The world loves to talk about love. And yet, for all the conversation and focus, the world has become more divided and hateful in many ways. Perhaps the world has the wrong definition of love. Or no consistent one that works. The world defines love in many ways. Some believe it’s an emotion driven by passion or chemistry. Others see love as a deeper commitment built on trust and shared goals. Many look at love as a way to bring personal happiness and growth.
Hollywood portrays love in dramatic ways, linking it to big gestures and intense emotions. In literature, the romance genre remains the most popular and profitable by far. While opinions vary, these ideas of love carry an amazing influence on our culture, relationships, and societies. As the one who created humanity, God knows best what love is, or at least what he designed it to be. And since it’s such an important topic around the world, Scripture has a great deal to say about love. What does the Bible say about love?
What Does the Old Testament Say about Love?
The Old Testament explains love as the primary part of God’s nature and how he relates with people. Love is expressed as an action, through commitment, often revealed through God’s covenants and how he stays faithful with people regardless of their behavior. The main Hebrew word for love is ahavah— a combination of affection, loyalty, and devotion.
From the beginning, we see God’s love as motivation for his will and plans. Deuteronomy 7:7-8 expresses how God chose Israel not because of their greatness but because of his love and faithfulness. His love led to a covenantal promise, not based on human ability but on his work. Later, God speaks through a prophet in Jeremiah 31:3: “I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore, I have drawn you with lovingkindness.” By the time of Jeremiah, God had revealed his patience and correction through generations of idolatry and rebellion. Yet he continually declared his love and redemption.
God shows his love through times of mercy and provision. He rescues Israel from Egyptian slavery and sustains them in the wilderness, providing manna, water, protection, and guidance. He loves his people even when they rebel. In Hosea, God compares his love to a husband seeking his unfaithful wife, showing his commitment to redemption and restoration.
Even in the Law, love stands at the core of people’s commitment to God, as it’s his motive for us, as well. Moses says in Deuteronomy 6:5, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your strength.” Love for God isn’t emotion alone but a way of life keeping his commandments out of affection and adoration.
Since God loves all people, our love for him should result in caring for what’s important to him, us, and others. The Lord commands in Leviticus 19:18, “Love your neighbor as your love yourself.” In the Old Testament, this neighbor love includes justice, fairness, kindness to foreigners and the vulnerable, including widows and orphans. Proverbs also teaches about love in friendships, marriage, and general family, seeking good for others.
God desires the eternal best for all people, so he corrects those he loves. Proverbs 3:12 reveals this with, “For the Lord disciplines those he loves, just as a father disciplines the son in whom he delights.” The Heavenly Father’s end goal isn’t punishment but guidance to truly and humbly loving God and others.
What Does the New Testament Say about Love?
Not surprisingly, Jesus and the New Testament point to love, as well. Jesus and the apostles declare love as the foundation and evidence of grace and faith.
God’s love is most clearly seen through the Lord Jesus Christ. “For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” God didn’t simply sit up in heaven and emotionally love us, and he acted through radical sacrifice, the best he had, his Son, for our redemption. Additionally, his love didn’t depend upon what we deserved. Our sins deserve punishment, but he offers salvation through his love. “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). In revealing the Father’s love for us, Jesus describes it as personal and tenacious. In Luke 15, Christ teaches with parables of the lost sheep, the lost coin, and the prodigal son, how God seeks and saves the lost, rejoicing over redemption.
Jesus also commands his followers to love others as he has loved them. While the Old Testament says to love others as ourselves, Jesus gives a new standard. “A new commandment I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this, everyone will know that you are my disciples.” Christ is the model and new standard for how his disciples love others. Since Jesus loved us when we were still sinners, enemies of God, Jesus teaches us to “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Matthew 5:44). Therefore, love goes beyond what makes us happy in the moment or what feels good.
Just as with the Old Testament, Jesus and the apostles teach love through action (1 John 3:18). Christians love through forgiveness, generosity, charity, and serving others. Love makes Christian disciples and the people of the world the priority (Philippians 2:3-4), being humble and self-sacrificial for their eternal good.
How Does 1 Corinthians 13 Clarify God’s Love?
The apostle Paul, in his correction to the Corinthian church, writes a famous passage about the nature of God’s love. He uses the Greek word agape, which was a Greek word with a broad meaning. He clarifies and uses it to describe God’s divine love and character. Greek words for love in different forms—eros (romantic), philia (friendship), and storge (family). Paul redefines agape for Christians to understand God’s love.
Paul teaches that divine love is the greatest virtue, more than faith and hope. Without love, nothing matters, not spiritual gifts, academic knowledge, or even powerful faith. Even acts of generosity and sacrifice become vain apart from love because the motive of God’s love is the foundation of what lasts eternally.
Paul reveals divine love as patient and kind. It’s not jealous, boastful, or proud. Unlike human love, God’s love endures all things, remaining despite human failures, as he showed over and over with Israel and humanity. Agape love isn’t selfish or easily angered. God’s love doesn’t delight in evil or sin but rejoices with the truth. God’s love always leads to living right. God’s love is eternal, and acting from God’s love will last into eternity.
What Does it Mean That God Is Love?
The apostle John tells us that God is love (1 John 4:8). Love isn’t one of God’s attributes. Love doesn’t exist apart from God, as if God must behave to meet an external standard of love. However, since the world has come up with their own definitions of love, they often judge God accordingly, as if he’s not living up to their standard.
But God doesn’t do loving things because he’s conforming to a separate standard. He is the source and definition of love. Therefore, his every thought, word, and choice reveals love to us, consistent with his character like holiness, justice, and faithfulness. His love motivates him to create, redeem, and provide life. After the Fall of humanity through Adam and Eve, God’s love leads him to save sinners rather than abandon them. He called Abraham, brought Israel to the promised land, and sent prophets to Israel to show his love.
What Does God’s Love Mean for Us?
Understanding God’s love changes the way we live and calls us to share his love with the world.
Since God is love, we understand love through our relationship with him. Many search for love in things like people, success, or temporary happiness. However, true love will only be found in God. He created us for a relationship with him, and without it, we will seek love in ways that can’t fulfill us. Our ideas of love must be corrected and changed through our relationship with him—his voice, his guidance, his commands. It takes our humility to learn his ways rather than the world’s, but we will be transformed by such renewing of our mind (Romans 12:2). Through Christ and the Spirit, we experience the fullness of the Father’s love, which heals, teaches, and restores us.
As we understand God’s love for us, we learn to have the Father’s heart for others. He loves through us, the Spirit helping us be sacrificial, patient, and forgiving. Without God, our love will be emotional and selfish. But when we abide in him, walking in the Spirit, we love as he does in grace, faith, and eternal hope. The eternal hope we have seeks the heavenly good for all people. God’s love doesn’t ignore sin but invites others to salvation. 2 Peter 3:9 says, “The Lord is patient with you, not wanting anyone to perish, but everyone to come to repentance.” True love points people to Christ since he will also teach and show them his love and transformation.
As Jesus came to earth and preached the Gospel, making a way for reconciliation to the Father, and he has become our model, we also share it with others. Jesus commissions his disciples in Matthew 28:19: “Go and make disciples of all nations.” We preach the Gospel through our words and actions—serving, forgiving, and giving generously for everyone’s good.
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