Sunday, April 8, 2012

C - WALKING WITH JESUS - 3

C – WALKING WITH JESUS – 3

When we walk with Jesus, we walk with Jesus alone.  There is no room on the path we walk with Him to have just a little of this of the world and just a little of that.  When we walk with Jesus it is all or nothing. 

God had made a promise to Abraham that he would have many descendents.  Gen.15:5,6   However, at this time Abraham was a very old man and had no children.  His wife was very old as well.  Yet, Abraham (called Abram then) believed God even though it seemed impossible.  When we walk with Jesus we must realize we are walking with One that has power and control over ALL.  Mk.10:27   This is something we must believe and have a strong faith concerning it.  Our whole spiritual life hangs on this.  Following these words, Peter reminded Jesus that they had left everything to follow Him or walk with Him.  This was what Abraham did.  Gen.17:1  

Abraham was to walk blameless.  (This is where his name was changed.)  Blameless in the Hebrew means without spot, undefiled, and complete.  This should be a description of our walk with Jesus.  When God gave the manna to the Israelites, He gave some simple rules to test them.  He wanted to see whether they would walk in His instruction.  Ex.16:4   God loves us but He has requirements of us.  We are to fear (have great respect and revere) Him and walk in His ways. 

The Jews had declared the LORD to be their God and had said that they would walk in His ways and keep His commandments.  Deut.26:17   This is what is necessary to walk with Jesus but just like the Jews who said that they would walk in His ways and were even sincere about it, yet in time they were off to their own ways.  They are not the only ones.  We do this, too.  Gal.1:6   The Galatians had given themselves to Jesus to walk with Him but it did not last.  The same was true with the Ephesians.  Rev.2:4   Getting off the path would be the same as loosing our first love. 

God loves us and rewards us if we will walk uprightly in His way.  Ps.84:11   David even calls those who walk in the law of the Lord blessed.  Ps.119:1-3   Our walk is a moral and a spiritual walk which includes obedience.

We have seen how obedience was important in the O.T.  Paul prayed for the Colossians  as they needed to be filled with knowledge of His will.  They would need spiritual wisdom and understanding as we do.  Then he told them to walk in a manner worthy of the Lord.  They should please Jesus in all respects as they walked with Him.  In this walk they would bear fruit in every good work and even increase in the knowledge of God.  What a description of a walk with Jesus!  Col.1:9,10

Paul implored the Ephesians to walk in a way that would be worthy of their calling in Jesus.  Eph.4:1   We are called by the gospel that we may obtain the glory of Jesus in eternity.  1 Thess.2:12   We do not want to be one that talks but doesn’t walk.  Those that are not fully given to Jesus will do that.  Matt.22:14   After the “talk” too many things of the world will become more important and the walk will be crippled.
Those that are walking with Jesus have been given all that we need for our walk with Jesus.  1 Pet.1:3   We don’t have these qualities of ourselves but by His power, He grants them to us.  However, it is through knowledge that we can obtain through the study of His Word personally, corporately and through prayer and guidance of the Holy Spirit.  It is by these qualities that we can be more like Jesus and walk with Him.  These qualities enable us to escape the qualities of the world that causes corruption of our life and causes us to fall away from the path of Jesus.  1 Pet.1:4   If it is really important to us to walk with Jesus, then we will work diligently to obtain these qualities in our life.

Faith is essential to walking with Jesus.  Heb.11:6   It is with our faith that these other qualities are added.  We can be hearing the Word; we can be reading the Word, but it must be combined with faith.  Heb.4:2   Without faith, we cannot walk with Jesus.  Jhn.8:24

With a strong faith and a desire to walk with Him, it causes us to achieve moral excellence (pleasing to Jesus, virtue, goodness).  2 Pet.1:5   Knowledge is also mentioned here.  In order to have moral excellence, we need to know what would be pleasing and what would not be pleasing to our Lord.

As we learn what to do and what not to do—or think, we will need to either use constraint or energetic ambition to accomplish moral excellence.  Great self-control is a necessary development.  Former thoughts, types of speech, habits must all be broken to please Jesus.  That is not the sum total of our self control.  Many purposes for which we are called have not been present in our lives and now we must use that energetic ambition to perform those tasks.  There is work to be done.  It takes self-control to leave our comfort zone and the things in which we were formerly interested and serve in love for this is the path Jesus takes.  1 Pet.1:6   All of the above takes perseverance.  Some versions use the word “patience”.  It does take patience as we travel this road.  It isn’t easy.  Did Jesus walk an easy road?  We don’t look for ease.

Godliness is a trait we need to develop.  Sin cannot be a part of godliness.  To be forgiven of sin we must forsake sin.  1 Tim.4:7   To be godly takes self-control.  This proves to be a strenuous pursuit.  It is much more profitable than physical pursuit for it has promise for our life now but also for our life to come.  1 Tim.4:8   Godliness must not be just a show or just an outward form.  2 Tim.3:5   Godliness has to be from the heart and is the form of life that follows the teaching of Truth.

If we are diligent in putting these virtues into our life we are told that we will not stumble as we walk with Jesus.  2 Pet.1:10

When we walk with Jesus brotherly kindness is essential.  This involves many virtues found in Col.3:12,13.  These all fit in with godliness and they all start and end with love.  Col.3:14   Walking with Jesus requires the proper clothes.  Eph.4:24; Col.3:10