I've been reading in the book of Ephesians (one of my favorite epistles). Chapter five is one of the most impacting for me. Here is a sampling of vs. 1-5:
Be Imitators of God5 Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children; 2 and walk in love, just as Christ also loved [a]you and gave Himself up for us, anoffering and a sacrifice to God [b]as a fragrant aroma.
3 But immorality [c]or any impurity or greed must not even be named among you, as is proper among [d]saints; 4 and there must be nofilthiness and silly talk, or coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks. 5 For this you know with certainty, that no[e]immoral or impure person or covetous man, who is an idolater, has an inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.
The key here is the idea that God has set apart (we set ourselves apart each day?) a people in which there is to be a certain kind of behavior - one that is reflective of who God is. The good news (which is something I love about the Bible and God) is that we are not left to wonder what to replace that behavior with . . . Paul makes it clear that we replace that old behavior with a constant state of thanksgiving.
I gotta be honest - I have no idea of how to do this. Don't get me wrong, I know how to be thankful and I know how to identify things I am thankful for. But a constant state of thanks (which is the implication in vs. 4) that is something I need to work on. I think that this is a spiritual discipline and one that I need to develop. It reminds of the verse in Romans where it says you need to be changed by the renewing of the mind. We have to train our mind to be thankful at every moment. When we do this we push out the behavior that is not "proper among the saints!"
That sounds good, right?
Be Imitators of God5 Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children; 2 and walk in love, just as Christ also loved [a]you and gave Himself up for us, anoffering and a sacrifice to God [b]as a fragrant aroma.
3 But immorality [c]or any impurity or greed must not even be named among you, as is proper among [d]saints; 4 and there must be nofilthiness and silly talk, or coarse jesting, which are not fitting, but rather giving of thanks. 5 For this you know with certainty, that no[e]immoral or impure person or covetous man, who is an idolater, has an inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.
The key here is the idea that God has set apart (we set ourselves apart each day?) a people in which there is to be a certain kind of behavior - one that is reflective of who God is. The good news (which is something I love about the Bible and God) is that we are not left to wonder what to replace that behavior with . . . Paul makes it clear that we replace that old behavior with a constant state of thanksgiving.
I gotta be honest - I have no idea of how to do this. Don't get me wrong, I know how to be thankful and I know how to identify things I am thankful for. But a constant state of thanks (which is the implication in vs. 4) that is something I need to work on. I think that this is a spiritual discipline and one that I need to develop. It reminds of the verse in Romans where it says you need to be changed by the renewing of the mind. We have to train our mind to be thankful at every moment. When we do this we push out the behavior that is not "proper among the saints!"
That sounds good, right?
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