This is likely to get me into trouble, but here goes anyway....about 8 years or so ago, God called me into the ministry of studying/teaching/counseling Biblical Love. It is a full time job with much overtime. That being said, let me offer you a couple of truths about Love that some here may not be understanding.
First, the best definition I have been able to come up with is this....Love is putting another above self in an act of humility creating a covenant whose intent/purpose is reconciliation/restoration.
Now, since someone mentioned confusion about salvation, let's apply this to JEsus to show what this definition means.
Scripture tells us that the consequence of sin is death. This is both a spiritual death (aka separation from God) and a physical death in which our flesh returns to the dust from which it came forth. We can go into that more but I want to try to keep this related to Love in order to stay on topic. In the OT, the consequence for sin, aka death was paid by an animal sacrifice, in this way, the debt of sin was covered and the person could continue to live (in this case, spiritual life) But, as we see in Hebrews, we needed a better way to pay this debt and thus live, which is why Christ came.
Now, He came out of Love and if we look at the first part of the definition, putting another above self, we see that John 10:18 that Jesus willingly put our interests, our life above His own. But doing so in order for it to be real Love must be an act of humility. Phil. 2 talks about how extensive Christ's humility was. He gave up His throne, His Lordship, His beauty, His home, His face to face with the Father, etc. to come to earth, becoming a servant, giving up His authority so that we might live. (again spiritual life, or fellowship with God here) Thus the first two elements of the definition are covered in Christ. Before we move on to the next part, let me explain something, humility isn't about not knowing who you are or thinking you are worthless. In fact CS Lewis says it this way and it is spot on, humility isn't thinking less of yourself, but thinking of yourself less. IOW's Christ thought of us before He thought of Himself, that is humility in fact, that is how He could take joy in what He was about to endure, because He saw the beauty of the Love that would draw us to Him.
Okay, moving on in the definition....creating a covenant. Jesus death and resurrection were all about a covenant with us. A covenant is a promise with staying power. Heb. 8:6 in the case of Christ, this is a covenant of salvation. IOW's Jesus promises with a promise that cannot be broken, that if we believe with our hearts and confess with our mouths that Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah, the Lord of all, that we will be able to fellowship with God because in that belief, He allows HIs blood to pay the consequence of our sin. IOW"s HE became the sacrificial Lamb that gave us an advocate before God, a blood that paid the debt, covered our sins, filled the consequences, however you want to word it. He did all this so that we could be reconciled with God. II Cor. 5:19 This reconciliation is a restoration of the image of God that God placed within man when He created man. Romans 8:29
Thus, in the definition, we see not only the Love of Christ, but the Love of God the Father and the very reason that salvation came to man. See, without Love, neither man nor God is complete Col. 1:24 that is because God is Love, that is to say, He is the very source of Love, it flows out of Him and through Him and fills Him so much that He cannot help but to Love. That is why He Loves us, His enemies Romans 5:8 even unto death on the cross, because His very nature is one of a Love so great that it flows even to HIs enemies. But it is also important to man because man cannot be complete without Love. Prov. 19:22 We are only complete when that same Love is flowing in us and through us and filling us to overflowing. Something that happens when the HS is filling every crack and crevice of our lives. IOW's Love completes both God and man in a way that nothing else can do. This is why we are commanded to Love God first Matt. 22:37-40 and all men second. IN Christ, we can Love even our enemies, just like Christ did, because it is HIs Love flowing through us by which we Love.
Well, I hope I didn't offend to many people or too badly by saying all that, it just seemed important to say....may you all discover God's Love in a very real, new, and powerful way today. As you discover that Love from God, may it flow through you into those you meet along this journey and in that, testify to the truth of the living God.
