Keep Moving! part 5

This vision of Ezekiel is a vivid picture of the Christian life, from converted to consumed, from ankle-deep to completely enveloped by the Holy Spirit. The old self is dying, but it is fighting it hard. We need to move from

saved but carnal; saved, but critical;

saved, but still have a dirty mouth;

saved, but still have some habits and hang-ups;

saved, but still bouncing back and forth.

in the water, but just barely.

Forgiven, but still having some problems forgiving others

to a life that is filled with the fruit of the Spirit.

Unfortunately, many are like the young man, Eutychus, who fell out of the third story window while Paul was preaching (Acts chapter 20). The Eutychuses of today are in the house, but they still dreaming about what God delivered them from. That’s ankle-deep water, and ankle-deep water is a dangerous place to be for very long, because at every problem, trial, resistance, every threat of change, you want to jump out of the river, back onto the bank of familiarity and perceived safety.
 

Keep Moving! Just Keep Moving! The Christian life, by its very nature, is a life of movement and progress. Spiritually speaking, when we quit moving, and progressing, we start dying.
 

There is no bottom to this river; it’s unfathomable, incomprehensible, immeasurable. It is endless. But the path to fullness, to the depths of the presence and glory, is the path of sacrifice. The Christ-life will only manifest through you and me to the degree of the death of the self-life. Every step into the river, is a step into greater sacrifice and self-denial.

I know that can sound scary, downright frightening, even. But as the flesh disappears through sacrifice, the Holy Spirit gains more pull and more influence over your life. And when people look at you, they begin to see Jesus in you and through you. Keep Walking! Keep Moving! And as you walk, you will let go and forget what was behind you and you begin to reach for, and, press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called us heavenward in Christ Jesus (Philippians 3:14).
 

What is the “prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus”? (I am so glad you asked that question – it shows me, you’re still hungry.) The answer is this: It is to possess Him and be possessed by Him. It is to be completely submerged in Him, until it is no longer we who live, but Christ who lives in us (Galatians 2:20).
 

Friends, Keep Moving! Keep Moving! There is no place to stop. The river is deep, the river is wide, but you have to choose to move out into the river and move with the flow of the Holy Spirit. Tell yourself every day, convince yourself that no matter how rough, how dark, how deep, or how wide it is, or how crazy it may make you look, and how crazy your pursuit of Christ may even feel at times, you are going to Keep Moving!
 

I will crawl, walk, run, swim, or fly; but there’s one thing I will not do, I will not quit. I will not sit and soak and sour. I will Keep Moving! My life depends on it. My future depends on it. My family depends on it. Someone else’s life depends on it. 
 

Friends, no one can force you to Keep Moving! to go deeper with the Holy Spirit. But He will nudge you, plead with you, and reach out to you. The Holy Spirit will do all He can to help you Keep Moving! I also know this: you can’t stop me. No one can stop me. Not even the devil himself can stop me. I am going to Keep Moving! My life depends on it.  END