“What is love?” is one of the most asked, assumed, and misrepresented questions of all time. In music, movies, culture, and even the pulpit, we often refer to love as a feeling, a fleeting spark, a bond, or a human need. But Scripture invites us into something deeper—something more eternal, more rugged, and far more divine. At the center of that invitation is a declaration that doesn’t just describe what God does, but who He is: “God is love” (1 John 4:8).
This love isn’t merely about warmth or attraction. The Bible uses several Greek terms for love—eros, philia, storge, and agape—but it is agape that most clearly expresses the love of God. Agape is covenantal, self-giving, and sacrificial. It acts not because the recipient is worthy, but because the Giver is love. It is not drawn out by merit but poured out from identity.
That’s what sets divine love apart from every other kind. Where human love often depends on reciprocity, history, or chemistry, God’s love is proactive and one-sided in the most beautiful way. “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). This kind of love moves first. It doesn’t wait to be recognized, deserved, or welcomed. It initiates. It saves enemies, not allies. It pursues the rebel, not the saint.
Nowhere is this clearer than in the story of Saul of Tarsus. A violent persecutor of the church, Saul stood in direct opposition to everything Christ stood for. And yet, it was this same Saul who was confronted by divine mercy on the road to Damascus (Acts 9:1–6), transformed not by fear, but by a love that overwhelmed his resistance.
This man—once a terror to Christians—was re-formed into Paul, the greatest apostolic voice of the early church. God’s love didn’t crush him into obedience. It called him into sonship. And in doing so, it proved that true love doesn’t retaliate. It redeems.
When John writes that “God is love” (1 John 4:16), he’s not saying that God merely acts lovingly—he’s asserting that love is His very essence. This has profound implications. It means that love, at its core, is not a feeling or action, but a person.
When John writes that “God is love” (1 John 4:16), he’s not saying that God merely acts lovingly—he’s asserting that love is His very essence. This has profound implications. It means that love, at its core, is not a feeling or action, but a person.
To know real love is to know God. And to walk in love is not to simply mimic God’s behavior, but to live from His nature, allowing the Spirit to pour out what the flesh could never manufacture. “The love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us” (Romans 5:5).
And so, Christian love—true agape—is not a matter of sentimentality or obligation. It is a manifestation of the divine nature in and through us. It is patient when everything urges frustration.
And so, Christian love—true agape—is not a matter of sentimentality or obligation. It is a manifestation of the divine nature in and through us. It is patient when everything urges frustration.
It is kind when the world demands justice. It keeps no record of wrongs not because it forgets, but because it forgives.
“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud... It keeps no record of wrongs” (1 Corinthians 13:4–5).
It is not love if it is easily provoked, if it demands a return, or if it hardens in the face of betrayal.
“Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things” (1 Corinthians 13:7)—because God does.
This is why getting love right matters so deeply. If we misunderstand love, we misunderstand God. If we distort love, we distort the Gospel. And if we fail to live in love, we disconnect from the very power that makes faith more than religion.
This is why getting love right matters so deeply. If we misunderstand love, we misunderstand God. If we distort love, we distort the Gospel. And if we fail to live in love, we disconnect from the very power that makes faith more than religion.
“If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge... but do not have love, I am nothing” (1 Corinthians 13:2).
So the question remains—not just “What is love?”—but “What love do we live by?” Is our understanding of love shaped by Scripture or sentiment? Are we loving with a love that flows from the heart of the Father, or one that fractures under pressure?
The invitation is clear: to abide in the love that doesn’t fail, doesn’t flinch, and doesn’t flounder—even in the face of our failure. “As the Father has loved Me, so have I loved you. Now remain in My love” (John 15:9). This love already made the first move. All that’s left is to remain in it.
So the question remains—not just “What is love?”—but “What love do we live by?” Is our understanding of love shaped by Scripture or sentiment? Are we loving with a love that flows from the heart of the Father, or one that fractures under pressure?
The invitation is clear: to abide in the love that doesn’t fail, doesn’t flinch, and doesn’t flounder—even in the face of our failure. “As the Father has loved Me, so have I loved you. Now remain in My love” (John 15:9). This love already made the first move. All that’s left is to remain in it.
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