Be Imitators of God and Walk in Love

8-11-24

Hoonah-Hadley

Ephesians 4:25-5:2

Call to Worship Psalm 130

Daily Verses Ephesians 5:1-2

“Therefore, be imitators of God as dear children. And walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma.” The treasure chest of this epistle continues to pour out its blessings on us as we take a closer walk with Thee. Praise God for His word as it sheds light on our darkness that we might see the way everlasting. The key word this morning is “Imitate”, that is to model oneself after the behavior or actions of another. To copy the actions, appearance, or mannerisms of another. To duplicate, reproduce, resemble. The definition of imitate is critical to our understanding of these verses. So there is no misunderstanding what God is teaching us here, we are to model, copy, duplicate, be like God, not try or pretend to be God. God is God and we are not, nor have we or will we. No chance in that, nor should there be. Isaiah 45:5 “I am the Lord, and there is not other; There is no God besides Me.”  There are gods with a little “g”, but only one God with a capital “G”.  Humanity is plagued with look-alikes and imitations, it’s a billion-dollar industry, you want to talk about grieving the Holy Spirit, the money spent trying to be something other than what God created us to be surely grieves our Father which art in heaven. Genesis 1:26-29 “Then God said, ‘Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness…So God created man in His Own image…male and female He created them.” This is the creation story, “according to Our likeness”, it’s no secret we have made a royal mess of this. The apostles letter brings us back to that likeness. 

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Romans 13:14 “But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to fulfill its lusts.” This is not Farrah Fawcett, Charles Atlas or Brad Pitt. Colossians 3:12-14 “Therefore, as Gods chosen people…clothe yourself with kindness, humility, gentleness, patience, bearing…forgiving one another.” You want to make a fashion statement, clothe yourself with Christ. God stocks the closet of our dreams here on earth with apparel second only to our heavenly wardrobe. I don’t know about all you all, but this is a wake up call for me on what to wear. Are “kindness”, “humility”, “gentleness” and “patience” in your closet? Are they buried under pride and bitterness in the bottom drawer of your dresser? We understand who God is and imitate Him by gaining knowledge of Him. Colossians 1:9-10 “…and to ask that you be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God.” God is an “orchardist”, He created, owns, manages, cultivates the orchard of humanity. He is in the fruit bearing business. To imitate God is to be fruitful. Psalm 1 “Blessed is the one…whose delight is in the law of the Lord, and on His law they meditate day and night. They shall be like a tree planted by rivers of waters, that brings forth its fruit in its season…and whatever they do shall prosper.” Our God is a God of prosperity. It is His plan, purpose and promise to prosper those whose delight is in His law, who meditate on it day and night. Joshua 1:8 “This Book of the Law shall not depart from your mouth, but you shall meditate on it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success.” God is an “orchardist”. It is His plan, purpose and promise that you bear fruit and prosper.

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God is a “vinedresser”. John 15 “I am the true vine, and My Father is the vinedresser. Every branch in Me that does not bear fruit He takes away; and every branch that bears fruit He prunes, that it may bear more fruit…He who abides in Me, and I in them, bears much fruit; for without Me you can do nothing…By this My Father is glorified, that you bear much fruit…” We imitate God by understanding Him. We understand Him by meditating on His word (law). When we meditate on His word we are abiding in Him and He in us. The result of abiding in Him is that we “bear much fruit” and when we bear fruit in accordance with His will, we are witnesses to the world of who He is. This was the prayer of David, “create in me a clean heart, O Lord!” This new clean heart does not conform to the patterns of this world but is transformed by the renewing of the mind and sheds light everywhere it goes. We live differently, walk differently, talk differently because we have been called to be different. “We don’t need a church that will move with the world, but a church that will move the world.” (Unknown) Ephesians 5:1 continues, “…as dear children”. Other versions say, “as dearly loved children.” Have you ever noticed little boys acting like their father? They speak like them, walk like them, stand like them, look like them. 1 John 3:1-2 “Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God…Beloved, now we are children of God…but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him…” When a father loves a child, the natural result of that love is the child imitating the father. Ephesians 5:2 “And walk in love…” There is much about “walking” in scriptures, “walk in His ways”, “walk humbly”, “walk in the light”, “walk in Your truth”, “walk in the name of the Lord”, and here the apostle teaches us to “walk in love”. “Walk” refers to how we live our lives.

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If 1 Corinthians 13 defines love, then John 15:9-17 shows us what that looks like as we live our lives. Vs. 12 “This is My commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.” First of all, this is a commandment from our Lord, a command that demands our utmost for His highest. Secondly, this is not a love as the world defines it but as the Author of it designed it to be, “as I have love you.” And how is it He has loved us? Vs. 13 “Greater love has no one than this, than to lay down one’s life for his friends.” The heartbeat of the believer is that God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son. Calvary is loves grandest stage. “The cross is the pulpit from which God preaches His love to the world.” (Augustine) The conclusion to the apostles’ chapter on love in 1 Cor. 13 is this, “Now faith, hope, love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.” Yes, we are to believe. Yes, we are to trust. Yes, we are to obey. Yes, we are to have faith. The Apostles Creed seems accurate and we are to pray in such a manner, but it is more than that. The Holy Spirit has invaded our lives, has place Christ in us, we in Him, and as “dearly loved” children of God, enables us to walk the walk, to represent, to duplicate, copy, reproduce, resemble, imitate Him as we go out into the world. To deal with people as Christ did. God “giving” His Son, Jesus Christ laying down His life for us is the essence of sacrifice and the necessity of forgiveness that whosoever believes in Him might not perish but have everlasting life. Matthew 5:45 “He makes His sun rise on the evil and the good and sends rain on the just and unjust.” This old, old story will go out into all the world, He doesn’t have some special category. Ephesians 5:2 continues, “…as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us…” What does imitating God look like? Walking in love as Christ loved us.

There is no greater love and no greater imitation.  Amen.