Be Imitators of God
Notes
Transcript
Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children; 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.
INTRO
Clarifying ad Escalating.
Imitate God.
Not obey.
Imitate.
As beloved Children.
How?
What a nebulous idea…
The answer is in v.2
“and walk in Love just as Christ…”
to walk Just as Christ means to be patterned after Christ.
or, another way to say “Imitate”
So we are to Imitate God and to do that we imitate Jesus!
Makes since.
If we are to be men imitating God, then we should look to the Perfect God/Man Jesus to see how.
Even Jesus said
Therefore Jesus answered and was saying to them, “Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in like manner.
This is the Christian Life which Christ Displayed!
The Son does what He sees His Father doing.
OR
“Be imitators of God as beloved Children”
Now, that is part one of the Intro.
The other Piece is this: What we do, we do ( ( NOT ONLY as Imitators of God in Christ ) ) but we do it for God in Christ.
What we do
is From our Father
and it is For our Father.
Look at v.2 again:
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.
Christ walked in Love
He gave himself up for us
Why?
“an offering and sacrifice TO GOD as a fragrant aroma”
From God and For God - or UNTO God.
This is summed up in 1 Corinthians 10:31 “Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”
That is the theme of the message today:
Do to the Glory of God.
the text will say “Walk as Children of the Light”
it will say “Understand the will of the Lord”
it says “Be filled with the Spirit”
it says “make melody in your heart to the Lord”
“Give Thanks to God”
All of that is to say “Do, to the Glory of God”
God loves His Glory
Isaiah 48:11 ““For My own sake, for My own sake, I will act; For how can My name be profaned? And My glory I will not give to another.”
to Imitate Him means to be about His Glory
Jesus Loves His Glory
He said “Father, Glorify your name”
To walk as he walked is to do it for God’s Glory.
So the Title is
Be Imitators of God
Walk in Love (v.2-7)
Walk as Children of the Light (v.8-14)
Walk in Wisdom (v.15-21)
+++++++ PRAY +++++++++
Walk in Love (v.2-7)
Walk in Love (v.2-7)
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. But immorality or any impurity or greed must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints; and there must be no filthiness and silly talk, or coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks. 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. Let no one deceive you with empty words, for because of these things the wrath of God comes upon the sons of disobedience. Therefore do not be partakers with them;
Walk in Love
He gave himself up for us
we were enemies (romans 5:8)
That is LOVE!
> > this verse helps us define what is loving
Jesus is the example of walking in love.
“Gave himself up for you unto God”
it means doing what is best for someone else, even at great cost to yourself.
walk that way
BUT… v.3
Why “But…”
Because we confuse Love with Affirmation.
Walking in Love does not mean Being Chums with Sin.
People don’t like this.
but the Gospel has a Separating Effect. ( this will be more obvious in vv8-14)
Walk in Love
But don’t let Immorality, Impurity, or Greed be named among you. (v.3)
because it isn’t FITTING.
Where do those fit in “Be imitators of God?”
There should be no Filthy, silly, or course jesting (v.4)
Because it isn’t FITTING.
but give thanks ( To God) .
I mentioned last week about looking like the world. That’s what this is.
Look at vv5-7
We know with certainty
“We know better so we live better”
they have no inheritance - they are not beloved children
The wrath of God is on them
Therefore do not be partakers with them.
+++
Now, rather than try to paint images for you of how to Love someone while not being a partaker with them
Let me instead help you the other way by showing how utterly unloving it is to be partakers with them.
I’m picturing a Christian, at work or on social media, at the bar or at family gatherings, who makes no effort to distance themselves from the Greed the stock market talks…
Or the crude joking of her buddies
or the impure mindest of his non-christian cousin
or the pride of the 401k and simultaneous selective blindness to the poor and homeless
Now.
You might say “How is it loving for me to separate from these people”
I say “How is it loving to partake in the same things with them?”
Jesus came, loved and lived with people, and He spent all of His time Living Differently and pointing others to do the same.
To chum it up with people in their sin, in their lostness, is not Loving- its hateful to them!!
Like being on the Titanic
Lifevest
no, you do you
To walk in love as Christ did, is to do what’s best for people - namely sharing and displaying the Gospel - even at great cost to yourself.
In the next section the Illustration of the Light and Dark will be used to help us see why this makes sense.
Walk as Children of the Light (v8-14)
Walk as Children of the Light (v8-14)
8for you were formerly darkness, but now you are Light in the Lord; walk as children of Light
9(for the fruit of the Light consists in all goodness and righteousness and truth),
10trying to learn what is pleasing to the Lord.
11Do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but instead even expose them;
12for it is disgraceful even to speak of the things which are done by them in secret.
13But all things become visible when they are exposed by the light, for everything that becomes visible is light.
14For this reason it says,
“Awake, sleeper,
And arise from the dead,
And Christ will shine on you.”
Paul uses the imagery of Light and Darkness
Lostness is like being in a pitch black room
stuff all over the floor
can’t find your way up or down
picking up and turning one way or that way - trying to make heads or tails of what you have in your hands
to be saved is to Receive a shining Light.
You can see
because you can see you now understand!
WALK in that LIGHT!
To continue in the stuff we’ve been talking about would be like clinching your eyes shut against the light and carrying on how you were… its foolish (v.17)
Walk in the LIGHT.
The fruit of Light?
Goodness
Righteousness
Truth
And NOTICE: v.11
The deeds of those in the dark are not ‘bad fruit’ - - They’re Fruitless!
They amount to nothing
> > We see this all the time now, don’t we?
Just like someone in a dark room can’t figure out what that was that touched their leg
People in darkness have difficulty answering matters of morality like
“Is it okay to kill babies?”
“What is a boy?”
BEFORE WE DARE SHAKE OUR HEADS and say “what idiots” remember that the only difference between us and them and is that Christ’s LIGHT has shone on us by his Loving, self-sacrificing Grace.
And now in turn, we shine the LIGHT.
We expose the fruitlessness of darkness
and I love v.13
But all things become visible when they are exposed by the light, for everything that becomes visible is light.
We expose not to point and make fun but to bring in the light.
“Everything that becomes visible is Light”
Snow Blindness.
We are reflectors of Light.
That’s why v.14 says “the Light of Christ will shine on you”
Walk in Wisdom (15-21)
Walk in Wisdom (15-21)
15Therefore be careful how you walk, not as unwise men but as wise,
16making the most of your time, because the days are evil.
17So then do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is.
18And do not get drunk with wine, for that is dissipation, but be filled with the Spirit,
19speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your heart to the Lord;
20always giving thanks for all things in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ to God, even the Father;
21and be subject to one another in the fear of Christ.
This is the urgency.
He’s mentioned Wrath of God
He’s mentioned exposing the darkness
He’s about to talk about submitting to one another
The days are evil.
We are not on good terms with this world.
Satan is seeking to devour your faith, and erode it however he can.
understand the will of the Lord.
And you don’t have to go on a mountain hike for 2 weeks to find it!
It’s right here.
“Be imitators of God”
“Walk in Love”
That. Is. God’s. Will.
In vv 18-21 we see the Trinity of our wisdom, of our shining LIGHT, of our Love.
v.18 - Don’t get drunk - it is of absolutely NO value.
Drunkenness has no leg to stand on, by biblical standards or even by worldly standards.
Don’t Do it.
Be Filled with the Spirit.
In chapter 6 it says the Bible is the ‘sword of the Spirit’
I like that.
Pursue God’s word, drink his word the way the world drinks Alcohol.
Then let it overflow
Singing, Psalms
making melody to the Lord.
Always giving Thanks in Jesus to God.
The heart that has no song, the heart void of thankfulness to God, is one not filled with the Spirit.
Be subject to one another in Christ…. ‘
Be imitators.
Walk in Love
Walk as Light - shining and exposing but also helping
Walk Wisely
To God
Filled with the Spirit
In Christ Jesus.