We must believe God’s word and not consider our situation or look at ourselves. Romans 8:4 says “fulfilled in us, who do not walk according to flesh, but according to spirit.” When we read these words, we may say, “Most of the time I walk according to flesh, not according to spirit.” If someone asked you if you are walking according to spirit or according to flesh, you probably would not have the boldness to say that you walk according to spirit. In your realization, you do not have sufficient ground to say with confidence, “I walk according to spirit.” Instead, after hesitating you would probably reply, “Sometimes I walk according to spirit, but most of the time I walk according to flesh.”
With respect to the matter of walking according to spirit, we need to remember that there are two worlds, two realms, the physical realm and the spiritual realm. In the spiritual realm God does everything by speaking. Once God speaks a certain thing, the matter is settled. In 4:17 we are told that God calls things not being as being. This means that by speaking He calls things into being. For example, according to Genesis 1:3, God said, “Let there be light,” and there was light.
As children of God, we need to realize that when we speak something out of a sincere heart, our situation will be according to our speaking. Suppose someone asks you if you have been saved. You should answer definitely, “Yes, I am saved.” You should not hesitate and say, “Let me think about this for a while. According to certain evidences, maybe I am saved.” If you say that you may be saved, then perhaps you are saved. But if you say that signs indicate that you may not be saved, then perhaps there may be some question. Now that we are children of God, we should be careful of our speaking, for we are what we say we are. In a previous message I pointed out that we are what we eat. Now I wish to point out that we are what we say.
The Bible refers to the believers as saints. Are you a saint? If you consider this question and say, “Well, I’m not a saint like Theresa or Francis. I really don’t think I’m very holy. How can I say that I am a saint?” If you talk like this, your condition is still that of a pitiful sinner. But if you answer by declaring, “Yes, I am a saint!” then you are truly a saint.
We must learn to speak not in our natural sincerity, but in faith. Paul tells us that we speak because we have a spirit of faith: “And having the same spirit of faith, according to that which is written, I believed, therefore I spoke; we also believe, therefore also we speak” (2 Cor. 4:13).
We Christians are good at hesitating, doubting, considering, and thinking matters over again and again. Suppose someone asks you if you love the Lord. You may be very slow to give an answer. You may ponder the question, not wanting to say anything that is not according to what you really are. You may think that you are being careful and humble. Actually you are being deceived by the enemy and cheated by him. In faith, we need to declare with boldness that we love the Lord.
Concerning being in the spirit and receiving the Spirit, many of us have been wrongly educated. Some teach that in order for a Christian to receive the Spirit, he must repent, confess his sins, and pray with fasting. Then, after a period of time, he will suddenly receive the Spirit. Because of the influence from our religious background, we may hesitate to answer when someone asks us if we have received the Holy Spirit. If we have been properly instructed in spiritual things, we shall be able to respond immediately, “Yes, I have received the Holy Spirit!”
At this point I would like to ask three questions. First, do you walk according to spirit? Second, are you according to spirit? Third, are you in spirit? To walk according to spirit is to do things according to spirit. But to be according to spirit means that our being is according to the spirit. In addition to walking according to the spirit and being according to the spirit, we need to be in spirit. Do you have the confidence to say that you walk according to spirit, that you are according to spirit, and that you are inspirit? Do you not sometimes lose your temper? How, then, can you say that you are in spirit? How can you claim to walk according to spirit and to be according to spirit when you are still troubled by your temper? The way to answer such questions is to say, “Yes, I am in the spirit! However, when I lost my temper, I made a temporary mistake. But immediately I repented and received God’s forgiveness. Therefore, I still have the boldness to declare that I am in spirit.”
In 8:4 Paul speaks of walking according to spirit, and in verse 5, of being according to spirit. In order to walk according to spirit, we must first be according to spirit. This means that walking according to spirit issues from being according to spirit, for what we do always comes out of what we are.
In verse 9 Paul speaks of being in spirit. A person who is according to spirit is a person who is in spirit. Being according to spirit is a result of being in spirit. Therefore, walking according to spirit comes out of being according to spirit, and being according to spirit comes out of being in spirit. This indicates that our basic need is to be in spirit. If we are not in spirit, we cannot be according to spirit. Furthermore, if we are not according to spirit, we cannot walk according to spirit. Once we are in spirit, we shall be according to spirit, and once we are according to spirit, we shall walk according to spirit.
My burden in this message is not on walking according to spirit or simply on being according to spirit; it is on being in spirit. The little word “in” is very meaningful and significant. To repeat, we walk according to spirit because we are according to spirit, and we are according to spirit because we are in spirit. We all should be able to testify, “I walk according to spirit because I am according to spirit, and I am according to spirit because I am in spirit.” Wherever we are and whatever we do, we should be in spirit. If we remain in the spirit, we shall not lose our temper, and we certainly shall not lie. Oh, it is a great matter to be in the spirit!