Devotions: New Family, New Life

Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children; and walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma.

Ephesians 5:1-2 New American Standard Bible (NASB)

Because we have been raised with Christ, accepting His sacrifice and redemption, we need to pursue or seek the things of God and give up our desire for the things of the world. That includes giving up worldly desires as well as any form of irreverence to God. But instead we should seek Him, seek godliness, righteousness, and sensibility. We need to imitate God. That is the basis of godliness, acting like God. How we act shows who our father is. The Pharisees who persecuted Jesus proved that their father was Satan because they rejected Jesus. We prove we are God’s children by acting like God. Part of that is love. Anyone can love those who love them. But it is something else to love those who are difficult to be around, those who don’t like us. It is contrary to human nature. Yet that is exactly what Jesus did. And we prove that we are also children of God if we do that. That sacrifice of love produces a fragrant aroma that all will notice, and is pleasing to God. If we believe in Jesus, if we have accepted His sacrifice, we need to seek Him, think about Him, and live like Him. We need to heed His instructions and love like He does.