Integrity- People of God

The walking dead are those who are alive to the things of this world but dead to Christ and the Kingdom of God. People are born in a fallen state, alive to the things of the flesh and are unable to discern the things of the Spirit. This is why Jesus told the young man to let the dead bury their dead. When there is a choice to be made between the dead things of this world and the things of the Kingdom of God, we should always follow the Spirit of life.

Luke 9:60 Jesus said to him, “Let the dead bury their own dead, but you go and preach the kingdom of God.”

1 Corinthians 15:34 ³⁴ Awake to righteousness, and do not sin; for some do not have the knowledge of God. I speak this to your shame. NKJV

Those who are dead to the things of God cannot hear His voice but His sheep hear His voice and a stranger they will not follow. We get to know the voice of the ones we love by listening to them and hearing them speak to us. The more they speak and the more we listen, the better we become acquainted with them and the things that are important to them and we get to know the things they like, dislike and what pleases them. So it is when we take time to listen to God’s voice, His words to us, which are in the Bible. When we read the letters written to us out of His love, we will begin to know His heart and hear his voice. When strange voices come, we will not follow them because we know God’s voice, His word and His ways.

John 10:26-27   But you do not believe, because you are not of My sheep, as I said to you. My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. NKJV

God has called us. We have a prearranged fate for us to be conformed into the image of Jesus. Jesus was sent to live a life that made God visible and plain to the people on earth. That is our reason for becoming the children of God. Jesus was not sent just to save us from hell, though we were redeemed from hell, but were saved to manifest, to show and to live the life of Christ in our mortal bodies to make plain the God of heaven to the people on earth.

Jesus cursed the fig tree and it died from the roots up. Jesus came to the tree that had leaves giving the appearance of having fruit, but in truth it was barren and without fruit. When a person is living in this world, created in the image of God, but living in selfishness he is dead to the things of God though he may have the appearance of life. When this person has no connection with God, they are the walking dead because they are not rooted and grounded in the life giving Spirit of God. When Jesus spoke to the tree it died that moment though the appearance of life was still in the tree but the evidence of its death was seen the next day. So it is with those that live without the spirit of God in their lives, they have the appearance of life in the outer shell as they go about their natural life but their spirit is dead to the things of God.

What we put before our eyes and focus on is what we become. If our eyes are constantly on the things of this world and we focus on the cares of the world, then we become like the things we internalize. When we change our perspectives and beliefs we change our outcomes and our actions. We are told to either make the tree good and the fruit will be good or make the tree corrupt and the fruit will be corrupt. We have been taught to focus on the fruit, looking at it, rather than the tree being good and focusing on that.

We should identify a good tree as one rooted in the Spirit of God and then we will know that tree and its fruit will be good. God is transforming us into a good vine as we have been grafted into the True Vine of Life, Jesus. If we focus on the old vine and old fruit we will only see the negative and corrupt things of our past. If we make the tree good by the relationship and righteousness of Christ, and not our works, then the tree is good and will produce good fruit. The world would have us focus on the fruit of our failures and not the tree of Righteousness that God has planted within us. We are that tree planted by the rivers of waters in Christ Jesus.

Matthew 12:33 Either make the tree good, and his fruit good; or else make the tree corrupt, and his fruit corrupt; for the tree is known by his fruit. KJV

When we focus on the dead and dark things of this world, they can be easily reproduced in our lives. If we seek the kingdom of God and become intimate with Jesus, His seed of righteousness is planted in us and lives in us to give birth and produce after His Own kind.

Galatians 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me. NKJV

We are living in Christ because we have been crucified with Christ. We are no longer the walking dead and enslaved to sin. We can choose to live for Christ and let the Spirit of God live in our bodies through faith in Jesus’ love. This delivers us from being dead to the things of God. Remember, no matter how hard the circumstances, we can submit our will to God and say “Father I delight to obey You in this matter, let the power of the Holy Spirit rise in me and You be glorified in this situation.”