“I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.” —Galatians 5:161
T hroughout the Bible, the imagery of walking with God shows us the lives of people who habitually lived in communion and relationship with God, and thus pleased God. In this article and a subsequent article, we will look at two Bible characters and the lessons we learn from their stories of walking with God. Before we look at the stories of those who walked with God, let us first look at what walking meant in the Old and New Testaments.
WALKING WITH GOD IN THE OLD TESTAMENT
In the Hebrew language, walking is characterized as agreement with the one you walk with or in accordance with his command. Walking is also seen as a habitual or repetitive manner throughout one’s lifetime. In the Old Testament, people walked in the way of the Lord. In Deuteronomy, God tells the Israelites that He will establish Himself as their God if they walk in His ways (Deut 28:9). In Psalm 1, the author compares the walk of a righteous man to the walk of a man who walks with the ungodly. In Psalm 15, David describes the man who can abide in the tabernacle as one who walks in God’s ways. The prophet Micah uses the word walk to describe what God requires from His people: “to do justly, to love mercy, and to walk humbly with your God” (Mic 6:8).
“If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.” —Galatians 5:25
WALKING WITH GOD IN THE NEW TESTAMENT
In the New Testament, the Greek word for walking is peripatéō, which means “to walk around” (Mark 2:9; John 5:8; Acts 3:6). Paul, however, uses the same meaning in the New Testament for the word walking as the Old Testament. Believers are to walk in the Spirit (Gal 5:16), to walk worthy of God (1 Thess 2:12), or the Lord (Col 1:10), or their calling (Eph 4:1), and to walk as children of light (Eph 5:8). Paul urges believers to walk in such a way as to please God (1 Thess 4:1). Those who do not walk as directed are to be avoided (2 Thess 3:6, 11). Believers still walk in the flesh (2 Cor 10:3), but the flesh is no longer lord. They may now walk in the newness of life (Rom 6:4).2
LESSONS FROM THE LIFE OF ENOCH
In the Bible, Enoch is the first who was said to have walked with God. Here are four lessons from the life of Enoch.
1. Enoch walked with God as His Father.
Genesis 5:24 says, “And Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him.” From the context of Genesis 5, Ellen G. White shows that Enoch did not understand God’s love until He fathered Methusaleh. Enoch began to understand that fatherhood meant sacrifice, selflessness, care, and love. From then on, understanding and experiencing fatherly love, Enoch walked with God his Father.3 To Enoch, walking with God as his Father meant that he walked confidently, knowing God was a father of compassion (Ps 103:13).
When we know God as our Father, we start to understand the Father’s love starts with Him, not with us. Therefore, when we experience God’s love, we choose to love Him back. As 1 John 3:1 says, “Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God!” When we see God’s compassionate love for us, we eagerly want to start a relationship with Him.
2. Enoch was in vibrant connection with God for three hundred years.
For three hundred years, Enoch enjoyed the company of the Lord. We all know it is hard to walk with God faithfully for even a week. We easily lose our focus on Him, and get distracted by our work, our families, and even our church activities. Enoch must have had intentionality to keep a three-hundred-year relationship with God. All distractions must have been removed to focus on the importance of the relationship.
In a marriage, many will learn that a long-lasting relationship must be built on the intentionality of love and acceptance. My (Joe’s) own marriage advice is to love the other person no matter what, find ways to please them, and even if there are any negatives, focus on the positives instead. This is the same advice we can take when we are in a relationship with God. In our relationship with God, we can love and focus on Him despite the many distractions. The more our love for Him grows, the more we are willing to do things that are pleasing in His sight: commitment to walk in His ways; serving God with our whole hearts; and loving the people around us. Sometimes, we choose to focus on the negatives of our relationship with God, like when God does not answer our prayers or when we don’t know what He is doing in our lives. Yet, we can choose to focus on the positives of our relationship with God: His salvation, His love, and His steadfast grace towards us.
Enoch’s intentional walk with God allowed him to be in total agreement with God. Ellen White states,
“[Enoch’s] heart was in harmony with God’s will; for ’can two walk together, except they be agreed?’ Amos 3:3. And this holy walk was continued for three hundred years. There are few Christians who would not be far more earnest and devoted if they knew that they had but a short time to live, or that the coming of Christ was about to take place. But Enoch’s faith waxed the stronger, his love became more ardent, with the lapse of centuries.”4
The life of Enoch is an inspiration for us to fix our eyes on Jesus and walk faithfully with Him. Despite the distractions that the world brings, we can walk in faithful harmony and agreement with God until the end. “But he who endures to the end shall be saved” (Matt 24:13).
The life of Enoch is an inspiration for us to fix our eyes on Jesus and walk faithfully with Him. Despite the distractions that the world brings, we can walk in faithful harmony and agreement with God until the end.
3. Enoch walked in faith and purity with God.
In Genesis 3:8, Adam and Eve hid from God walking in the garden. Genesis 2:25 tells us that Adam and Eve did not have shame of their nakedness in the presence of God prior to their sin, but under sin’s grasp, they understood their nakedness in front of an Almighty God. God habitually walked in the garden of Eden, but now in unfaithfulness and impurity Adam and Eve hid themselves from their Creator. Compared to the story of Adam and Eve, Enoch’s life serves as a testament to walking in faithfulness and purity. Enoch did not hide from God’s presence, but walked right beside Him for three hundred years.
Enoch’s intimate and pure walk with God shows us what a healthy relationship with God looks like. His faith and walk were so strong that he pleased God (Heb 11:5–6). His walk with God restored what Adam and Eve had lost in the garden of Eden. In commenting on the life of Enoch, Ellen White says, “Enoch had been seeking purity of soul, that he might be in harmony with Heaven. For three centuries he had walked with God. Day by day he had longed for a closer union; nearer and nearer had grown the communion, until God took him to Himself.”5 Enoch’s walk illustrates the intimacy someone has when they walk faithfully and purely with God. What an inspiration for us today to walk faithfully and intimately with God!
4. Enoch’s walk influenced the people around him.
As Enoch walked faithfully with God, he did not remain isolated from the world. In Patriarchs and Prophets, Ellen White says, “He did not become a hermit, shutting himself entirely from the world; for he had a work to do for God in the world. In the family and in his intercourse with men, as a husband and father, a friend, a citizen, he was the steadfast, unwavering servant of the Lord.”6 In our walk with God, we should not only serve the Lord, but also have compassion and care for others. Our everyday activities should showcase who God is to the people around us.
Enoch influenced the people around him not only in his behavior, but also with his words. He taught the people to forsake their sins and walk with God. Jude 14–15 says, “Now Enoch, the seventh from Adam, prophesied about these men also, saying, ‘Behold, the Lord comes with ten thousands of His saints, to execute judgment on all, to convict all who are ungodly among them of all their ungodly deeds which they have committed in an ungodly way, and of all the harsh things which ungodly sinners have spoken against Him.’” Enoch’s love for God made him sensitive for sin and made him zealous for others to overcome the weight of sin. While living in the present world, Enoch recognized the value of living in the context of eternity and helping others do the same.
Enoch’s message of repentance and judgment demonstrates his desire for others to have a committed and vibrant relationship with God. Ellen White says, “[Enoch] was a fearless reprover of sin. While he preached the love of God in Christ to the people of his time, and pleaded with them to forsake their evil ways, he rebuked the prevailing iniquity and warned the men of his generation that judgment would surely be visited upon the transgressor.”7 Our walk with God, both in deed and word, should convict us to plead with others to forsake sin and walk faithfully in God’s love.
SUMMARY
1 John 2:6 says, “He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.” Enoch shows us by his example how to abide and walk with God. Our walk begins by us understanding God as our loving Father. As we walk, we should be in vibrant and long-lasting connection with God. We should walk with faithfulness and purity. We should walk in a way that influences others in their relationships with God. Each of these four lessons help us understand how to walk with God, but Enoch’s life can teach us one more thing about how God responds to our faithful walk with Him.
Because Enoch gave his life over to God, God was pleased with him (Heb 11:5–6). Enoch was a faithful servant who was blessed by God and his walk pleased God. Just like Enoch, we can please God by walking confidently, habitually, and in total agreement with Him. “Walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God” (Col 1:10). May God help us walk worthy of God, fully pleasing Him.
1 All Scripture references are from the NKJV, unless otherwise indicated.
2 Gerhard Kittel and Gerhard Friedrich, eds., Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, Abridged in One Volume, trans. Geoffrey W. Bromiley (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans, 1985), 804–805.
3 Ellen G. White, Patriarchs and Prophets (Washington, DC: Review and Herald, 1890), 86.
4 Ibid., 85.
5 Ibid., 87.
6 Ibid., 85.
7 Ibid., 86.
Amalia Goulbourne, is an MDiv student at the Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary in Berrien Springs, MI, USA.
S. Joseph Kidder, DMin, is professor of Christian ministry and discipleship at the Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary in Berrien Springs, MI, USA.
