“And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love” (1 Cor. 13:13)
Today, here in the USA, is Valentine’s Day. It is the day we celebrate love: Children make Valentine's Day cards for their friends and give heart-shaped candies with little words on them that say things like, “Be Mine,” “Secret Love,” or just simply, “Love.” And at the local grocery store where cards and flowers are sold, you will see men nervously looking through rows of Valentine cards to find just the right one that will say to that special person at home, “I love you!”
So, what is love?
The best definition for love is found in the Bible. It is often referred to as the Bible’s “love chapter.” It is a great guide to follow.
“Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its own way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never ends. As for prophecies, they will pass away; as for tongues, they will cease; as for knowledge, it will pass away.” (1 Cor. 13:4-8 ESV)
The most powerful kind of love is described in the following verse
“There’s no greater love than this, that a man should lay down his life for a friend”
God demonstrated this kind of love to us
“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” (John 3:16 ESV)
“For as high as the heavens are above the earth, so great is his love for those who fear him; as far as the east is from the west, so far has he removed our transgressions from us.” (Psalms 103:11-12)
Therefore
“And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.” (Eph. 3:17b-19)