#WALKWORTHY

Colossians 1:9-12
For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, for all patience and longsuffering with joy; giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light.

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"That you may walk worthy of the Lord..."

#WALK
Walking implies activity and not passivity.

In Scripture, we are admonished to Walk in the Spirit, as in Galatians 5:16-17:

"I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh. For the flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; and these are contrary to one another, so that you do not do the things that you wish."

There are degrees of fellowship with the Holy Spirit:

1. Obtaining the Holy Spirit as the indwelling presence which is received during salvation.

2. Being baptized and continually being filled with the Holy Spirit which manifested through speaking in tongues.

3. Being led by the Spirit: "For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God" (Romans 8:14). The Spirit "bears witness" to our spirit (Romans 8:16).

4. Walking in and with the Spirit.

There is a difference between being led by the Spirit and walking with the Spirit. The difference lies in how much control we allow the Holy Spirit to have in our lives and how deep the intimacy we have with Him. It is intimacy that brings "gradual movement from mental rules and discipline" to an obedience rooted in love for God! (New Spirit-Filled Life Bible)

It takes a miracle to "WALK" with the Spirit. We cannot rely on our own strength. It is walking in the Spirit that causes us to not fulfill the lusts of the flesh. NSFLB says of "sins driven by carnal nature" and some by carnal "nurture" depending on what we feed ourselves.

Walking in the Spirit allows the Holy Spirit to divinely prohibit (forbid) us or inhibit us (prevent something from happening).

#WORTHY
We are told of this as well in Ephesians 4:1-3:

I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.

"Worthy" means carrying sufficient weight. The idea is someone's life is being weighed on scales to determine it's worth. It has the idea that a value of an object is compared to how much it will weigh against gold which is why we have a term called "gold standard." In the same way, we will also be evaluated. God will put us on the scales and His "gold standard" is Christ, even as we are admonished in 1 John 2:6: "He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked." In the NIV, 1 John 2:6 is written as "whoever claims to live in him must live as Jesus did." This is the essence of our study for our level 4 Book, LIFE OF CHRIST - to not only to know how He lived, but also for us to know how we should live!

At the end of our lives, God will evaluate us - all of us. In the Old Testament, Belshazzar was evaluated by God and in Daniel 5:27, it was said that he was found wanting in the Lord: "TEKEL - You have been weighed in the balances and found wanting."

Jesus defined who is NOT WORTHY of Him in Matthew 10:37-38:

"He who loves father or mother more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who loves son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me. And he who does not take his cross and follow after Me is not worthy of Me."

In Luke 14:26, it includes the spouse and even one's own life!

“If anyone comes to Me and does not hate his father and mother, wife and children, brothers and sisters, yes, and his own life also, he cannot be My disciple."

In Revelations 3:1, it talks about Sardis being a dead church. What is interesting is that this church had a reputation of being "alive" but in the eyes of God, it was "dead". It was a church bustling with activity, and yet, it had no intimacy nor fruit borne for eternity.

But in Revelations 3:4 it is said: "You have a few names even in Sardis who have not defiled their garments; and they shall walk with Me in white, for they are worthy."

#WALKWORTHY OF THE LORD, FULLY PLEASING HIM

This speaks of the conduct that we ought to have that is befitting of a believer - doing things in a manner that reflects God's character and thoughts. According to NFSLB, "describes the radical commitment of will, affection, and disposition [inherent qualities of mind and character] to pleasing Christ".

1 Thessalonians 2:12
That you would walk worthy of God who calls you into His own kingdom and glory.

There are codes of conduct for royalty and for doctors and there is also a code of conduct that applies to us Zionites as well! It influences not only the WHAT but also the HOW: how we should act (1 Corinthians 10:31), how we should speak (Colossians 4:6), and how we should think (1 Corinthians 2:16).

There was an organization in Oxford in the 17th century dubbed as "HOLY CLUB". They "tried to systematically serve God every hour of the day. The club members set aside time for praying, examining their spiritual lives, studying the Bible, and meeting together. In addition, they took food to poor families, visited lonely people in prison, and taught orphans how to read. Members of the organization celebrated Holy Communion frequently and fasted on Wednesdays and Fridays. They studied the New Testament in Greek." Most notable members are John and Charles Wesley and George Whitefield. ("Holy Club,"  Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia)

This shows us that who we walk with matters.

What will cause us to walk worthy?

Colossians 1:9 tells us it is by "being filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding."

• Knowledge of His will. What is the will of God? In 1 Thessalonians 4:3-5, it talks about two areas of need: bodily sanctification and walking in the Spirit (Romans 8:4, Galatians 5:16, 25).
• Wisdom is the principal thing (Proverbs 4:7). This is consistently emphasized in Scripture. Wisdom teaches us how to act in a given circumstance and it enables us to make the right choices. It is given to those who are good in the sight of God (Ecclesiastes 2:26). The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom (Proverbs 9:10).
• Understanding is different from wisdom. Dr. Bailey said "Wisdom is knowing how to make the right choice" but understanding is knowing WHY a choice is the right one. Daniel was given understanding of Nebuchadnezzar's dream (Daniel 1:17). We can misinterpret what God is saying to us if we do not have understanding!

We are not to trust in our own understanding (Proverbs 3:5). Hebrews 11:3 says the key to understanding is FAITH: "Through faith we understand".

What are the fruits of walking worthy?

Col 1:10-12 "...being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, for all patience and longsuffering with joy; giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light."

• FRUITFULNESS: "being fruitful in every good work"
• INCREASING in the KNOWLEDGE OF GOD: having a progressive revelation of God, knowing God like never before.
• DIVINE EMPOWERMENT: "strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, for all patience and longsuffering with joy"
• THANKFULNESS: "giving thanks to the Father who has qualified us to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in the light."

May we be among those who will #walkworthy this year!

Reference:

"Holy Club." Wikipedia: The Free Encyclopedia. Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. 18th October 2015. Web. 24th January 2016. <https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Holy_Club>.