Happy Valentine's Day!

“Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.” 1 John 4:7-8

The well known Christmas saying “Jesus is the reason for the season” can also be applied this day as well. Valentine’s Day is a celebration of love, whether it is romantic love, friendship love or family love, the entire day revolves around sharing love to one another. But where does this love come from you might ask?

God of course!

The very essence of God’s being, his personality, his very nature – is love. The whole reason we were born was because God loved us; He created us to love and to be loved. The motivation for God sending Jesus into this world was love. The most famous verse in the entire Bible, John 3:16 tells us that " For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life.” 

He demonstrates His love to us daily. God's love is personal. He loves every individual specifically and desires regular, intimate conversation with each one of us. God's love is unconditional. Nothing about our character or behavior can make Him love us less or more. God's love is available to everyone. It reaches across every continent, state and city for the entire world to receive.

Because of this love, we should be anxious and willing to return the favor; rejoicing, praising and loving God. In Matthew 22:37-39, it says we should “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” It is the first commandment but we shouldn't have to be ordered to do it, we should desire to.

After loving God, it goes on to say the second greatest commandment is to share that love with others. We are to be like Jesus; spreading His love to all we meet. It will bring fellowship and closeness among believers and to non-believers, it will show them the love of Christ so that they may come to know him. He even tells us how to love in 1 Corinthians 13:4-8.

1 John 4:12 says “No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.” Just as the line in the movie Jerry Maguire, “You complete me”, God can complete us if we let Him into our hearts.

So on this day of love, while we are sharing our love with those around us; let us remember who gave us love, who loves us all, and who IS love, our Lord and Savior.