How good is your memory? Paul begins and ends this chapter by urging us to remember who we are. When Paul reminds us that we have been called by God, he is not just referring to those called for the particular roles within the church he identifies in verse 11. Paul is referring to how each of us have been called to believe in Jesus as the risen Lord and to give Jesus complete allegiance for the rest of our lives.
Because our Lord won a victory over sin and death all people that are in Christ, who give Christ their faithful allegiance, will also win this victory over sin and death. This is our Christian Hope. This is the calling Paul urges us to live up to. In every moment of every day our loyalty to Jesus, our allegiance to His Kingdom, takes priority over everything else.
We are enabled to live up to our calling by remembering God through Christ has forgiven our sins and remembering Jesus has now identified us as His own. The first 2 verses of chapter 5 are a benediction to Paul’s call for us to live a life worthy of our calling:
Watch what God does, and then you do it,
like children who learn proper behavior from their parents.
Mostly what God does is love you.
Keep company with him and learn a life of love.
Observe how Christ loved us.
His love was not cautious but extravagant.
He didn't love in order to get something from us
but to give everything of himself to us.
Love like that.
Ephesians 5:1-2 (The Message)
What does today’s reading reveal to you about God?
What does it reveal to you about yourself?
Think about what God wants you to do or remember about this passage.
Does God want you to change anything in your life?
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