Imitators of God

by Pastor Tom
“Therefore, be imitators of God, as beloved children. And walk in love, as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us, a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.”

-Ephesians 5:1-2

I used to love watching the Ed Sullivan Show. In a single hour, Ed would serve up a heaping helping of entertainment that might include opera singers, bears riding bicycles, somebody juggling flaming swords and one hundred Chinese acrobats. Ed also provided a platform for many an artist to debut for the first time on national television. I can still clearly remember the Sunday night that featured the Beatles. Girls were screaming and millions tuned in. The big talk on Monday morning in many a workplace had to do more with the hair than the music.

My favorites were the comedians, and my favorite comedians were those who did impressions. George Kirby, David Frye, Rich Little and Frank Gorshwin, among others whose names I can’t remember, simply amazed me. They all did the standards for the times – Cary Grant, Kirk Douglas, Louie Armstrong and, without fail, Ed Sullivan. Now that I think about it, every single American citizen back in those days did Ed Sullivan. And we can’t forget Richard Nixon, who during his presidency and for some years after, was the clear favorite of every impersonator.

I’ve often thought about how much work and time had to be spent on the part of those impressionists to perfect their bits. They had to study every nuance and detail of the voice, facial contortions and body language of the person they planned to impersonate. Then, I imagine they spent hours in front of a mirror practicing. Eventually, they probably tried out their impersonations on family members and friends. Only after a long and tedious process would they have been good enough to actually make a living imitating other people.

In the Bible, we’re invited to be imitators of God. In Ephesians, Paul suggests that it should happen in much the same way that loving children end up becoming very much like their parents, which tends to be true no matter how frightening the possibility might seem. Regardless, imitation demands intimacy. For one to imitate another, one must know the other.

I suspect that if any of us are ever really going to imitate God, it would require the same process used by impersonators. It would take a lot of study, examination and reflection. Then, it would take practice. Without the work, we’ll just end up with a god that is little more than an imitation of us.