Imitating God

Anthony Delgado

Sermon • Submitted 4 years ago

Ephesians 5:1–5

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1st Thread: Who inherits the Kingdom of Christ?

1 Therefore, be imitators of God, as dearly loved children, 2 and walk in love, as Christ also loved us and gave himself for us, a sacrificial and fragrant offering to God...5 For know and recognize this: Every … idolater, does not have an inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.

5 For know and recognize this: Every … idolater, does not have an inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.

What is the Kingdom of Christ? (v. 5)

Christian Standard Bible (Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers, 2017), .

Variants: of God, of Christ, of heaven

Jesus’s Kingdom to Rule Over

The Kingdom is Heavenly (NoTW, John 18:36)

Kingdom is a present reality that comes through Jesus

Kingdom presence is not Kingdom reality—The Kingdom is yet a future reality

ILL: Born a US citizen in a foreign country—you have the rights of a citizen even though the reign of your country doesn’t in every way fully extend to your current circumstances.

Promises of the future kingdom

Every knee will bow to Jesus ()

Sin no longer has any power

New Heaven/Earth — no more curse on the creation

Glorified bodies — no more curse on humanity

The Garden/Paradise realized

Who inherits the Kingdom of Christ? (dearly loved children who imitate God)

Those who follow Jesus alone (cf. idolotry is when you follow another god besides Jesus—either Jesus is king or he isn’t) (5)

The godly not the good (inference of imitating God; the point is to be like him not to simply do good things)

Question: Do good people go to heaven?

Those who imitate their Father, God, as children

How? (dearly loved children who walk in love—imitating Jesus)

The Idolotry

walk in love

2nd Thread: Who doesn’t inherit the Kingdom?

Active cf. James

love as Christ loved (relative standards)

TREY: Who are the idolaters? cf. vv. 3-5

Sacrificial

love others as an offering to God

Focus on how we can walk in love in order to imitate God instead of be idolaters in each situation:

sexual immorality replaced with purity

Greed (talk) replaced with giving thanks

Intro: Imitation

obscene and foolish talk replaced with edification and encouragement

Bad connotation of imitation (cheap imitations are bad)

Everyone imitates something/someone

The Idolotry

Kids imitate their parents and siblings

Peer pressure exists because we want to imitate our peers to gain their approval

Sexual immorality

Greed

We don’t imitate everything—what you do imitate says a lot about what you love

Identity with Christ

Body

Sexual immorality -> purity

Imitate God — as Children Imitate their Parents (1)

1 Therefore, be imitators of God, as dearly loved children

Greed -> give thanks

God’s children are dearly loved (God is not an impersonal sovereign)

Platonic Cosmology: Visible things are a copy of invisible things.

IOW—everything happening in this world is a reflection of cosmic realities in the spiritual.

Good (God) and bad (angels, demons, etc.) cosmic powers.

Child of the devil vs. child of God — Everything you could imitate in this world reflects the true and righteous God or the influence of the dark cosmic powers.

Walk in Love—example of imitation (2)

2 and walk in love, as Christ also loved us and gave himself for us, a sacrificial and fragrant offering to God

God/Christ loved us, so we love others (imitation)

Jesus’ sacrifice (full gospel)

So we sacrifice for others

Sacrifice Hurts

Self-sacrifice is our offering to God (cf. OT offerings)

fragrant = pleasing

Don’t Imitate Idols — God or Idols? (5)

5 For know and recognize this: Every … idolater, does not have an inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God.

difference between godliness (imitation) and goodness (general revelation)

Faith is following Jesus as LORD (King) and Savior

To simply be a descent person isn’t enough; it’s submitting to the right king that counts

Idolotry is when you are — intentionally or unintentionally — imitating anything besides God.