GOD’S WALKING PARTNER (2)

“I WILL WALK among you and will be your God, and you shall be My people” – Leviticus 26:12

Israel had the great privilege of being GOD’S WALKING PARTNER: “I WILL WALK among you and will be your God, and you shall be My people” (Lev.26:12). The Lord told His people, “If you WALK in My statutes and keep My commandments, and perform them, then I will give you rain in its season, the land shall yield its produce, and the trees of the field shall yield their fruit” (vv.3-4). He assured them of Peace and Protection as rewards of Walking in His Word: “I will give Peace in the land, and you shall lie down, and none will make you afraid; I will rid the land of evil beasts, and the sword will not go through your land” (v.6). Victory over their foes, favour, and fruitfulness were added benefits of Walking with Him (vv.7-10). The Believer in Christ is meant to enjoy the same.

God walked with His chosen people in the wilderness by the pillars of fire and cloud by night and day respectively: “For the LORD Your GOD WALKS in the midst of your camp, to deliver you and to give your enemies over to you; therefore you camp shall be holy...” (Deut.23:14). God’s New Testament Walking Partners walk in His Word and in fellowship with the Holy Spirit. To walk with God means moving in harmony with Him as I fulfil my life’s journey. This requires that I listen to His commandments, put my faith in Him, and follow His path for me. When two friends take a walk, they are moving in the same direction, and there is an overall sense of harmony, unity, and communion between them.

God’s Walking Partners move in the same direction, at the same pace, and in agreement with Him. The word “Walk” infers: communion, fellowship, intimacy, partnership, or relationship. It could also imply: advancement, dynamism, improvement, maturity, or progress. To be God’s Walking Partner is to allow Him to lead and direct my path in life: “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God” (Rom.8:14). To walk in pace with Him implies submitting to His leading, His timings, and His details; walking in trustful steps with Him. To be slower than Him is to be lethargic; while to want to walk faster than Him is to be impatient.

Practically, to walk with God is to adopt His lifestyle, worshipping, praising and thanking Him daily and living according to His Will. We walk with God by praying and studying His Word – the Bible, meditating every day on His statutes, promises, goodness and the blessings He has bestowed on us, and obeying His commands. Being God’s Walking Partner involves these three dimensions, among others that we shall meditate upon:

Walk in Faith: “But without FAITH it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believer that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him” (Heb.11:5). Faith is what Enoch needed to be translated – leave this earth – without dying (Gen.5:24; Heb.11:5). This Faith comes by hearing “God’s Word” through intimacy with the Bible and His Spirit (Rom.10:17).

Walk in Fellowship: “If we say that we have FELLOWSHIP with Him, and WALK in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. But if we WALK in the LIGHT, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin (1Jh.1: 6-7). Walking in the Light is walking in God’s Word. In reading the Bible, we listen to what God is telling us, whether through the Words or through the Holy Spirit. We give our thoughts to God and as we hear or read His word, and take time to listen to Him.

Walk in Fruitfulness: “That you may WALK worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being FRUITFUL in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God” (Col.1:10). Walking with God, the Fruit of the Spirit will manifest in our lives (Gal.5:22-23).

Beloved, are You one of God’s consistent and faithful Walking Partners?