Imitating Our Heavenly Father

Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children and walk in the way of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.

Ephesians 5:1-2

For years, people told my son, Nathan, that he was "just like his dad." I remember someone saying to me, "Oh my gosh! Nathan is a mini-Mark." His resemblance to me wasn't just a matter of appearance, especially since Nathan had red hair and I had brown hair . . . um, well, brown and grey hair. I guess Nathan spoke and acted much as I did, though it was hard for me to see it. Now that Nathan is on his own, when I meet his friends, they'll often say things to me like, "Oh, you are so much like Nathan."

Both intentionally and unintentionally, children imitate their parents. They learn how to act and speak by watching their parents and doing what they see and hear. This should also be true in our relationship with our Heavenly Father. In Ephesians 5:1 we read, "Follow God's example, therefore, as dearly loved children." As we have seen in an earlier reflection, this imperative could be translated more literally, "Be imitators of God, therefore, as beloved children."

Of course, as our Father in heaven, not to mention King of kings and Lord of lords, God could demand our imitation as a matter of sheer obedience. In the first-century Roman world, fathers had supreme authority over their children, even when they grew up. Paul could well have written, "Follow God's example, therefore, as children who must obey their father." But, instead, Paul highlights a dimension of fatherhood that was often minimized in his culture: love. Our imitation of our Heavenly Father is a response, not to his sovereignty, but to his love. We are to be like him because we are his "dearly loved children."

In my life, I do try to be like God in ways that are appropriate. (Too often, I also try to be like God in unhelpful ways, like trying to be the Lord of my life.) My imitation is usually motivated by a sense of duty. I seek to be like God because I should. However true this may be, my emphasis on duty misses the nuance of Ephesians 5:1. This verse suggests that, if I want to be more like God, I should allow his love to fill my mind and pervade my heart. The more I receive the love of God, the more I will be motivated and empowered to imitate him.

QUESTIONS FOR FURTHER REFLECTION: What helps you to understand God's love for you? What helps you to experience God's love for you? Can you think of times in your life when God's love motivated you to be like God?