What is love according to the Bible?
For this week’s BlogThursday post, I will be discussing the importance of love in our lives and what exactly love is according to the Bible. Paul explains that love is the cornerstone of all our spiritual endeavours. We must first learn how to walk in love before we can desire spiritual gifts. God's love allows you to change and grow into the person he wants you to be. God loves you just as you are, but he also loves you enough to not let you stay how you are. He wants to see you grow and change for the better. So let's try to understand this further as we look into what the bible tells us.
How to Love Yourself as a Follower of Christ
The concept of self-love taught by society is not the same as what is biblically taught to us believers. It has nothing to do with yourself but rather everything to do with God. 1 John 4:16 reads, “So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is Love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him.” As this scripture states God is Love, so the only way to love yourself is to know and embrace the love God has for you, His agape love, that’s true self-love. Below are three ways you can love yourself.
1. Identity in Christ—recognising you as a child of God who is loved by the Father.
2. Know your worth—be in awe of who God created you to be and who you are becoming. You have a purpose and are created perfect in the image of God. (Genesis 1:27).
3. Acknowledging your sinful nature—it's important to remain humble before God. As Christians, we must remember the sacrifice Jesus has made on the cross for us, as he paid for our sins, and there is no greater love than that.
What is love to you?
There are so many ways you can express love to others, and as Christians, once you have accepted Christ into your lives and understood his love for you, you are able to share that love with others, which is beautiful. Love is patient, kind, not self-seeking and is not easily angered which means if you're experiencing love it should only bring positive emotions into your life not negative ones. The Bible shows and teaches us what love is as the characteristics of love are mentioned in 1 Corinthians 13:4, “Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; is not arrogant or rude.” I find these characteristics of love through my family and friends which gives me comfort knowing God’s love is around me.
Loving Others
When you love someone whether it is your spouse, sibling or friend, it means you have feelings for that person as you care for them deeply. Although love can make us feel vulnerable at times when expressing our feelings, God intended us to feel loved on earth as he first loved us. John 15:12 - “This is my commandment, that you love one another as I have loved you.” This means once we understand God’s love for us and love ourselves, we should share that love with others as it is the foundation of hope, joy and peace in a relationship. Even once we have found love with another person, it is important to live a life that reflects Christ’s love and teachings, setting an example for others to follow. Titus 2:7 - “Show yourself in all respects to be a model of good works, and in your teaching show integrity and dignity.”
Whenever we are unsure of what love is or how we should express love, we must turn to what the bible tells us. We can see the Bible says that sharing love is important and that God wants people to love one another as he loves them. We can show love through actions by doing acts of kindness or by simply telling another person how they make you feel. However most importantly we must remember that before we ever even understood how to love, God loved us first. 1 John 4:19 - “We love because he first loved us.”
Prayer
Dear God,
I seek your wisdom to understand love. You not only know what love is but you are love personified. Show me how to love and give me a heart that trusts and obeys you. May I understand your love so I would know how to give and receive love.
In Jesus’ name, Amen.
