(The following is the July 21 devotional from my Next Step Devotions book. Before reading it, I suggest you read 1 Corinthians 11 and pay close attention to verse 1.)
Paul gave the Corinthians an unusual command, “Imitate me, as I also imitate Christ” (v. 1). How bold is that? Do we feel confident enough in following Christ’s example to tell others, “Imitate me”? Was Paul thinking too highly of himself? I don’t think so.
Christ changed Paul’s life dramatically and permanently in his Damascus Road experience. God equipped Paul to serve a unique purpose in the early church as a messenger to the Gentiles and writer of 13 of the New Testament’s 27 books. He was an incredible example of someone fully surrendered to Christ. We may feel uncomfortable telling others, “imitate me,” but Paul could do so without unseemly pride provoking the statement. He was worth imitating. Corinthian Christians didn’t have the advantage modern believers have of the written New Testament to reveal Christ, so looking to Paul and following his example as he followed Christ was practical advice.
Of course, the main person we are to imitate is Christ himself. There may be other people in our lives worthy of emulating in one way or another, but Christ is our perfect example. Unlike the first generation of Christians, we can study the New Testament and devote our attention to imitating the Christ it reveals.
We should still strive to be worth imitating. Just as God placed people in our lives to impact us spiritually and model Christ for us, God may use us to influence and model Christ for others. That is the case with children and their parents. It can happen with those we share the gospel with or nurture in the faith. We may be their best living Christian model. As such, we must cling tightly to Christ and his Word so we, too, are worthy of imitation for his glory.
Next Step:
Who have you tried to imitate in your life, and why? What aspects of your Christian life would you invite others to imitate? What should others not imitate about you (and why do you do those things)?
