Christian love has many definitions, but the concept of love remains central to the Christian faith. The love that Christians have for Jesus, their spouse, and their fellow man combine in the scripture into a moving, multi-pointed definition that may differ from how non-religious people define it.
Whether you hope to understand a Christian lover or the love in your own faith, read on to learn about how Christians define and practice love.
A Love of Sacrifice
The Bible speaks in no uncertain terms about how essential sacrifice is to Christian love. For most of the love philosophy in the Bible, we turn to the Book of John. Therefore, consider this brief passage: “Greater love has no one than this, that someone lay do his life for his friends” (John 15:13). This concept applies universally to the Christian faith through Jesus’ sacrifice for his followers’ sins.
What does this mean for Christian love on a daily basis? In modern society, most love centers around receiving: we love what we get. We “love” sex and we “love” chocolate. However, for Christians, love should be more about sacrifice than reception. Love is about serving, not receiving.
Proof of Love
Christian love is not about withholding feelings and beating around the bush. Most Christians don’t want their partners to have to fight for their worth, but rather initiate romantic situations that prove your mutual affections. Christians are taught in church to take the initiative when it comes to their feelings and not be scared of them.
Love as a Demonstration
Many people think that love is all about speaking your mind and saying lovely things. However, for Christians, love is more of a demonstration, more of a way of expressing feelings as a sign of devotion. While this can be confused with a love that obsesses over reception and gifts, that’s not quite it. Demonstrating love in our society does often mean buying jewelry and flowers, but “demonstration” has a fundamentally different definition in the Christian faith.
This means to act as one in love, to express the truth of love honestly in the things you do. A demonstration of love involves the other factors mentioned like proof and sacrifice, even in the smallest ways.
Think of it this way. A modern man buys his wife flowers to thank her for doing the dishes. A Christian man does the dishes so she doesn’t have to. That’s a demonstration, or proof, of the sacrifices that make love worthwhile in a faithful house.
Christian Love: The Takeaway
Christian love is not easier to express than any other form, nor more of a “true love.” Often, our words and actions fail us when we need them. Sometimes, we don’t know how to demonstrate or prove love in action. However, expressing Christian love doesn’t imply being perfect at it! It just means expressing love in a direct and everyday way. This is the kind of love that can be shown in action, which doesn’t wait to be rewarded, and which never goes away.