almost overwhelming to you. You’ll be doing it every 45 minutes, or like I remember in my life, «Lord, it’s me again. And it’s that again!» Okay. But the more you concentrate on confessing and forsaking sin, seeking the filling of the Spirit, the further apart those episodes of spiritual breathing will become. In fact, I believe it’s possible, with all my heart, that you may discover to your joy that you can live a whole day in the power of the Holy Spirit without having to exercise spiritual breathing.
But if you allow sin to remain in your heart and you stop seeking the filling of the Spirit, you will wake up to discover you’ve been walking in the flesh for a long, long time. And that is a very dangerous way to live. I once read about two young women who died in a fire that swept through their apartment as they slept. Investigators determined the smoke detector had been deliberately disconnected for a party the night before. Someone had pulled the plug so it would not shrill while food was cooking, and they forgot to reconnect it. And with no warning, the fire claimed two lives. In the same way, when we quench the Spirit’s voice and keep walking in the flesh, we put ourselves in danger. The Spirit may be warning us, but we no longer hear Him. Christians can live that way for years, refusing to deal with sin and to reappropriate the Spirit’s fullness. That is why Ephesians 5: 18 tells us in the present tense to keep on being filled with the Holy Spirit. You don’t just get filled one time; you violate the Holy Spirit. You have to ask Him to fill you up again.
You know, being filled means to be controlled. We learned that already. So it’s exciting to walk in the Spirit. You sense you are a work in progress, reshaped from within. You grow more sensitive to His voice, more careful about sin. The interruption of sin feels so miserable; you want it to be gone. Activities and attitudes that never bothered you now bother you. You know, one of the most interesting things for me as a pastor for over 50 years is this: Someone will become a Christian, and they come to church every week. Later, they’ll come to me and say, «Dr. Jeremiah, you know since I’ve become a Christian, I don’t do this, this, this, and this, and I go here, here, and here. I never did any of that stuff before.» And I’m thinking, you know, I haven’t preached on any of that. How would they know not to do this, this, and this, and to do this, this, and this? Because the greatest preacher who ever lived is the Holy Spirit, and He’s in their heart. And the ministry of the Holy Spirit is helping them to grow and understand.
I tell people when you get saved, it’s like God puts a little wheel here that’s got sharp edges on it. When you do something you shouldn’t do, that little wheel turns around and hurts you; you’re convicted of it, and you want to not do that anymore. It’s amazing to me how powerful is the influence of the Holy Spirit in the life of a new believer to help them choose the right as opposed to-we intuitively, as believers, know what we should do and not do.
In short, the Spirit leaves His mark, and that mark is holiness. Have you ever watched race walking? It’s really interesting! It looks like, well, it kind of looks funny. It looks like the hips are swaying, arms are pumping, and it looks like someone is trying to walk fast enough to run but is not allowed to. Yet behind that awkward stride is one of the most demanding sports in the Olympics. It takes precision, endurance, and rhythm. No one knows that better than Evan Dunfee from Richmond, British Columbia, because in the 2016 Olympics, he walked 31 miles in 3 hours and 41 minutes-faster than most people could run it.
The secret to race walking is rhythm. To stay consistent, athletes like Evan train for years with a metronome, keeping time to master their pace. During the race, Evan took about 200 steps a minute -that’s three every second! For almost four hours straight, step after step, stride after stride, he stayed in perfect sync. I’d like to leave you with that picture. Walking in the Spirit means letting the Holy Spirit set the pace and staying in rhythm with Him- one faithful step at a time. Notice, this is not ambling in the Spirit. It’s not jogging in the Spirit. It’s not running in the Spirit. It’s walking in the Spirit-one step at a time, taking care of the issues that come up when they come up so that they don’t become long-term issues to get you off course. Take care of it as soon as you’re aware of it.
You know what I’ve discovered? The Holy Spirit convicts us immediately. Have you ever done something, and after you’ve done it, you walk away, and within a few seconds, you know, «I should not have done that! That was wrong!» When the Holy Spirit convicts you, you confess. And when you do that, you destroy his power over you. Once you confess your sin and ask the Lord to refill you, you defeat Satan, and you make it impossible for him to take you any place you don’t want to go.
And I recommend the walk. Let’s walk in the Spirit, and we won’t fulfill the lust of the flesh. Can I get a witness?