Truths About Love

There are many ideas about what love is and isn’t. Today, we’re looking at some truths about love on Cell Life Church Live.

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Truths About Love

This Friday in the United States, and in several other nations around the world, we celebrate Valentine’s Day. Valentine’s Day is named for Saint Valentine who is associated with “courtly love”.

Today, we are going to look at what true love really is and isn’t.

There are many notions and ideas about love and what it is. The word love can have different definitions depending upon a person’s perceptions and past experiences as well as the situation and context.

What we believe something to be isn’t always necessarily the truth. We filter our beliefs through past experiences and personal philosophies. For the real truth, we must turn to a resource that is unchanging and stands the test of time. We must turn to the Bible and the author of Love, God.

The Bible is our one source of truth that we can rely on to navigate the world always.

The word love has been defined in several different ways by the world. Today, we are talking about the truth about love. We are going to take two common beliefs about love and hold them up to what the Bible has to say about them. We will also discuss whether or not love is deserving and whether or not love is an emotion.

Let’s start by talking about the misconceptions of love being deserved.

When people feel that love is deserved, they feel that love is earned. You may even hear “You reap what you sow” when it comes to love. Some believe that you must act a certain way or say the right thing to not ruin love for your life. The belief is that you have to be in the perfect relationship to make love “work”. Others believe that your love life is defined by your past mistakes.

The Bible tells us that love is not deserved. No matter how hard we try, we cannot earn love. In its purest form, love is freely given. 1 Corinthians 13:5 says:

(5) It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.

Love keeps no record of wrongs. In other words, it is quick to forgive. Love puts the other person first and its motives are pure and not for the benefit of oneself. With love, there is no arsenal in the closet. When tension rises, love does not bring up past mistakes.

God is our example of true love. Let’s read Psalms 103:8-12,

(8) The LORD is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in love. (9) He will not always accuse, nor will he harbor his anger forever; (10) he does not treat us as our sins deserve or repay us according to our iniquities. (11) For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; (12) as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.

In these verses, we learn that love is not deserved. God loves us in spite of our mistakes. He is patient with our disobedience and not easily upset with us. God saturates us with his love. He does not hold our pasts against us. Our actions do not influence the way God loves us. He forgives and forgets and His love has the ability to heal our pasts.

We see that love is not deserved but is it something I feel towards another person; is it emotional?

Love is more of an action than an emotion. When we act out of love then the emotion will follow.

You may have heard these common ideas about love: Love feels good; it’s happy, fulfilling, and satisfying.

Let’s look at what the Bible has to say about it. Let’s read Colossians 3:12-14.

(12) Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. (13) Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you. (14) And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.

These verses tell us that love holds all these virtues. In other words, love holds together compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness, and patience. None of these qualities are emotions, they are all virtues. They are aspects of love.

Some people believe that you should follow your heart therefore, love must be an emotion. Listen to what Jeremiah 17:9 says about our heart:

(9) The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?

Your heart will deceive you. Your heart will tell you to do what feels good. The Bible is very clear to act out of Godly wisdom and not emotion.

Love is not emotion it is an action. Love leads to emotions but is first the unselfish service to others.

1 Corinthians 13:7-8 says in part:

(7) It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. (8) Love never fails.

God is the very definition of love. The Bible tells us that God loved us so much that he sent his Son into the world to pay the ultimate price for us so that we could reenter a loving relationship with God. It says that God didn’t send his Son to condemn the world, but to save the world through him. That is love!

We are not perfect but we are forgiven. We should strive to act as Jesus acts and love how he loves.

Love is more than a physical attraction or a kind word. Love is best described by the Apostle Paul in 1 Corinthians 13:4-7.

(4) Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. (5) It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. (6) Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. (7) It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.

Show love to others just as Jesus has shown to you and to others. We are called to love each other; not just the people we like, but everyone.

We hope you have a wonderful Valentine’s Day and spend it with those you love.