Be Led by the Spirit
“But when He, the Spirit of truth, comes, He will guide you into all the truth; for He will not speak on His own initiative, but whatever He hears, He will speak.”
John 16:13
The Spirit of the Lord was with the children of Israel in the wilderness when they were living in tents around the tabernacle, called in Hebrew the mishkan. By night the Holy Spirit manifested over the tabernacle as a pillar of fire. During the day, the Spirit of God, or Ruach HaKodesh, took the form of a glory cloud.
The Bible tells us in Numbers 9 that when the Spirit of the Lord stopped, either in the form of fire or a cloud, the children of Israel would stop and camp there. But whenever the Spirit of the Lord lifted, when either the fire or the glory cloud began to move, they would take up camp and follow the Spirit wherever He led. The Israelites never knew when the cloud or fire was going to move. Sometimes it was two days, sometimes two months, or sometimes even two years. They had to keep their eyes on God’s Spirit, follow, and obey.
Beloved, think about it. If the divine fire or the cloud were stationary over the tabernacle, but the Israelites got antsy and decided on their own to move, what would have happened? They would have died in the wilderness and fallen short of the Promised Land because there would have been no provision, protection, or direction for them. Conversely, what would have happened if the Spirit of the Lord had moved and they said, “We’re comfortable here; we’re not going to move”? They also would have died in the wilderness, because there would have been no food and water, safeguard, or guidance there from God. Not only that, they would have missed their destiny!
It is the same for us today. God still desires to direct our path. Instead of leading us by a fire or a cloud, He has placed His Spirit inside us. But are we following? Are we paying attention to the inner witness of the Holy Spirit who is leading us? If we want to enter into God’s fullness in our lives, we must follow the Holy Spirit’s lead— moving where and when He directs us. And conversely, we must stop running ahead of Him when He is not authorizing us to go.
Father God, teach and train me to obey and be led by Your Spirit within me. I want to hear Your voice and discern Your direction.