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Don’t we hate it when we think we’re walking in the Spirit but find out we’re walking in the wrong direction? While trying to be religious, we may walk off the path. However, if we don’t walk at all, we aren’t obedient to the Holy Spirit either. Then we’ll miss the way by doing nothing. We’ll be like the wicked and lazy servant who buried his talent of gold. Since the Holy Spirit is always calling us higher, we’re sinning by doing nothing when God asks us to do something. And we’re sinning by doing one thing when God asks us to do something else. Not only so, but we’re sinning by doing something when God asks us to wait. On the other hand, walking in the Spirit is simple. We hear His voice and respond in submission.
We may get it wrong because of our spiritual immaturity. We may fail to judge the difference between God’s voice and all the other voices. And, if we get it wrong, He is faithful and just to pardon us and set us back on the path if we admit to Him that we’ve been wrong. We aren’t under condemnation if we’re in Christ Jesus, walking according to the Holy Spirit’s leading to the extent that our current maturity allows. God doesn’t tell us to strive in our own strength apart from His leading and righteousness. That is, He doesn’t ask us to try to self-generate a righteousness from our fleshly natures. He tells us to yield to His righteousness. This command doesn’t mean we do nothing. It means we only do and say what He leads us to do and say. In the world, they say, “Fake it until you make it.” Not so in the spiritual realm. Be real. Satan will use his slaves to tell us we should feel guilty, condemned, or confused because we don’t always know the difference between our own minds and God’s leading. However, God assures us that He’s got this.
Christ pardons us and takes us as we are, covering us with His own blood as a sacrifice on our behalf. He does this so He can live within us, lead us, do His works through us, and transfigure us from glory to glory into His image. We have only one responsibility. God won’t take control of our wills, and Satan can’t take control of our wills. However, God gives us power, through the Holy Spirit, both to will and to do His good pleasure, and we merely need to be open to Him. We can block it, of course, but if we allow Him, He does everything. He reveals. He gives the ability to judge between truth and fiction or right and wrong. He warns when something is out of His will. He forgives us when we get it wrong. If this judgment and discernment were our responsibility, we’d soon lose our way. However, He takes responsibility. We’re responsible for yielding to His Spirit while He handles everything else. It takes effort to resist the Holy Spirit. We’re responsible to stop resisting Him.
So we have no reason to fear to go ahead with God if we’re sincere and desire righteousness since God has promised to complete His work in us. However, this revelation doesn’t mean He’s going to drag us into His kingdom against our desires. It does mean that, if we sincerely yield ourselves to His righteousness, He’ll bring us to His fullness despite our shortcomings.
“being persuaded of this very thing, that the One having begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Christ Jesus.” (Philippians 1:6 Berean Literal Bible)
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