Log Off And Walk On

          The Hebrew word halak means to walk, to go, to move, to proceed, to live out a course of life. “Therefore as you have received Christ Jesus the Lord, walk in [union with] Him [reflecting His character in the things you do and say...]” (Colossians 2:6 AMP).

            Scripture describes our relationship with God as a walk.
            Enoch walked with God (Genesis 5:24)
            Noah walked with God (Genesis 6:9)
            “Walk before Me, and be blameless, God told Abraham (Genesis 17:1)
            God commanded Israel to walk in His ways (Deuteronomy 10:12)
            David requested he be taught the way so he could speak in truth (Psalm 86:11)
            The prophet Micah said God requires us to do justice, love mercy, and walk humbly with our God (Micah 6:8)
            The Apostle John wrote, “Whoever says he abides in Him ought to walk in the same way in which He walked (1 John 2:6).

            If we pay attention to Scripture, it tells us love walks, faith walks, covenant walks, obedience walks, and discipleship walks. The direction of our feet tells us what kingdom we belong to.
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            This is why halak is so important. It is a manner of life and direction, and not just movement. If we believe God, we walk with Him; if we love Him, we keep His commandments; if we are His, we walk in His ways.
           
         In the Old Testament, God said to Israel, “So now, O Israel, what does the Lord your God require of you? Only to fear the Lord your God, to walk in all his ways, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to keep the commandments of the Lord and his decrees that I am commanding you today, for your own well-being” (Deuteronomy 10:12-13 NRSV).
Fear Him
Love Him
Serve Him
Walk in His ways
Keep His commandments

         In the New Testament, Jesus told us twenty-one times and in twelve different conversations, to follow Him. “Then Jesus said to his disciples, “If any of you wants to be my follower, you must give up your own way, take up your cross, and follow me” (Matthew 16:24 NLT). 

          The New Testament uses the same walking language as the Old Testament.
“Walk by the Spirit” (Galatians 5:16)
“Walk in love” (Ephesians 5:2)
“Walk as children of light” (Ephesians 5:8)
“Walk in a manner worthy of God (Colossians 1:10)
“This is love, that we walk according to His commandments (2 John 1:6)

         Halak is connected to the Jewish concept of halakhah, which means “the walk” or “the way one walks out obedience”. We all have a walk, but what is our walk based on? Is it based on:
Scripture?
Tradition?
Culture?
Our trauma?
Our pastor?
Our favourite influencer?
Our flesh?

         The disciples of Jesus left their nets, their tables, their old lives, and physically walked after Him. We learn the ways of the Rabbi, not from a distance, but up close. God is forming people who do not strut religiously, but walk faithfully.

Religious strutting performs for crowds
Covenant walking stays faithful when no one claps
Religious strutting loves titles. Covenant walking keeps on the narrow path
Religious strutting asks, “How much do I have to do?”
Covenant walking asks God to teach us His ways

         Halak does not mean you do not limp.
Peter walked with Jesus, but still got rebuked
Thomas fought with doubt
James and John wanted fire from heaven like prophets with anger issues
Jacob wrestled with God and limped afterwards, but he went away changed
These did not walk perfectly, but they kept walking with the One who did

         From the Scriptures we learn:
Babylon has a way
Rome has a way
The nations have a way
The flesh has a way

         But Jesus is THE WAY, and as the redeemed of the Lord, we are called to walk in His Way.

        I recently read someone’s thoughts about a little child learning to walk with a loving father. The child’s tiny feet stand on top of much bigger ones. Small hands are wrapped inside strong ones.
The child does not yet know the way – does not understand balance, direction, timing. The child trusts the one holding him/her.

Halak – is not:
Cold religion
Fearful performance
A race to earn love

But – Halak is:
Walking with God
Sometimes clumsy
Sometimes slow
Sometimes crying and sometimes laughing
Sometimes falling so badly you don’t know if you’ll ever get up
But the Father’s hands never let go

         A child learning to walk is not rejected for stumbling. The Father expects the process, and has promised to always be there.

Walking with Him is not:
Religious strutting
Public performance
Collecting trophies while our feet are planted in pride

Halak is:
My feet on His
My hands in His
Learning His steps
Trusting His direction, even when it doesn’t make sense to me

         Matthew 11: 28 – 30 MSG says, “Walk with me and work with me—watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”

       Halak is following our Father’s unforced rhythms of grace and walking with Him all the way home.


Inspiration for this article was taken from Yael’s Letters. As far as can be discerned, Yael's Letters" is a Facebook/online persona managed by a woman writing under a pseudonym. She describes herself as a Christian and writes to share her love for Jesus, desiring all glory to go to YHWH.