Love...

Love is probably one of the most overused and abused words in the English language in today’s society. We hear it constantly. I love my new car. I love playing soccer. I love pizza. I love my girlfriend (who I have been dating for 3 days and we are in the seventh grade). I love that song. I love this. I love that. But do we really understand what it means to say that we love someone or something?

Merriam-Webster’s online dictionary defines love in various ways, including these:
Strong affection for another rising out of kinship or personal ties.
Warm attachment, enthusiasm, or devotion.
Unselfish, loyal, and benevolent concern for another.
To hold dear.
To like or desire actively or to take pleasure in.
The dictionary defines love as both a noun and a verb. D.C. Talk (a legend in Christian music for those who don’t know who they are) says “I don’t care what you say, I don’t care what you’ve heard, Keep on talking ‘cause Love is a verb.”

God defines love in this way:
This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for one another. 1 John 3:16

Merriam-Webster ain’t got jack on God (and yes I know that is bad grammar). Love, real, true, authentic, love is not mere devotion or attraction. Love is not a warm fuzzy feeling or a quaint happiness. Love has little to do with “like” and often requires of us things that we may not necessarily take pleasure in. And I am convinced that love cannot be found in pizza, new cars, or our favorite sports or songs. Love is found in God. He is love. He is the author and creator of love. Love does not exist outside of Him. Fondness, yes. Strong feelings and emotions, definitely. Attraction and desire, sure. But not love. Apart from God, love is not found.

As I examine my personal relationships here on earth, I can see the example of God’s love in them. For example, I love my wife and she loves me. As we each grow closer to God and more in love with Him, we grow closer to each other. It is as I learn to love God properly and to understand His great love for me more fully, that I can love my wife in a better way. Outside of a proper understanding of God’s love for me and my invitation to love Him, I cannot properly understand the sacrificial nature of love that is required of me toward my wife. And in that very example I find the true nature of love. God loves me so he made a sacrifice to show that love. He spared no expense in lavishing His love on me and seeking to captivate my heart with the great expanse of his love for me. “This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us. And we ought to lay down our lives for one another.” Love demands sacrifice. It demands others above ourselves. It demands holding nothing back to capture the heart of the one whom it targets. That is what God did. He took no shortcuts and cut no corners to show us the richness of his love. He made the sacrifice so that we might know God and know Love.

So this Valentine’s Day, think about love. Who do you love? Who loves you? And remember, love is not something you feel, it is something you DO.