Walk in Love

Scripture Reading: Psalm 43

Primary Sermon resources:

Cole, S. J. (2017). In Ephesians(Eph 5:1–2). Galaxie Software.

Merida, T. (2014) Exalting Jesus in Ephesians, Holman Reference.

POSB, Galatians – Colossians, Leadership Ministries Worldwide. (1996).

Walk in Love

Ephesians 5:1-7

We live in a world driven by lust, violence, and war. And America, once a beacon of hope for the rest of the world because of our faith, and our values, has become too divided to help anyone. The Republicans and the Democrats act more like the Hatfield’s and McCoy’s than the leaders of the free world.

Right in the middle of all the instability there are Christians. Christians are supposed to be different. We are supposed to be in the world but not of the world. In other words, no matter what kind of confusion and chaos that surrounds us we are supposed to respond with love, peace, joy, kindness, gentleness, and self-control because those are the fruits of the Spirit of God.

So, we turn the other cheek, and we go the extra mile, we pray for those who persecute us, and we don’t judge those who are different from us. We love when we are hated, and we help when our help isn’t wanted. We do these things not because we are special, but because we are living for a greater purpose. We are living for the glory of God and an eternity that waits for us in heaven.

What we learn from this passage is that love should characterize the life of a Christian. We learn, we are to walk in love and not live like the world. (Read Eph. 5:1-7)

1 Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children.

2 and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma.

3 But immorality or any impurity or greed must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints.

4 and there must be no filthiness and silly talk, or coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks.

5 For this you know with certainty, that no immoral or impure person or covetous man, who is an idolater, has an inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.

6 Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience.

7 Therefore do not be partakers with them.” (Pray)

in our passage this morning Paul is teaching us to walk in love. But how do we do that? Well, Paul teaches us we do that in three ways, 1. by accepting the challenge of being imitators of God, Vs. 1. 2. by following the example that was given to us in Christ, Vs. 2, and 3. by separating ourselves from the lust of the world, Vs. 3-7. And the point of this passage is we are to walk in love and not live like the world.

The first thing I want you to see in this passage is the challenge, because Verse 1 gives us the most stunning challenge in all of scripture. By this verse we are called to be imitators of God. This is what Dr. Martin Lloyd Jones called, “the ultimate ideal.” Because there could be no higher standard in the world. This should literally take our breath away because it sets the bar for the Christian life as high as it could possibly be set.

We are not just called to be imitators of Paul, although there are other places in scripture where he says, imitate me as I imitate Christ. We are not just called to imitate Peter or John, or David or any of the Old Testament prophets. No, through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit Paul steps up to the plate and says, “be imitators of God.”

Now this is not meant to intimidate us, but this is meant to challenge us. This is meant to cause us to lean deeper into the grace of God. This should inspire us to reach out for more holiness in our life.

To be imitators of God is to be Godly in the way we walk, Godly in the way we talk, and Godly in the way we live our life.

The word “imitator” is where we get our English word, “mimic.” To mimic something means to copy it closely, or to resemble it, and we are called to mimic, or resemble God.

Now, we are all familiar with the expression “like father, like son.” And we know what that means, sons want to act like their fathers because when they grow up, they want to be just like them. Well, that is the picture Paul is giving us here.

I remember when I was a little boy coming home from church on Sunday morning and going downstairs with a bible and acting like I was preaching a message. I remember as a boy standing with my father, on the battleship Alabama and being proud because he served our country. I wanted to be just like him. I think most sons want to imitate their fathers.

Unfortunately, we live in a culture where so many children have absentee fathers or abusive fathers. But thankfully as Christians we get to call God our Father. And Paul says, we are to imitate Him.

Now obviously we can’t imitate God in everything. For example, we can’t create a world from nothing, and we can’t always be in all places, and we can’t know everything there is to know. But we have been created in the image of God and we are being recreated in the image of His Son. So, there are certain aspects of His Character we can imitate.

For example, we can imitate His love. John 3:16 says, “For God so loved the world that He gave His one and only Son.” So, this teaches us that God’s love is giving, and we can imitate that. We can be giving in the way we love people.

We can imitate His forgiveness. Romans 5:8 says, “God demonstrated His own love for us in this, that while we were yet sinners Christ died for us.” That tells us God’s love was forgiving and we can imitate Him by being forgiving.

The most important thing to understand is we can not imitate God at all, unless first, we are His children. Notice the end of Vs. 1, Paul adds, “As beloved Children.”

Contrary to popular belief, not everyone in the world is a child of God. I mean in a general sense they are because everyone in the world is created by Him, but the bible is clear we become the children of God by being a part of His family, by being born again.

John 1:12 says, “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children of God, even to those who believe in His name.” 1 Peter 1:3 says, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” It is the grace of God that allows us to be born again, into His family, when we put our trust in Jesus Christ.

Religion is not enough; even theologically correct religion isn’t enough. It cannot save us. God must give us new life, and He does that through faith in His Son.

Nicodemus was a Jewish scholar and a member of the Sanhedrin. That means he knew the Old Testament scriptures and He practiced all the Old Testament rituals. He came to Jesus one night and Jesus told him (John 3:3), “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God.”

So, God has to give us new life, and He does that when we have a relationship with Him through faith in the Son. Then we become born again and we become the children of God.

Every father loves their children in a special way, but I never realized how much my father loved me until I held my daughter in my arms for the very first time. I want to read you a letter a father wrote that described his love for his daughter. This was written by an unknown author.

He said, “When I go home from here, I expect to take my baby on my knee, look into her sweet eyes, listen to her charming prattle, and tired as I am, her presence will rest me; for I love that child with an unutterable tenderness.

But she loves me little. If my heart were breaking, it would not disturb her sleep. If my body were racked with pain, it would not interrupt her play. If I were dead, she would forget me in a few days.

Besides this, she has never brought me a penny, but instead is a constant expense to me. I am not rich, but there is not enough money in the world to buy my baby. How is it? Does she love me, or do I love her? Do I withhold my love until I know she loves me? Am I waiting for her to do something worthy of my love before extending it?”[1]

That describes the emotions of a father’s unconditional love for his daughter. The point is, that is the way the Father loves us. He loves us unconditionally as His children.

That is what the Apostle John teaches us in 1 John 3:1, he says, “See how great a love the Father has bestowed on us, that we would be called children of God.” Are you a child of God today? Because if you are, you are loved by the Father and called to imitate His love.

The next thing I want you to see in this passage is the Example, Vs. 2. Jesus is our example of how-to walk-in love. Vs. 2 says, “just as Christ also loved us and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma.” You see Jesus is our example because of His sacrifice and commitment.

His love came at a cost. He willingly laid down His life so we could be saved. And while we don’t hear very often of someone going as far as dying for someone else. As Christians we are often called to lay aside our selfishness, and our pride, and our personal rights to love others.

Also, Christ love shows us commitment. Jesus didn’t go to the cross because it felt good. But because He was committed to do the will of the Father and He was committed to saving people from their sins. Our feeling can come and go, but our commitment is the glue that holds things together.

The sacrifice of Jesus teaches us that true love is not just about nice words and thoughts, but it requires actions. Actions speak louder than words and if you love someone the results should be evident by your behavior.

1 John 3:18 says, “Little children, let us not love with word or with tongue, but in deed and truth.”Jesus demonstrated His love with action. Following His example means, forgiving others, giving to others, sharing the gospel, being patient and kind, showing love to people who annoy us. And that is not an exhaustive list but only the beginning.

Ultimately, the love of God and the sacrifice of Christ speaks of our need for grace. Because it is easy to say, love people like Jesus. That sounds great, but we all fail to do that.

We need a Savior who forgives us, and we need the Holy Spirit to empower us. So that we can love a lost world. Then and only then, are we demonstrating that we are the children of God.

Notice the end of Vs. 2. Paul says Christ’s death was an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma. In the Old Testament when a sacrifice was put on an altar and was a pleasing aroma to God, that meant it was a sacrifice that was accepted. So, here in Ephesians, what Paul is saying is, when Jesus offered Himself willingly on the cross it was the most acceptable aroma to God, of all time.

And I don’t want you to miss the fact that Christ died for us, but we are told, it was an offering to God. We might not be able to love people like Jesus, but we can love people as an offering to God. We can choose to be kind and gracious no matter how they treat us, because God has been kind and gracious to us.

One of my favorite movies of all time is Rocky. In fact, I love the entire series because it reminds me of the story of redemption. Rocky Balboa is a man who gets beat to a pulp over and over again, but he just keeps getting back up, and in the end, he wins the battle because he refused to quit.

That reminds me of how we are to live as Christians. No matter what the world might throw at us or how many times we get knocked down, God says, “get back up, because I love you and I sent my Son to die on a cross, so that you will always win the battle.

That is the example Jesus sets for us. He is our champion. He is the Savior of the world, who loved us so much He allowed Himself to be beaten to a pulp and hung on a cross. And don’t forget how He responded. He looked out at those who were crucifying Him and said, “Father, forgive them because they don’t know what they are doing.”

True love is about sacrifice and commitment and the next time you become irritated with someone in your life, remember Jesus and the example of love He shows us.

The next thing I want you to see in this passage is the separation, Vs. 3-7. Paul calls us to be separated and different from a group of people in the world.

Notice Vs. 7. “Therefore, do not be partakers with them.” But who are “them” Paul is talking about? Well, everyone who practices the immorality we read about in Vs. 3-6.

The worlds’ view of love is not what God defines as love. Paul wants to make it clear that the love of Christ is different from the lust of the world.

We are not going to talk about each one of these verses. Anyone can read them and understand what the Bible is telling us not to do.

It is important to understand that Paul is writing to Christians who lived in one of the most morally corrupt cities of the time. Ephesus was the home of the temple of Artemis where they practiced cult prostitution as a form of worship. The Roman Emperor, Nero, lived as an open homosexual at the time.

So, sexual immorality was common and accepted by these people. And Paul wanted to be clear that it was imperative for the church to be separated from it, and the same thing is true in our lives today.

But I also want to point out that living the most outstanding moral life doesn’t get anyone into heaven, it’s only by the grace of God we are saved. But what is clear here is Paul is saying, practicing sexual immorality is a sign that you are not saved, and do not have a relationship with God.

But listen, even if you do not practice the things Paul is describing, Jesus raised the bar to include the way we think. Matt. 5:27-28 says, “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall not commit adultery’; but I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”

So, none of us are perfect. None of us can live up to this standard. We need the grace of God that comes through the cross of Jesus Christ so we can be forgiven and set free.

Notice Vs. 4, Paul says, “and there must be no filthiness and silly talk, or coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks.”

Isn’t that amazing? Paul says, the alternative to sexual immorality is the giving of thanks. I mean you would think Paul would say, you must try as hard as you can to be pure and holy but that’s not it at all.

He says, we need to be more thankful. We need to have a heart gratitude. Why? Because a heart of gratitude says, Lord I know that what you have in store for my life is what is best for me. And I am not going to grumble or complain but I am going to be grateful for what I have. That is the alternative Paul gives to sexual immorality.

Think about how Satan tempted Eve in the Garden of Eden. ( She could eat from every tree in the garden except one) And Satan was able to appeal to her desire for the one thing she didn’t have. instead of being grateful for what she had, she gave in.

Satan does the same thing in your life and in mine. But the Bible says be grateful for what God has given you and don’t chase after the lust of the world.

So, if you are single and burning with sexual desire pray for a mate, pray that God would bring somebody into your life that you can share your life with, and if you are married thank God for the person you have, because that is God’s design for intimacy.

Have you ever heard of the “cookie jar syndrome?” A little boy’s mother bakes a batch of cookies, and she puts them in a jar, and she tells him not to touch them until after dinner. Well, before long she hears the lid come off the cookie jar, and she says, “son what are you doing?” And a little voice answer back, “my hand is in the cookie jar resisting temptation.”

The point is none of us can resist temptation with our hand in the cookie jar. And the world we live in surrounds us with open cookie jars. Years ago, our biggest concerns were certain television shows or billboards along the highway.

Today, we walk around with cookie jars in our pockets in the form of a cell phone. But the challenge for God’s people is the same. We are called to walk in the love of Christ and not in the lust of the world.

The good news is God has given us everything we need to over come temptation and that’s what Paul teaches us in 1 Cor. 10:13 when he say, “No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it.”

God provides us with the way to escape. He says be grateful for what you have and don’t go chasing what you don’t have, because the grass is never greener on the other side.

What we learn from this passage is we are to walk in love and not live like the world. And Paul teaches us that we do that in three ways. 1. by accepting the challenge and being imitators of God. Don’t worry about the things you can’t imitate but concentrate on the things you can. Imitate His love. Imitate His forgiveness. Imitate His grace and share those things with the world.

2. Follow the example of Christ. The love of Jesus teaches us what sacrifice and commitment are all about. He willingly laid down His life so we could be saved. He loved us so much; He was willing to die because He didn’t want to live without us. The challenge for us is, can we be committed to sacrificially loving people that way.

3. We are to separate ourselves from the world. The world’s view of love is not love at all, but it is lust and that’s not God’s plan for your life. God’s plan for your life and mine are that we would be people who love because we are loved by God.

[1]Paul Lee Tan, Encyclopedia of 7,700 Illustrations [Assurance Publishers], # 1941