Walking According to the Spirit - Part 5

By Wayne Barber

When it comes to the Christian walk, specifically walking according to the Spirit, one may say, “I’m daily seeking to surrender my all to Christ but I’m being beaten up for it!  Is there any hope for me?” Or, you may say, “I’ve blown it big time. Is there any hope for me?” 

The answer is an emphatic yes! First of all, you have a loving Father that you can turn to. “For you have not received a spirit of slavery leading to fear again, but you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, ‘Abba! Father!’” (Rom. 8:15).

No matter if you have inflicted your own pain or someone else has done it for you, you have a loving Father.

The phrase “for you have not received” puts the verb “received” in the aorist tense, pointing to the time when one received Christ into his heart. The word “not” is the word o¨uch, the absolute negative—not in any way, shape or form. When we received Christ into our hearts we did not receive a spirit or mindset of slavery like we once had when we were in Adam.

What a beautiful thought! We are now children in the family, not slaves of a cruel master. The word for slavery here is the word do¨ule¨ia, which refers to the state of being under bondage. It describes one who is not free to enjoy his life. “Fear” in the phrase “leading to fear again” is the word pho¨bo¨s, and describes the state of fear or terror in this context. The word “again” refers back to our former place as lost people living in fear.

“But you have received a spirit of adoption as sons by which we cry out, ‘Abba! Father!’” In this phrase, the word “but” brings up the contrasting position that we now have as children of God. The moment we received Christ we became children of God and our spiritual disposition is now totally changed—“But you have received a spirit of adoption as sons.”

The word for “adoption” is the word huio¨the¨sia, which means “sonship”. It refers to  one who has been received into a relationship as a child in the family. You say, “Wayne, I’m not doing well, and I’m in desperate need! What can I do?” As a son, we now can cry out in our time of need and say “Abba! Father!” The phrase “we cry out” translates from the word krazo , which means to cry out. In secular Greek, it often refers to the hoarse cry of a raven in distress.

There is such a divine balance in the phrase “Abba, Father.” It has the tender idea of the word “abba” which correlates to “daddy, daddy!” It’s a cry from a child who is desperate, who is afraid, who is in trouble, who calls out to his daddy who loves him and hears him. This word suggests to us that He is always listening as our loving Father. But the word “father” has within it the respect of the One who gave us life and is God. Even though we are His children and we know that He cares, we never lose the awesome respect of who He is as God and what He has done for us.

So, “get the picture”—we have a loving Father who is God, and we are His children. We can cry out to Him with a heart that is willing to do what He says to do, and we know that He hears!

Not only do we have a loving Father that we can turn to we fail but we have the inner witness of His Spirit that we are God’s children. “The Spirit Himself testifies with our spirit that we are children of God” (Rom. 8:16).

“The Spirit Himself testifies.” Have you failed in your walk with Christ and, as a result, doubted whether or not you were His child, or are you being persecuted because of your surrender to Him? Well, there is an inner witness of the Holy Spirit Himself that you are the child of God! Just try walking according to your flesh and see what happens when the fullness of God’s power is withdrawn from your life, or notice the looks and the evil words that come your way when you seek to live surrendered to Christ. The Holy Spirit Himself will bear witness with our spirit that we are the children of God. The word “children” is the word te¨kno¨n, meaning that we bear the image of the Father.

Now, Paul does not have in mind some mystical small voice saying “you are saved.” He is most likely referring to the witness of the obvious character of Christ, which is the fruit of His Spirit listed in Galatians 5:22-23. Additionally, he may be thinking of the divine ability to accomplish that which God demands in one’s life mentioned in Acts 1:8.