Imitate God!

We find these verses in Ephesians 5:

Imitate God, therefore, in everything you do, because you are his dear children. Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ. He loved us and offered himself as a sacrifice for us, a pleasing aroma to God. (Ephesians 5:1-2, NLT)

As God’s dear children we are told to imitate Him. It’s natural for a child to imitate a parent who gives love and acceptance freely, but trying to imitate God is certainly difficult as we have never seen Him.

It goes on to explain: “Live a life filled with love, following the example of Christ.” This makes a bit more sense. We have a lot more information about Jesus and He did say if we have seen Him, we have seen the Father (aka God).

So imitating God is following Jesus’ example of living a life of love. And just in case we miss what that means Paul specifically refers to Jesus’ loving so much He willingly sacrificed His life for us.

So following Jesus’ example of living a life of love means being willing to lay our lives down in order to share His love with others.

And no where in the Bible does God let us off the hook on this. This is what it means to follow Jesus.

This, of course, is impossible on our own. We don’t have this kind of love, nor can we create it.

It comes from being with Jesus day by day and letting Him transform our heart.

It comes from saying yes to the invitation Jesus extends, when He said:

“Come to me, all of you who are weary and carry heavy burdens, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you. Let me teach you, because I am humble and gentle at heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy to bear, and the burden I give you is light.”  (Matthew 11:28-30, NLT)

Jesus invites you to come to Him just as you are – no pre-cleanup needed – and then stay with Him. He want you to become His partner and as His partner, He will teach you how to live in harmony with His plan.

He does; however, ask to be the managing partner – the teacher, mentor, and guide. If you will stick with Him for the long haul, He will make the miracle of Ephesians 5:1-2 happen in your life.

Hang in there with Him. Looking back on it, you will never regret it!