LOVE
What is love? Often, we hear about it, see it spoken about, encounter it, or think we know it, but what if we don’t? What if we have a perception of what love is based on what someone told us? Haven’t we all been taught something different about love and, doesn’t everyone think what they’ve learned is correct? What do we do then?
Love is often romanticized and described as an experience. We hear about it in marriage, in family, and in friendships. We are often taught to believe it’s something we give or receive in response to how one feels.What if I told you that’s wrong? Love is not a random experience or feeling. Love is a verb, an intentional action, not based upon what you gain from relationships. What if I also told you love should only be used as a noun when in reference to the one and only, true living God?
I know. That’s odd. What an incredulous thing to say! It’s so contradictory to everything we’ve been told by the world, but when you take a moment to deep dive into what love is, you notice at its core, it was never meant to be something you don’t have that you are in search of, but rather something that is already in you, meant to be poured and stretched out of you. Love is something God sent ahead of you (His Holy Spirit), before you were ever placed on this Earth, so there would be no void in your spirit.
Let’s start with the basics. 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 gives us the characteristics of love, and each of those characteristics describe something love does or does not do. When applying love in this way, for example, love is kind, then we see that any form of kindness is considered love. That could be giving a compliment, holding the door for someone, or any task performed with another person’s joy at the center of the act. Another, much harder, example would be love endures all things. With this in mind, we see that love is not conditional. It is not based on the happy feelings and thoughts one has, but love endures ALL things, even the worst parts of a person, place, or thing.
When we consider these characteristics, we must consider God, for God is love (1 John 4:8). If we were to replace the word love with each verb that characterizes love, we see that God is also each of those things. For example, God is patient. God endures all things, etc. Because God is love, we know that any place we see love, we see God.
So if you’ve ever had to ask, “What is love?” How do you know when you’ve experienced it or have been in it? How do you know it was enough, or that it was satisfactory? I think you should follow up by asking, “Am I walking in the action? Am I walking in patience? Am I walking with endurance?” Because to experience love, and to be in love, is to exude the character of God. Love is not the idea of romance or loyalty. To embody love is to be engulfed in goodness, and to extend it consistently.
