‘Walk Worthy’
- Apr 24
- 5 min read
Remember last week we prayed, "In order to ‘Walk Worthy’ give me the grace to love you above all and to follow you and your will for my life."
Robert Murray McCheyne said, “If we are to walk worthy of our high and holy calling, we must live daily in consideration of the greatness and glory of Jesus.”
Ephesians 4 is one of the great chapters of the Bible. It gives practical instruction on how we are to live, both as individuals in striving to follow Jesus, and as His church. Notice how it opens - “I, therefore, the prisoner of the Lord, beseech you to walk worthy of the calling with which you were called” (Eph 4:1).
Paul was writing from his house arrest in Rome. It’s as if he uses his prison condition to reinforce the call to ‘walk worthy’ saying, "I’m in chains for such a walk, that’s how important it is!"
Actually, Ephesians 4:1 is founded upon a principle which underlies the entire book: a person’s calling sets the standard for their conduct. The higher one’s calling, the higher one’s conduct must be. You see, you can never be God-like without God's life, and the focus is not on our worth but on the worth of our calling.
Simply - 'Live Like Jesus.'
Christians that seek to glorify God, must have as a very foundation of their identity, Jesus. We are to live as Jesus lived. It’s a wake-up and rallying call – get ready to LIVE worthy of Him! If you claim the name, you live the same!
Following Christ must mean walking with Him and becoming like Him!
Rick Warren comments that, “We were created to become like Christ. God’s ultimate goal for your life on earth is not comfort but character development. Christ-likeness is all about transforming your character.”
We need to be serious and ask, has complacency crept into our walk with Jesus?
Am I in status quo mode and settled for far less of God than He intends? Do you feel close to God in your everyday life or does He too often seem distant and silent?
Maybe, like many Christians, you live somewhere between those two extremes. You occasionally sense God’s presence, but at other times feel as if He’s a million miles away.
Being prepared for Christ’s purpose for our life must mean a new refilling, rekindling and a fanning into flames of our life in Christ.
Matthew 11:29–30 states: “Walk with me and work with me, watch how I do it. Learn the unforced rhythms of grace. I won’t lay anything heavy or ill-fitting on you. Keep company with me and you’ll learn to live freely and lightly.”
We said last week that the word for “followed” means “to walk the same road.” That’s what a Christian does, walks the same road as Jesus; gets on the “Jesus road” and follows it wherever it may lead. No guarantees, no deals, no special promises. We simply walk that road every day with Jesus.
So, God has extended a personal call to each one of us in Ephesians 4:1.
Walk - It focuses on the ordinary.
A "holy calling" isn't just for big moments; it must be how we "walk around" in our everyday life. It refers to our lifestyle, the regular, repetitive steps we take ordinarily in our home, our job, our church and our community.
Now, you may be already saying, it’s just impossible to ‘walk worthy’ of our calling. I get that! But you must also understand we’re not asked to walk alone. Just go back to the verses at the end of chapter 3 of Ephesians.
Ephesians 3:20-21 says, “Now to him who is able to do far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us.” Wow!
What an amazing theological truth that we have God’s power in us, and He is able to do the ‘far more’ than ‘all that we ask or think!’
Then in Ephesians 4:1 is the call for us to live accordingly.
There’s a shift from doctrine to duty, from creed to conduct. When you think about it, this is a divine strategy and we can and must live/walk accordingly.
Worthy
The word 'worthy' (axiōs) has the root meaning of 'balancing the scales.' In ancient Greek, this was a term from the marketplace. What is on one side of the scale should be equal in weight to what is on the other side. If you put God's "holy calling" to you on one side of the scale, your "daily conduct" should be the weight on the other side that balances and brings the scale to a perfect level.
David Legge said, “If what we believe doesn't weigh up with what we behave, there is something tragically wrong in our spiritual life. Our conduct, if it does not endorse the gospel, contradicts the gospel.”
Our practical living should match our spiritual position. There should be no contradiction between what we are and what we do and say.
Calling
This 'calling' is our salvation and faith in Jesus. This does not mean that we should try to deserve our place in God's family. It means that we should recognise how much our place in God's family deserves from us. Christians that seek to glorify God, are to live as Jesus lived. It’s allowing Christ to reproduce His life in us.
There are countless things you could be doing, but there’s only one thing you should do - LIVE HIM!
Paul was a man who knew who he was and knew whose he was. Let me ask, did Paul receive anything extra to you and I at salvation? No, he didn’t get any more or anything less than what we got when we were saved. The difference is, he became totally overwhelmed with Christ and it made all the difference to the way that he lived.
Remember what it says in Philippians 1:21: "For to me, to live is Christ, and to die is gain." Paul is so overwhelmed with his life in Christ.
It was John Stott that said, "It is inconceivable that we should enjoy a relationship with God as his children without accepting the obligation to imitate our Father and cultivate the family likeness."
Do you know your calling?
The calling is for our lives to be a witness to the glory of God. This is nothing more and nothing less than the practical outworking of His life and the ability of God in our lives.
"For the grace of God has appeared, bringing salvation for all people, training us to renounce ungodliness ... and to live ... godly lives" (Titus 2:11–14).
I’ve been deeply challenged by what Kay Arthur starkly wrote: “If you do not plan to live the Christian life totally committed to knowing your God and to walking in obedience to Him, then don't begin, for this is what Christianity is all about. It is a change of citizenship, a change of governments, a change of allegiance. If you have no intention of letting Christ rule your life, then forget Christianity; it is not for you.”
You see, our calling is not just to be saved by grace, but to live by that same grace. It's not just to be saved by the stirring of the Spirit but to live in step with the Spirit.
Please just stop and listen to this song.
Jesus invites you and I to “walk worthy of the calling” to follow Him and go deeper in our relationship with Him.
Wow. I did begin to wonder how I could I walk worthy and so many questions were racing through my mind. Then the reality in Ephesians 3:20-21.