Walk in Love
One thing I’ve noticed is how mean and disrespectful people can be just because someone doesn’t share the same opinion. We’ve lost the ability to agree to disagree and to correct one another in love. So many of us have become used to being behind a screen that we’ve grown emotionally disconnected, not only from others, but even from ourselves. People don’t seem to care about each other’s feelings anymore or about the harm they cause. Hearts have become hardened, and many have grown comfortable with being bullies.
When I see this, or even when I’m a victim of it, my flesh sometimes wants to respond in ways that aren’t godly. There are moments where I feel tempted to react in a way that doesn’t reflect God’s image. But if I do that, I’m no different from the world, and I’m no longer walking in love. The Bible calls us, as believers, to walk in love, God’s kind of love.
1 Corinthians 13:4–8 reminds us that love is patient and kind. It does not envy or boast; it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, and it is not self-seeking. It is not easily angered and keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, and always perseveres. Love never fails.
Ephesians 5:1–2 says, “Therefore be imitators of God as dear children, and walk in love, as Christ also has loved us and given Himself for us, an offering and a sacrifice to God for a sweet-smelling aroma.” This reminds us that we are called to imitate God and to walk in love just as Christ loved us.
God is love. In order to walk in love, we must walk with Christ. We must abide in Him as He abides in us. This means having a real relationship with God, through prayer, fasting, reading His Word, meditating on it, and resting in His presence. It’s about learning who He is and allowing Him to transform and renew our minds.
We are to imitate God. And if we are truly imitating His character, we will be walking in love, because He is love and shows us exactly what that looks like (1 John 4:8).
Ephesians 5:2 goes on to show that love is selfless and sacrificial. When Jesus endured the cross, it was out of love, for the Father and for us. There was never a moment where He questioned what He would gain in return. He acted purely out of love, seeking to please the Father and walk in obedience.
Walking in love is about pleasing God. His Word says, “If you love Me, keep My commandments.” Walking in love isn’t just about how we treat people, it’s also about obeying the Father, sacrificing for Him, and walking in truth.
Galatians 5:22–23 shows us what walking in love looks like through the fruit of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. When these qualities are present in our lives, we are walking in love.
Ephesians 5:1 also tells us to imitate God as children. This is important. Children imitate their parents not to mock them, but out of admiration, love, and respect. They see their parents as their example, the standard for how to live and behave. In the same way, we are to look at Christ. We study His life, His character, the way He spoke, and the way He loved others—and we apply that to our own lives.
Jesus shows us how to live when we are truly in Him.
So my prayer is that we would continue to look to Christ, that we would study His Word and His character. I pray that we would surrender to His Spirit and allow Him to govern our hearts and minds. I pray that we submit to the will of the Father, and that His Word would transform our hearts, renew our minds, and change our lives.
In Jesus’ name, amen.
