Ephesians 5:1 "Be ye therefore followers of God as dear children:"
Isn't it amusing when kids copy their parents? If you ever see my sons, Wilson or Weston, you cannot help but know to whom they belong. Why is that? Because they look and act just like me! On purpose or by default, my kids imitate me.
Ephesians 5:1 tells us that we are to be imitators ("followers") of our Heavenly Father. When we "walk in love," as Christ loved us, we imitate God and He is pleased (verse 2). However, if you were honest, there are some people that God loves that you do not love, right? Are there people that you do not even like? I can tell you that there is no way to remedy that! That is human nature; but God's nature is to love. The only way to love people is for God to love them through you.
If I am imitating God, who sacrificially gave Himself for me, I will be long-suffering, not short-tempered. If I am imitating God, I will be humble, not puffed up. Loving people is doing right by people. I may not always like everybody, but I am commanded to always do right by everybody.
How I feel about someone is fickle and can change at the drop of a hat. We usually like or dislike someone based on how they treat us, what things we have in common, and how we feel about them. Can you see how easily those things can change? In contrast, doing right by people is always right, regardless of how they treat us, how we feel, etc.
Will Rogers use to say, "I never met a man I didn't like." I guess I have met more people than that! I may not like everybody, but by God's power I am to love people. That means I am to love even those people that are hard to love. Furthermore, the best place to start loving people is in your own home. It would be wrong to talk about loving all the people in the world and not do right by those who are closest to you! Today, allow the Spirit of God to work through you as you imitate the Father.
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