Walk in love

And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love.         2  John 6

Again we have the mix of love and command. If we love God we will obey His commands. And His commands are that we love – Him and each other. In this letter John states God’s command as to walk in love. This brings a beautiful picture to my mind, a picture of the believer walking everywhere in love – walking with God and walking with all of God’s creation in love. I see this applying to all things, all aspects of creation.

Yet it is not easy to walk in love. This is not a mushy, sentimental sloppiness. Rather it is a commitment, and one that requires diligence and perseverance. Walking lovingly with some-one does not mean agreeing with them in everything and tolerating all that they do. Rebuke may well be part of love. Often there are things we are called upon to do which we might choose not to do if we had a choice. I believe, notwithstanding we might be called to do something that is difficult, we can still explore the best way to implement what we must do. If anyone is to be confronted with a painful truth, the process of “walking in love” will yield the way to act that is least painful and most loving. This is not to suggest that the subject matter is to be diluted. It must be clearly presented, but without judgment or condemnation.

Indeed, loving God will involve us in necessary rebuke and correction from Him when this is needed. An interesting part of loving someone is that we don’t want them to find anything wrong or unacceptable in us. We want them to delight in us and strongly affirm us. Yet true love will willingly receive rebuke where it is warranted. True love will receive it and be willing to be changed.

And so, love is a give and take arrangement. God is love and He is the place for me to start as I desire to go forward “walking in love”.

Dear Lord,

I’m reading, learning and receiving much about love. I thank You for Your impartation. I love you and I rejoice in knowing and experiencing Your love for me.

I desire to walk in love. I yearn to please You in all that I do. I want also to live in the utmost loving relationships with all people. None of this is easy. I will not always please You, and there will be many times when I might struggle to love others and do the right thing by them.

I seek Your help, Lord. I ask You to lead me in a walk of love. My prayer is that it will last for the whole of my life. I invite You to daily show me the way, Your way, and to lead me in it. What a powerful force love is! Let me walk in it, always. In Jesus’ Name I ask.             Amen.