The “love of God” is a vital matter as the whole world suffers from a ‘love deficit.’ This is because the world is lost in Sin, having the very Sin-nature of Satan whose only love is for himself. Mankind who is “born in sin” is seen bearing Lucifer’s ‘self-getter’ nature. This is in contrast with God who is the only ‘self-giver.’

Since we were all conceived and born of the Sin-spirit that was passed on from Adam to all humanity, who of us does not almost always view most things as they relate to our self? How many of our thoughts concern us as opposed to others? Case closed! We’re all, just naturally, self-lovers. Oh yes, we may exhibit occasional acts of love, but much of that is for our own self-aggrandizement so as to appear as ‘givers’… when actually we are most concerned about our reputation.

Since all mankind is born with as a sin-infected self, the world suffers this ‘love deficit.’ Man cannot find the necessary love he needs. The ‘total self-giving love’ is not available from anyone other than God.

As you will see “God is love” and the only source of genuine ‘self-giving love.’ With God being “love,” He gives genuine self-less love to every believer who will receive His love as seen in the cross of Christ, whereby also He gives us His life with His nature of love. We are never told that God is justice, or God is power, or God is wisdom. These are His attributes, not His very essence as love is.

What exactly is the meaning of ‘love’ as applied to God, and how should we distinguish God’s love as seen in the Bible?

The Apostle Paul best defines love here in 1Corinthinans chapter 13.

“Charity [Greek, agape, God’s love] suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, ⁵ Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; ⁶ Rejoiceth not in iniquity [sin], but rejoiceth in the truth; ⁷ Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.” (1 Corinthians 13:4-7 (KJV)

I recall how that soon after I was saved in 1968 and had become a believer in Jesus as my personal Savior, my heart was immediately softened. Previously I was not one who even cared for the beauty of flowers or nature, let alone, other people. But since then, I’ve more and more see the extent of God’s love for me, my love and appreciation for other people and nature’s beauty has grown and continues to grow as I grow in the knowledge and grace of the Lord.

The phrase “the love of God” can be somewhat unclear in that it can either mean ‘God’s love for man’ or ‘man’s love for God’ as seen in the verses below.

⁵ And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us. Romans 5:5 (KJV)
³ For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous. 1 John 5:3

If you have received Christ as Savior then you already are full of His Spirit, which is God’s love and you can let it flow. You see, when we ‘receive’ God’s love and begin to see it for all that it is. We will be full of His love and ultimately become ‘givers’ of love, being enabled to pass His love to others. It is then that we have graduated from being ‘self-getters’ to being ‘self-givers.’ In “His love” we can then give grace in the form of unmerited favor to others, receiving them as they are, not requiring anything of them.

So, God’s genuine love is not ‘religious love’ which often only loves for show, for appearances or to earn or extort God’s favor – but His love and favor is freely-given and it must be freely received, it cannot be earned by religious works.

God as love acted personally on our behalf in GIVING His Son for us and GIVING His Son’s life to us. His love is to flow through us as God’s ‘love in action.’

When Paul used the Greek expression ‘agape Theou’ he seems to refer to ‘God’s love’ for man. Hence, God’s love is “shed abroad in our hearts.” We see the love God has for man and we are motivated to cooperate with His love desiring to flow through us. Thus, His loving Spirit influences our hearts (Rom. 5:5). Paul also uses the same expression ‘agape Theou’ to address ‘man’s love for God.’

“For the love of Christ constraineth [arrests and impels] us …” (2 Corinthians 5:14)

The meaning of love, as applied to ‘God’s love for man’:

‘Vine’s Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words’ makes the following comments on the “two” nouns translated love as applied in our study: “…expresses The Deep and Constant Love and Interest of a Perfect Being Towards Entirely Unworthy Objects…”

Vine then points out how that the type of love God has toward man is Not Prompted Out of Self-Interest or Reciprocity; Its Only Object Is the Welfare of Those Toward Whom It Is Directed. Hence, man has done nothing worthy of God’s love, thus God’s love is one sided in that man is the beneficiary.

God’s unselfish love for man is observed in many ways.

The account of man being initially created by God is indicative of God’s desire for man’s well-being (Gen. 1, 2). God gave Adam a beautiful, lush home and work to perform so Adam could be fulfilled (Gen. 2:1-15). The garden offered most of what Adam needed - food, security, beauty, and fulfillment. God actually fellowshipped with Adam “in the cool of the day.” Can you imagine, walking with God? Well, actually God now lives closer to is – He is in us, in the person of the Son of God, now as “the Spirit of life” in our spirit. Then also at creation, God saw man needed a well-suited counter-part, so He created Eve for Adam (2:18). So, man was well taken care of through God’s giving.

Even after Adam and Eve sinned against God, God offered them hope as seen in Genesis 3:15. Thus God made future arrangements in alluding to the Savior and His Cross who was to come to restore man and bring man to the ultimate intimate relationship with Him that we enjoy with Him today.

Remember, man in himself is always unworthy of the love of God. The Psalmist wrote asking; “What is man, that thou [God] are mindful of him…?” (Ps. 8:4). Paul answers;

“But God commendeth his love toward us in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” (Rom. 5: 8, cf.. 6-9).

The wonder and degree of “the love of God” is seen in John 3:16: 

“For God so loved the world, that he GAVE his only begotten Son [at the Cross], that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but HAVE [HIS SON’S] EVERLASTING LIFE.”

Here above we see the degree of God’s love… as the ultimate “GIVER” of His Son’s ‘LIFE’ not only ‘FOR US’ to redeem us, but also He give us Christ’s resurrection LIFE to Dwell IN US to be our All-sufficient new “life” This is the eternal “LIFE” (Greek, zoe, Christ’s limitless “Spirit of life”). God, in His Grace, only Gives Freely to us Unworthy Recipients of His Unconditional Love.

God not only loves (as a verb) but “God is love [as the noun].”

The love of God, especially on its higher levels, is incomprehensible to finite man. However, another Biblical truth regarding God and His love certainly challenges the greatest thinkers:

“He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God IS love” (I Jn. 4: 8).

John is not simply affirming the love of God, but that God Himself IS love! Knowing God’s love speaks of one who is personally intimate with God who is love. God’s love is not simply a characteristic of God but “the love of God” is the very fiber or essence of His very nature and being.

Love being the very nature and essence of God is the reason God is able to love unworthy man to the degree he does. He as genuine Love itself cannot do otherwise. Thus, He planned and executed the way of the Cross-work of Christ so that wayward lost mankind can, of their own free will, freely come to Him, being reconciled and received as a son or daughter of God as Father. He gave His son, “To redeem them that were under the law, that we might receive the adoption of sons.” (Galatians 4:5 (KJV). Though at one time wayward and lost in sin, we His believers have “received the adoption.”

“[God] Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will,” (Ephesians 1:5 (KJV)

As we have seen, love as applies to God is without self-interest and is totally motivated out of interest for the well-being of those loved.

God’s love is unconditional - “God so loved the world….” even with its sin and evil. However, to appropriate the blessings of God’s love, it is required that the arrogant, independently minded man must be humbled sufficiently to simply ‘receive’ God’s love. Thus, John wrote of Jesus;

“But as many as received him [received Jesus, as the embodied expression of God’s love], to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on ‘his name’ [‘Jesus’ means ‘Savior’]:” (John 1:12 (KJV)    

The ‘love of God’ is God’s remedy for the anxieties and fears that often come upon believers due to the situations of life so common to man.

“There is no fear in love; but perfect love [the fully known love of God] casteth out fear: because fear hath torment. He that feareth is not made perfect [yet complete] in [God’s] love.” (1 John 4:18 (KJV)

We have explored the love God has for man, but how about the love we are to have for God? Loving God should be easy and come naturally to genuine believers because “We love him, because he first loved us” (I John 4:19).

Thus, we are equipped by God’s love to then love others with His love in us.

“No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected [Gk. teleioo, completed or runs its course] in [Gk., en, by or through] us.” (1 John 4:12 (KJV)

John is saying we have received God’s love that then is to run its course though us to one another. In this was men have a way of seeing God loving them… through us.