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How Do We Walk by the Spirit?
The phrase “walk by the Spirit” occurs not only in verse 25 but also in verse 16. So, here we see what the
opposite of walking by the Spirit is, namely, giving in to the desires of the flesh. Remember, “flesh” is our
Old Sin Nature (OSN) that does not relish the things of God and prefers to get satisfaction from
independence, power, prestige, and worldly pleasures. When we “walk by the Spirit,” we are not
controlled by those drives. This is what verse 17 means: the flesh produces one kind of desires, and the
Spirit produces another kind, and they are opposed to each other. Walking by the Spirit is what we do
when the desires produced by the Spirit are stronger than the desires produced by the flesh. This means
that “walking by the Spirit” is not something we do in order to get the Spirit’s help, but rather, just as
the phrase implies, it is something we do by the enablement of the Spirit. The life we have in Christ we
owe wholly to the work of God’s Spirit.

Ultimately, all the good inclinations or preferences or desires that we have are given by the Holy Spirit.
Apart from the Spirit we are mere flesh. Paul said: “I know that in me, that is, in my flesh, dwells no good
thing” (Rom. 7:18). Apart from the gracious influences of the Holy Spirit, none of our inclinations or
desires are holy or good, “for the mind of the flesh is hostile to God’s law and does not submit to it
because it cannot” (Rom. 8:7). The new birth is the coming into our life of the Holy Spirit to create a
whole new array of desires and loves and yearnings and longings. And when these desires are stronger
than the opposing desires of the flesh, then we are “walking by the Spirit.” For we always act according
to our strongest desires.

Therefore, “walking by the Spirit” is something the Holy Spirit enables us to do by producing in us strong
desires that accord with God’s will. This is what God said he would do in Ezekiel 36:26, 27. Thus, when
we “walk by the Spirit,” we experience the fulfillment of this prophecy. The Holy Spirit produces in us
desires for God’s way that are stronger than our fleshly desires, and thus he causes us to walk in God’s
statutes. All we must do is to yield to His promptings in our lives and we can walk in the Spirit daily.

Feeling the Holy Spirit
While certain ministries of the Holy Spirit may involve a feeling, such as conviction of sin, comfort, and
empowerment, Scripture does not instruct us to base our relationship with the Holy Spirit on how or
what we feel. Every born-again believer has the indwelling Holy Spirit. Jesus told us that when the
Comforter has come, He will be with us and in us. “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another
Counselor to be with you forever—the Spirit of truth. The world cannot accept him, because it neither
sees him nor knows him. But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you” (John 14:16-17). In
other words, Jesus is sending one like Himself to be with us and in us. We know the Holy Spirit is with us
because God's Word tells us that it is so. Every born-again believer is indwelt by the Holy Spirit, but not
every believer is controlled by the Holy Spirit, and there is a distinct difference. When we step out in our
flesh, we are not under the control of the Holy Spirit even though we are still indwelt by Him. The
apostle Paul comments on this truth, and he uses an illustration that helps us to understand. “Do not get
drunk on wine, which leads to debauchery. Instead, be filled with the Spirit” (Eph. 5:18). Many people
read this verse and interpret it to mean that the apostle Paul is speaking against wine. However, the
context of this passage is the walk and the warfare of the Spirit-filled believer. Therefore, there is
something more here than just a warning about drinking too much wine.

When people are drunk with too much wine, they exhibit certain characteristics: they become clumsy,
their speech is slurred, and their judgment is impaired. The apostle Paul sets up a comparison here. Just
as there are certain characteristics that identify someone who is controlled by too much wine, there

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