By Robert L. Olsen, Ph.D.
Assistant Professor of Christian Studies, University of Mobile
Walking in Love
Ephesians 5:1–14
Imitate (1–2)
One of the roles of parents is to model proper behavior for their children. A parent who cheats the government and speaks ill of other people is teaching his or her children to do the same. Since we have a perfect Father in heaven we can see how He views the world by reading Scripture. One of the ways we imitate God is by loving one another sacrificially.
As Christians we are called to love in a way that is different than the way the world loves. We are to love unconditionally whereas the world teaches to love conditionally. If God loved us conditionally none of us would be loved. We are all unlovable, yet in spite of this God loves us (Rom. 5:8).
Since we have been chosen by God and are His adopted children we are to imitate our heavenly Father’s love for us. In John 13:35, Jesus tells His disciples that love for one another is the means by which the world will recognize us as Jesus’ disciples.
Isolate (3–7)
Another way to imitate God is in how we live. Several generations ago it was more difficult to distinguish Christians from the rest of society in how they lived. American society was influenced heavily by Christianity especially since the time of the Second Great Awakening in the 1800s.
However, as American society moved further and further from a Christian mindset it became easier to distinguish a Christian from secular society.
Society has gloried in sexual promiscuity as witnessed by prime-time television and movies. While this is a horrible devolution of American culture it does help Christians distinguish themselves from society.
The more society moves away from moral living the more Christians stand out in society. Now that society has turned against Christianity people no longer flippantly take the label of Christian and it allows the Church to present a clear depiction of the gospel.
Illuminate (8–14)
In our modern context we need to live in a way that causes us to stand out. Christians need to take a firm stance on sexual purity not giving in to the pressures of society. The same goes for how we speak.
We need to avoid coarse joking and language that downgrades others. In the time of the apostles some were teaching that since we are saved by grace we can sin and not worry about punishment. However, Paul is clear that false teaching like this results in condemnation. We need to be on guard today against false teaching. For example, many mainline denominations have changed their views on homosexual behavior to match the teaching of the culture.
However, it will not stop there. These same churches, which have abandoned the gospel, may also now be more susceptible to the ideology behind transgenderism and eventually things like pedophilia. These churches possess nothing to offer a lost and dying world. Instead of being a doctor to the culture they simply provide a mirror to the culture. Christianity gives us the means to assess a culture but not be changed by the culture.
In contrast to living as the world Christians need to evaluate the culture, exposing the parts of the culture that are harmful. This needs to be done in an appropriate way (1 Pet. 3:15) where Christians are salt and light in the world (Matt. 5:13–14).
Just as salt when applied to a wound is painful or just as light hurts your eyes when you’ve been in the dark, Christianity is often an offense to the world. But just as light exposes dirt, Christianity (the Bible) is the standard to evaluate right and wrong in the culture. Since the beginning of the Christian faith Christians have stood on the Bible against the culture, showing the culture right and wrong and representing Christ in a loving way.
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