"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." (Ephesians 5:1-2) "For you were once darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth), finding out what is acceptable to the Lord. And have no fellowship with the unfruitful works of darkness, but rather expose them." (Ephesians 5:8-11) "See then that you walk circumspectly, not as fools but as wise, redeeming the time, because the days are evil. Therefore do not be unwise, but understand what the will of the Lord is." (Ephesians 5:15-17) There are three main things that we are instructed to walk in according to Ephesians chapter 5. Love, light, and wisdom. Instead of picking just one of the above verses and discussing it, I decided to talk about all three. Let's go: Walk in love. Paul opens chapter five of his letter to Ephesus by encouraging the readers to be imitators of God like dear children. If you've ever been around kids for very long, you know how quickly they can start imitating what they see or hear. Or maybe you remember this from when you were a little kid. I can still remember how easily I was influenced by everything I read as a child. If I read a book about horses, I would imitate the story by taking my trusted stick horse and "galloping" around the house in an exciting "race." Kids imitate what they see. When Paul says to be imitators of God and walk in love, he's encouraging us to imitate the character of God. God is love. (1 John 4:8) So everything He does is out of love and in love. Love is His character--it's who He is. So let's live more like Him. Let's imitate that love. Let's love unconditionally. Let's love sacrificially. Let's make love a habit. Because walking is a habit isn't it? It's something we've learned to do and we can do it without even thinking. Let love flow out of you in that way too. Walk in light. Before Christ, the world was in darkness. We were in darkness. Chapter 5 verse 8 says that we were once darkness but now we are light in the Lord. In John 8:12 we're told, "Then Jesus spoke to them again, saying, 'I am the Light of the world. He who follows Me shall not walk in darkness, but have the light of life." When Jesus came He rescued us from the darkness. He set us free and gave us light. Now it's our responsibility to walk in that light. Why experience freedom from the darkness, simply to go back and keep on walking in the darkness? When we walk in the light, we're living as His precious children and we're walking more like Him. Stay in the Word of God. By staying in the Word you're keeping your mind in the light (Psalm 119:105) and learning how to walk according to God's plan for your life. Walk in wisdom. When instructed here to walk in wisdom, the main way we are encouraged to do that is by redeeming our time. Time goes so fast. Don't you agree? I mean, I'm looking at the February calendar and I am still wondering where January went. These minutes and days and months...they go by so fast. But they are what make up our lives. And if we're not using our time--those minutes, days, and months--wisely, then we are wasting our lives. It is true that these days are evil. And it is true that we never know when our last day on earth will be. Make them count. Walk with eternity in mind, using your time for the Kingdom of God. Live for God's glory. Don't waste these days. What are your thoughts on walking in love, walking in light, and walking in wisdom? What are some ways that you can use your time wisely? What are some things that you learned from this chapter? Share your thoughts in the comments below!
2 Comments
2/15/2018 02:53:59 pm
I loved this chapter and your study, Bella! This chapter was so awesome and filled with wisdom! Walking in light, as He is in the light is so important. I think it's like how we were, like you said, in darkness, in our sinful wretchedness but Jesus came in and through Him we can be light! Why would be go back to the darkness when we have been bought by such a price (Jesus)? Walking in the light is so important, I think it also means to always be an example of God's love, shining light in our everyday lives - like my magazine title, LOL!
Reply
Bella Morganthal
2/18/2018 03:28:04 pm
Thank you so much for sharing your thoughts and feedback, my friend! I have loved reading everything you've shared during this study :) Amen to everything you said! <3
Reply
Leave a Reply. |
Archives
October 2019
Categories |