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What’s Love Got to do With It?

What’s Love Got to do With It?

Last updated on: August 2, 2023 at 12:22 pm by Martin Thomas Johnson

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What’s Love Got to do With It? 2023-08-02T12:22:31-04:00 Martin Thomas Johnson

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.

As a Christian man, I’m almost ashamed to admit one of my guilty pleasures is watching a popular dating franchise. I like to see some of the creative date ideas. Yes, I admit I’m a hopeless romantic.

It’s also a good opportunity to get some insights into what the opposite sex thinks about love. It’s true; each person is different with a different idea of love.

Feelings
Sex
Gifts

Love really does mean different things to each one of us. When I was in my 20s I read and studied the five love languages. How we view love will influence how we live our lives.

Love Sign

Image by Pixaby

In the 80s Tina Turner asked a generation, “What’s love got to do it?” Even as a child I understood love is an important part of life. Turns out there are still a lot of people who still don’t understand love.

What’s Love

The question has been asked by men and women alike almost since the beginning of time. While everyone has a different perspective, the only answer that is certain is we all desire to love and to be loved.

Whether people want to believe it or not, God created us to love, we are created in His image and He is love (4:7). But, what is love?

Let’s look at what it isn’t. It’s not a synonym for liking a lot. It isn’t something we treat casually. It isn’t a selfish pleasure we can abuse. It isn’t a word we casually say and quickly forget, because, love has meaning to those with it and those who want it.

Marriage

image by Pixaby.

What It Means

The dictionary defines love as, “A strong feeling of warmth and personal attachment.” The world has its own set of values, but God’s people understand godly love is different, so our purpose cannot be pleasure or a fickle feeling. The Bible contains numerous words for love, each with a different meaning.

Bible

Image by Pexels

Most of us know the New Testament references four different types of love. But, the biblical idea of love goes much deeper, let’s start with the New Testament.

Eros (sexual or romantic)
Storge (familial)
Philia (friendly)
Agape (Godly love)

Hebrew Love

The Old Testament uses the Hebrew word Ahavah to describe the affection and care a person shows to another, in marriage, parenting, and finally God’s love for His people.

In Judaism, God loves Israel because of who He is, not because of who Israel is. His love cannot be earned, it’s simply the nature of God to love. God’s love is a gift to His people (Psalm 86:15).

Love Is a Gift

In Christianity, we believe we receive God’s love by grace. His love is a gift and unconditional once we accept it (1 John 4:7). The Gospels also described the relationship between Jesus and the church as a marriage (2 Corinthians 11:2, Ephesians 5:24-32).

Gifts

Image by Pexels

God’s love and grace go hand-in-hand and neither can be earned because they are gifts from a loving God and His heart for His people. The Apostle Paul breaks God’s love down into its key components (1 Corinthians 13:4-8).

Patience
Kindness
Unselfishness

John tells us that God gave His only Son as a gift to the world because of God’s love (John 3:16). Jesus showed us how to love by humbling Himself and giving his life on the cross.

God’s sacrifice was foreshadowed by the Jewish patriarch Abraham and his near sacrifice of offering his son as a gift. Abraham’s and God’s willingness to give contradicts this world’s idea of love. You see, love has a lot to do with it!

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