5:1
We have just been told to forgive as God in Christ forgave us (Eph 4:32). We are now told to be imitators of God. Forgiveness is one of the prime features of being like God. Back in Gen 1:27 it says we were created in the image of God. We are meant to be like God in character. But there is a key difference between the gospel and religion. In religions we try to obey the rules out of fear, but in the kingdom we seek to be imitators of God as beloved children. The atmosphere, the context, is completely different.
5:2
Imitating God might seem to be unattainable, even unimaginable, for God is God and we are not, He is so infinitely greater than us. But God came and dwelt among us as a man. So we forgive as Christ forgave us, and we are to walk in love as Christ loved us. In Christ we see the human embodiment of what we are meant to be like. And Christ “gave Himself up for us, as a fragrant offering and sacrifice”. Lives lived out of selfish ambition and interest stink, Christlike lives are a fragrant offering.
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