Imitators of GOd

Revelation 3:20 says, “Here I am! I stand at the door and knock, If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me.” Generally, this verse is understood to be speaking to the nonbeliever. But if the whole passage is read, one sees that Jesus is speaking to the Church in Laodicea, a body of believers. This church was rebuked for being lukewarm. There was not a fervent love for God among these people. They were content with the worldly goods and positions they had acquired and did not realize their need of God. Jesus, speaking through John, calls them to be earnest and repent. It is then that he tells them that he desires them to open their hearts to him and have fellowship with him.

I, as can many of you, relate to this passage. There are so many things by which we measure and define ourselves in today’s culture. For women, the ideal is obvious: thin, in charge, independent and beautiful. Success is measured by wealth and status for men and women alike. The media is largely responsible for these messages we receive. Spirituality is an afterthought, if it is portrayed at all. Many times religious people are portrayed as bigoted, uncaring, if not mentally unstable. If we choose these standards to measure ourselves by, we will be lacking in the eyes of God. We need a different yard stick.

Many times Christians will measure themselves by other believers in their lives. This is all well and good, for Paul even said in Philippians 3:17, “Join with others in following my example, brothers, and take note of those who live according to the pattern we gave you. We are to teach and learn by example one of another; however, even this will cause one to fall short of the call of God on his or her life. Paul says also in Philippians 3: 12, “but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me.” Our goal should be Christ’s goal for us. Each of us has a purpose for which we were created, and the only way to discover that purpose is through intimate fellowship with Christ.

Paul calls us to, “Be imitators of God, therefore as dearly loved children, and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. (Ephesians 5:1)” Christ left us an example that is the supreme measure by which we should judge ourselves. We will either become lax when comparing ourselves to each other, or become embroiled in condemnation when we feel we don’t measure up to someone else’s call. Let God be your judge. Hear his voice and open your very being to him. He would not have called us to “be holy, because I am holy, (I Pet 1:15)” if it were not possible. One cannot not follow that which he does not know.