Love [nave]
LOVE.Of Children for Parents
See: Children.
Of God
See: God, Love of.
Of Mankind for God
Ex. 20:6 Deut. 5:10. Deut. 6:5; Deut. 7:9; Deut. 10:12; Deut. 11:1; Deut. 13:3; Deut. 30:6 vs. 16,20.; Josh. 22:5 Deut. 11:1, 13, 22. Josh. 23:11; Psa. 18:1; Psa. 31:23; Psa. 37:4; Psa. 45:10, 11 See Song of Solomon.Psa. 63:5, 6; Psa. 69:35, 36; Psa. 73:25, 26; Psa. 91:14; Psa. 97:10; Psa. 116:1; Psa. 145:20; Prov. 8:17; Prov. 23:26; Isa. 56:6, 7; Jer. 2:2, 3; Mark 12:29, 30, 32, 33 Matt. 22:37, 38. Luke 11:42; John 5:42; Rom. 5:5; Rom. 8:28; 1 Cor. 8:3; Phil. 1:9; 2 Thess. 3:5; 2 Tim. 1:7; 1 John 2:5, 15; 1 John 3:17, 18; 1 John 4:12, 16-21; 1 John 5:1-3; 2 John 6; Jude 21
Of Mankind for Jesus
Matt. 10:37 v. 38.; Matt. 25:34-40; Matt. 27:55-61; Mark 9:41; Luke 2:29, 30; Luke 7:47; John 8:42; John 14:15, 21, 23, 28; John 15:9; John 16:27; John 17:26; John 21:17; Acts 21:13; 1 Cor. 16:22; 2 Cor. 5:8 [v. 6.] 2 Cor. 5:14, 15; Gal. 5:6, 22; Gal. 6:14; Eph. 3:17-19; Eph. 4:15; Eph. 6:24; Phil. 1:9; Phil. 1:23 vs. 20,21.; Phil. 3:7, 8; Col. 1:8; 2 Thess. 3:5; 2 Tim. 1:13; 2 Tim. 4:8; Philem. 5; Heb. 6:10; Jas. 1:12; Jas. 2:5; 1 Pet. 1:8; 1 Pet. 2:7; Rev. 2:4
Instances of Love for Jesus:
Mary, Matt. 26:6-13; John 12:3-8; Luke 10:39.
Peter, Matt. 17:4; John 13:37; 18:10; 20:3-6; 21:7.
Thomas, John 11:16.
The disciples, Mark 16:10; Luke 24:17-41; John 20:20.
Mary Magdalene and other disciples, Matt. 27:55, 56, 61; 28:1-9; Luke 8:2, 3; 23:27, 55, 56; 24:1-10; John 20:1, 2, 11-18.
A Gadarene, out of whom Jesus cast an evil spirit, Mark 5:18.
Joseph of Arimathea, Matt. 27:57-60.
Nicodemus, John 19:39, 40.
Women of Jerusalem, Luke 23:27.
Of Person to Person
Lev. 19:18, 34; Deut. 10:19; Psa. 133:1-3; Prov. 10:12; Prov. 15:17; Prov. 17:9, 17; Song 8:6, 7; Matt. 5:41, 42 vs. 41-47.; Matt. 10:41, 42; Matt. 19:19 Gal. 5:14. Matt. 25:34-40 vs. 34-40.; Mark 9:41; Mark 12:30-33; Luke 6:31-35 Matt. 7:12. Luke 10:36, 37 vs. 30-37.; John 13:14, 15, 34, 35; John 15:12, 13 v. 17.; Rom. 12:9, 10; Rom. 13:8-10; 1 Cor. 8:1; 1 Cor. 13:1-13; 1 Cor. 14:1; 1 Cor. 16:14; 2 Cor. 8:7, 8; Gal. 5:13, 22, 26; Eph. 5:2; Phil. 1:9; Phil. 2:2; Col. 2:2; Col. 3:12-14; 1 Thess. 1:3; 1 Thess. 3:12; 1 Thess. 4:9; 1 Tim. 1:5, 14; 1 Tim. 2:15; 1 Tim. 4:12; 1 Tim. 6:2, 11; 2 Tim. 2:22; Tit. 3:15; Philem. 12, 16; Heb. 10:24; Jas. 2:8; 1 Pet. 1:22; 1 Pet. 2:17; 1 Pet. 3:8 v. 9.; 1 Pet. 4:8; 2 Pet. 1:7; 1 John 2:10 vs. 9,11.; 1 John 3:11, 14, 16-18, 23 v. 19.; 1 John 4:7, 11, 12, 20, 21; 1 John 5:1, 2; 2 John 5
Exemplification of the Love of One Person for Another:
Ex. 32:31, 32; Psa. 133:1 vs. 2,3.; Prov. 24:17, 18; Matt. 5:41, 42; Matt. 10:41, 42; Matt. 25:34-40 vs. 34-40.; Mark 9:41; Luke 10:25-37; Acts 20:26, 27, 31; Acts 26:29; Rom. 1:12; Rom. 5:7; Rom. 9:3 vs. 1,2.; Rom. 12:15, 16; Rom. 14:19, 21; Rom. 15:1, 2, 5, 7, 14, 15, 24, 32; Rom. 16:1, 2, 8, 19 vs. 1-16;; Col. 4:7. 1 Cor. 1:4; 1 Cor. 4:14-16; 1 Cor. 8:13; 1 Cor. 10:24; 2 Cor. 1:3-6, 14 vs. 23,24.; 2 Cor. 2:4 vs. 1-17.; 2 Cor. 3:2; 2 Cor. 4:5; 2 Cor. 6:4-6, 11-13; 2 Cor. 7:1-4, 7, 12; 2 Cor. 11:2; 2 Cor. 12:14-16, 19-21; 2 Cor. 13:9; Gal. 4:11-16, 19, 20 vs. 11-20.; Gal. 6:1, 2, 10; Eph. 3:13; Eph. 4:2, 32; Eph. 6:22 v. 24.; Phil. 1:3-5, 7, 8, 23-26; Phil. 2:19; Phil. 3:18; Phil. 4:1; Col. 1:3, 4, 24, 28, 29; Col. 2:1, 5; 1 Thess. 1:3, 4; 1 Thess. 2:7, 8, 11, 12, 17-20; 1 Thess. 3:5, 7-10, 12; 1 Thess. 5:8, 11, 14; 2 Thess. 1:4; 1 Tim. 1:5; 1 Tim. 5:9, 10; 1 Tim. 6:2, 11; 2 Tim. 1:3, 4, 8; 2 Tim. 2:10; Philem. 8, 9, 12, 16-21; Heb. 5:2; Heb. 6:9, 10; Heb. 13:1-3, 22; Jas. 1:27 See: Fraternity.
Instances of:
Abraham for Lot, Gen. 14:14-16.
Naomi, Ruth, and Boaz, Ruth 1-3.
David and Jonathan, 1 Sam. 20.
David's subjects, 2 Sam. 15:30; 17:27-29.
Obadiah for the prophets, 1 Kin. 18:4.
Jehoshabeath for Joash, 2 Chr. 22:11.
Nehemiah for Israelites, Neh. 5:10-15.
Mordecai for Esther, Esth. 2:7.
Job's friends, Job 42:11.
Centurion for his servant, Luke 7:2-6.
Roman Christians for Paul, Acts 28:15.
Of Money
The root of evil, 1 Tim. 6:10.
See: Riches.
Of Parents for Children
See: Parents.
See also Brother; Fraternity; Friendship.
Love [ebd]
This word seems to require explanation only in the case of its use by our Lord in his interview with "Simon, the son of Jonas," after his resurrection (John 21:16, 17). When our Lord says, "Lovest thou me?" he uses the Greek word agapas; and when Simon answers, he uses the Greek word philo, i.e., "I love." This is the usage in the first and second questions put by our Lord; but in the third our Lord uses Simon's word. The distinction between these two Greek words is thus fitly described by Trench:, "Agapan has more of judgment and deliberate choice; philein has more of attachment and peculiar personal affection. Thus the 'Lovest thou' (Gr. agapas) on the lips of the Lord seems to Peter at this moment too cold a word, as though his Lord were keeping him at a distance, or at least not inviting him to draw near, as in the passionate yearning of his heart he desired now to do. Therefore he puts by the word and substitutes his own stronger 'I love' (Gr. philo) in its room. A second time he does the same. And now he has conquered; for when the Lord demands a third time whether he loves him, he does it in the word which alone will satisfy Peter ('Lovest thou,' Gr. phileis), which alone claims from him that personal attachment and affection with which indeed he knows that his heart is full."
In 1 Cor. 13 the apostle sets forth the excellency of love, as the word "charity" there is rendered in the Revised Version.
LOVE [isbe]
LOVE - luv ('ahebh, 'ahabhah, noun; phileo, agapao, verb; agape, noun): Love to both God and man is fundamental to true religion, whether as expressed in the Old Testament or the New Testament. Jesus Himself declared that all the law and the prophets hang upon love (Mt 22:40; Mk 12:28-34). Paul, in his matchless ode on love (1 Cor 13), makes it the greatest of the graces of the Christian life--greater than speaking with tongues, or the gift of prophecy, or the possession of a faith of superior excellence; for without love all these gifts and graces, desirable and useful as they are in themselves, are as nothing, certainly of no permanent value in the sight of God. Not that either Jesus or Paul underestimates the faith from which all the graces proceed, for this grace is recognized as fundamental in all God's dealings with man and man's dealings with God (Jn 6:28 f; Heb 11:6); but both alike count that faith as but idle and worthless belief that does not manifest itself in love to both God and man. As love is the highest expression of God and His relation to mankind, so it must be the highest expression of man's relation to his Maker and to his fellow-man.I. Definition.
While the Hebrew and Greek words for "love" have various shades and intensities of meaning, they may be summed up in some such definition as this: Love, whether used of God or man, is an earnest and anxious desire for and an active and beneficent interest ins the well-being of the one loved. Different degrees and manifestations of this affection are recognized in the Scriptures according to the circumstances and relations of life, e.g. the expression of love as between husband and wife, parent and child, brethren according to the flesh, and according to grace; between friend and enemy, and, finally, between God and man. It must not be overlooked, however, that the fundamental idea of love as expressed in the definition of it is never absent in any one of these relations of life, even though the manifestation thereof may differ according to the circumstances and relations. Christ's interview with the apostle Peter on the shore of the Sea of Tiberias (Jn 21:15-18) sets before us in a most beautiful way the different shades of meaning as found in the New Testament words phileo, and agapao. In the question of Christ, "Lovest thou me more than these?" the Greek verb agapas, denotes the highest, most perfect kind of love (Latin, diligere), implying a clear determination of will and judgment, and belonging particularly to the sphere of Divine revelation. In his answer Peter substitutes the word philo, which means the natural human affection, with its strong feeling, or sentiment, and is never used in Scripture language to designate man's love to God. While the answer of Peter, then, claims only an inferior kind of love, as compared to the one contained in Christ's question, he nevertheless is confident of possessing at least such love for his Lord.
II. The Love of God.
First in the consideration of the subject of "love" comes the love of God--He who is love, and from whom all love is derived. The love of God is that part of His nature--indeed His whole nature, for "God is love"--which leads Him to express Himself in terms of endearment toward His creatures, and actively to manifest that interest and affection in acts of loving care and self-sacrifice in behalf of the objects of His love. God is "love" (1 Jn 4:8,16) just as truly as He is "light" (1 Jn 1:5), "truth" (1 Jn 1:6), and "spirit" (Jn 4:24). Spirit and light are expressions of His essential nature; love is the expression of His personality corresponding to His nature. God not merely loves, but is love; it is His very nature, and He imparts this nature to be the sphere in which His children dwell, for "he that abideth in love abideth in God, and God abideth in him" (1 Jn 4:16). Christianity is the only religion that sets forth the Supreme Being as Love. In heathen religions He is set forth as an angry being and in constant need of appeasing.
1. Objects of God's Love:
The object of God's love is first and foremost His own Son, Jesus Christ (Mt 3:17; 17:5; Lk 20:13; Jn 17:24). The Son shares the love of the Father in a unique sense; He is "my chosen, in whom my soul delighteth" (Isa 42:1). There exists an eternal affection between the Son and the Father--the Son is the original and eternal object of the Father's love (Jn 17:24). If God's love is eternal it must have an eternal object, hence, Christ is an eternal being.
God loves the believer in His Son with a special love. Those who are united by faith and love to Jesus Christ are, in a different sense from those who are not thus united, the special objects of God's love. Said Jesus, thou "lovedst them, even as thou lovedst me" (Jn 17:23). Christ is referring to the fact that, just as the disciples had received the same treatment from the world that He had received, so they had received of the Father the same love that He Himself had received. They were not on the outskirts of God's love, but in the very center of it. "For the father himself loveth you, because ye have loved me" (Jn 16:27). Here phileo is used for love, indicating the fatherly affection of God for the believer in Christ, His Son. This is love in a more intense form than that spoken of for the world (Jn 3:16).
God loves the world (Jn 3:16; compare 1 Tim 2:4; 2 Pet 3:9). This is a wonderful truth when we realize what a world this is--a world of sin and corruption. This was a startling truth for Nicodemus to learn, who conceived of God as loving only the Jewish nation. To him, in his narrow exclusiveism, the announcement of the fact that God loved the whole world of men was startling. God loves the world of sinners lost and ruined by the fall. Yet it is this world, "weak," "ungodly," "without strength," "sinners" (Rom 5:6-8), "dead in trespasses and sins" (Eph 2:1 the King James Version), and unrighteous, that God so loved that He gave His only begotten Son in order to redeem it. The genesis of man's salvation lies in the love and mercy of God (Eph 2:4 f). But love is more than mercy or compassion; it is active and identifies itself with its object. The love of the heavenly Father over the return of His wandering children is beautifully set forth in the parable of the Prodigal Son (Lk 15). Nor should the fact be overlooked that God loves not only the whole world, but each individual in it; it is a special as well as a general love (Jn 3:16, "whosoever"; Gal 2:20, "loved me, and gave himself up for me").
2. Manifestations of God's Love:
God's love is manifested by providing for the physical, mental, moral and spiritual needs of His people (Isa 48:14,20,21; 62:9-12; 63:3,12). In these Scriptures God is seen manifesting His power in behalf His people in the time of their wilderness journeying and their captivity. He led them, fed and clothed them, guided them and protected them from all their enemies. His love was again shown in feeling with His people, their sorrows and afflictions (Isa 63:9); He suffered in their affliction, their interests were His; He was not their adversary but their friend, even though it might have seemed to them as if He either had brought on them their suffering or did not care about it. Nor did He ever forget them for a moment during all their trials. They thought He did; they said, "God hath forgotten us," "He hath forgotten to be gracious"; but no; a mother might forget her child that she should not have compassion on it, but God would never forget His people. How could He? Had He not graven them upon the palms of His hands (Isa 49:15 f)? Rather than His love being absent in the chastisement of His people, the chastisement itself was often a proof of the presence of the Divine love, "for whom the Lord loveth he chasteneth, and scourgeth every son whom he receiveth" (Heb 12:6-11). Loving reproof and chastisement are necessary oftentimes for growth in holiness and righteousness. Our redemption from sin is to be attributed to God's wondrous love; "Thou hast in love to my soul delivered it from the pit of corruption; for thou hast cast all my sins behind thy back" (Isa 38:17; compare Ps 50:21; 90:8). Eph 2:4 f sets forth in a wonderful way how our entire salvation springs forth from
the mercy and love of God; "But God, being rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us, even when we were dead through our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ," etc. It is because of the love of the Father that we are granted a place in the heavenly kingdom (Eph 2:6-8). But the supreme manifestation of the love of God, as set forth in the Scripture, is that expressed in the gift of His only-begotten Son to die for the sins of the world (Jn 3:16; Rom 5:6-8; 1 Jn 4:9 f), and through whom the sinful and sinning but repentant sons of men are taken into the family of God, and receive the adoption of sons (1 Jn 3:1 f; Gal 4:4-6). From this wonderful love of God in Christ Jesus nothing in heaven or earth or hell, created or uncreated or to be created, shall be able to separate us (Rom 8:37 f).
III. The Love of Man.
1. Source of Man's Love:
Whatever love there is in man, whether it be toward God or toward his fellowman, has its source in God--"Love is of God; and every one that loveth is begotten of God, and knoweth God. He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love" (1 Jn 4:7 f); "We love, because he first loved us" (1 Jn 4:19). Trench, in speaking of agape, says it is a word born within the bosom of revealed religion. Heathen writers do not use it at all, their nearest approach to it being philanthropia or philadelphia--the love betweeen those of the same blood. Love in the heart of man is the offspring of the love of God. Only the regenerated heart can truly love as God loves; to this higher form of love the unregenerate can lay no claim (1 Jn 4:7,19,21; 2:7-11; 3:10; 4:11 f). The regenerate man is able to see his fellow-man as God sees him, value him as God values him, not so much because of what he is by reason of his sin and unloveliness, but because of what, through Christ, he may become; he sees man's intrinsic worth and possibility in Christ (2 Cor 5:14-17). This love is also created in the heart of man by the Holy Ghost (Rom 5:5), and is a fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22). It is also stimulated by the example of the Lord Jesus Christ, who, more than anyone else, manifested to the world the spirit and nature of true love (Jn 13:34; 15:12; Gal 2:20; Eph 5:25-27; 1 Jn 4:9 f).
2. Objects of Man's Love:
God must be the first and supreme object of man's love; He must be loved with all the heart, mind, soul and strength (Mt 22:37 f; Mk 12:29-34). In this last passage the exhortation to supreme love to God is connected with the doctrine of the unity of God (Dt 6:4 f)--inasmuch as the Divine Being is one and indivisible, so must our love to Him be undivided. Our love to God is shown in the keeping of His commandments (Ex 20:6; 1 Jn 5:3; 2 Jn 1:6). Love is here set forth as more than a mere affection or sentiment; it is something that manifests itself, not only in obedience to known Divine commands, but also in a protecting and defense of them, and a seeking to know more and more of the will of God in order to express love for God in further obedience (compare Dt 10:12). Those who love God will hate evil and all forms of worldliness, as expressed in the avoidance of the lust of the eyes, the lust of the flesh and the pride of life (Ps 97:10; 1 Jn 2:15-17). Whatever there may be in his surroundings that would draw the soul away from God and righteousness, that the child of God will avoid. Christ, being God, also claims the first place in our affections. He is to be chosen before father or mother, parent, or child, brother or sister, or friend (Mt 10:35-38; Lk 14:26). The word "hate" in these passages does not mean to hate in the sense in which we use the word today. It is used in the sense in which Jacob is said to have "hated" Leah (Gen 29:31), that is, he loved her less than Rachel; "He loved also Rachel more than Leah" (Gen 29:30). To love Christ supremely is the test of true discipleship (Lk 14:26), and is an unfailing mark of the elect (1 Pet 1:8). We prove that we are really God's children by thus loving His Son (Jn 8:42). Absence of such love means, finally, eternal separation (1 Cor 16:22).
Man must love his fellow-man also. Love for the brotherhood is a natural consequence of the love of the fatherhood; for "In this the children of God are manifest, and the children of the devil: whosoever doeth not righteousness is not of God, neither he that loveth not his brother" (1 Jn 3:10). For a man to say "I love God" and yet hate his fellowman is to brand himself as "a liar" (1 Jn 4:20); "He that loveth not his brother whom he hath seen, cannot love God whom he hath not seen" (1 Jn 4:20); he that loveth God will love his brother also (1 Jn 4:21). The degree in which we are to love our fellow-man is "as thyself" (Mt 22:39), according to the strict observance of law. Christ set before His followers a much higher example than that, however. According to the teaching of Jesus we are to supersede this standard: "A new commandment I give unto you, that ye love one another; even as I have loved you, that ye also love one another" (Jn 13:34). The exhibition of love of this character toward our fellow-man is the badge of true discipleship. It may be called the sum total of our duty toward our fellow-man, for "Love worketh no ill to his neighbor: love therefore is the fulfillment of the law"; "for he that loveth his neighbor hath fulfilled the law" (Rom 13:8,10). The qualities which should characterize the love which we are to manifest toward our fellow-men are beautifully set forth in 1 Cor 13. It is patient and without envy; it is not proud or self-elated, neither does it behave discourteously; it does not cherish evil, but keeps good account of the good; it rejoices not at the downfall of an enemy or competitor, but gladly hails his success; it is hopeful, trustful and forbearing--for such there is no law, for they need none; they have fulfilled the law.
Nor should it be overlooked that our Lord commanded His children to love their enemies, those who spoke evil of them, and despitefully used them (Mt 5:43-48). They were not to render evil for evil, but contrariwise, blessing. The love of the disciple of Christ must manifest itself in supplying the necessities, not of our friends only (1 Jn 3:16-18), but also of our enemies (Rom 12:20 f).
Our love should be "without hypocrisy" (Rom 12:9); there should be no pretense about it; it should not be a thing of mere word or tongue, but a real experience manifesting itself in deed and truth (1 Jn 3:18). True love will find its expression in service to man: "Through love be servants one to another" (Gal 5:13). What more wonderful illustration can be found of ministering love than that set forth by our Lord in the ministry of foot-washing as found in Jn 13? Love bears the infirmities of the weak, does not please itself, but seeks the welfare of others (Rom 15:1-3; Phil 2:21; Gal 6:2; 1 Cor 10:24); it surrenders things which may be innocent in themselves but which nevertheless may become a stumbling-block to others (Rom 14:15,21); it gladly forgives injuries (Eph 4:32), and gives the place of honor to another (Rom 12:10). What, then, is more vital than to possess such love? It is the fulfillment of the royal law (Jas 2:8), and is to be put above everything else (Col 3:14); it is the binder that holds all the other graces of the Christian life in place (Col 3:14); by the possession of such love we know that we have passed from death unto life (1 Jn 3:14), and it is the supreme test of our abiding in God and God in us (1 Jn 4:12,16).
William Evans
Love [baker]
[N] [E]God is love and has demonstrated that love in everything that he does. Paul compares faith, hope, and love, and concludes that "the greatest of these is love" (1 Cor 13:13).
"God Is Love."Agape [ajgavph], the love theme of the Bible, can only be defined by the nature of God. John affirms that "God is love" (1 John 4:8). God does not merely love; he is love. Everything that God does flows from his love.
John emphasizes repeatedly that God the Father loves the Son (John 5:20; 17:23, 26) and that the Son loves the Father (John 14:31). Because the Father loves the Son, he made his will known to him. Jesus in turn demonstrated his love to the Father through his submission and obedience.
The theme of the entire Bible is the self-revelation of the God of love. In the garden of Eden, God commanded that "you must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you eat of it you will surely die" (Gen 2:17). We are not prepared, then, when God looks for Adam after his sin, calling out "Where are you?" God seeks Adam, not to put him to death, but to reestablish a relationship with him. God, the Lover, will not allow sin to stand between him and his creature. He personally bridges the gap.
That seeking and bridging reaches its pinnacle when God sends his Son into the world to rescue sinners and to provide them with eternal life (John 3:16; Rom 5:7-8; Eph 2:1-5). John declares, "This is how we know what love is: Jesus Christ laid down his life for us" (1 John 3:16). God's love is not based on the merit of the recipient (Deut 7:7-8; Rom 5:7-8). Because he is love, God is not willing that any person should perish, but wills that everyone repent and live (Ezek 18:32; 2 Peter 3:9).
"Love the Lord Your God." We are totally incapable of loving either God or others—a condition that must be corrected by God before we can love. The Bible's ways of describing this process of correction are numerous: "circumcision of the heart" (Deut 30:6); God's "writing his laws" on our hearts (Jer 31:33); God's substituting a "heart of flesh" for a "heart of stone" (Eze 11:19); being "born again" by the Spirit (John 3:3; 1 John 5:1-2); removing old clothing and replacing it with new (Col 3:12-14); dying to a sinful life and resurrecting to a new one (Col 3:1-4); moving out of darkness into light (1 John 2:9). Until that happens, we cannot love.
God alone is the source of love (1 John 4:7-8); he "poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us" (Rom 5:5). God's love then awakens a response in those who accept it. God loves through believers, who act as channels for his love; they are branches who must abide in the vine if they are to have that love (John 15:1-11). We have the assurance that we have passed from death to life because we love others (1 John 3:14).
Once we have received God's love as his children, he expects us to love. In fact, "Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love" (1 John 4:8). Jude urges his readers to keep themselves in God's love (v.21).
"Love the Lord Your God with All Your Heart." Love of God is a response of the whole of the believer—heart, soul, mind, and strength (Deut 6:5; Matt 22:34-40; Mark 12:28-34)—to the whole of God. Jesus serves as the believer's model (John 14:21; Php 2:5-8). Obedience to God (Deut 6:7; 7:9) and renunciation of the world-system (1 John 2:16) are critical elements of our love of God.
Our love, however, is easily misdirected. Its object tends to become the creation rather than the Creator; it loses sight of the eternal for the temporal; it focuses on the self, often to the exclusion of God and others. We become idolaters, focusing a part or all of our love elsewhere. We are "love breakers" more than "law breakers."
Genesis 22 presents a classic struggle: the conflicting pulls of love. Abraham loves Isaac, the son of his old age, the child of God's promise. But God tests his love. For the sake of the love of God, Abraham is willing to sacrifice the son he loves. Hisresponse is to a greater love. Jesus describes this conflict as hating father and mother in order to love and follow God (Luke 14:26).
"Love Your Neighbor as Yourself." Love for neighbor is a decision that we make to treat others with respect and concern, to put the interests and safety of our neighbors on a level with our own. It demands a practical outworking in everyday life—placing a retaining wall around the roof to keep people from falling (Deut 22:8); not taking millstones in pledge, thus denying someone the ability to grind grain into flour (Deut 24:6); allowing the poor to glean leftovers from the orchards and fields (Lev 19:9-12). Our actions illustrate our love. Love for neighbor is "love in action, " doing something specific and tangible for others.
The New Testament concept closely parallels that of the Old Testament. John writes: "Dear children, let us not love with words or tongue but with actions and in truth." Believers need to share with those in need, whether that need is for food, water, lodging, clothing, healing, or friendship (Matt 25:34-40; Rom 12:13). The love demonstrated in the parable of the good Samaritan shows that agape [ajgavph] love is not emotional love, but a response to someone who is in need.
The command to love others is based on how God has loved us. Since believers have been the recipients of love, they must love. Since Christ has laid down his life for us, we must be willing to lay down our lives for our brothers (1 John 3:16).
Many people in Jesus' day believed that a neighbor was a fellow Israelite. When asked to define "neighbor, " however, Jesus cited the parable of the good Samaritan—a person who knowingly crossed traditional boundaries to help a wounded Jew (Luke 10:29-37). A neighbor is anyone who is in need. Jesus also told his disciples that a "neighbor" might even be someone who hates them, curses them, or mistreats them. Yet they must love even enemies (Luke 6:27-36) as a witness and a testimony.
The Old Testament charge was to "love your neighbor as yourself" (Lev 19:18). But Jesus gave his disciples a new command with a radically different motive: "Love each other as I have loved you" (John 15:12). Paul affirms that "the entire law is summed up in a single command: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself'" (Gal 5:14). James sees the command to love one another as a "royal law" (2:8).
Love is the motivation for evangelism. Christ's love compels us to become ambassadors for Christ, with a ministry of reconciliation (2 Cor 5:14).
Glenn E. Schaefer
See also Fruit of the Spirit; New Command
Bibliography. H. Bergman, TDOT, 1:99-118; E. Brunner, Faith, Hope, and Love; E. J. Carnell, BDT, pp. 332-33; C. E. B. Cranfield, A Theological Word Book of the Bible, pp. 131-36; V. P. Furnish, The Love Command in the New Testament; N. Glueck, Hesed in the Bible; W. Gunther et al., NIDNTT, 2:538-51; H. W. Hoehner, EDT, pp. 656-59; C. S. Lewis, The Four Loves; J. Moffatt, Love in the New Testament; L. Morris, Testaments of Love: A Study of Love in the Bible; G. Outka, Agape: An Ethical Analysis; P. Perkins, Love Commands in the New Testament; G. Quell and E. Stauffer, TDNT, 1:21-55; F. F. Segovia, Love Relationships in the Johannine Tradition; G. A. Turner, ISBE, 3:173-76.
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[N] indicates this entry was also found in Nave's Topical Bible
[E] indicates this entry was also found in Easton's Bible Dictionary
LOVE [bridgeway]
In the language of the Bible, as in most other languages, the word ‘love’ has a very broad meaning. It may apply to God’s love for people (Deut 7:12-13; John 3:16), people’s devotion to God (Ps 91:14; 1 Cor 8:3), pure sexual love between a man and a woman (Prov 5:18-19; Song of Songs 2:4-5), impure sexual activity such as in prostitution (Jer 4:30; Hosea 2:12-13), love between members of a family where sexual feelings are not involved (Gen 22:2; Ruth 4:15), an attitude of kindness towards others, whether friends or enemies (Lev 19:17-18; 1 Sam 18:1,16; Matt 5:43-46; John 11:3), or the desire for things that brings pleasure or satisfaction (Prov 20:13; 1 Tim 6:10).Where the Bible gives teaching about love, the centre of love is usually the will, not the emotions. Such love is a deliberate attitude, not an uncontrollable feeling (Matt 5:44-46). This characteristic is seen in both divine love and human love. The Bible commands people to love; it commands them to act in a certain way, regardless of how they feel (Deut 11:13; 22:37-39; John 13:34; 15:17; Eph 5:25; Titus 2:4; 1 John 4:20-21).
Christian love does not mean that Christians try to create certain feelings towards others, but that they act towards others the way they know they should (Luke 10:27,29,37). The reason why they so act is that God’s love rules their lives, making them want to do God’s will (Rom 5:5; 2 Cor 5:14; 1 John 4:19). The more they act towards others in love, the more favourable their feelings will become towards those people.
Divine love
The love that God has for the sinful human race originates solely in his sovereign will. He loves people because he chooses to love them, not because they in any way deserve his love (Deut 7:7-8; Jer 31:3; Rom 5:8; Eph 1:4; 2:4-5; 1 John 3:1; 4:10).
This was seen clearly in Jesus Christ, who throughout his life helped those in need and by his death saved helpless sinners. Salvation originates in the love of God, and that love found its fullest expression in the cross of Jesus Christ (Matt 14:14; Mark 10:21; Luke 7:13; John 3:16; 15:13; Gal 2:20; Eph 2:4-7; 5:25; 1 John 4:9; see also MERCY). Jesus Christ could perfectly express God’s love, because he and the Father are bound together in a perfect unity in which each loves the other (John 3:35; 10:30; 14:31; 15:9; 17:24).
So much is love the dominating characteristic of the divine nature that the Bible declares that God is love. Everything that God says or does is in some way an expression of his love (1 John 4:8,16).
If we find this statement hard to understand when we think of God’s wrath and judgment, the reason is probably that we misunderstand the nature of love. God’s love is not an irrational emotion divorced from justice and righteousness, but a firm and steadfast attitude that earnestly desires the well-being of his creatures. God has such a love for what is right that he reacts in righteous anger against all that is wrong. God’s wrath is the outcome of his love (Hab 1:13; 1 John 1:5; see WRATH).
God wants to forgive sinners, but because he is a God of love he cannot treat sin as if it does not matter. He cannot ignore it. His act of forgiveness, being based on love, involves dealing with sin. At the same time, because he is a God of love, he provides a way of salvation so that sinners need not suffer the punishment themselves. He has done this by becoming a human being in the person of Jesus Christ and taking the punishment himself on the cross (John 1:14-18; 3:16; Rom 5:8; Gal 2:20; 1 John 4:10; see ATONEMENT).
This same love causes God to discipline, correct and train his children, so that they might grow into the sorts of people that he, in his superior wisdom, wants them to be. God’s love towards his children is an authoritative love; their love in response is an obedient love (John 14:15,21; 16:27; 1 John 2:4-5; 4:19; 5:2-3). God’s chastisement may seem painful rather than pleasant, but to ask God to cease his chastisement is to ask him to love us less, not more (Heb 12:5-11; see CHASTISEMENT). Love desires perfection in the one who is loved, and will not be satisfied with anything less (Eph 5:25-27; James 4:5).
Christians should accept whatever happens to them as being in some way an expression of God’s love and as being in accordance with God’s purposes for them (Rom 8:28; see PROVIDENCE). God’s gift of his Son is the guarantee that all his other gifts will also be an expression of his love (Rom 8:32). His love is everlasting and measureless. Nothing in life or death can separate believers from it (Jer 31:3; Rom 8:35-39; Eph 3:18-19).
Human love
Those whom God created have a duty to love him with their whole being. They are to be devoted to him and obedient to him (Deut 6:5; 10:12; Ps 18:1-3; Matt 22:37). As a result of such devoted obedience they will learn more of the meaning of God’s love and so will increasingly experience joyful fellowship with him (Ps 116:1-4; John 14:21-23; 1 Cor 2:9; 8:3; 1 Peter 1:8; 1 John 4:7,12,19).
Love for God will at times create difficulties. Conflicts will arise as people put loyalty to God before all other loyalties, desires and ambitions (Matt 6:24; 10:37-39; John 3:19; 1 John 2:15-17). Genuine love involves self-sacrifice (Eph 5:25; cf. Rom 14:15; 1 Cor 13:4-7).
Faith and obedience are just as basic to a relationship with God as is love. If people claim to love God but do not trust in him or obey him, they are deceiving themselves (John 14:15,24; Gal 5:6; James 2:5). Likewise they are deceiving themselves if they claim to love God but do not love their fellow human beings (Rom 13:10; 1 John 3:10,17; 4:8,20). Christians must have the same loving concern for others as they have for themselves (Matt 22:39; Phil 2:4). Love is a characteristic of those in whom the Spirit of Christ dwells; for when they receive God’s salvation in Christ, the Holy Spirit fills them with God’s love (John 15:9-10; Rom 5:5; Gal 5:22; Eph 3:17-19; 5:1-2).
Christians should exercise this love towards everyone, and in particular towards fellow Christians (John 13:34; 15:12-17; Gal 6:10; 1 Peter 3:8; 1 John 3:16-17). Such an exercise of love provides evidence that they really are Christians (John 13:35; 1 John 3:14) and helps them grow towards spiritual maturity (1 John 4:12,17). The church of God is founded upon love and builds itself up through love (Eph 3:17; 4:16). A unity of love between Christians will be clear evidence to the world that the claims of Christianity are true (John 17:20-23).
Although love for each other is something God demands, people should not practise that love solely as a legal requirement. They must act sincerely and display right attitudes, even when they feel no natural affection for the person concerned (Exod 23:4-5; Lev 19:17-18; Rom 12:9; 1 Cor 13:4-7; 1 Tim 1:5). Good deeds may be worthless in God’s sight if they do not arise out of sincere love (1 Cor 13:1-3; Rev 2:2-4).
Steadfast love
In the Old Testament the special love that God had for Israel was signified by the Hebrew word chesed. It is difficult to find an exact equivalent of this word in English. The RSV translates it mainly as ‘steadfast love’, the GNB as ‘constant love’, and the older English versions as ‘mercy’, ‘kindness’ and ‘loving kindness’ (cf. Gen 32:10; 39:21; Ps 100:5; 118:1-3; Isa 54:10; Hosea 2:19; Micah 7:18).
The distinctive feature of chesed is covenant loyalty or faithfulness. A covenant is an agreement between two parties that carries with it obligations and blessings, and in the case of God and Israel this covenant was likened to the marriage bond. The two parties were bound to be loyal to each other (Deut 7:9,12; Neh 1:5; see COVENANT). God exercised loyal love and covenant faithfulness to his people, and this was to be the basis of their trust in him (1 Kings 8:23; Ps 13:5; 25:7; 103:17; 136:25; Hosea 2:19; Micah 7:20). Yet so often the people were not faithful to God in return. Their covenant love vanished (Hosea 6:4; 11:1-4).
This chesed – this faithful devotion, this loyal love – is what God most desires from his people (Hosea 6:6). It also shows the quality of love that God requires his people to exercise towards others (Prov 3:3-4; Hosea 12:6; Micah 6:8).
