“See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is. And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit, speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ…”
– Ephesians 5:15-20 NKJV
I have a confession to make. No, not of sin – or else I’d go straight to the Lord! Here is the confession: I am a Baptist by conviction. HOWEVER, I also know that there are many – MANY – people from every denomination who, like me, love the Lord Jesus as Savior and are walking with Him! AND here’s the kicker: no one denomination has a corner on the operation of the Holy Spirit! Not bad for a Baptist, eh?
Our text today zeros in on walking in the Spirit! It is one of those classic Biblical passages that is well worthy studying, and if not memorizing, being aware of the location of the text. It should be a study of all of ours for the rest of our lives, much less for the rest of our walk with the Lord until we’re Home with Him!
So what are some of the characteristics of the “walk in the Spirit”?
FIRST, THE WALK IN THE SPIRIT IS THE WALK OF WISDOM (verse 15)
The definition of the Biblical “walk” is “the complete exercise of the Christian life”. 36 times throughout the epistles the writers remind us that the Christian life is a WALK!
HERE are some examples:
* We are to WALK “in newness of life” (Romans 6:4)
* We are to WALK “not after the flesh but after the Spirit” (Romans 8:1)
* We are to WALK “honestly” (Romans 13:1
* We are to WALK “by faith” (2 Corinthians 5:7)
* We are to WALK “worthy of the Lord”
But there also is a warning! Philippians 3:18-19 say, “For many walk, of whom I have told you often, and now tell you even weeping, that they are the enemies of the cross of Christ: whose end is destruction, whose god is their belly, and whose glory is in their shame—who set their mind on earthly things.”
Is that describing you (God forbid!) OR someone you know? Then they are not “walking in the Spirit” but “walking in the flesh”. Can you imagine not setting your mind on the things of the Spirit (see Colossians 3:1-3) but on earthly things?
A walk of wisdom includes walking “circumspectly” because it is a walk that is “purposefully, worthily, accurately, deliberately”.
A walk of wisdom is to walk “as wise”. Do you remember Psalm 111:10? “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; a good understanding have all those who do His commandments.”
A walk of wisdom needs to be always reminded BEFORE WHOM the person walking in the Spirit is walking! Did you catch it in the above Ephesians text? The believer is walking before the world, the unwise, those without purpose or worth, whose God is their belly. Why is that important? Because not only is that where we once were! It is also those who are without God and without hope who need Jesus as Savior! Those “kinds” of people are ultimately the nature of those before whom God has wisely placed each one of us – to make an eternal difference in their lives! Can we do it? Not of ourselves! But “in the power of the Spirit” all things are possible!
SECOND, THE WALK IN THE SPIRIT IS THE WORTH OF TIME! (verse 16)
It is a “redeeming”, literally meaning, “a buying up”. You know what the price of our salvation is, right? Have you read 1 Peter 1:18-19 recently? “knowing that you were not redeemed with corruptible things, like silver or gold, from your aimless conduct received by tradition from your fathers, 19 but with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot.”
So what is the value of time? It is the “buying up each opportunity, making the most of time”. One commentator noted, “we don’t LACK time; we simply WASTE it”.
Have you ever noticed ANY distinction between the world’s use of time and its goals, with the consciousness of the Christian and his use of time?
Someone wisely observed: “WHOOPS! There it goes!” ‘What?” “TIME! – never to be restored!”
The walk in the Spirit is the worth of time!
THIRD, THE WALK IN THE SPIRIT IS THE WILL OF THE LORD! (verse 17)
Everyone who names the name of Jesus as Savior MUST ask the question: “where do I find what God
I am my neighbor’s Bible
He reads me when we meet
Today he read me in my home
Tomorrow in the street
He may be a relative or a friend
Or slight acquaintance be
He may not even know my name
Yet, he is reading me
So, I’ll watch my steps where ere they go
And my eyes what they may see
And all the words forth from my lips
Because someone is reading me
I’ll try my best to do God’s will
And be what He wants me to be
An all seeing eye is looking down
And I know He’s reading me
And so my God, who reads us all
Knows me from A to Z
And when I meet him on Judgment Day
He’ll still be reading me
But if I do all of these things
Just so someone may see
And works not prompted by my love
I’ll never be set free
wants?
The answers are right in front of us!
By prayer
By resting – being still
By God’s Word! 22 times in the epistles alone the Bible talks about the will of the Lord, such as:
“Paul, an apostle of Jesus Christ by the will of God, to the saints who are in Ephesus, and faithful in Christ Jesus:” (Ephesians 1:1)
“not with eyeservice, as men-pleasers, but as bondservants of Christ, doing the will of God from the heart,” (Ephesians 6:6)
“And the world is passing away, and the lust of it; but he who does the will of God abides forever.” (1 John 2:17)
* By being willing to be obedient. Acts 16:10 reads, “ And after he had seen the vision, immediately we endeavoured to go into Macedonia, ASSUREDLY GATHERING that the Lord had called us for to preach the gospel unto them.” [KJV].
The disciples knew, they KNEW, what the will of the Lord was, where they were to go. And they went! Would we?
FOURTH (AND FINALLY!), THE WALK IN THE SPIRIT IS THE WATERFALL OF THE SPIRIT! (verses 18-20)
As a contrast to our study, Proverbs 20:1 says, “wine is a mocker, whoever. Is deceived by it is not wise.”
The world’s cure is everything that appeals to the flesh. But the Christian’s power is the Holy Spirit!
Do you remember Ephesians 4:5? It reads, “one Lord, one faith, one baptism…”. And Romans 8:9 says, “ But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His.”
The Bible says there is ONE baptism of the Spirit, which baptism makes the sinner a member of God’s family who trusts in Jesus alone as Savior!
But the Bible says that there are MANY fillings of the Spirit, such as what we read in verse 15 above. The “filling” literally means, “stimulation by the Spirit’s influence.” It is the cup of overflowing. It is a giving up of self, and a giving in to God. It is the self getting out of the way, that the Spirit of God may do what only God may do – and in turn bringing fresh glory to Him!
And the result? Lots of SINGING (verse 19) and GIVING THANKS (verse 20)!
The key, of course, is obedience.
What happens when we obey, when we surrender, when we “get out of our own way” so that the Spirit can have control of all that we say and do? Why, we do the impossible! We become instruments which turn the world upside down! – at least, the sphere of influence that the Lord has wisely placed us in.
In 1996, Dorothy Keeling wrote a poem which is filled with much wisdom. May our walk in the Spirit make a difference where we are planted.
The poem? “I Am My Neighbor’s Bible”:
- I am my neighbor’s Bible
- He reads me when we meet
- Today he read me in my home
- Tomorrow in the street
- He may be a relative or a friend
- Or slight acquaintance be
- He may not even know my name
- Yet, he is reading me
- So, I’ll watch my steps where ere they go
- And my eyes what they may see
- And all the words forth from my lips
- Because someone is reading me
- I’ll try my best to do God’s will
- And be what He wants me to be
- An all seeing eye is looking down
- And I know He’s reading me
- And so my God, who reads us all
- Knows me from A to Z
- And when I meet him on Judgment Day
- He’ll still be reading me
- But if I do all of these things
- Just so someone may see
- And works not prompted by my love
- I’ll never be set free