(The following is the August 28 devotional from my Next Step Devotions book. Before reading it, I suggest you read Ephesians 4 and pay close attention to verses 1-6.)
Did your parents ever tell you as you walked out the door to go somewhere, “Remember who you are”?* The instruction reminds children that their actions reflect on the whole family and should be consistent with the character qualities parents expect. Being part of a family is not a solitary experience where anything goes. Family membership brings certain expectations.
The same is true for those in the family of God. Paul wrote, “Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, urge you to live worthy of the calling you have received, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, making every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (vv. 1-3). The phrase “live worthy of the calling you have received” sounds much like the reminder to “remember who you are.”
If we claim the name “Christian,” our words and deeds reflect on Christ, whose name we bear. Our attitudes and what we do and say either properly reflect our perfect Savior or fail to do so. As God’s image-bearers and ambassadors, we should want everything about us to please God and to point others to him.
Paul gave practical advice about living worthy of the calling the Ephesians received. It involved humility, gentleness, patience, bearing with one another in love, and working for unity. Living this way reflected hearts changed by Christ that were becoming more like him.
Whether inside or outside our homes, may we remember who we are and whose we are in Christ and live worthy of the calling we have received from him.
Next Step:
How well do you “remember who you are” regarding the behaviors listed in Ephesians 4:1-3? In what ways do you still need to grow as an image-bearer of Christ?
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* Lysa TerKeurst, “Remember Who You Are,” Proverbs 31 Ministries, September 29, 2015, https://proverbs31.org/read/devotions/full-post/2015/09/29/remember-who-you-are.
