Where the Sole Never Dies

John Buttrey II

One thing the children of Israel did not need, as they wandered and walked about in the wilderness for forty years, were new sandals. Moses reminded them of the strength of their soles with these words:

And I have led you forty years in the wilderness; your clothes have not worn out on you, and your sandal has not worn out on your foot (Deuteronomy 29:5 Emphasis Mine). 

  This was a miraculous demonstration of God’s power. If a shoe manufacturer could do this, it would be an impressive feet! One might say, as Israel wandered through the wilderness, they were in a place where the sole never died.

   Unfortunately, the soles of our shoes will not last forty years. Eventually, the soles get so bad, they cannot be “healed.” 

   I recently found myself with some worn out soles. Time, and the wear and tear of walking, had taken its toe-l, so I had to do some sole searching. With the purchase of a new pair of shoes, I was very careful of where and how I walked. I wanted to keep the new shoes looking nice, free from scuffs and scrapes.

  While wear and tear on the soles of our shoes might be some point of concern, a much greater 

concern is the wear and tear of life’s trials and

temptations on our soul.

  At times, it may seem as if life is walking all over us, crushing us under the soles of its heavy feet. Temptations can trip us up. Trials can stomp out our joy.

  To help us through the difficult journey of life, God’s word gives us instruction and warnings concerning our spiritual walk. Let’s think of our spiritual walk as the steps taken by our soul. The word of God helps us to be very careful where and how we walk. Such care can help us keep our soul free from scuffs and scrapes. For example, in the book Proverbs, a promise is given to those who walk according to the words of God’s wisdom: 

When you walk, your steps will not be impeded; And if you run, you will not stumble (Proverbs 4:12 Emphasis Mine).

  David also spoke about this principle of letting the word of God guide our steps:

My steps have held fast to Your paths.

My footsteps have not stumbled (Psalm 17:5 Emphasis Mine).  

And again:

The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom,

And his tongue speaks justice.

The law of his God is in his heart;

His steps do not slip. (Psalm 37:30-31 Emphasis Mine). 

   The steps of a child of God is a repeated subject in the book of Psalms. The words steps, walk, feet, and way, are found close to a hundred times! In fact, the book of Psalms begins with this beatitude:

How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked,

Nor stand in the way of sinners,

Nor sit in the seat of scoffers! (Psalm 1:1 Emphasis Mine)

   This same theme of the importance of our walk is found in the book of Proverbs. The wisdom of Proverbs tells us God hates “feet that hasten To run to evil” (Proverbs 6:18). 

   When we come to the New Testament, we again find repeated instruction concerning our walk. The moment we became Christians our steps were to take us in a different direction. 

Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life (Romans 6:4 Emphasis Mine). 

   Later in the book of Romans, Paul noted that we are no longer to walk according to flesh, but according to the Spirit (Rom. 8:4). To the Corinthians, Paul wrote, that we walk by faith, and not by sight (2 Cor. 5:7). In this same way, Paul told the Galatians:

If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk in step with the Spirit (Galatians 5:25 Emphasis Mine). 

And to the Ephesians:

Therefore I, the prisoner in the Lord, exhort you to walk worthy of the calling with which you have been called (Ephesians 4:1 Emphasis Mine). 

   Perhaps, the most familiar passage regarding our walk is that which was penned by the apostle John:

But if we walk in the Light as He Himself is in the Light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin (1 John 1:7 Emphasis Mine). 

   There are many such passages found in the Scriptures regarding our walk as Christians. So many such passages should cause to really examine our steps! Where are we walking? As Christians, we cannot have one foot in the world, and one foot in the church (cf. Matt. 6:24).  

   When we make certain to keep the soles of our feet walking in the paths of righteousness, it can make life a lot easier on our soul. We will enjoy fellowship with God and the saints as we walk in the light. Most importantly, such care in our walk will lead to us a place, where the soul never dies.