Lesson for October 29, 2023
The Battle for Your Soul
Lesson 4
The Spiritual Walk of Believers
The mechanics of being a doer of the Word and not a hearer only are often expressed as walking. The spiritual walk occurs in the life of believers by being in fellowship with God and by being filled with the Holy Spirit, as a result. This is accomplished by simply naming, acknowledging, or admitting your sins directly to God. When you do this, God forgives those sins you name and cleanses you from those sins you have perhaps forgotten or failed to recognize as sin. We call this process the Rebound Technique, which puts us in the position to live our spiritual lives and win the battle for our soul. (James 1:21-26; I John 1:5-10)
The first Greek word for walk is “peripateo,” meaning the totality of a person’s lifestyle. It is used for believers fulfilling the Protocol Plan of God in the Church Age in Romans 6:4; Galatians 5:16; Ephesians 5:2. It is used for the lifestyle of carnal Christians in I Corinthians 3:3 and Philippians 3:18. It is also used for the lifestyle of unbelievers in Ephesians 2:2 and Colossians 3:7.
The second Greek word for walk is “stoicheo,” meaning to march in step, to march in rank, to walk in agreement with, to function in a system, to follow a leader, or to walk in a straight line. It is used for aligning your life with who you are as a believer in Christ – Royal Family of God. It is used for living under the power of God the Holy Spirit in Galatians 5:25. It is used for the pattern of faith set forth by Abraham for salvation in Romans 4:12. It is used for the pattern of living as a new creation in Christ in Galatians 6:15-16 and Philippians 3:15-16.
Walking in the Spirit
(Romans 8:1-17; Galatians 5:16)
Walking in the Spirit is analogous to being filled with God the Holy Spirit and living the Christian Way of Life. The Greek word for walk in these verses is “peripateo,” which is used to express the entirety of a believer’s spiritual life. Therefore, we can say that without the power and guidance of God the Holy Spirit a believer does not have a spiritual life.
Walking in the Spirit is a grace function of God the Holy Spirit, since it is His ministry in the life of believers that provides everything that is needed to live God’s protocol plan. It is the Holy Spirit Who teaches us, guides us, and produces the character of Christ in us. (John 14:16-26; 16:13-14; Romans 8:14; I Corinthians 2:10; Galatians 5:22-23)
Walking in the Light
(I John 1:5-7; Ephesians 5:8)
Walking in the Light is also analogous to being filled with God the Holy Spirit and living the Christian Way of Life. The command to walk in the Light is a reference to experiential sanctification. The Greek word for walk in these verses is also “peripateo,” which is used to express the entirety of a believer’s spiritual life. Just as walking in darkness is analogous to being out of fellowship with God and controlled by your sin nature, walking in the Light is analogous to being in fellowship with God and controlled by the Holy Spirit. Therefore, walking in the Light is synonymous with the Victorious Christian Way of Life.
Walking after the Pattern of Jesus
(Colossians 2:6; I John 2:6)
Our precedence for Christian walking is taken from Jesus Christ during the Hypostatic Union. The Greek word for walk (in Him) in Colossians 2:6 and walk (just as He walked) in I John 2:6 is “peripateo,” which is used to express the entirety of a believer’s spiritual life based on the walk of Jesus. Jesus lived within God’s power system (the Divine Dynasphere), as our example for living the Christian life. And we are to follow His pattern of living.
By means of the virgin birth, Christ was born without the imputation of Adam’s original sin and without a sin nature. This means that He was born in a perfect state of impeccability and lived a sinless life during His thirty-three years on earth. He remained absolutely perfect because He resided inside the Divine Dynasphere, while continually being filled with, empowered by, and guided by the Holy Spirit.
The omnipotence of the Holy Spirit empowered Christ to resist every temptation He faced. The virgin birth was necessary to assure He was born perfect, and the power of the Holy Spirit and Bible doctrine assured He would not commit a personal sin. These two factors qualified Him to go to the Cross as our substitute and pay the penalty for our sin. This payment occurred when God the Father poured out the sin of the human race upon Christ and judged it. During that entire time of judgment, Jesus remained inside the Divine Dynasphere, being sustained by the power of the Holy Spirit and the Bible doctrine in His soul.
Walking in Newness of Life
(Romans 6:4; II Corinthians 5:17-21: Galatians 6:16)
The potential for walking in newness of life begins at salvation when a believer becomes a new creation in Christ. The Greek word for walk in the above verses is “peripateo,” which is used to express the entirety of a believer’s spiritual life.
The baptism of the Holy Spirit places believers into union with Christ at salvation. It is this union with Christ that gives us the potential for living a victorious Christian life. It is in light of this doctrinal truth that Paul tells us in II Corinthians 5:17 that we are new creations in Christ, “the old things passed away and behold, new things have come.”
Old things passing away is not a reference to a change in a person’s lifestyle or giving up “bad habits.” Once a person accepts Jesus Christ as Savior, their lifestyle does not automatically change. If there needs to be change, then the only legitimate change must come from spiritual growth based on learning and applying the Word of God, not on some form of legalism. As a matter of fact, the passage in II Corinthians 5 refers to what God does for us, not what we do for God. Becoming a new creation in Christ is a matter of God’s grace. Therefore, all human effort is eliminated (giving up bad habits). The reason a person becomes a new creation in Christ is that they are in union with Christ. This union means that a believer shares Christ’s destiny and inheritance. (Romans 8:17)
The first word of I Corinthians 5:17 is therefore, meaning conclusion. Paul looks back at the context of the passage and draws a conclusion based on previous doctrinal information (being in union with Christ). The conclusion is if any person is in Christ (baptism of the Holy Spirit) that person is a new creation. (I Corinthians 12:13)
Creation is the Greek word “ktisis” and refers to the creative act in process. The act of becoming a new creation is when God, at salvation, creates a human spirit in a person who is now a believer. This creative act by God creates something that previously did not exist – Royal Family of God. (I Corinthians 2:9-14; Galatians 6:10; Ephesians 2:19)
Old things is actually one word in Greek. It is the word “archaios,” meaning that which existed in the beginning. It is a reference to something that is ancient (really old), something in the past. It does not refer to a believer’s bad habits or lifestyle. The context makes the meaning very clear. It is a reference to an old condition – spiritual death. Spiritual death passes to every member of the human race as a result of Adam and Eve’s disobedience. It is spiritual death that Paul had in view when he used the word “archaios.”
Passed away in Greek is “parerchomai,” and means to go, to pass, to come to an abrupt end, to disappear, or to neutralize. In our passage, it means that spiritual death has gone, passed away, or come to an abrupt end at salvation. Once you are placed into union with Christ, spiritual death disappears from you. (Romans 6:23)
New things have come does not refer to new moral habits. The word for new is “kainos,” meaning new as to form or quality. A believer receives a new nature (form) at salvation. This nature (form) is from God, and it is spiritual (a human spirit). Receiving this nature is not a matter of reformation of a particular lifestyle or behavior. Receiving this nature is strictly a matter of God’s grace provision. At salvation, the transforming power of God the Holy Spirit places you into union with Christ and sets you apart to God for all eternity.
II Corinthians 5:18 clarifies the meaning of becoming a new creation in Christ. “Now all things are of God, who reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and gave us the ministry of reconciliation.” The all things are from God, not man, and it is God Who reconciles mankind to Himself when a person places their faith in Jesus Christ. This eliminates any thought of human merit for becoming a new creation. You do not give up anything to become a new creation in Christ nor do you start doing something. You are a new creation because you are “in Christ” and for no other reason. (Ephesians 2:8-9) Becoming a new creation in Christ means we have the potential to have a spiritual walk and win the battle for our souls.