02 Feb What is Genuine Love?

photo by Jordan Whitt on Unsplash

In this month of St. Valentine’s day with all the candy hearts and teddy bears on display in every grocery store, people can get confused about what love really is. They can confuse it with lust or at least think it must involve touchy-feely emotions. Love can actually exist without emotion. If you resist forgiving an injury but choose to forgive because it’s what God wants, that can be love. If you don’t think you feel love for a parent, but take care of the parent’s health and safety, you are showing love. Love can be an emotion for the sentient human, but it is an action for the spirit. Humans are body and spirit, and the spirit never dies. Love is an action for the good of another. Love pours out of you toward others. Loving others is the way we love God.

There used to be a song that said, “We always hurt the one we love.” That is NOT true. In philosophy, one learns to look askance at any statement with the word “always” in it. Other things that love isn’t can be found in Corinthians 13:4-8. It is not jealous, arrogant, rude, quick-tempered, deceitful, self-seeking, unforgiving, or evil. Avoid the above list in a potential mate, but even more in yourself.

One way we can define something is by comparing it to its opposite. Most people think hate is the opposite of love. Terry A. Modica of Good News Ministries says, “The opposite of love is not hate: It’s apathy: ignoring a need, not caring, doing nothing when there is something we can do to relieve suffering.”

When God tells us what love is, He is describing Himself. He is Love, the source of all love. He is patient, kind, forgiving, slow to anger, trusting, truthful. He hopes in us, watches over us, corrects us, leads us, helps us up when we fall, strengthens us.

There are those in this world who feel they don’t deserve God’s Love. Do we love a baby because he deserves it? We love him because he is ours, and God allowed us a hand in his creation. Do we love a baby because he is beautiful or isn’t he beautiful because we love him? Do we love a baby because he loves us back, or in loving him do we not teach him how to love back? Because we love him, we give the baby the things he needs, things that are good for him. We also withhold the things that are bad for him.

Genuine love is agape love which flows from God to us. It is spiritual, selfless, unconditional, self-sacrificing, perfect, pure, unsolicited and undeserved love given to us before our existence, bringing us into existence. God loves us because we are His, He created us. He thought about us before He created us. He knew what we would do, how we would act and react, yet He loved us. His love for us sustains our existence at this very moment. If He ceased to love us, we would vanish from time. He looks upon us and sees the beauty of our souls. What we could achieve.  He asks of us only that we love Him by loving others because He knows that for us to love Him completely is our greatest good. We grow in wisdom, joy, and peace when we truly love God. Love desires the highest and best for the beloved. Heaven is the highest and best.

For a glorious description of genuine Love by Thomas a Kempis, go here:

https://www.worldinvisible.com/library/akempis/imitation/chapter%2042.htm