Are You Walking With God? – Dr. Charles Stanley

[Music] living a godly life which is the requirement of God the blessing of God the promise of the help of God is to do exactly we're we're talking about walking in step with him walking in the same direction walking walking in the power of the Holy Spirit [Music] four decades ago we started in touch ministries to lead people worldwide into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ throughout the years we've seen God's greatness his love and his blessings in such awesome ways that we just want everyone to know him so let's open God's Word and seek Him together next on InTouch are you walking with God [Music] when you come to the end of life what do you want to be remembered for your kindness your love the generosity your knowledge your wisdom your abilities and skills that you knew how to relate to other people or would they remember you for your stinginess your pride your antagonistic attitude your dishonesty you didn't love anybody you're just an angry person what what are people gonna say about you when you're gone well you may be the kind of person who says well I hope they don't remember anything about me well they will not much maybe but they will so well anybody say I don't know a lot of things about him what about her but this I do know he walked with God she walked with God that much I know about him and about her how could you have anything more uplifting and the Christ life than that to say that somebody walked with God so let me ask you this how does a person walk with God how do you know when you're walking with God or not so what I like to do is to give you a brief statement to just to define what it means to walk with God to walk with God means to keep him at this center of our thinking in everything we do everything we say everything we think in our relationships and our finances our plans and in every area of our life that's what it means to walk with God it's the wisest way to walk so I want you to turn for just a moment and look if you will in Genesis chapter 5 and here is Enoch about which the Bible says that he walked with God and then he was no longer there God took him so look in the fifth chapter if you will verse 21 Enoch lived 65 years and became the father of Methuselah then Enoch walked with God 300 years after he became the father of Methuselah and he had other sons and daughters remember that his son was lived the longest of anybody in the Bible so all the days of Enoch were 365 years Enoch walked with God and he was not for God took him so if somebody says are you walking with God I wonder what you would say would you say yes I am and then if they said well what are you doing in order to walk with God could you even answer that so I want to give you an answer and I want to give you a list of things absolutely essential to walking with God to walking after God and to walking in a way that pleases and honors God and brings you the best life that you could possibly have so the first thing is this and that is to accept the Lord Jesus Christ as your personal Savior that's the beginning in other words if I want to walk with God I can't even get to God except through his son the Lord Jesus Christ no man comes to the Father he said except by me you want to walk with God come to Jesus face the cross the resurrection that's where walking with God begins anybody who tells you they're living a good life and everything is fine and rejected Jesus Christ as their Savior are either ignorant or living in sin and totally blinded by it so first of all you have to accept the Lord Jesus Christ as you say that's where we get to God so but if I'm gonna walk with him I've got to be with him how do I get to be with him by receiving his son forgives my sin makes it possible for me to have a personal intimate relationship with him first step secondly that is I must learn to listen to him if I don't listen to god I'm not gonna follow him if you don't learn to pray and to listen to God you are not going to follow and you're not gonna walk with Him and prayer is absolutely essential this is why I say so often that is our prayer and meditation the time we spend alone with him is absolutely essential because when you're reading the word and talking to him and listening to him he's gonna be showing you things you listen you're not gonna find that any other way somebody says well I don't think I need that yes you do God gave us his word because we needed to know how to follow him to walk in his ways and to be obedient to him so if I'm gonna walk with the god I've gotta listen to him thirdly you've got the trusting if you don't trust them you're not going to follow him and oftentimes I'll be talking to somebody I'll say we'll just trust the Lord I am trusting you well show me how you trust them and when they get through telling me they're not trusting God at all they're just hoping and wishing and bidding and this that the other things are gonna turn out right and and most of the time they have they say but they're not walking with God to walk with God I've got to listen to him and I have to trust him if I don't trust him I'm not gonna walk with him trust in the Lord with all your heart lean not to your own understanding and all your ways acknowledge him and he will direct your path so he's not going to lead me to walk without following him because that's what that passage is all about trust in the Lord with all your heart don't lean to your own understanding in all your ways acknowledge him and he will make your paths straight and so if you're gonna follow him if you're gonna walk with him if you're gonna be the person you God wants you to be then you've got to decide at some point I'm gonna trust them now watch this why do I put that emphasis on trust because sometimes in fact many times God will require something of us that makes no sense doesn't fit than me the timings not right couldn't be him couldn't be her couldn't be that no no no no no but God says that's what I want you to do no where does he promise us that we will understand you remember the old gospel hymn will understand it better and bind by when the Saints got together at home well a lot of things we don't fully understand here but listen if I'm gonna walk with Him I'm gonna do what he says whether I understand it or not and so you have to decide for what are you gonna trust him or not and then of course if you're gonna walk with him you've got to agree with him if you don't agree with him you're not gonna walk with him so let me ask you this have you ever disagreed with God yes we all have at some point foolishly ignorantly maybe maybe before we really were in touch with God the best we could be and so what happens we think somehow that we can make everything work what's this we're not taught by the scriptures that God is to agree with us we're taught by the scriptures that we are to agree with him he's the one who is omniscient omnipotent omnipresent then of course it's not enough just agree with it you have to obey Him if you're gonna walk with Him you have to obey Him because he's gonna require some things that you're not gonna like oh he's gonna require some things that you don't fully understand obedience to him is absolutely essential and people oftentimes wonder well why doesn't God bless me well then I say well are you begging him well I think so well like what for example do you have a private community you do you talk to him every day well I'm you know and they start off with all the examples reasons why they don't obey the Living God obey Him disobedience implies they are no better than he does now watch that if I don't obey God and I'm a follower of the Lord Jesus Christ god is my Savior my father if I don't obey Him I'm saying I know better than God who is omniscient and so I'm going this way I know what he says but this is not too far off listen one step off is disastrous if we are to follow him we're to walk with Almighty God obedience is necessary well you say well how much obedience well partial obedience is what disobedience so if I'm going to obey Him I'm gonna do what he says do when he says do it and the way he says do it period so are you walking with God in other words is obedience watch this is obedience a lifestyle for you when you wake up in the morning your intention is to obey God today Almighty God is a leader our guide our God to guide us every single that we're to walk with Him and walking with him means I've surrendered my will and I'm willing to obey Him because I trust him and because I trust him I will obey Him because I don't trust him is the reason I disobey Him so ask yourself the question and I hope you'll ask it all the way through this message am i walking with God or am I not it's easy to say I am but there's some criterion all we're doing is saying let's give it a test and see if you are if you're not dangerous to walk in disobedience to God but likewise if I'm walking with him I'm gonna walk in the same direction he walks if I'm really and truly walking in his will in his way I'm obeying him and I am walking in the same direction now it doesn't mean that you are like somebody else God hasn't got the same will for two different people he has a way for you to walk and what you now have to do is to know in our heart it's best I know my heart Lord I'm walking in obedience to you I go wherever you want me to go do whatever you want me to do and watch this somebody says well I was saved 40 years ago what's it got to do it today in other words listen every day we have to make a decision am I gonna follow him or am I not am I gonna walk with God around my not you say well now you mean to tell me I'm to get ever every day and say am I gonna follow God no you should get up every day and say thank you and Laurel I'm gonna follow you but the power of the Holy Spirit walking you away whatever you want today we should wake up committed to him we walk with God because that's who we are we are indwelt by the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit always leads us to make wise gather decisions because we're his children and we are walking in his spirit and we're walking in his path and so obedience is absolutely necessary now some ways may seem to be shorter and faster and cheaper notice I said seem to be because the ways that seem to be that way are not God's ways if I'm gonna walk in his way and in the direction with him I'll have to part ways with a lot of people probably you can't have the world's friendship close friendship and walk in the ways of God the world I didn't say just anybody in the world because they're people who want you to follow them if you have to follow the ways of the world you'll have to lay down everything we're talking about you will not walk with God you'll not listen to you want to babe you find yourself going in the opposite direction so ask yourself the question am I really intuitive walking with God or am I just fooling myself well you certainly don't have to stay in step with him if you walk with him think about it it's one thing to go in the same direction but what about keeping in step and this is where many people get in trouble they may be walking in the right direction but not in step with him oftentimes we get ahead of him you say well how might I know that I'm walking in step compass never fails never fails you listen you read the Word of God and you're going to know whether you're walking in the right path or not and if you're in step with God what does instep mean instep means that he and I are together living a godly life which is the requirement of God the blessing of God the promise of the help of God is to do exactly we were talking about walking in step with him walking in the same direction walking walking in the power of the Holy Spirit and so many people wonder why I'm a Christian been a Christian for years was God letting all this happen to me and I talk to people all the time who are going through difficult problems sometimes they're used on the telephone usually or maybe I meet them and they'll bring up something and they can't figure out why this has happened to him well if you've been listening to God oh yes people are quick to say I listen to God because watch this you listening save in listening to him and thinking about him are not the same I can think about him that's the mean I'm listening to him if I'm listening to him I'm gonna think about him and I am gonna be receptive and sensitive what is God saying is he saying slow down is he saying speeded up is he saying this direction that direction God is so willing and what the what do you do your children come along and one of the first things you do is you teach them to listen to you they learn to listen because they go oh they're listening to be obedient to you and that's all for their good but when I think about the whole idea of walking and following our Lord think about this you can't improve on this timing here's the reason why because he's omniscient think about this he knows all about your future he knows all about your opportunities he know hey let's watch this he knows every weakness you have he knows the things that are most susceptible to you to disobey Him and so God God has your whole life before him he knows what's best he doesn't want you to get ahead of him or to lag behind and so you can trust him about everything and if you're gonna walk with God you have to trust him follow him as we've said about all these other things and you can't improve on his timing and so if you're going to live a godly life following him trusting him listening to him obey Him every single step is important and then I think one other thing that's very important here and that is I have to love him if I don't love God I'm not gonna follow him really not really if you love him what will you do you want to obey Him if you love him you'll wait for his timing if you love him you'll keep your ear open to his heart all the things we've said before are involved in expressing your love for God walking in his ways in his step trusting him listening to him all of those things are a part of loving him and if I love him I will obey Him so ask yourself the question am I really and truly walking with God or am I not and nobody knows hints of that but you then I think about if I'm gonna walk with god I'm gonna forsake sin now what does that mean that means I'm gonna keep my heart clean all the time and if something comes up it causes me to stumble in my thinking or action I'm gonna deal with it right then doesn't mean you're gonna be perfect forsaking sin turning away from it doesn't fit who we are doesn't fit what God has planned for us and so if you'll think about this sin always caused us to stumble in some fashion of the other are you walking with God ask him is there something in your life that you know shouldn't be there is there some sin that just it's just attached to you you just think well well one little one listen I can't be perfect doesn't mean that we are perfect everybody stumbles along the way you can walk most anywhere and there'll be a rock here or a little hole there and you may stumble but you keep going you don't just lie down and say anything you make changes in your life when you need to make changes but if you're not willing to lay that down then you're not gonna walk in obedience to God you're not gonna enjoy life's best you're gonna miss out on God's best blessing for your life you can't have sin and holiness at the same time it just doesn't work so if I'm gonna walk with God I'm gonna pursue a life of holiness that what does that mean a holy life is not a perfect life but it is a life committed to surrender to the perfect will of Almighty God does it mean we will always without exception though there are times that's why he says if we confess our sins he's faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness John was writing that firmly so that that's that's what we do with sin we confess it we walk away from it so you have to ask yourself the question in light of all of this how many of these are true in your life if you're gonna walk with God all of them all of them unnecessary so let's go back to the first question when God calls you what will people know you for you may be very gifted in some areas and you may be very famous you may be very wealthy you may be one of many things but will they be able to say you walked with God only if you do walk with him and if you do follow these simple steps of accepting Christ as your Savior listening to him trusting him obey him abiding by his will for your life all of these issues are part of living in obedience to him and being a part of the kingdom of God and make a difference where you are so ask yourself the question am i walking with God and you might conclude at nighttime but before you if I should ask you do you pray right before you go to sleep do you well some of you do the rest of you in trouble you listen the truth is why not go to bed every night talking to God listen if it only takes you a few moments to look back during the day and say Lord did I walk with you today and when you wake up in the morning you begin to begin the day the same Lord enable me to follow you today and to walk with you today and to become what you want me to be if you've never trusted Jesus Christ as your Savior which is the first step you know walking with him and I want to encourage you to look at your life ask God to show you what he sees and then you're gonna be confessing and repenting of your sin asking God to forgive you which he promised that if we confess our sins he's faithful and just yeah that's a right to forgive us because of the cross and get your life straightened up not about what you do but about what he's going to do in you and through you and then start your walk with God look how long you've walked without him you may be one of those person who says well I've done pretty good without him no it's his grace love and mercy that's allowed you to come this far he could take you off the scene in a split second the issue is are you willing to walk with God and that's my prayer for you father how grateful we are but that simple verse that says Enoch walked with God and he was not because you took him may it be said of each of us and every one of us we walked with God do whatever is necessary change whatever is necessary to get us back in step with you not ahead of you not behind you just in step with you in Jesus name Amen if you've been blessed by today's program please visit us at in touch dot o-r-g in touch leading people worldwide into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ and strengthening the local church this program is sponsored by in touch ministries and is made possible by the grace of God and your faithful prayers and gifts

Channel: In Touch Ministries

Views: 129,862

Keywords: Charles F. Stanley, Charles Stanley, In Touch with Dr. Charles Stanley, In Touch Ministries, Preaching, Bible teaching, Dr. Stanley, Intouch ministries, intouch

Id: SLQzYxFOQ2A

Length: 24min 53sec (1493 seconds)

Published: Fri Apr 06 2018