How to Live as an Imitator of God

Introduction Illustration about playing basketball in the basement and the garage door installers! Imitating the teams that I loved.

Oscar Wilde said, “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery that mediocrity can pay to greatness.”

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Would you take your Bibles and turn with me to Ephesians 5? That is page __149________ of the back section of the Bible located under the chair in front of you.

In many ways much of what we have talked about so far this year in our churches study on the Building on Our Heritage has to do with imitation.

Our church was founded 60 years ago with a desire to imitate Christ in a compassion and love for our city, and a desire to reach this city with the Gospel.

Our church’s leadership has continued to imitate the resolve and character of those who started the church and we continue to seed to reach the city with the Gospel.

For the majority of this year we have talked about the book of Ephesians and focused in on some very practical teaching on the Gospel of salvation as well as some detailed instruction on how to live our lives in light of the Gospel change that has happened for us.

We just spent the last few weeks talking about 2 very aspects of doing this.

The doctrine of Progressive Sanctification with the principle of Putting off the things that weigh us down and replacing it by Putting On the things that lead us to following the Lord.

We also discussed some Rules of Communication to help us do that in our day in and day out communication.

You may have walked away thinking about how difficult those concepts are already to try to master.

I mean how easy it is to fall back into some of the old ways of doing things.

So I put on what I should have put off or I put off what I should have put on.

It is really easy to withhold the truth in our conversation, or to attack the person instead of attacking the problem.

Now with these thoughts fresh in our mind, let’s look at our text for today.

“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.” (Ephesians 5:1–2, NASB95)

Today’s message is entitled, How to Live as Imitators of God. With our remaining time we are going to look for Two Characteristics Necessary to Live Life as an Imitator of God

I. Imitate God (5:1)

“Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children;” (Ephesians 5:1, NASB95)

Sounds pretty easy, right?

Just imitate God.

So how does this passage suggest that you imitate God?

Like a child imitates their father

I have mentioned before in sermons the intense love and admiration I have for my own father.

When I describe my father, I often refer to him as my hero.

He is such a great father.

As a kid he was faithful to correct me in a way that would often leave me thankful for his watchful instructions.

In fact before he would discipline me, I remember him saying, This is hurts me more than it hurts you. And I would think, well then let me discipline you so I can really get the punishment I deserve.

But even now in my adult years, I am privileged to have my dad as my next door neighbor, and I love the conversations with wisdom that he shares with me.

My dad was a volunteer prison chaplain for most of my life.

I wanted to love and care for those who a lot of people had given up on.

My dad is faithful to church, and I have always held to the importance of church attendance.

My dad serves to his own discomfort and sacrifice, and it is my goal to do the same every day.

In many ways, the reason I am in full time ministry is due to the desire to imitate my father.

This leads me to a couple of thoughts for us to consider about our imitation.

“The command to imitate God is breathtaking to us, but it is a thoroughly biblical idea and not unusual in Jewish or Greek thought. Although other texts may not be this explicit, the Bible assumes that God’s covenant people take their character from him. Leviticus 19 is perhaps the most striking text, for the Israelites are commanded to be holy because God is holy. At least fourteen times in that chapter a command to Israel is followed by the words “I am the Lord,” to show that ethical action is determined by God’s character.” (Klyne Snodgrass, Ephesians, The NIV Application Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 1996), 252.”

Notice the emphasis on the reasons for imitating God in these verses:

““You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ “But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven; for He causes His sun to rise on the evil and the good, and sends rain on the righteous and the unrighteous. “For if you love those who love you, what reward do you have? Do not even the tax collectors do the same? “If you greet only your brothers, what more are you doing than others? Do not even the Gentiles do the same? “Therefore you are to be perfect, as your heavenly Father is perfect.” (Matthew 5:43–48, NASB95)

What is the motivation for not just loving your neighbor, but also loving your enemy?

Even if they are fans of the wrong team

Even in a political disagreement

Even in a work place environment.

Why do we love our enemies?

To be like our heavenly Father.

““Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful.” (Luke 6:36, NASB95)

Why should we be merciful?

Because our Father is merciful.

How do I know who I am most likely to imitate?

You imitate who you admire.

Mark this down you are imitating a master. You cannot imitate 2 masters.

Let’s take a little test.

Who are you imitating?

Are you imitating the Prince of the Power of the Air?

“And you were dead in your trespasses and sins, in which you formerly walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience.” (Ephesians 2:1–2, NASB95)

So, if I am most admiring the philosophies of this world then what am I most likely to be imitating?

“So this I say, and affirm together with the Lord, that you walk no longer just as the Gentiles also walk, in the futility of their mind,” (Ephesians 4:17, NASB95)

Mark this down: you will end up imitating what you admire.

My sons love sports and they play baseball and basketball:

One of the things that cracks me up as I watch baseball or basketball is the way kids imitate the stars in their sport.

Ground ball, bad throw to first and there is the young man who made the throw thumping their chest and making all sorts of gestures like they are a first ballot hall of famer.

Kid who banked in a wide open three pointer and ran down the court doing the same 3 point celebrations that they see the pros doing.

Why do they do this?

Because the people they admire do it.

Here is a practical application for you to consider.

If you fill your mind with things that are contrary to what you know God would want you to fill your mind with, then do not be surprised when you end up imitating some of those things.

Parents, when you allow entertainment in your house that is contrary to what you would counsel your kids to do, then do not be surprised when your kids end up imitating you.

You will imitate who you admire.

What if you instead of admiring the things of this world would admire the things of God?

A person who imitates (or the Greek word could be better translated mimic) does not just pick up general patterns, but rather follows some specific characteristics.

How do we grow though to mimic the specific characteristics of God.

We have to first be able to rest in the ways that the specific characteristic changes us.

“We try to imitate an attribute of God before we find security in it. When we do this, each quality of God becomes an intimidating standard rather than a source of refuge.” – Brad Hambrick

Clean this up and explain better.

“Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is.” (1 John 3:2, NASB95)

“As obedient children, do not be conformed to the former lusts which were yours in your ignorance, but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior; because it is written, “You shall be holy, for I am holy.”” (1 Peter 1:14–16, NASB95)

This is nothing that we could ever achieve simply by deciding that we are going to be holy today.

You can give all of the best effort that you want to this goal of being holy, but at the end of the day you will find yourself falling time after time in your desire if it is merely based on your effort or your sincerity.

This is why in chapter 3 of Ephesians we were reminded of this.

“that He would grant you, according to the riches of His glory, to be strengthened with power through His Spirit in the inner man,” (Ephesians 3:16, NASB95)

Wrap it up!

Like you are His beloved child

The second half of verse 1 is packed with some of the most powerful motivation for the reasons why we should imitate God.

Imitate God like you are one of his beloved children.

The book of Ephesians is packed with some imagery of us becoming an adopted member of the family.

“He predestined us to adoption as sons through Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the kind intention of His will,” (Ephesians 1:5, NASB95)

“So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God’s household,” (Ephesians 2:19, NASB95)

“For this reason I bow my knees before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name,” (Ephesians 3:14–15, NASB95)

What an incredible motivation for us to imitate our Father in heaven.

We have been chosen by God to be a part of His family.

In that choosing, he has promised to love us as part of His family.

And as a result of that choosing, He gives us security as a cherished member of His family.

We have gone from being a stranger and an alien to accepted and welcomed.

As a result of being in the family of God, You should begin to look like your family.

“For if you were to have countless tutors in Christ, yet you would not have many fathers, for in Christ Jesus I became your father through the gospel. Therefore I exhort you, be imitators of me.” (1 Corinthians 4:15–16, NASB95)

There are certain things that I hope those who are in my family are likely to imitate.

They vary in their importances:

A love for the Chicago Cubs

A desire to serve others

And a love for the Lord

If you find yourself evaluating your actual living out of verse 1 to be an imitator of God and find yourself lacking, let me encourage you to start acting like you are part of the family as a beloved child of God.

This leads us to our second Characteristic:

II. Walk in Love. (5:2)

“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.” (Ephesians 5:2, NASB95)

Why do we need to walk in love?

Because He first loved us.

“In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” (1 John 4:10, NASB95)

“For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.” (Romans 5:7–10, NASB95)

Gospel appeal

Consider these proofs of Christ’s love for us:

Sacrifice demonstrates the depth of the love

Christ died for us.

The fact we did not deserve His love shows the enormity of His love.

His love secured for us the greatest gift that could ever be given.

A gift given that is not super valuable and you kind of had to earn it is obviously not a gift out of love.

A gift of a need that is a huge addition to your life and you did nothing for it is a demonstration of the enormity of their love for you.

Christ loved us without any obligation to love us. He willingly laid down His own life for us.

Because He sacrificed for us.

“We know love by this, that He laid down His life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren.” (1 John 3:16, NASB95)

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Because He is a fragrant aroma to God.

Explain the idea of this fragrant aroma.

What is our aroma?

““I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me.” (Galatians 2:20, NASB95)