How You Ought to Walk
1 Thessalonians 4:1 ESV
“Finally, then, brothers, we ask and urge you in the Lord Jesus, that as you received from us how you ought to walk and to please God, just as you are doing, that you do so more and more.”
What is our walk? It is how we live, how we conduct our
lives. It includes our thinking, believing, behaving, words, attitudes, and motives
for what we do. It is our habits, our practices, and our routines. And our walk
is driven by what is in our hearts.
How, according to the Scriptures, are we to walk? If we are
believing in Jesus Christ, if we have repented of our sins, and if we were
buried with Christ in baptism into death (death to sin), we are to walk:
·
In newness of life (Rom 6:4)
·
Not according to the flesh, but according to the
Spirit (Rom 8:4)
·
Properly, not in sexual immorality &
intoxication, etc. (Rom 13:13)
·
By faith, not by sight (2 Co 5:7)
·
By the Spirit – you will not gratify desires of
flesh (Gal 5:16)
·
Not in the passions of your flesh (Eph. 2:1-3)
·
In good works which God prepared for us to walk
in (Eph 2:10)
·
In a manner worthy of the calling which you
received (Eph 4:1)
·
Not as the ungodly do in impurity & sexual
immorality (Eph 4:17-19)
·
In love (Eph 5:1-2)
·
As children of light (Eph 5:8)
·
Not as unwise, but as wise (Eph 5:15)
·
Not as enemies of the cross of Christ (Php
3:17-19)
·
Pleasing to God, bearing fruit in every good
work (Col 1:9-11)
·
In Christ, rooted & built up in Him (Col
2:6-7)
- Not in the passions of the
flesh, but in the Spirit (Col. 3:5-10)
·
In a manner worthy of God (1 Thess 2:11-12; Col
1:9-11)
·
Not in darkness (sin) but in the light
(righteousness) (1 Jn 1:5-7)
·
In like manner as Jesus walked, in obedience to
him (1 Jn 2:3-6)
·
According to our Lord’s commandments (2 Jn 1:6)
·
In the truth of God’s word (3 Jn 1:3)
And what are we to do to please God? We are to be sowing (via
our actions, our motives, our attitudes, our words) to please the Spirit and
not the flesh. We are to live lives worthy of the Lord, bearing fruit in every
good work. And we must do good and share with others, and we must keep his
commands.
Instructions We’re to Follow
1 Thessalonians 4:2-6 ESV
“For you know what instructions we gave you through the Lord Jesus. For this is the will of God, your sanctification: that you abstain from sexual immorality; that each one of you know how to control his own body in holiness and honor, not in the passion of lust like the Gentiles who do not know God; that no one transgress and wrong his brother in this matter, because the Lord is an avenger in all these things, as we told you beforehand and solemnly warned you.”
It is the will of God that we be sanctified, i.e., that we
be made holy, righteous, and pure. We are to live lives separate (unlike,
different) from the world because we are being conformed to the likeness of
Jesus Christ. And this is a process which begins and ends with Jesus as our
Savior and Lord.
So, we are to no longer be conformed to the ways of this
sinful world. We are not to obey nor to follow nor to submit to nor to adapt to
our lives the attitudes, thinking and actions of this ungodly world.
We should not give ourselves over to sexual immorality in
any form. And this includes the viewing of any TV shows, videos, movies, or
games which are sexually charged, which give glory to adultery, to lying and to
cheating. And this includes self-gratification, sex-texting, flirtations or lusting
after others.
And then there are the obvious forms of sexual immorality,
such as adultery, fornication, incest, prostitution, homosexuality, beastiality,
and pedophilia, etc. And this includes being entertained by such via pornographic
pictures or videos or via pornographic (obscene, indecent, improper) stories/joking.
Therefore, we are to control our own bodies in holiness and
honor, in conduct that is honoring to God, which is unlike the conduct of the
ungodly and disobedient of this world. And we are not to give way to the sinful
passions of our flesh which are based in pure selfishness and greed.
So, please know this. If you are one who is given over to
the viewing of pornography or to any other form of sexual immorality, it is not
your right to do this. It is not for your entertainment or relaxation. As a
Christian, you are hurting your relationship with God, and as a married person,
you are doing wrong to your spouse, even if you think he/she doesn’t know.
And God doesn’t overlook such sins. His forgiveness doesn’t
put a covering over all your sins so that you can continue living in willful,
defiant, deliberate, and habitual sin against God, against your spouse, against
your children, and against others. If you make sin your practice, you will die
in your sins. You will not inherit eternal life with God.
Not Man, But God
1 Thessalonians 4:7-8 ESV
“For God has not called us for impurity, but in holiness. Therefore whoever disregards this, disregards not man but God, who gives his Holy Spirit to you.”
All I Ask of You
by Andrew Lloyd Webber
No more talk of darkness,
Forget these wide-eyed fears;
I'm here, nothing can harm you,
My words will warm and calm you.
Let me be your freedom,
Let daylight dry your tears;
I'm here, with you, beside you,
To guard you and to guide you.
Let me be your shelter,
Let me be your light…
Love me, that's all I ask of you
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