What the Bible Says Concerning Love    by D. Gray Taber

in Spirituality    (submitted 2011-07-25)

Love is Not Just an Emotion
I stumbled upon a Christian blog the other day and it has a list of bible verses on love. It brought up a point that I hadn't really thought about before. It made the point that we are commanded to love our neighbors as ourselves. Well how can we do that if love is only an emotion? You just can't turn your feelings on and off. Love is more than just an emotion or feeling butterflies in your stomach and getting dreamy eyed about somebody. It is a choice, an act of the will.

Just ask yourself this. If every person, every morning, got up and took an emotional inventory of how they felt about their spouse and if they didn't feel the bliss of romantic love, chose to get a divorce, how many marriages would last? (Maybe that is a big part of the divorce problem.) You see, love is not just an emotion, it is a choice and act of the will.

Do You Love Your Wife Enough?
In the list of bible verses on love that I read was a quotation from the bible that told husbands to love their wives as Jesus loves the church. That set me back a bit. We all know how much Jesus loves the church. He spread out his arms and died for it. I thought to myself, am I really dying for my wife? I don't mean like wanting to get in her arms, but I mean like am I dying to my desires and wants and putting her first.

Jesus didn't want to die. He wanted to live just like all of us, but He chose to give us what we needed rather than demand that His needs and wants were met. That is what the bible says we husbands are supposed to do with our wives. We are to make sure that her needs are met before ours.

Loving Your Enemies
Ok, sometimes I think the bible just asks too much! Did you know that Jesus told us that we are to love our enemies. Yes there is a bible verse on love that says to love your enemies! Now that sure does seem extreme at first glance. However think about it. It is easy to love our romantic interest. It is easy to love our friends and family. It is extraordinary to love those that hate you.

Yet, how are we to convert an enemy into a friend? I don't know about you but I want people to like me. I do not want any enemies so this bible verse on love is actually a good idea. If you love someone who hates you, then your responses and your actions will do things that will convert an enemy into a friend. What would our world look like if we too this bible verse on love to heart?

Now that is something to think about!

About the Author

To find scripture verses about love or to read other great teachings go to Taber's Truths Bible Teachings.