Therefore, be imitators of God, as beloved children, and walk in love, just as Christ also loved us and gave Himself up for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God as a fragrant aroma. Ephesians 5:1-2 LSB
Jesus went to church, He was baptized by John the Baptist, He prayed and He trusted and obeyed God His Father.
Jesus was presented to the Lord in church as a baby according to Mosaic law. He stayed behind at the temple at the age of 12 to learn and teach others. He drove money changers out of the temple in righteous anger when they were cheating people during the Passover feast by overcharging them for sacrificial animals.
He was baptized by John the Baptist when He first began His ministry.
He resisted the devil by quoting Scripture when he was tempted in the wilderness.
He taught us to pray in Matthew 6 and prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane. He didn’t want to suffer the crucifixion, but trusted His heavenly Father and was obedient to death.
If Jesus went to church, was baptized, prayed, trusted and obeyed God, why would we not to do these things? Jesus came to live a sinless life and die a horrible death, taking on all the sins we committed and ever will commit in order to free us from the bondage of sin. He was crucified, died, was buried and rose from the grave. He is the only way we can get to heaven to spend eternity with God the Father (John 14:6).
If we truly love Him with all our hearts, soul, and mind as he tells us to do in Matthew 22:39, why would we not want to spend as much time as we can in Bible study, prayer and going to church? Why would we ever fail to trust and obey our Lord? Why would we not want to die to our old sinful lives and have a new life in Christ?
Hebrews 10:24-25 says, “And let us consider how to stimulate one another to love and good deeds, not forsaking our own assembling together, as is the habit of some, but encouraging one another, and all the more as you see the day drawing near.”
Christianity is hard. If anyone tells you it’s a piece of cake, they are lying to you. We need a good, solid church family to get through this. We need to spend time together with other individuals who are saved and working for the Lord. We need to spend time in prayer, Bible study and worshipping and praising the Lord.
It’s a team effort not a solo performance. We are told in Proverbs 27:17 that Iron sharpens iron, so one man sharpens another. We need mentors. If we want to do well at our job, we find someone who does the job well and learn from them right? If we want to engage in a sport or a hobby, we find a good coach. Well, Christianity is no different aside from the fact that it is way more important to our eternal well-being.
Jesus came to earth fully human and fully God. He didn’t just come to save us from our sins, but He came to model how we should live. He taught us how to pray in Matthew chapter 6. He gave us parables to teach us what to do and what not to do. He showed us how to resist temptation. He was obedient to His heavenly Father unto death. He prayed and went to church. He didn’t have to study the Word; He was the Word. So, in order to truly know Him, we must study His holy Word.
Ephesians 5:1 tells us to be imitators of Christ. If He did all these things, so should we.
Have a great day!