Beth-El Baptist Church

03/14/2010

Greg Tomlinson


How can I “walk worthy of the calling” of Christ?


Paul tells us to “walk worthy of the calling with which you were called” (Ephesians 4:1), as such it is necessary for the Christian to evaluate his life in light of what the scriptures tells us in order to determine if it truly is a reflection of and worthy of God's calling.


  1. What should be the Christian attitude?

Ephesian 4:1-3 Philippians 1:26-27; 2:5-8

1 Corinthians 1:10; 6:11-12 2 Corinthians 13:11

Romans 6:11-13; 12:1-2 Hebrews 12:1-3

Acts 7:59-60


The Christian attitude ought to be one of humility. It is to consider the reality of their infinite depravity before God and thus the greatness of His divine sacrifice in order to redeem men unto Himself. It is an attitude of grace for others, knowing that they do not understand the greatness of the gospel of Jesus Christ, for they are hardly aware of the reality and the enormity of their sinfulness.


  1. What should be included in the Christian's activities?

Colossians 3:16-17 1 Peter 4:11

Hebrews 10:22-25 1 Timothy 4:1-2; 4:14-16

Acts 2:41-42 Ephesians 4:11-15; 5:15-21

2 Timothy 2:2, 2:15 Galatians 2:10; 6:1-6

Matthew 25:34-40 Romans 12:4-17

Titus 2:1-8 1 Corinthians 11:31-32


The Christian is to ensure to maintain fellowship with the brethren. This not only includes the gathering together for church but also gathering together for Bible Study, prayer, encouraging one another, seeking to build one another up in Christ, and even personal fellowship for the sharing of meals and your own life. There is also the need to help the brethren who are struggling with sin to leave the sin and be restored in true fellowship with Christ. The helping of the brethren is as much for your own benefit as it is for them. The importance is in understanding your own frailty and ability to sin just as the brethren. Other activities to consider is the care for the poor, the sick, the prisoners, and the persecuted. Being one body, Christ's, we need to be sensitive to our brethren throughout the world who are in need of or assistance.


  1. What should be excluded in the Christian's activities?

Ephesians 4:14; 5:3-5 Galatians 5:1, 5:13-16; 5:19-21

Proverbs 24:29 1 Corinthians 8:9-13

2 Peter 2:1-3 1 Timothy 6:3-5

Matthew 5:19 1 John 2:15-16


The Christian life is not to be characterized by sin. This does not mean that the Christian will absolutely not have any sin in their life but that their life is not defined by sin. The Christian is not to utilize this freedom, his relationship with Jesus Christ, in order to justify or otherwise explain away the presence of sin in his life. It is very common for people to mistreat people who are mistreating them. They believe that they obviously want to be mistreated, that is why they were originally mistreating people. However, the scriptures state that we are to treat others as we desire to be treated and not as others treat or mistreat us. We also need to be sensitive to the feelings and thoughts of others so that we do not do anything that would cause them to stumble in their Christian life.


  1. How should we deal with the actions of other believers?

Matthew 18:15-17 1 Peter 4:11

1 Corinthians 4:3-4; 5:1-13; 6:1-8 Galatians 6:1-6


For the brother that has either sinned against us or that we seen as living a lifestyle of sin, we need to not only approach them about the sin but also offer ourselves up as an aid to escape the sin. The desire for the sinning brother is restoration. Restoration of their relationship with other brethren and with God must be the goal when dealing with a brother in sin. We should not use the bible AGAINST others but FOR others. It is not a battering ram to destroy another but it is truth intended for the edification of the believer and the conversion of the unbeliever.


  1. How should we deal with the actions of unbelievers?

Colossians 4:6 Luke 6:35-38

1 Peter 3:15-17 Matthew 28:18-20

James 5:19-20 1 Timothy 1:8-10


When dealing with unbelievers, the first goal ought to be communicating the gospel to them so that they might be saved. They need to be treated with respect, knowing and understanding that they are truly “without hope” because they do not have Jesus. Their actions and words are in alignment with the desires of Satan who is their God. We need to use the Word of God lawfully. It is to be used in accordance with God's designed purpose. Communicate the gospel to others with meekness and fear, knowing that they will by nature be opposed to it but by God's grace they will follow after Christ and thus righteousness.