Paul's letters, although addressing specific contexts and issues, are essentially unified in a few key aspects. One of those is in his consistent exhortation for believers to live a life worthy of the calling that they've been given (Eph. 4:1; Phil. 1:27; Col. 1:10, 2:6). This phrase, for all its simplicity, warrants plumbing its theological depth.
As a preface, because Paul urges believers to live a life worthy of the calling, which is the Gospel, reason stands that he is asserting the reality of a life that is unworthy of the calling. It is true that certain lifestyles choices and habitual character traits are unworthy of the Gospel. This makes sense. As Christians are to be salt and light, the way in which we live our lives and conduct ourselves needs to reflect the source of our life, who is the Lord.
Because a believer's life reflects Christ Jesus it will be under constant scrutiny from the world who would seek to diminish Christ as a means of excusing its own sin. This is why we need to live above reproach, for as each of our lives will be harshly judged as ambassadors of the Holy Lord, we need to be disciplined in understanding that we are not our own, having been bought with the steepest price we are images of Christ to the world. Hence the importance of living a worthy and honorabl life in Christ Jesus.
The other life, that which is unworthy, is marked with all manner of sin and ungodliness. It is the life of depravity and death that we used to walk in. Paul teaches us to take off our old self to death, with all its sinful practices in order to put on Christ and the new self (Col. 3). In reality, we cannot serve two masters, just as you cannot serve your flesh as well as God. In many ways the two selves battle over supremacy in the lives of believers. Luckily, we have an advocate in Christ Jesus who has already won the battle for us. Because of this, we can now live new lives of holiness, rooted in His holiness.
Once it is confirmed that we are to live worthily, the question quickly becomes, "what is a life worthy of the calling?" Luckily, Paul clearly and comprehensively answers this question in his letter to the Colossians. In it, Paul teaches the Colossians, and subsequently us, the active character traits exemplified by the worthy life: compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, patience, forgiveness, and all of this bound in love (Col. 3:12-15). This is held together by the Word of God, which believers are to write on their hearts as they keep it on their minds through singing psalms and hymns and teaching each other in all wisdom (3:16). Lastly, everything, whether word or deed, is to be done in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through Him (3:17).
Essentially, there is a posture, an attitude of Christ-likeness that is to guide our lives. This posture can be reduced to a single word: love. If we truly out on love to the fullest by drawing closer to Christ, we will naturally live a life that is worthy of the calling. The love of Christ is to dominate and become our lives. Let us then press into the Lord to become more dependent on Him as to live the life He has called us to in and by His love!
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