August 9, 2018
“Ephesians 5”
Light is a frequent topic/theme is scripture.
John’s gospel declares (referring to Jesus, the Word) “In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.” (NIV)
Living in the light is equated with knowledge, purity, goodness, righteousness, truth, and bearing good fruit. That is in contrast to living in the dark; which is equated with foolishness, brawling, slander, jealousy, greed, idolatry and immorality. Living in the way of the Light leads to life, but living in the dark leads to death.
Paul picks up this theme in Ephesians 5 as he instructs the early church on how to live as followers of Jesus. As always, he points to Jesus as the proper model of how to live the good life. He begins this chapter by challenging the believers to “be imitators of God”. How can we possibly imitate God? Well, he continues, “…live a life of love, just as Christ loved us…”
As we begin this second section of Ephesians, and we hear specific instructions on how to live, let us always remember that Jesus is the model for our lives. Not an easy example to follow. Seriously… who promised that this would be easy? But is it worth the effort? Yes, absolutely!
Do! Do! Doodley Do!
“Ephesians 5”
Light is a frequent topic/theme is scripture.
John’s gospel declares (referring to Jesus, the Word) “In him was life, and that life was the light of men. The light shines in the darkness, but the darkness has not understood it.” (NIV)
Living in the light is equated with knowledge, purity, goodness, righteousness, truth, and bearing good fruit. That is in contrast to living in the dark; which is equated with foolishness, brawling, slander, jealousy, greed, idolatry and immorality. Living in the way of the Light leads to life, but living in the dark leads to death.
Paul picks up this theme in Ephesians 5 as he instructs the early church on how to live as followers of Jesus. As always, he points to Jesus as the proper model of how to live the good life. He begins this chapter by challenging the believers to “be imitators of God”. How can we possibly imitate God? Well, he continues, “…live a life of love, just as Christ loved us…”
As we begin this second section of Ephesians, and we hear specific instructions on how to live, let us always remember that Jesus is the model for our lives. Not an easy example to follow. Seriously… who promised that this would be easy? But is it worth the effort? Yes, absolutely!
Do! Do! Doodley Do!