In the last three posts, we have seen three commands concerning the believer’s relationship to the Holy Spirit that without question affect the control the Holy Spirit will have on the believer: we must not grieve the Holy Spirit, we must not quench the Holy Spirit, and we must yield to the Holy Spirit. This leads us to final principle.
Fourth, we must walk by the Holy Spirit. This principle is found in Galatians 5:16; “Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh.” Here is great promise. If we are walking in the Spirit, it is impossible for us to fulfill the lust of the flesh. The reverse, however, is also true; if we are fulfilling our lusts, we are not walking in the Spirit.
The word “walk” (peripateo) means “to walk about,” figuratively, “conduct of life,” that is, how we conduct ourselves as we walk through life. Specifically, our conduct is dictated and regulated by the Holy Spirit. We do not walk according to the world system’s standards, or according the Satan’s devices, or according to our flesh, or according to some legalistic method; rather we walk by the Spirit. Further, it’s in the present tense, showing a continuous, regular, habitual lifestyle of walking in Spirit control. It’s also in the imperative mood, showing that this walk is not an option but a command.
There is a paradox here that is easy to miss. Think of it: while the Holy Spirit is the source of the all holy living, it is the Christian who is doing the walking. While this seems obvious, various teachers have missed it. The failure to understand this paradox has lead to the idea of, “Just let go and let God,” which teaches that Christian living is simply a passive submission to God, who will live life for us. This teaching is called “Quietism,” which the old Quakers held. Other advocates of such teaching to one extent or another were the Keswicks, Charles Finney, and Hannah Whitall Smith in her book The Christian’s Secret of a Happy Life. To these sincere, though misguided, folks, passive surrender to God means an almost total absence of the Christian’s actions.
The obvious problem with such teaching is that it ignores the many commands to the great effort on our part that godly living demands. As I Corinthians 9:24-27 outlines: “Know ye not that they which run in a race run all, but one receiveth the prize? So run, that ye may obtain. And every man that striveth for the mastery is temperate in all things. Now they do it to obtain a corruptible crown; but we an incorruptible. I therefore so run, not as uncertainly; so fight I, not as one that beateth the air: But I keep under my body, and bring it into subjection: lest that by any means, when I have preached to others, I myself should be a castaway.” The Christian doesn’t sit on the sidelines eating popcorn watching the Holy Spirit do all the work. The Christian life is a life of struggle, commitment, and discipline. We are in a war. That is why Paul writes later in Ephesians 6 that the Christian is to put on spiritual armor to prepare for battle.
So Spirit-filling is not something magical or mystical; it’s not the final goal or outcome of the Christian life, or something “exclusive,” meant only for “special people” who have had a “special experience.” It is an all-important and foundational principle of Christian living. We will never grow unless we are Spirit-filled. In fact, if Spirit-filling does not come early in our Christian experience, much of our lives will be totally wasted! As we’ve seen, “Spirit-filling” means “Spirit-control.” Therefore, the only way the Spirit can have control is if we give it to Him. This is implicitly implied in our text; we do not willfully give ourselves to wine, rather we willfully give ourselves to the Spirit. Dear Christian, do you see how foundational Spirit-filling is?
Again, this does not mean we are filled once-for-all. We recall that Spirit-filling is a continuing experience, a repeating reality. Tragically, there are many Christians who have never really given themselves to the Lord, have never been filled with the Holy Spirit. Even more tragic is that some never will. It is for that reason that much of their lives will be wasted. It is for that reason that they know no warmth, light, or power. And it is for that reason that their homes are in shambles.
Oh, my Dear Christian Friend, are you filled with the Holy Spirit? If not, you will never have a “Christian home.” You will have a house with Christians living in it, but you will not have a Christian home. Oh, what a difference there is between a house and a home! Let each of us as family members be filled with the Spirit. It is that thought that leads us into our study of the Christian Home.
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