Think for a moment of a father’s footprints. That father is about his walk, and his shoes are leaving one print after another trailing out behind him. Guess who is coming along a bit behind him: his young boy. That adult gait is just a bit too far for the youngster to easily match his stride.
Can you see him concentrating, balancing, maybe even hoping or jumping from print to print? Oops, the small foot just went across the edge of dad’s print. A tiny miss, but with little consternation, he finds the next imprint and off to that one he goes. Oops, a miss and a fall. He rolls to his knees and pushes himself up again. By now dad is a ways off so he runs to catch up, finds some more prints, and gets right back at it.
1 Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. 2 And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God. (Ephesians 5:1-2–ESV)
Since midway through Ephesians 4 Paul has been writing about living a children of the light. He has been writing a list of dos and donts that are stepping stones of imitation. Talk truth, don’t lie (Ephesians 4:25). Don’t sin while angry (4:26). Don’t steal, but work and then be generous (4:27). Speak with wholesome words and tones (4:29). Work against bitterness and anger. Do not slander or act out with malice (4:31). Be kind, forgive, have compassion (4:32).
When Paul now write to be imitators he is says jump in thost footprints.
Suppose you miss like the youngster above. Remember how God has forgiveness? That is for when you jump badly, miss, fall down. Be like the child of God: roll over, get to your knees, then your feet, run after God and get back in his footprints.
Imitation is not forever
28 And now, little children, abide in him, so that when he appears we may have confidence and not shrink from him in shame at his coming. 29 If you know that he is righteous, you may be sure that everyone who practices righteousness has been born of him.
Chapter 3
1 See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him. 2 Beloved, we are God’s children now, and what we will be has not yet appeared; but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, because we shall see him as he is. 3 And everyone who thus hopes in him purifies himself as he is pure. (1 John 2:28-3:3–ESV)
The child running after his father is oblivious to everything else. He is not worried about what the middle-schoolers up a bit further on the beach think. He does not care that a grandmother is fond of his leaps, falls even. The little person is little concerned about those things. He is devoted to the landing.
Eventually, the child grows up and the strides are easy, natural and he makes his own prints. In 1 John 3:2 a similar thing can be said of our adult lives of Godly imitation. What we will eventually be is known to God, but we are not there yet. Still, we can be hopeful. Hopefulness should lead to a type of footsteps in the world. Those are footprints of imitation.
Leave a Reply