Day 10 — Walk In The Way Of Love

Opening Prayer

Loving Father, thank you that in Christ you have made me your dearly loved child. Help me to grasp more deeply the love Jesus has shown by giving himself for me. By your Spirit, shape me to reflect your character and to walk in the way of costly, self-giving love. Amen.

Headline

As dearly loved children, we walk in the way of Christ’s self-giving love.

Ephesians 5:1-2

Comment

What does it mean to imitate God as his dearly loved children?

Yesterday Paul described the new life God creates in Christ: we are to put off the old self, be renewed in our minds and put on the new self. Today he shows us the shape of that new life. God’s children are to resemble their Father, and the family likeness is love.

Paul begins, “Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children” (v.1). The word “therefore” connects this command to the life of the church Paul has just described: putting away falsehood, speaking truth, working generously, using words to build others up, and showing kindness and forgiveness (Ephesians 4:25–32). These actions are not a way to earn a place in God’s family. Paul says we are already dearly loved children. We seek to imitate God because he has brought us into his family through Christ.

To imitate God is not to pretend to be divine or copy every action of God. It is to reflect our Father’s character in the way we treat others. God’s love is clearest in his gift of his Son: in Jesus, we see the Father’s generous, holy and self-giving love.

Paul tells us to “walk in the way of love” (v.2). Walking suggests a continuing pattern, the ordinary direction of our lives. The measure of this love is not simply what feels warm or agreeable to us. It is Christ’s love: he “gave himself up for us”. At the cross, Jesus willingly gave himself as a sacrifice for our sins, reconciling us to God. His love was costly, purposeful and directed towards our good.

Love is central to maturity; we cannot manufacture Christlike character by willpower. We need to receive and dwell on the love Jesus has shown us. Scott put this memorably in his sermon on Sunday: “we marinate before we imitate.” As we take in Christ’s love through Scripture, prayer and life with his people, the Spirit reshapes us to love others as Christ has loved us.

This links back to Ephesians 3, where Paul prays that believers will grasp Christ’s vast love, and to chapter 4, where that love builds up the church. We do not leave the gospel behind as we mature. As the Spirit deepens our understanding of Christ’s self-giving love, we grow in the freedom to love others.

Paul says Jesus’ self-giving was “a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God” (v.2). The image recalls an offering pleasing to God. Jesus’ death was not merely an example of kindness; it was his saving work for us, offered in obedience to the Father. Because we have been forgiven and welcomed through him, we can love without needing to secure our own worth or demand that others repay us. We love out of gratitude for grace.

Walking in love may mean telling the truth when evasion is easier, forgiving rather than keeping score, giving time to someone who is lonely, or serving without recognition. It does not mean approving what harms people or avoiding hard conversations. Christlike love seeks another’s good with the truth and patience we have received from Jesus.

Why does God want me to hear this today? Perhaps I have begun to treat God’s love as familiar background, or I am trying to change through determination alone. Paul invites me to return to the heart of the gospel: I am a dearly loved child because Christ gave himself for me. As I take that love to heart, I can ask the Spirit to make my next step one of patient, generous love.

Reflect

• What does Paul say is the reason we imitate God?
• How does Christ’s self-giving love define the way we are to love others?
• Where might you need to receive and remember Christ’s love before acting in love towards someone else?

Action

Choose one person you can love in a concrete way today. Before you act, take a moment to remember that Christ gave himself for you. Then offer your time, attention, forgiveness or practical help without seeking recognition or repayment. Ask the Spirit to shape your action by the love you have received.

Closing Prayer

Father, thank you for loving me and making me your child through Jesus. Thank you that Christ gave himself to save me and show me the depth of your love. Keep me from treating this love as a familiar idea. By your Spirit, help me dwell on it, be changed by it and walk in the way of love today. Amen.