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Daily Devotional

You (Don’t) Complete Me: Gospel-Centered Relationships

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Day 8

Ephesians 5:25 (ESV)

[25] Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her,

Christlike Love—Sacrificial Care in Marriage

Paul exhorts, "Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her" (Ephesians 5:25). This is the gold standard for all love—sacrificial, self-giving, steadfast. Christ’s love was not sentimental or easy—it cost Him everything. In marriage, husbands and wives are called to embody that same selfless love, putting each other’s good ahead of their own. Genuine Christlike love means laying aside pride, preferences, or rights for the sake of unity and health of the relationship. This doesn’t only apply to marriage; it sets a model for all of our closest bonds. Because Christ gave Himself for us, we are free to love sacrificially—relying on His grace to transform selfishness into servanthood. What would it look like to love as Christ does, today?

Key Takeaway

Christlike love is sacrificial, putting others’ needs before our own in every close relationship.

Questions to Consider

  1. Where is God calling you to lay aside comfort or preference for someone else’s good?
  2. How does the example of Jesus on the cross change your understanding of love?
  3. What would a step of sacrificial love look like in a relationship you value?

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