GOD’S WALKING PARTNER (1)

“And they heard the sound of the LORD GOD WALKING in the garden in the cool of the day...” – Genesis 3:8a

From the beginning, Man was created to be GOD’S WALKING PARTNER: “And they heard the sound of the LORD GOD WALKING in the garden in the cool of the day, and Adam and his wife hid themselves from the presence of the Lord among the trees of the garden” (Gen.3:8a). GOD is a WALKER. He is dynamic; always on the move! In the beginning “the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters” (Gen.1:2). The Lord Jesus Christ in His earth-walk displayed similar dynamism: “How God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and Power, WHO WENT ABOUT...” (Acts 10:38). Again, the Resurrected Christ joined two disciples as they walked on the road to Emmaus (Lk.24: 13-17).

God has been longing for a Walking Partner. From the very beginning, God had a relationship with Adam and Eve for which “walking in the garden in the cool of the day" was characteristic (v.8). God created Man for the enjoyment of a walking relationship that involved companionship, dialogue, intimacy, joint decision-making, mutual delight, and shared dominion. Unfortunately, humankind had fellowship with Satan, through the serpent; died spiritually, and lost the original nature that enabled a worthy walk with God. Humankind began to hide from the Divine Presence in fear, nakedness, and shame (vv. 8b-10). Sin remains the Number 1 barrier to becoming God’s Walking Partner. God is Holy, and two cannot walk together unless they’re agreed (Amos.3:3).

By virtue of restored Redemption, God still longs to walk with us, which is why His Arms of Grace have been pulling us into a closer walk with Him: “And what agreement has the temple of Gpd with idols? For you are the temple of the living God. As God has said: “I will dwell with them. And WALK among them. I will be their God, and they shall be My people” (2Cor.6:16). When two friends or lovers walk together, they talk much of the time, if not the whole time. Such walks not only make exercise fun, they also deepen friendship. Jesus went on these kinds of walks with His disciples, and He still likes to walk with us. It is God’s divine design to establish us who believe in Christ, in intimate friendship with Him that is walked out through the course of our everyday lives.

Our life’s goal must include an everyday walk of unbroken communion with our Lord and Friend, a pattern that Enoch exemplified. Even though men began to call upon the name of the Lord in the early days, Enoch was the first man to uncover the true delight of walking with God (Gen.4:26; 5:22-24). He found something even Adam didn't experience. He pressed into God until he learned how to commune with God through every facet of life. To find that depth of relationship surely required an intense spiritual pursuit, and then when he found it, the Lord made a graphic statement by taking him up to heaven. A little girl told Enoch’s story this way: “Enoch used to take long walks with God. One day he walked so far God said, 'It's too far to go back; come on home with Me.”

By taking Enoch up to glory, God wasn't trying to get us impressed with Enoch's piety. Nor was He saying, “If you get to be as spiritual as Enoch, you'll get taken up to heaven, too.” This was a unique experience God used to emphasize a specific point. His point was, “I love to walk with man! Enoch was the first man to truly walk with me, so I decided to highlight his example by doing something extraordinary with him. I took him up to paradise to underscore how much I value and desire a daily walking relationship with my chosen ones.” Enoch's example continues to witness to all generations of the great zeal God has to walk with humankind!

When the zeal of God captures you, it will ignite you with a great passion to walk with Him – to be His Friend and Walking Partner.