Walk Worthy

Ephesians 4:1–6 NKJV

1 I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called, 2 with all lowliness and gentleness, with longsuffering, bearing with one another in love, 3 endeavoring to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. 4 There is one body and one Spirit, just as you were called in one hope of your calling; 5 one Lord, one faith, one baptism; 6 one God and Father of all, who is above all, and through all, and in you all.

In Ephesians 4 we come to a major shift in this letter. Up to this point Paul has been building a foundation of doctrine mingled with prayer for the understanding, wisdom, and knowledge of his readers. Now Paul moves to the instructional part of his letter.

there are 41 imperatives or commands in Ephesians. Only one of these is found in the first 3 chapters, the other 40 are found in chapters 4-6. Paul’s method of teaching is to first focus on doctrine, theology and then after building a solid foundation he then moves to the practical application.

The Prisoner of The Lord

Why does Paul refer to himself here as the prisoner of the Lord? Why not just “I, therefore beseech you”?

I believe that it is for the same reasons that he first mentioned that he was a prisoner in Eph 3:1-3

Ephesians 3:1–3 NKJV

1 For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for you Gentiles— 2 if indeed you have heard of the dispensation of the grace of God which was given to me for you, 3 how that by revelation He made known to me the mystery (as I have briefly written already,

Ephesians 3:7–13 NKJV

7 of which I became a minister according to the gift of the grace of God given to me by the effective working of His power. 8 To me, who am less than the least of all the saints, this grace was given, that I should preach among the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, 9 and to make all see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the ages has been hidden in God who created all things through Jesus Christ; 10 to the intent that now the manifold wisdom of God might be made known by the church to the principalities and powers in the heavenly places, 11 according to the eternal purpose which He accomplished in Christ Jesus our Lord, 12 in whom we have boldness and access with confidence through faith in Him. 13 Therefore I ask that you do not lose heart at my tribulations for you, which is your glory.

So now when Paul says...

Ephesians 4:1 NKJV

1 I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called,

It’s worth it. Even though Paul efforts to walk worthy of his calling is the very thing that landed him in prison, the calling with which you were called and walking worthy of it is worth what ever hardship you may have to endure.

In other words that fact that Paul is writing this from prison and can still say i beseech you to walk worthy of this calling is evidence to it is worth it.

next we look at the command itself.

Walk Worthy

“Walk” is one of Paul favourite words to refer to how we live. And it’s a beautiful metaphor. It implies a journey, it implies a destination. It shows us that we can either walk towards our destination or we can walk away from our destination. But one of the greatest things about understanding our life as walking is that it demonstrates step by step progression. For Paul to say walk worthy of you calling is like saying walk up mount Everest. It’s imposable. Even Paul said “I have not attained but I press towards the mark of the high calling of Christ Jesus.” So how do we climb Mt Everest? We take one step at a time. We can take a step. It’s easy, just put one foot in front of the other. Keep doing that and your are walking. to Walk worthy doesn’t mean that you are worthy. It means that you are heading in the right direction, pressing towards the mark. The word worthy means appropriately.

So what are some ways that we can walk appropriately?

First how do we not walk

Ephesians 4:17–19 NKJV

17 This I say, therefore, and testify in the Lord, that you should no longer walk as the rest of the Gentiles walk, in the futility of their mind, 18 having their understanding darkened, being alienated from the life of God, because of the ignorance that is in them, because of the blindness of their heart; 19 who, being past feeling, have given themselves over to lewdness, to work all uncleanness with greediness.

Ephesians 5:1–2 NKJV

1 Therefore be imitators of God as dear children. 2 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.

Ephesians 5:8–11 NKJV

8 For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light 9 (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth), 10 finding out what is acceptable to the Lord. 11 And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them.

Ephesians 5:15–21 NKJV

15 See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, 16 redeeming the time, because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is. 18 And do not be drunk with wine, in which is dissipation; but be filled with the Spirit, 19 speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody in your heart to the Lord, 20 giving thanks always for all things to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, 21 submitting to one another in the fear of God.

So these are some examples of what Paul means when he says walk worthy. Next we look at what it is that we are to walk worthy of.

The Calling With Which You Were Call

As a Christian you have a calling. This is where Paul’s doctrinal foundation comes into play. The calling with which you were called is what Paul spent the last three chapters teaching us.

Ephesians 1:3–7 NKJV

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, 4 just as He chose us in Him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before Him in love, 5 having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, 6 to the praise of the glory of His grace, by which He made us accepted in the Beloved. 7 In Him we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of His grace

Ephesians 2:4–6 NKJV

4 But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, 5 even when we were dead in trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), 6 and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,

Ephesians 2:8–10 NKJV

8 For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.

Ephesians 2:13 NKJV

13 But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.

Ephesians 2:19 NKJV

19 Now, therefore, you are no longer strangers and foreigners, but fellow citizens with the saints and members of the household of God,

Romans 8:28–30 NKJV

28 And we know that all things work together for good to those who love God, to those who are the called according to His purpose. 29 For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren. 30 Moreover whom He predestined, these He also called; whom He called, these He also justified; and whom He justified, these He also glorified.

The truely wonderful thing about the calling of God is that He didn’t say walk worthy and I will make you my child, or walk worthy and I will forgive your sins and draw to near, make you alive, save you, and make you fellow citizen with the saints.

No, God did all this for us, blessed us with all these spiritual blessings in heavenly places, even while we were unworthy, dead in our trespasses, sinners and then He says now walk like someone who is worthy.

So as you walk, as you live, in everything that you do measure it with this “is this appropriate for a child of God?” “is this appropriate for someone who has been forgiven?” “Is this appropriate for someone who has receieved all these spiritual blessings in heavenly places?” If it is then do it, If not then don’t do it. It’s a walk so don’t be overwhelmed by the destination. Just take the next step.