In Romans 8:4 Paul says, “That the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to flesh, but according to spirit.” In this verse the word “walk” means to live, move, and have our being. This word indicates that we should do everything in spirit. This is to have our being and our daily life according to spirit.
Bible translators realize that it is difficult to determine whether the spirit in 8:4, as well as in other verses in Romans 8, refers to the Holy Spirit or our human spirit. Of course, in certain verses, such as 8:9 and 16, the Holy Spirit and the human spirit are clearly designated. In 8:4 the spirit refers to our regenerated spirit indwelt by the Spirit of God. Actually, these two spirits have become one. As Paul says in 1 Corinthians 6:17, “He who is joined to the Lord is one spirit.” We have such a wonderful mingled spirit, our human spirit regenerated by the divine Spirit and indwelt by the divine Spirit. In the New Testament we are charged to live, walk, and have our being according to this mingled spirit.
Recently I gave a message in Chinese entitled “Walk According to Spirit.” In that message I pointed out that we need to do everything according to the spirit. If we truly live according to spirit, we shall not lose our temper, argue with our husband or wife, gossip, or murmur. I can testify that when I live according to spirit, I cannot argue. Whatever we do, we should do according to spirit. We should dress ourselves according to spirit and also have our hair cut according to spirit.
In His wisdom the Lord caused the Apostle Paul to tell us that if we walk according to spirit, the righteous requirement of the law will be fulfilled in us. Instead of hundreds of commandments, Paul gives us a unique commandment—to live, walk, and have our being according to spirit. Suppose, for example, that you are tempted to lose your temper. Instead of trying to suppress your temper, simply live and walk according to spirit. This means that instead of trying to deal with your temper, you should live according to spirit. If you walk according to spirit, the “gopher” of your temper will be dealt with automatically. This means that the problem of your temper will be solved, not by your effort, but as the result of your living according to spirit.
By walking according to spirit, we shall keep ourselves under the “shower” of the divine dispensing of the Divine Trinity. However, if we do not walk according to spirit, we shall move away from the shower of the divine dispensing. The more we walk according to spirit, the more we remain under the dispensing of the Triune God.
In 8:6 Paul goes on to say, “For the mind set on the flesh is death, but the mind set on the spirit is life and peace.” We know from experience that our mind is unruly. Within a short period of time, our thoughts can travel around the world. Sometimes this happens while we are sitting in a prayer meeting. As the meeting is going on, in our mind we may travel from place to place and imagine all sorts of things. Therefore, we surely need to set our mind upon the spirit.
Praise the Lord that we can set our mind on our regenerated spirit! Our spirit is no longer dead, for it has been enlivened by the Holy Spirit. In 8:10 Paul tells us that our spirit is life. Our regenerated and enlivened spirit is indwelt by the Holy Spirit. Now we need to set our mind upon this mingled spirit. In 2 Timothy 1:7 Paul says, “For God has not given us a spirit of cowardice, but of power and of love and of a sober mind.” Continually we need to turn our mind to the spirit and set our mind upon the spirit.
I can testify that it is a great protection for us to set our mind on our regenerated spirit. This will also help us to keep ourselves under the shower of the divine dispensing, and it will enable us to be victorious in our daily living. By setting our mind upon the spirit, we enjoy the divine dispensing of the Divine Trinity.
We should not take the matters of walking according to spirit and setting our mind on the spirit merely as doctrine. As points of doctrine, these do not mean very much. We need to put these matters into practice in our daily living.