(Romans 8:1-4) “There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.  (2)  For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus hath made me free from the law of sin and death.  (3)  For what the law could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh: (4)  That the righteousness of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not after the flesh, but after the Spirit.”

(Romans 8:14) “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.”

(Galatians 5:16) “This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.”

In our previous devotion, we read that Living Life in the Spirit is to live a Christ-Centered and Christ-Sufficient Life; or Walking in the Spirit.

Today, allow me to share with you four things that will help us to Learn How to Walk In The Spirit.

I.    We Must Recognize The Spirit’s Promptings

II.   We Must Respond to The Spirit’s Promptings

III. We Must Rely on The Spirit’s Provisions

IV.  We Must Reap The Spirit’s Productivity

I.    We Must Recognize the Presence and Promptings of The Spirit:

If you and I are going to “walk in the spirit” and “be led by the spirit,” the first thing that has to happen is: we must learn to recognize the Holy Spirit’s promptings in our lives. No one can follow promptings of the Holy Spirit in their lives, if they cannot identify the Holy Spirit’s voice, or recognize the Holy Spirit’s activity in their lives. Perhaps the greatest problem many Christians have in their lives is that they are insensitive and numb to the Holy Spirit. With every year that passes, it seems that our churches are becoming more insensitive and numb to the moving and promptings of God’s Spirit in our midst. People have learned to go through the routines of religion without any awareness of the Spirit’s, presence and work, in their midst.

In (Judges 13:25) it says, “That the Spirit of the Lord began to move him at times in the Camp of Dan between Zorah and Eshtaol.”  Notice, “That the Spirit of the Lord began to move him at times.” What God is looking for is someone that is sensitive to His Spirit, and will move when He moves, and speak when He speaks. He’s looking for someone that’s not afraid to step out of the routine and rut of religion, and be sensitive to His presence and promptings, and do what needs to be done. It seems that Christians today are moved by everything except God’s Spirit.

The sad story of Samson’s life is that he got to the point where he was being moved more by his flesh, than by the Spirit of God. Therefore, we read in (Judges 16:20), “And she (Delilah) said, The Philistines be upon thee, Samson. And he awoke out of his sleep, and said, I will go out as at other times before, and shake myself. And he wist not that the LORD was departed from him.” Samson had a great beginning, but a sad ending. Somewhere along the way he lost his sensitivity to God’s Spirit.

Let me share with you some things that will help you to recognize the Spirit’s Promptings, and avoid the tragic end that Samson had:

A.  We Need To Anticipate The Spirit’s Promptings:

You need to anticipate that the Holy Spirit is going to speak to you and prompt you. You should get up every day, anticipating that the Holy Spirit wants to direct your life, and speak to you, and help you to grow. Let me share with you four ways the Holy Spirit will speak to you and prompt you.

1. He will speak to you through the Word of God. He will do this either while you are reading it, or listening as it is being preached or taught. (We need devotions every morning.) Make time!
2. He will speak to you as you pray (every morning). If your heart is open to Him, and you have not come to Him with your mind already made up, he will speak.
3. He will speak to you through your circumstances. The Holy Spirit is in full control of everything that happens in your life, and He will arrange circumstances and events in your life in order to communicate to you.
4. He will speak to you through the church. The Holy Spirit will use the Body of Christ to speak to your life (and by watching others as well).

B.  We Need to Pay Attention to The Spirit’s Promptings:

We need to always be alert to what the Holy Spirit may be trying to say to us. We need to be constantly listening for His Voice in our hearts and spirits.

C.   We Need to Analyze Any Promptings to Be Sure They Are Of The Spirit Of God.

(1 John 4:1) “Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God:”

A lot of people confuse the voice of the Holy Spirit with their own emotions, and/or ideas, and/or thoughts. We must learn how to analyze our thoughts, impressions, desires, and emotions to evaluate whether or not they are from God.

How do we analyze these promptings? I’m so glad you asked! It is:

1. Through the Word of God: God will never contradict His Word. So, every thought or impression must be carefully measured against the Holy Word of God.
2. Through Godly counselors: The Bible says, “In the multitude of counselors there is safety” (Prov.11:14)
3. Through inescapable convictions: When God is speaking, He won’t let up. He keeps convicting and speaking the same thing over and over. It is an “inescapable” conviction. Why do we keep going through the same problem over and over? Because we didn’t listen and learn the first time.

II.   We Must Respond to The Spirit’s Promptings

(Romans 8:14) “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God.”

To “walk in the Spirit” or to “be led of the Spirit” means to simply to go wherever He goes, to follow His direction, and to move wherever He moves. So, when the Holy Spirit takes an initiative in our lives, and He prompts us to move in a certain direction – no debate, no negotiation, no bargaining, no hesitation, and no arguing. We must simply and immediately obey.

There are some Christians that often tell me they are waiting on God… when in reality, God is waiting on them. They refuse to obey God in one area, and expect God to move in another. Let me share a principal with you that will help you. We will not hear from God regarding the “Unknowns” of His Will until we are obeying Him in the “Knowns” of His Will. We need to understand that we will not be able to hear from God in regard to these “unknowns,” until we are obeying Him in the things we already “know” He wants us to do. When I was a pastor and I would ask someone to teach (I knew they were called); they would say; “Let me pray about it.” What is there to pray about? You are called, door is opened, Do It!