Saying you are a Christian must be demonstrated by being like Jesus
He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.
- 1 John 2:6
Our saying or claiming something about our faith has to be proven by our actions.
We must demonstrate our faith through our lifestyle.
People can “talk” about how they abide in Christ, but if they are not walking like He walked, their claim has no credibility.
“He who says he abides in Him” What does abides mean?
Other translations say remains, live, or resides in Him. For John, every authentic believer has a close and permanent relationship with God.
John 15:5 says:
“I am the vine, you are the branches.
He who abides in Me, and I in him, bears much fruit;
for without Me you can do nothing.
A person might say they live in God, they are close to God,
or “yes I am a Christian”; but their claim must be backed up by their walk.
“He who says he abides in Him ought himself also to walk just as He walked.”
To walk as Jesus walked is the calling of all believers to pattern their lives after the character of Christ.
“To walk” refers to how we live or our way of life.
The word ‘walk’ is equivalent to the word ‘live’.
Our walk is the way we live and John says that when we abide in Him
we become obligated to walk how He, Jesus, walked.
Walking is a metaphor for living. Walking is a process, a succession of steps.
Step by step, we walk to a destination or goal.
Here are a few scriptures about walking as Jesus walked:
Micah 6:8
He has shown you, O man, what is good;
And what does the Lord require of you
But to do justly,
To love mercy,
And to walk humbly with your God?
Acts 9:31
Then the churches throughout all Judea, Galilee, and Samaria had peace
and were edified.
And walking in the fear of the Lord and in the comfort of the Holy Spirit,
they were multiplied.
2 Corinthians 5:7 For we walk by faith, not by sight.
Galatians 5:16 I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.
Ephesians 5:2 And walk in love
Colossians 4:5 Walk in wisdom toward those who are outside,
1 John 1:6 and 7 If we say that we have fellowship with Him,
and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.
But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship
with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.
2 John 1:4 I rejoiced greatly that I have found some of your children walking in truth, as we received commandment from the Father.
2 John 1:6 This is love, that we walk according to His commandments. This is the commandment, that as you have heard from the beginning, you should walk in it.
What are some practical steps to help us to “walk as Jesus walked”?
is to read the 4 Gospels.
#2. We learn to walk as Jesus walked by Imitating Jesus’ way of life by cultivating a life of prayer. (Luke 5:16)
#3. We learn to walk as Jesus walked by walking by the Holy Spirit.
Galatians 5:16 says:
I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.
#4. We learn to walk as Jesus walked by Being obedient to Jesus
Luke 6:46 to 49 says:
“But why do you call Me ‘Lord, Lord,’ and not do the things which I say?
Whoever comes to Me, and hears My sayings and does them,
I will show you whom he is like:
He is like a man building a house,
who dug deep and laid the foundation on the rock.
And when the flood arose, the stream beat vehemently against that house,
and could not shake it, for it was founded on the rock.
But he who heard and did nothing
is like a man who built a house on the earth without a foundation,
against which the stream beat vehemently; and immediately it fell.
And the ruin of that house was great.”
#5. We learn to walk as Jesus walked by having fellowship with other believers
Hebrews 10:24-25 says:
And let us consider one another in order to stir up love and good works,
not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as is the manner of some,
but exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the Day approaching.
In summary and closing:
There is no such thing as a Christian that talks about living with God, but does not walk in Christlikeness.
It is impossible and completely fraudulent to separate our relationship with God from how we live, our actions, and how we treat people.
Our saying or claiming something about our faith has to be proven by our actions.
And we must demonstrate our faith through our lifestyle.
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