What does “God is love” truly mean?

Posted on Jan 03, 2019 Topic : Men's Christian Living, Women's Christian Living
Posted by : Quina Aragon

Can I be honest? I’ve always been a bit nervous about answering that dreaded question: “Mommy, where do babies come from?” I’m nervous that I might stumble my way through a vague-at-best response that either leaves my daughter completely confused or, perhaps worse, decidedly more inquisitive. I don’t have the answer to an age-appropriate conversation with your child. In fact, I’d love to hear your advice in the comment section. What I can share is something that I think any child (and adult) should delight to know: God is love. What does that have to do with “where babies come from”? Well, everything.

You see, when the apostle John summed up the nature of God in his statement, “God is love,” (1 John 4:8) he hit on something that has everything to do with creation and salvation (re-creation). It’s so true and so important that we understand God’s love for us in sending His Son Jesus to pay for our sins and bring us into right relationship with God (John 3:16; Rom. 5:8; 1 Pet. 3:18). But have you ever thought about God’s love in the act of creation? What about God’s love prior to creation?

If God is love and God is eternal, then God is, will always be, and has always been love. Even before He spoke the universe into existence, God existed in a perfectly unified community of love—the Father, the Son, and the Spirit. When praying to the Father, Jesus (God the Son) said, “Father…you loved me before the foundation of the world” (John 17:24). This means that even before God created the heavens and the earth, He delighted in Himself! Love preceded creation. Do you see where I’m going with this?

God, who has always been perfectly happy within Himself, decided to create the heavens and the earth as an overflow of that eternal love. God made human beings as the crown-jewel of His creation—His image bearers who would be enveloped into that sweet fellowship of love between Father, Son, and Spirit (Gen. 1:26-27; John 17:13, 23-24). Love caused creation. Does that sound familiar? Picture a loving married couple who find so much joy in each other. They decide to come together in hopes of having a child who they lovingly welcome into their family. This is a picture of love overflowing to make life.

What’s my point? No matter your family of origin, no matter your social status, no matter your upbringing, you were created and are sustained by a personal God who is defined by love. That everlasting love became unbelievably clear on the day that God crushed His own Son so that we could become God’s children (Isa. 53:10; John 1:12).

From eternity past, to creation, to the cross, to consummation on the New Earth, God is love. Knowing that “God is love” and how “God is love” changes everything. Our inquisitive children desperately need to know this, and so do we.