Imitators of God
Ephesians: Alive in Christ • Sermon • Submitted
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Transcript
Introduction
Good evening students! It is so good to see each and everyone here tonight. I pray that you have had a good week. Tonight, we will be continuing in our study through the book of Ephesians. We finished up chapter 4 last week, so this week we will pick up in Ephesians 5.
As you are turning to Ephesians 5, I want you to think about someone that you look up to and think is worthy of being imitated. As I thought about this throughout the week, I was reminded of several men that I look up to in my life. Whenever I was in elementary and middle school, I used to look up to Tom Brady. Brady was the GOAT in football then and is still the GOAT in football now. He is way better than Patrick Mahomes despite what everyone in y’all’s generation claims. What I always liked about Tom Brady was that he did not talk bad about an opponent or speak arrogantly toward other player he played against. Brady just went out on the field and the way he played football spoke for itself.
As I grew old, I began to mature in the faith and started looking up to other men that are godly men such as John MacArthur, David Platt, other pastors, and my dad. However, in tonight’s passage we are called to be imitators of God. You may have heard the old phrase, “Like father like son.” As children of God, we are called to be imitators of our Heavenly Father, God. This is Paul’s exhortation to the believers in Ephesus.
Look with me at Ephesians 5
1 Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. 2 And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
3 But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints. 4 Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving. 5 For you may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure, or who is covetous (that is, an idolater), has no 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 become partners with them; 8 for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light 9 (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), 10 and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. 11 Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. 12 For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret. 13 But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, 14 for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says,
“Awake, O sleeper,
and arise from the dead,
and Christ will shine on you.”
15 Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. 18 And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, 19 addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, 20 giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, 21 submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.
Pray.
Remember, Paul has just finished talking to the Ephesian believers about putting off the old self which is how they used to live. Paul then encouraged these believers to put on the new self which is the new life we have in Christ in which we seek to live for God and according to His Word. Now, Paul continues to instruct these believers and us in how we are to walk in love as imitators of God. This leads us to point number 1.
Be imitators of God walking in love.
Be imitators of God walking in love.
Let’s take a look back at verse 1-2.
1 Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. 2 And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.
Paul calls for these Ephesian believers who are walking according to the new self to be imitators of God as God’s children. Those who have placed their faith in Jesus Christ are children of God. As children of God, Paul calls for believers to imitate God. This points us back to our introduction. The phrase, “Like Father, like son.” God is our Father and as children we are to be imitators of Him. Everything that God does, we are to seek to do the same thing. God is pure and holy; therefore, we are to be pure and holy. As God’s children, we are to be like God the Father in how we live our lives.
Paul also calls us to walk in the love as Christ loved us. Notice, Paul has called us to be imitators of God. Then, Paul points to the second person of the trinity, God the Son, Jesus Christ. We are called to live or walk in the love of Christ. Jesus loved us so much so that He went to the cross for our sins to be paid for. Jesus took our place on the cross. That is an easy way to remember the Gospel. “Jesus in my place.” Jesus loves us so much so that He came down from heaven to live among sinful humanity. Even as He lived among sinful humanity, He never once sin. Yet, Jesus died on the cross taking our punishment from God upon Himself that we might be saved. That is the love of Jesus Christ. That is the love that Paul calls these Ephesian believers to live according to. Moreover, Paul is calling you and me as modern believers to live according to the same kind of love. Jesus loved us sacrificially. Therefore, we are to love others as Christ has loved us.
As we live as children of God seeking to walk in the love of Christ, we are called to put away immorality and impurity. Let’s look back at verses 3-6.
3 But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints. 4 Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving. 5 For you may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure, or who is covetous (that is, an idolater), has no 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.
As Paul has called for these Ephesian believers and us to be imitators of God, he speaks to how Christians are to be above reproach. You see, God is holy and righteous and perfect. God is not capable of sinning. While we are sinners, we are called to be holy and imitate God. We are only able to do so through faith in Jesus Christ the Son.
44 For I am the Lord your God. Consecrate yourselves therefore, and be holy, for I am holy. You shall not defile yourselves with any swarming thing that crawls on the ground.
Here, Scripture clearly calls for the people of Israel in the Old Testament to be holy as God is holy. Furthermore, we see the same thing in the New Testament.
16 since it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”
We as Christians are called to imitate God as He is holy. Therefore, we are to be above reproach or as close to being like Christ as possible. Paul gives us specifics about what is appropriate for the saints or Christians.
We as Christians are to not even had sexual immorality, covetousness, or foolish talk even hear about among us. What that means is that we are to refrain from immorality.
First, Paul mentions sexual immorality. Paul uses the term covetousness which speaks of sexual immorality as well. Covetousness in this verse refers to the desire for someone else or lust. These Ephesian believers lived in a time much like our modern culture. Ephesus was a port city that celebrate all sorts of immorality especially sexual immorality. So, Paul writes to encourage these believers and he is encouraging them that such things must not even be named among the believers. Paul knew of the sexual immorality that took place in Ephesus, and he writes to these believers urging them to refrain from sexual immorality to the point of not even speaking of it.
R. Kent Hughes writes, “there was cultural acceptance of sexual perversion as a valid, and even exalted, way of life…They (Ephesian believers) should also refrain from discussing and rehashing the sins and immoralities of others.”
Paul warned of the sexual immorality that was rampant in Ephesus, and this is extremely applicable to us today. As young men and women in an ever increasing sinful culture, it is important that we address the issue of sexual immorality. Sexual immorality is all over our TV, magazines, billboards, books, and schools. Our politics seeks to even allow for such immorality. As y’all are in high school the temptations are always in your face. Sexual immorality runs rampant in our culture and is even worshipped in our culture. Because of this, it is oftentimes confusing and hard for young Christians to know what is right and wrong.
Let me encourage you to stay strong in your faith and draw near to God. God will provide a way of escape from every temptation. Look back at verse 5 for a moment.
Notice what it says:
5 For you may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure, or who is covetous (that is, an idolater), has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.
As Christians, you are forgiven of sin. My encouragement to you is to remember that you have been for given of your sin, and understand that sexual immorality is not to be found among believers and is not acceptable to God. God has clearly outlined what is reserved for marriage within His Word.
Scripture does not speak to dating much because dating did not really exist in the first century. Scripture primarily speaks to marriage and that is where we derive the biblical view of dating. If you are dating and both of you are Christians, remember that you are a brother and sister in Christ called to honor Him at all costs. Therefore, you are not to do anything that would cause the other to stumble in his or her relationship with Christ. If you are a Christian, there is no need to date someone that is not a Christian. It will only lead down a road to sinfulness as overwhelming temptation is found in such relationship.
As God has called for a married couple to be equally yoked meaning for both to be Christians, there is no need for a believer to date a non believer, and if you do not anticipate marriage, there is not need to date that particular person. Therefore, my ultimate encouragement to you is to keep yourself pure before God seeking to grow and strengthen your relationship with Christ each and every day.
Watch out for what you watch on TV
Watch out for the music you listen to
Watch out for what you look at on social media
Watch out for the conversations your have with your friends.
Watch out in your dating relationships to honor God no matter what.
Whenever we do fall to such sin, we are called to repent and turn to God no longer to practice such sin. Upon repentance we will be forgiven. So, if we do practice any sin without repentance, we will not inherit the kingdom of God. However, if we do repent and place our faith in Christ, we will be forgiven of sin and have eternal life.
Look back at verse 4
4 Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving.
Guard your speech. Seek to honor God with every word that your speak. This is not to say that you cannot enjoy humor; however, be careful in what humor you listen to. For instance, the more and more you listen to things that are sinful the more and more your mind drifts to sinful thoughts which will eventually give way to sinful actions.
You must guard yourself and seek to stay close to God by seeking out the Word, prayer, and worship of Jesus Christ at all cost. This will lead to a better defense against sexual immorality. We must exalt God and not sin
We are to walk as children of light.
We are to walk as children of light.
Look back with me at verses 7-14
7 Therefore do not become partners with them; 8 for at one time you were darkness, but now you are light in the Lord. Walk as children of light 9 (for the fruit of light is found in all that is good and right and true), 10 and try to discern what is pleasing to the Lord. 11 Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. 12 For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret. 13 But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, 14 for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says,
“Awake, O sleeper,
and arise from the dead,
and Christ will shine on you.”
As Paul continues to write to these Ephesian believers, he reminds them and us that at one time we were in darkness or living in sin. However, we have been called out of sin and are now called to walk in the light. What that means is that we are no longer to walk according to the sinful self which would be things such as sexual immorality, lying, stealing, foolish talk, and idolatry. We are called to live according to the Word of God above all else. That means we are to put away sin and live in the light.
Jesus said that He is the light of the world. This passage of Scripture tells us that we as Christians are now light in the Lord.
Think of the moon. The moon reflects the light of the sun in order to provide light to earth. That is the same with the church and Christians. Jesus is the Light or the Son that shine in the believer. We simply reflect the light of Christ in a sinful, broken world. In doing so, we do not partake in the sinfulness of the world. Instead, we are different from the world. We live according to God’s Word which is completely opposite of the world. Therefore, we must continually be exposed to God’s Word and prayer with God in order to continually be light in our dark world.
This passage of Scripture calls us to live lives of godly character. I am reminded of Billy Graham who always sought to live a life of godly character. He would do practical things in order to avoid sin and temptation at all cost. That is exactly what we are called to do. When others are cussing, gossiping, or sharing inappropriate jokes, remove yourself from the conversation. Seek to remain close to God in every way.
Look back at verses 11-14
11 Take no part in the unfruitful works of darkness, but instead expose them. 12 For it is shameful even to speak of the things that they do in secret. 13 But when anything is exposed by the light, it becomes visible, 14 for anything that becomes visible is light. Therefore it says,
“Awake, O sleeper,
and arise from the dead,
and Christ will shine on you.”
As Christians, we are to expose sin. We are to be walking and living in light as imitators of God. This is not a call to be judgmental; however, this is a call to call sin what it is. Our society seeks to avoid calling things sin such as homosexuality and sexual immorality. However, as Christians, we are to stand on God’s Word and expose sin. As Paul writes in this passage, we are to wake up from the dead and allow for Christ to shine on us. May we as Christians live out God’s Word avoiding sin and exposing sin being a light in our dark world as imitators of Christ.
Love one another as you submit to Christ.
Love one another as you submit to Christ.
15 Look carefully then how you walk, not as unwise but as wise, 16 making the best use of the time, because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. 18 And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, 19 addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, 20 giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, 21 submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.
Paul reminds us and the Ephesian believers that we must be careful at how we walk. As Christians, Paul calls for us to walk in wisdom. Wisdom is found in the Word of God. Let us walk in the wisdom of God’s Word seeking to honor Him by abstaining from sexual immorality, foolish speech, and covetousness making the best use of the time we are here on this earth. Paul then writes that we are not to be foolish but to understand the will of the Lord. We can do so by diving into God’s Word each and every day. God’s will is that we glorify Him and live His Word.
Then, Paul point blank calls for these Ephesian believers and for us to not get drunk but to be filled with the Spirit and address on another through singing. Guess what? As we are the church, each one of us, who are in Christ, are filled with the Holy Spirit and this verse is why we sing. Whenever we sing, we sing to praise God and we sing to encourage one another. We sing to praise God as we are thankful for what He has done for us on the cross. Then, we sing to encourage one another as we sing the truths of Scripture to each other. Therefore, we are to sing as the church when we are gathered.
Lastly, we as believers called to be imitators of God are to submit to one another in Christ. As each of seeks to live according to the will of God as imitators of God, we are called to submit to one another out of reverence for Christ.
Look with me at John 13:14-16
14 If I then, your Lord and Teacher, have washed your feet, you also ought to wash one another’s feet. 15 For I have given you an example, that you also should do just as I have done to you. 16 Truly, truly, I say to you, a servant is not greater than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him.
This is the way in which we are to submit to one another. We as believers and brothers and sisters in Christ are to live for one another seeking to serve Christ first and serve others. May we love one another as Christ has loved us.
Invitation:
Christians-Forsake sexual immorality. Submit to one another as imitators of Christ.
NonChristian-The call is clear that sinners will not inherit the kingdom of God. Whether you have fallen to sexual immorality, foolish talk, or any other sin, the only way to be forgive is through Jesus Christ. Share the Gospel.