Musings on the nature of love

Charleswood

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 26/02/2026 (203 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

What is love and what does it look like?

In a time where sharp divisions and outrage are the norm, where communication is detached from the tangible presence of another, where personal rights are the focus and consideration for others is often neglected–this question is crucial.

The Bible contains a famous passage on love, often quoted at weddings. Sometimes when I read it, I feel despair at ever being able to reach its standard. Do I even know how to love? But when I look at how love is defined there, I also like to imagine what a safe place that love would create and I long for it.

“Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonour 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.” (1 Corinthians 13: 4-8, NIV)

This kind of love does not come naturally. We are all bent towards protecting ourselves, rather than giving ourselves. Consumed with self-preservation, self-interest, and self-promotion, we become the ones who walk on others. We accuse, we hold grudges, we ghost people.

If love doesn’t inherently live within us, how then can we possibly love in a self-sacrificing way?

I believe we must come to the end of ourselves, recognizing that we fall short.

I believe that we need to access love and strength outside of ourselves, namely from God through faith and trust in him, the one who created us to love him and each other. Without him, we are just in a battle for survival of the fittest – not exactly a mentality conducive to love.

I think we also need a call to love. We’re surrounded by messages like, “Just do what’s right for you,” with no regard for others. We need another voice telling us to “love your neighbour as yourself.” And we need to keep choosing to listen to that voice above the others.

I began this article with the question, “What is love and what does it look like?” I answered the first question with a quote from the Bible.

I will now answer the second. Love looks like this:

“But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” (Romans 5:8)

This is good news. We are loved. We are not on our own in this world.

And we can love others with abandon, because God first loved us, even at our worst.Happy love month!