The Christian Walk Of Christlikeness, Humility And Unity Series

Sermon - The Christian Walk of Christlikeness, Humility and Unity

Scripture - Ephesians 4:1-6 “Therefore I, a prisoner for serving the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of your calling, for you have been called by God. Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love. 3 Make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace. 4 For there is one body and one Spirit, just as you have been called to one glorious hope for the future. 5 There is one Lord, one faith, one baptism, 6 one God and Father of all, who is over all, in all, and living through all.”

Introduction - Chapter 4 begins the second half of Paul’s letter to the Ephesians what some refer to as the practical application. Chapters 1-3 are considered to be Paul’s theology and chapters 4-6 is Paul’s application of how to live out the doctrine he has taught. Literally Paul says, “I urge therefore you, I the prisoner in the Lord, worthily walk the calling which you have been called.” Notice Paul begins with URGENCY. I beseech you! Paul implores us not to miss the importance of what follows. Notice too that Paul includes the word THEREFORE. Paul connects everything that follows with what has proceeded it. In other words, there is no division between the theology of chapters 1-3 and the application of chapters 4-6. Instead the two are intertwined and connected to each other. You can’t have one without the other.

If we are going to talk the talk, we must also walk the walk. Our theology—our talk must impact how we live our lives. How we live is our walk. Paul emphasizes that we walk worthily. “WORTHILY” is an adverb which in the Greek pictures the two sides of a scale being brought into balance. A weight has been placed on one side of the scale, and if you are to walk worthily then you must bring up the other beam of the scale up to an equilibrium. In other words, the life or daily practice of a Christian should “weigh as much as” or “be equivalent” to his or her profession of faith. Are you today waking worthily of the calling you have received as a believer in Jesus Christ, or is your life out of balance? Are we walking in obedience to Christ or have we strayed off the path to which God has called us. Step by step we will either walk in obedience or disobedience to God’s calling and purpose for our lives.

The Christian walk is a call to a higher walk of Unity, Love and Peace in the Body of Christ. The oneness within the Body of Christ empowers believers to overcome their differences and embrace a new way of being. Ephesians 4 reminds us to live a life worthy of the calling we have received in Christ Jesus. We are called to unity as a body of believers through one Lord, one Spirit, and one hope. God has given us apostles, prophets, evangelists, pastors, and teachers to prepare God’s people for works of service so the body of Christ may be built up and obtain the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. We are reminded to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.

1. The Christian walk means to Walk as Christ Representatives. “Therefore I, a prisoner for serving the Lord, beg you to lead a life worthy of your calling, for you have been called by God.”

Believers are Christ’s representatives. This dark world needs the light of Christ to shine beams of love, hope, and concern through every believer. Paul begs and plead that believers would live Christlike lives in the world. How we dress, act, live and work is important. The lifestyle of a Christian maybe the only Bible non-Christian will read. Paul understood that it may be easy for some Christians to lower their standards and live like the world around them. Pop culture has a strong pull. Since Christian are called to live differently, it is easy to clash with the culture. It is important that believer walk worthy of Christ and model a different lifestyle in the world. Christians talk a good talk, Paul says, we should walk the walk. Believers represent Christ and His kingdom.

2. The Christian walk means to Walk in Humility. “Always be humble and gentle. Be patient with each other, making allowance for each other’s faults because of your love. 3 Make every effort to keep yourselves united in the Spirit, binding yourselves together with peace.”

Paul cautions believers about a prideful attitude. Pride, criticism, and arrogance are always present. Every believer must try to walk in humility. Humility helps the believer extend more compassion and empathy to others. Those who practice humility are more likely to respect others' beliefs and opinions. Humility offers the opportunity to be more attuned with the feelings of others. Humility allows you to learn, it proves you are not a “know it all, it creates endless possibilities for others to ask question and be heard, it magnifies your strengths and confidence, it helps others connect with and relate to you.