Defense Against the Dark ArtsSýnishorn

Day 4: Is God Love?

Is God love? So glad you asked. Let's look into this. The general consensus on love, the general cultural feeling, the sentiment on God's love… It's not a Christian one. It doesn't come from the Bible. It’s usually a purely emotive view of love. My professor at Bible College always used to say this: All truth is in tension.

It's like the two sides of a tent, right? You have a cord pulling the tent one way. You have a cord pulling the tent the other way. It doesn't necessarily mean you need a little bit of this, and you need a little bit of that, and then you have the truth. No, there are different tension points of the truth. There are five primary biblical manifestations of the love of God, and those different manifestations hold the love of God and the doctrine of the love of God biblically in tension. It's not one at the expense of all the others.

Now, there is a hierarchy in God's love. God loves God (and this is actually really funny, but it's actually the best point ever). God loves God more than he loves anybody. Let’s see why or how and break down five key aspects of God’s love:

1. Love within the Trinity – Before the world began, God was love. The love between Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is eternal and self-sufficient.
2. Love for the Church – Jesus loves His Bride, the Church, in a special, covenantal way (Ephesians 5:25). His love is not just global but personal and relational.
3. Love for Creation – God loves what He created. He saw that it was good (Genesis 1:31). His love is woven into every aspect of creation.
4. Love for the Fallen World – Yes, the world is broken, but God still loves it. John 3:16, anyone? His love drives His redemptive plan.
5. Provisional Love – Here’s a part that might challenge you. There’s an aspect of God’s love tied to our obedience. His love deepens when we walk in His ways (John 15:10).

So, what does this mean for us? God’s love isn’t just a blanket of emotional warmth. It’s a holy, purposeful love that calls us to maturity. It invites us to embrace the full counsel of God—His grace and His truth. God loves us too much to leave us where we are. His love is more complex and more beautiful than we might have imagined.