Let’s Take A Walk
Walking has been around as long as man. The voice of the Lord God is the first to have been reported as “walking in the Garden in the cool of the day”, (Gen. 3:8). This to say that God ‘transported Himself’ there as His presence was “amongst the trees of the Garden”. Man has no doubt been walking since creation as this was the means by which he was able, as a fully formed human adult, to move about. God, in His foreknowledge, provided man all he needed to do what God expected of him. God created man with the ability to walk, whereby man could “dress and keep” the Garden of Eden as we see from Gen. 2:15.
It becomes obvious in observing an infant as it grows, that the desire to walk soon becomes their focus. They see others moving about from place to place at a much faster pace than crawling. Proficiency in this area comes only after much practice and some falls. Perseverance is required and success can be achieved to the point of becoming second nature. Before long, “the baby” is scurrying about from room to room and one must keep an eye on them lest they “walk” where they shouldn’t. Anyone having raised children knows of the harm that often results when the children don’t always watch where they go.
But walking can mean much more than the physical moving of oneself from one place to another. For instance, in Gen. 5:22, Enoch “walked with God”. This has an obvious spiritual connotation, as vs 24 repeats that he walked with God, and adds, “and he was not; for God took him.” Enoch did not die because he aligned his mind, his life, and his ways after the Commands of God. Gen. 6:9 also shows that Noah was a “just man” who walked with God. He followed God in all his ways, including the building of the ark, the means by which humanity was spared total annihilation.
And we would be remiss to not mention Abraham, the “friend of God”, who in Gen. 17:1, was told by God Himself, “walk before me, and be thou perfect”, meaning follow God’s directives. This is affirmed in Jer.10:23. O LORD, I know that the way of man is not in himself: it is not in man that walketh to direct his steps. God, in His Word, tells man how to walk.
The Spirit had the sweet singer of Israel pen Words which should make all seek to serve God in full accordance with His Commandments. One such place is Psa. 128:1 - Blessed is every one that feareth the LORD; that walketh in his ways. This word “blessed” in the Hebrew (O.T.), and Greek (N.T.) means “happy”. Later, the Spirit had Solomon write: He that walketh in his uprightness feareth the LORD: but he that is perverse in his ways despiseth him. – Prov. 14:2. This same idea is conveyed in the N.T. as the Spirit had the beloved apostle pen the Words of 1John 2:5-6 for our direction. But whoso keepeth his word, in him verily is the love of God perfected: hereby know we that we are in him. 6 He that saith he abideth in him ought himself also so to walk, even as he walked.
So, the question arises, How did He (Christ) walk? We must know this before we can fashion our lives after His. John 15:10 tells us that Jesus’ walk was keeping His Father’s Commandments, continually abiding in the Father’s love. Christ Himself, in John 6:38, said He did not come down from heaven to do His own will, “but the will of him that sent me.” From this, it should be clear, that it we would “walk as Jesus walked”, we are to strive to do God’s Will. We are told in 2Cor. 5:7 that those the obedient “walk by faith, not by sight”. We also know from Rom. 10:17 that faith is only attainable through the Word of God.
Now, let’s take a walk. Before one can “walk”, they must be born. And before one can walk spiritually, per John 3:3-6, they must be born again. This requires a “death, a burial, and a resurrection. This “new birth” is explained in Rom. 6:3-4 - Know ye not, that so many of us as were baptized into Jesus Christ were baptized into his death? 4 Therefore we are buried with him by baptism into death: that like as Christ was raised up from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life. Being “born again” is not one’s whole “walk” in the Lord. In Col 2:6, the brethren there were admonished - As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him:
Contrast this with the walk of those in the world as Eph. 2:2 describes. Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: This is echoed in Col. 3:6-7 following a list of some things against God which one who loves God will ‘mortify’ or put to death. For which things' sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience: 7 In the which ye also walked some time, when ye lived in them.
Why did Enoch, Noah, Abraham, David, Jesus, Peter, Paul, as well as countless other obedient folks “walk with God? That’s simple. It’s because they loved God. 2John verse 6, the Words of the Spirit to John the apostle say it best. And this is love, that we walk after his commandments. This is the commandment, That, as ye have heard from the beginning, ye should walk in it. Also, the Words of Christ in John 14:15 - If ye love me, keep my commandments.
This is an urgent plea because we MUST choose while in this life. We are warned in 1John 2:17. And the world passeth away, and the lust thereof: but he that doeth the will of God abideth for ever. Do God’s Will now. Obey the gospel, then patiently walk in the love of God, doing His Commandments, awaiting the promise of heaven as Heb. 10:36 shows. For ye have need of patience, that, after ye have done the will of God, ye might receive the promise. Let’s walk together – serving God in this life.
Dennis Strickland – Mooresville church of Christ
