What does it mean to be led by the Spirit of God? The topic is an interesting one because it exposes the notion that there is a choice that each one of us as Christians have after believing on Jesus to become a child of God, to intentionally determine to follow and become disciples of Christ or not to.

The idea here is key, God will not force you neither will his Spirit wrestle with you to desire the righteousness of his Kingdom. No, his spirit is gentle with his partnership and the reason is God’s love, power and purpose is unchanging, it is firm and eternal.

Therefore it is not to his benefit but to ours when we intentionally make up our minds to forsake all other paths, old habits and seek after the path of God through the leading of his spirit.

The Spirit of God is the unseen presence of God manifest and that is why to be a child of God we must *believe* that he is and a rewarded of them who *diligently* seek him. So to be a child of God you must have faith, faith in God. Therefore if I do have faith being that faith is active, then your faith is only proven in the actions you take.

The actions you take are predicated on what you believe or who you believe and obedient to. For instance because I trust the word of the doctor when I have a headache I will be obedient and fulfill the prescription he gives to relieve the pain. I have faith in the ability of the medicine to work to the extent that I follow the regimen even if the symptoms of pain doesn’t ease immediately, to continue till the dosage is complete. So, how does this relate to being led by the Holy Spirt. Simple, we must firstly daily choose who will be the one source we go to for life direction. Will it be God, our past experiences, culture or fear? If we choose God then it follows we must belive he is able to lead us and is worthy of our trust and obedience. So if He is worthy of our trust then he deserves our obedience. Obedience to His word. And if we are seeking to be obedient to His word then we must believe that he speaks to us as individuals through his word. If you belive this then you then ask how do I know what am hearing is what God is saying through his Spirit.
Paul gives us a clue in verse 19, what results in listening to ourselves/old nature and what results in listening to the Holy Spirit. The golden standard is “by their fruits you shall know them” therefore my desires, conversations and character are products of who or what is leading my life.
So let’s recap, how to be led by the Holy Spirt. Let’s us use the acronym
H: Daily seek to (H)ear the Holy spirit speak to you through the word of God.

O: (O)bey the voice of God you hear by acting on it through faith.

W: Be (W)illing to continue to practice this discipline even when you don’t feel like and consequently the right habits will become manifest and the transformation of your mind will be apparent to the glory of God.

What I am saying is this: run your lives by the Spirit. Then you will not do what your old nature wants.
Galatians 5:16

Arthor: Imohimi Ahonkhai
The Simple Gospel