Father’s Day was earlier this month, and I had the privilege of spending time with all of my children. While I always appreciate the thoughtful gifts they give me, the greatest gift is simply being together. Time shared with the people you love is something no present can replace.
Family relationships are rarely simple. They are filled with love, joy, misunderstandings, growth, and moments that shape us in lasting ways. I lost both of my parents more than thirteen years ago, so for the past decade, most of my family interactions have centered around my own children. Yet I still reflect often on the lessons I learned growing up.
Looking back, I have no doubt that both of my parents genuinely wanted what they believed was best for me. That was their way of expressing love. The challenge was that we didn’t always agree on what “best” looked like or how to achieve it. Their approaches to parenting could not have been more different. My dad emphasized truth, discipline, and personal responsibility, often placing less emphasis on feelings. My mom, on the other hand, wanted me to feel loved, accepted, and encouraged, sometimes at the expense of structure or difficult truths. Both loved me deeply, but they demonstrated that love in very different ways. And both methods were incomplete ways to love.
So we have come to know and to believe the love that God has for us. God is love, and whoever abides in love abides in God, and God abides in him. (1 John 4:16)
This brings me to God, who not only loves perfectly but is Himself the very source and standard of love. Unlike our imperfect expressions of love, God’s love is flawless, holy, and unwavering. He alone defines what love truly is and reveals what it should look like—both in our relationship with Him and in our relationships with one another.
The Old Testament uses two primary Hebrew words to describe God’s love. The first is ahav, which appears more than 200 times in both verb and noun forms. It conveys deep affection, covenant commitment, sacrificial devotion, and genuine delight. The second is hesed, appearing more than 100 times, and is most often used to describe God’s steadfast, covenant-keeping love toward His people. It speaks of His unfailing mercy, lovingkindness, and faithful commitment—a love that endures not because of our worthiness, but because of His unchanging character.
I have loved you with an everlasting love; therefore I have continued my faithfulness to you. (Jer 31:3)
Our English word love is used to describe so many different things that it can lose much of its depth and meaning. We say we love our spouse, our children, and even our pets. We also say we love tacos, our favorite sports team, or a great movie. In each case, the same word is used, even though the meaning and depth of that love can vary dramatically.
Most often, we use the word love to describe an emotional response or personal affection toward someone or something. But God’s love is far greater than a feeling. It flows from His holy and unchanging character and is demonstrated through His faithful actions toward those He loves. His love is intentional, sacrificial, covenantal, and steadfast. Rather than simply expressing emotion, God’s love actively seeks the good of its object, always in perfect wisdom, righteousness, and truth.
But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ. (Ephesians 2:4-5)
God’s love for us begins long before we recognize or understand it. He is always the One who takes the initiative. His love extends to all of humanity, as demonstrated in John 3:16, yet He also calls each person individually into a restored relationship with Himself through Jesus Christ.
Through Christ, God graciously offers the forgiveness of our sins, adopts us as His children, and invites us into a growing relationship with Him. He also promises the hope of eternal life in His presence. Even in this life, He faithfully works all things together for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose (Romans 8:28). As our loving Father, He guides, sustains, and protects His children according to His perfect wisdom and will.
If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness. If we say we have not sinned, we make him a liar, and his word is not in us. (1 John 1:8-10)
These blessings are not earned by our own efforts but are received by God’s grace through faith in Jesus Christ. Those who repent and place their trust in Him are welcomed into His family and become recipients of His steadfast love and His eternal promises.
so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God. (Eph 3:17-19)
True repentance is not ultimately rooted in shame or destructive self-condemnation. Rather, it leads us to a sober and honest recognition of who we are before a holy God, who also loves us with a love far greater than we can fully comprehend. It is a place of humility, surrender, and hope.
God’s love is made complete in us as we trust Him—not only with His good gifts, but also with our failures, our shortcomings, and our sins. In that trust, He does not abandon us, but continues His work of restoration and transformation in our lives.
God’s love stands apart from how we often define love in human terms. While we frequently reduce love to affirmation, emotion, or agreement with what feels good to us, Scripture reveals a love that is holy, intentional, and transformative. God’s love is not passive approval of our brokenness, but a steadfast commitment to our restoration and growth. It is seen in His grace that initiates relationship, His truth that calls sin what it is, and His kindness that leads us toward repentance and new life. Rather than leaving us in self-destruction, His love lifts us into a life shaped by holiness now and the hope of eternity with Him. The invitation, then, is not merely to believe in love in a general sense, but to seek and surrender to the true love of God as He has revealed it—perfect, purposeful, and life-giving.
Questions to Ponder:
- If love is often defined by our feelings of acceptance and affirmation, how might our understanding of love change if God’s love is also committed to our transformation, not just our comfort?
- Is it possible that what we sometimes call “love” is actually just agreement with our desires, while God’s love may instead be the steady call to become who He created us to be?
- How do we reconcile the idea that God’s love is fully gracious and accepting at the beginning, yet also intentionally leads us away from patterns that ultimately harm us?
- If true love seeks the highest good of another, even at the cost of discomfort or correction, how might that reshape the way we view God’s commands, conviction, and call to repentance?
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