Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Evangelical
Relationships and Religion
Did Jesus Say, “Love is Love.”

Did Jesus Say, “Love is Love.”

Last updated on: June 18, 2024 at 12:19 pm by Pastor Kelly M. Williams

Did Jesus Say, “Love is Love.” 2024-06-18T12:19:38-06:00 Pastor Kelly M. Williams

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

Over the past decade or so, marriage and sexual identity definitions have been under attack in our world. And as each of us rub shoulders with someone we know and love, who is the in process of redefining their sexuality and marriage and maybe even gender in their lives, we are each trying to find a way to navigate these re-definements.

About fifteen years ago the Christian community started saying this phrase, “God is Love” but now it is “Love is love.”

When you hear the phrase, “Love is love?” What do you hear?

Well, here is what it means to most in our day:

Love is Love is a phrase meaning that the love expressed by an individual or couple is valid regardless of the sexual orientation or gender identity of their lover or partner.

While I was in Europe not too long ago, I went to the University of Oxford, I toured the historically famous Randolph Hotel there on the grounds of Oxford University.

Inside this beautiful hotel was a sign on the welcome desk that said, “We welcome all sexual orientations.” No qualification, no exception, no explanation.

Love is love.

See, in the church, when this movement began, Christians at least were saying things like, “God is Love.”

The subtle movement from “God is love” to “Love is Love” is not an accident, it is a progression that always occurs when a deception or a lie is at the base of the intent. The Devil has used “God is love” to take a lot of Christians down the path of trying to be “loving” to people in their lives who are personally redefining love.

Now, we drop “God” and just add “Love” as the supreme rule of this rule. But love comes from God and cannot be taught or expressed by someone who is not demonstrating an extension of God’s expression.

You say, I don’t know If I agree with that. 1 John 5:7-8 says:

“Whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. So, love is an expression or action defined by God, alone.

God owns the exclusive rights to love.

So, anyone who says, “Love is love” must go back and say, “Does God Almighty define this as love?”

1 John 5:9-10 says:

In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. 10 In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.

This tells us that love is an expression or action supremely seen through Jesus.

If I want to know what love is look at Jesus life and his sacrifice for me.

The Savior shows us what love is, sex doesn’t.

See, when people say, “Love is love.” What they are saying is, “Sex is sex.” Which the Bible doesn’t agree with either. That is why the Bible defines acceptable and unacceptable sexual actions and orientations. The point is this, you won’t find love primarily through sex. You will find sex and if it is sex that unacceptable to God, you will find destruction. That is what the Bible teaches in Romans 1 and 1 Corinthians 6.

1 John 5:11 says:

“Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another.”

This means love is an expression or an action motivated by God’s example through Jesus.

I learn how to love you by learning how God loves me. My effectiveness of loving you is dependent upon my effective to understand and apply how God loves me. If I don’t think God loves me, then that is going to impact how I treat you.

John concludes his thoughts on love by saying in 1 John 5:12:

“No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us, and his love is perfected in us.”

This means love is perfected by God living in us and then through us.

So, then, love is Jesus living in us and through us. Paul gives us a list of actions and expressions that help us to identify when it is Christ who is living love through us. He says in 1 Corinthians 13:

4 Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant 5 or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful;[b] 6 it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth.

Here is a list of what love is when Jesus is living through us:

Patient
Kind
Does not envy or boast
Not arrogant
Not rude
Not insistent upon its own way
Not irritable.
Not resentful.
Does not rejoice in wrongdoing
Rejoices with the truth.

That’s the top ten of what love is when Jesus lives through you to love others.

What words or phrases are missing in that 1 Corinthians list?

Sex is love.
Acceptance is love.
Live your love.
Live your truth in love.
Be happy for them and what makes them happy.
Choose your orientation.
All orientations are welcome and accepted.
Don’t let someone else define love for you.
Love is love.
Do what makes you feel good.

Our world has twisted love. Love is the most sacred gift God gives us. But as Christ modeled for us. Love without selflessness and sacrifice is not love. We learn to love by learning how Christ loves us and loves others through us. Can I encourage you today to rethink your view and understanding of love and go back to the creator, designer, definer, motivator, and example of love, His name is Jesus.

Blessings,
Pastor Kelly

Relationships and Religion

Previous Post

June 15, 2024

A Pastor's Response To Pastors Tony Evans And Robert Morris

Next Post

August 9, 2024 If David Is a Man After God’s Own Heart, Why So Many Wives?

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category 1 Peter Abortion Asbury Revival Bearing Burdens Blessings of God BOOK OF MICAH charlie kirk Charlie Kirk and Steven Furtick Christmas Church Church Scandal Covid disicpleship Dr. James Dobson Ezekiel Fear Finances Francis Chan Gender Gender and Sexuality Gospel Grace Hearing the Voice of God Heart For God Homosexuality Israel Jesus Kayne West Kayne West and Joel Osteen Lauren Daigle Lauren Daigle and Steven Furtick Lauren Daigle and Steven Furtick Leaving Your Places Of Shittim Live Courageous Love Making A Name For Yourself For God Pastors and Churches Peace and Encouragement Personal Philip Yancey Politics Presidential Election Real Relationships Same Sex Ceremonies Sexual Abuse in the church Song Review Southern Baptist Churches and Women Teachers Suffering Thanksgiving Day The Bible The Good Pastor The Mystery of 23: God Speaks The Mystery of 23: God Speaks Again Uncategorized Visions and Dreams William Tyndale Woke Women Pastors

Select a Month September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 June 2024 April 2024 February 2024 January 2024 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 June 2023 May 2023 February 2023 January 2023 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Where does Scripture say, "do not let the sun go down on your anger"?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Luke Ephesians Genesis Proverbs