Walking Responsively

I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called... Ephesians 4:1

Therefore

I don’t know about your pastor, but my pastor always says, “Whenever you see the word ‘therefore’ in the Bible, you must always ask yourself, ‘what’s it there for?’” It’s here (this time) because Paul wants to remind us to sit down before we walk. More accurately he is saying that before we can walk-out our faith we need to remember where we are seated and how we came to be there. Two chapters earlier (in Ephesians 2:5-6) Paul writes…

When we were dead in trespasses, (He) made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up together, and made us sit together in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus…

Walking effectively in Christ begins when we understand what He has already done for us, realizing that we had nothing to do with it, and that He finished the work on the cross. When we can appreciate this truth, our walks become a response to the love He has already displayed. When we fail to comprehend these facts, our walks become sidetracked as we search for things which are not missing. I like the summary outlined in 2 Corinthians 5:14a and 1 John 4:19:

For the love of Christ compels us…We love Him because He first loved us.

Therefore

Our Christian walk is a response of gratitude--our reward is not so much what we do as we walk, but the walk itself. I am so thankful that the Lord plucked me from the pig-sty that was my life, gave me a seat in Heavenly places, and now allows me to walk-the-walk. My need to share Him with others is not an obligation, but a reaction to His love.

COMPASSION dave