As a prisoner for the Lord, then, I urge you to live a life worthy of the calling you have received.
Ephesians 4:1 NIV
Paul was a prisoner for the Lord. This could refer to the Roman prison he was in because of his service to the Lord. Or he could be referring to being the Lord’s prisoner, captured by him and in service to him. Both of these were true when he wrote this letter.
Our Calling
As a prisoner for the Lord, Paul urged his readers to live a life worthy of their calling. But what is this calling that we have received? Paul later says that we were called to one hope (Eph. 4:4). Hope looks to the future, to something that we do not yet fully have. This hope is described in the Scripture as the hope of salvation (1 Thess. 5:8), the hope of eternal life (Tit. 1:2; 3:7), and the hope of glory (Col. 1:27).
Our calling is to something that awaits us at the end of this life. But that hope should impact our lives now. That is what Paul meant by living a life worthy of our calling. My life now should reflect what I am looking forward to.
A Worthy Life
Paul goes on in the following verses to give examples of living a worthy life. He tells us to be completely humble and gentle. To be patient, bearing with each other in love. And to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace.
While there are other characteristics of a worthy life, Paul focused here on life within the body of believers. Living a worthy life involves being an active member of the body of Christ. A member who is not looking for what they can get out of it. But a member who cares about others within the body and puts them ahead of self.
Please don’t make the mistake of thinking that our lives today and our hope for the future are unrelated. They are tightly bound together. A hope that does not impact my life now, both as a believer and a member of the body of Christ, is just an empty hope. Live a life that is worthy of your calling, of the hope that awaits us.
