In chapter 4, Paul urges us to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which we have been called. Today he expands on that: “Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.”
“Imitators of God.” I’ve heard of people having a god-complex, but this is something very different. Being imitators of God has everything to do with being his beloved children. Children imitate their parents. Did you ever say, “When I grow up I’ll never . . . like mom/dad does!” But then you grow up, and guess what you do? Our parents left fingerprints on our lives – some good, some bad – but they shaped us and we are often a lot more like them than we ever thought we’d be.
God is our Heavenly Father, as we spend time with Him in His Word, He pours his love out on, gives us forgiveness, fills us with the Holy Spirit, strengthens our faith in Jesus and shapes us to have the same attitudes, behaviors and desires as He does. So as his children one of the most distinguishing fingerprints is that we walk in love.
Now, Paul wants to be clear – “walking in love” does not equal sexual immorality and all impurity. Even in the first century A.D. people confused sex and love, even as people struggle with the concept in the 21st century A.D. Part of the decay of Roman culture was an unhealthy obsession with sex: Caesar Augustus complained about this including how even Senators (whom he felt should be more moral than the populace – ironic, huh?) had abandoned marriage for their dalliances and affairs, and the Emperor Caligula was well known for perverse sexual behavior. There was also an unhealthy appetite for violence, as evidenced by the coliseum and it’s gladiatorial games.
Sex and Violence. Sounds familiar.
In this context Paul urges us to walk in love, as Jesus loved us and gave himself up for us. This kind of love looks to the wellbeing of others. It builds up, reaches out, and meets people in their needs. This kind of love is seen in selflessness and sacrifice. It desires what is good.
Perhaps one of the places this is best displayed is in marriage. A marriage that is founded only on lust and sex will undoubtedly fail. A powerful witness that we have as children of God is the way that husbands and wives treat one another. The wife submitting – that is lifting her husband above her out of love for him, and the husband sacrificing (to love your wife as Christ loved the church is to give yourself up for her!). This kind of selfless love builds up both woman and man when the cycle loving service is in order! This is why he urges, “let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see she respect her husband.” In marriage we can serve as a picture of the kind of selfless love that moved Jesus to die on the cross to redeem us!
But Paul recognizes that all this is difficult, and, indeed, impossible without God’s grace and forgiveness. He says, “Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.” How do we face such days? First, remember that we are loved – “seated with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.” That foundation is essential! Then we walk in love, and let our walk be a witness to the world of what Jesus has done for us.
Heavenly Father, the days are evil just as they were in Paul’s time. Protect us, and “deliver us from evil.” Make us bold in Your love so that we will love others and they will see your love in our actions. For Jesus sake – Amen.
“Imitators of God.” I’ve heard of people having a god-complex, but this is something very different. Being imitators of God has everything to do with being his beloved children. Children imitate their parents. Did you ever say, “When I grow up I’ll never . . . like mom/dad does!” But then you grow up, and guess what you do? Our parents left fingerprints on our lives – some good, some bad – but they shaped us and we are often a lot more like them than we ever thought we’d be.
God is our Heavenly Father, as we spend time with Him in His Word, He pours his love out on, gives us forgiveness, fills us with the Holy Spirit, strengthens our faith in Jesus and shapes us to have the same attitudes, behaviors and desires as He does. So as his children one of the most distinguishing fingerprints is that we walk in love.
Now, Paul wants to be clear – “walking in love” does not equal sexual immorality and all impurity. Even in the first century A.D. people confused sex and love, even as people struggle with the concept in the 21st century A.D. Part of the decay of Roman culture was an unhealthy obsession with sex: Caesar Augustus complained about this including how even Senators (whom he felt should be more moral than the populace – ironic, huh?) had abandoned marriage for their dalliances and affairs, and the Emperor Caligula was well known for perverse sexual behavior. There was also an unhealthy appetite for violence, as evidenced by the coliseum and it’s gladiatorial games.
Sex and Violence. Sounds familiar.
In this context Paul urges us to walk in love, as Jesus loved us and gave himself up for us. This kind of love looks to the wellbeing of others. It builds up, reaches out, and meets people in their needs. This kind of love is seen in selflessness and sacrifice. It desires what is good.
Perhaps one of the places this is best displayed is in marriage. A marriage that is founded only on lust and sex will undoubtedly fail. A powerful witness that we have as children of God is the way that husbands and wives treat one another. The wife submitting – that is lifting her husband above her out of love for him, and the husband sacrificing (to love your wife as Christ loved the church is to give yourself up for her!). This kind of selfless love builds up both woman and man when the cycle loving service is in order! This is why he urges, “let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see she respect her husband.” In marriage we can serve as a picture of the kind of selfless love that moved Jesus to die on the cross to redeem us!
But Paul recognizes that all this is difficult, and, indeed, impossible without God’s grace and forgiveness. He says, “Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil.” How do we face such days? First, remember that we are loved – “seated with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus.” That foundation is essential! Then we walk in love, and let our walk be a witness to the world of what Jesus has done for us.
Heavenly Father, the days are evil just as they were in Paul’s time. Protect us, and “deliver us from evil.” Make us bold in Your love so that we will love others and they will see your love in our actions. For Jesus sake – Amen.
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