What Is Love? What The Bible Says About Love

True love is difficult to define, but from a Christian standpoint, love is best understood through scripture. In fact, one of the most sought after themes in the Bible is the definition of love.

What is the definition of love in the Bible?

Also called “agape” or “agapi” in the Hebrew and Greek, what the Bible says about love has a lot to do with the emotion of unconditional partiality, which is core to Christianity.

Within Christianity, agape is considered to be the love originating from God or Christ for humankind. The biblical view of love is that it comes from God (that is, God’s love).

Biblical love is all-consuming, empowering and lives in each of us. Our heart is the symbol of the love that resides in us and God is the love that resides in us and God is the symbol of the love that reflects down on earth.

When we think about the Bible, we think of it as being a testament to Jesus and all of the love he has given to His people. The Bible is one giant love story to God, and his journey towards our acceptance and forgiveness of self and others.

The word “love” comes up on almost every page of the English Bible (mostly about love for God or love of Christ).

Within the scriptures, love is what binds people together against hate and dishonesty. Love is what keeps us from fighting with our enemies and sparring with those who disagree with us.

Look to Matthew 22:37-40: “Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets.”

There are many books within the Bible that discuss love as a central theme, but one of the top books is found in the New Testament.

Written by John the Evangelist, 1 John is all about love. John helps those who read the Holy Bible to discover what love is.

The word “love” is used interchangeably with the words “light” and “word.” He uses these words to help both believers and non-believers understand what love looks and feels like, and how it acts and sounds.

John is also prevalent in his teachings of love in 2 John, where he discusses the truth about the “L-word.”

Love stands for more than just romantic attraction or strong feelings towards those close to you; it also stands for the truth, respect, and obedience Christians hold for God.

One of the most famous lines from the Bible that many people use daily is the saying, “Love one another,” from 2 John 5.

This verse is said by almost every person on Earth at some point in their lives, whether it be a mother to her fighting children or a dog mom to her barking puppies. The word love was made to connect those around us with feelings of joy and happiness.

However, love does not come easy, and simply saying you love someone is different than showing it. We show love in many ways: holding someone’s hand when they are scared, calling a friend to ask if they got home safe, or even through acts in marriage.

The Song of Solomon mentions love in a more attraction-based context.

While many Christians believe love should be proven in ways other than intercourse before marriage, being a faithful and Godly partner is only half the battle of being in a relationship.

Love can seem like a simple concept before reading the Bible. You will notice that, as you read, the Bible can make many meanings out of love. Those who Love God will know peace.

The key concepts to remember are: love is trusting in our God, love is being faithful to your partner and families, and love is being kind and patient with the world around you.

Love is alive on your wedding day and in the moment your baby is born. Love is alive at the dinner table as you give thanks for the family and food before you. Love is lifting your sins up to God during a church service. Love is being there for those in need.

And Love is something we have all prayed to God for.

If you’re looking for guidance in life, look to love and seek God. The Bible verses mentioned below are just a few to keep in the back of your mind. The book of John and Psalms are both great starting places to read up on love, and how God is present within our hearts.

Where should you look if you really want to catch up on some love-based verses?

Here are 21 Bible verses on agape love found in scripture:

1. “Love one another.” —1 John 5

2. “Do everything in love.” —1 Corinthians 16:14

3. “If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but do not have love, I am nothing.” —1 Corinthians 13:2

4. “Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins.” —1 Peter 4:8

5. “And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.” —1 Corinthians 13:13

6. “My command is this: Love each other as I have loved you.” —John 15:12

7. “And over all these virtues put on love, which binds them all together in perfect unity.” —Colossians 3:14

8. “With all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.” —Ephesians 4:2-3

9. “No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.” —1 John 4:12

10. “Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves.” —Romans 12:10

11. “I have found the one whom my soul loves.” —Song of Solomon 3:4

12. “Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and they shall become one flesh.” —Genesis 2:24

13. “There is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear, because fear has to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love. We love because He first loved us.” —1 John 4: 18-19

14. “Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.” —1 John 4:8

15. “Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good.” —Romans 12:9

16. “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away.” —1 Corinthians 13:4-8

17. “Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her.” —Ephesians 5:25

18. “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.” —Ezekiel 36:26

19. “Hatred stirs up conflict, but love covers over all wrongs.” —Proverbs 10:12

20. “Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law.”  —Romans 13:8

21. “Dear children, let us not love with words or speech but with actions and in truth.” —1 John 3:18