I urge you, then, be imitators of me. 1 Corinthians 4:16

Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ. 1 Corinthians 11:1

Therefore be imitators of God, as beloved children. Ephesians 5:1

And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you received the word in much affliction, with the joy of the Holy Spirit

1 Thessalonians 1:6

For you, brothers, became imitators of the churches of God in Christ Jesus that are in Judea. For you suffered the same things from your own countrymen as they did from the Jews 1 Thessalonians 2:14

so that you may not be sluggish, but imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises. Hebrews 6:12

Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith.

Hebrews 13:7

From the above verses it is clear that we are supposed to be imitators of Christ (God). We are also supposed to be imitators of those rooted in the word doing the work of God. Hebrews 6:12 warns us not to be sluggish, but to imitate those who inherit the promises.

Hebrews13:7 tells the believers to imitate those who delivered the word to them. Isn't that amazing? Strong believers in the Lord proclaimed the Word to lost people and then those lost people who received the Word are told to imitate the very ones who preached to them.

Paul was an incredible missionary and twice above he says to imitate him.

The question I asked last week is, "What are you doing with your time?"

The question I will ask this week is, "Who are you imitating?"

I can say with great confidence to be an imitator of me. Remember I have nothing to boast about. Everything that is happening in my life that people seem to admire is all a work of Christ. He is working it out of me. His Holy Spirit is bringing about Christ's fruits of righteousness.

He is the source of my life in Christ Jesus and Jesus is my wisdom, my righteousness, my sanctification, and my redemption. Therefore I cannot boast, except in the Lord.

So be an imitator of me as I am of Christ. Let us not be so entangled in this world, distracted by worldly desires, loving the world more than obeying Christ.

Again, who are you imitating? Are you imitating the world? The Bible says if we love the world then the love of the Father is not in us. This may be an easy question to answer in your mind. You may think you are imitating Jesus. But what do your works tell you? What are you doing New Year's Eve? Are you going to a party like everyone else? Are you going to just watch TV and then go to sleep like everyone else? Are you spending time with a loved one like everyone else?

There will be thousands of people out celebrating and if a bomb were to go off then most of them will end up in hell. Not only that, but Christ commands you to be His ambassador and proclaim His gospel. You, as a Christian, are the representative He has chosen. Will you squander that? Will you waste your talent?

You may think I am trying to make you feel guilty. I am hopefully challenging you to do more. What would Paul do this New Year's Eve if he were around and knew there would be thousands of people gathered to celebrate? What would the other apostles be doing?

You might try to rationalize it and think you should get a chance to rest. You might actually be doing something that will edify you spiritually. You might think you have done your job for the week because you talked to someone at work or preached on Sunday morning.

But what would a strong man or woman of God do knowing that there is such a great opportunity to represent Jesus? You can pray or read John MacArthur any other time. You can rest another time. You can be with a loved one another time, or you could even do something radical and bring your loved ones out with you. Allow me to answer what we should all be doing. We should be out proclaiming the gospel to all of creation. I will be out proclaiming Christ to all of creation on New Year's Eve. Imitate me. You admire me and follow my website and encourage me and pray for me. Imitate me and reach out to the lost.

You may think you are not Mark Cahill. Mark took the first step of obedience, that led to the second, that led to the third, and so on. Will you take the first, or another step of obedience that will lead you to more sanctification? Who are you imitating and how are you spending your time?

I am glad that this past Thursday night I obeyed God rather than my flesh. My flesh told me to stay home and rest because it was the day after Christmas. God told me to go to the Jingle Bash at Philips Arena. I am glad because Matthew, a Catholic, came up to me as I was reading Scripture. He was trusting in his goodness and his works and his Catholic faith to get him into heaven. When I spoke to him about his personal faith and relationship to Christ, he had a hard time separating himself from the church. He kept saying, "We as Catholics," to which I responded, "But what about you?" He thanked me for the conversation and took a tract. Pray for Matthew the Catholic.

This New Year's Eve please do something bold for the Lord Jesus Christ and let it be the first of many steps of obedience.

Lord, take me home, but until then send me many souls to bring with me.