The Bible describes love as a behavior, not as an emotion. There are several things that we miss-identify as love in this context. It is often thought that affection or desires are the definitions of love. These items however, are mostly involuntary and are rooted in the appetites of our nature. The love that the Bible speaks of is rather a voluntary behavior that is characterized by a respect and honor for others. Check this out in the classic text of First Corinthians:
1 Corinthians 13:4-7 Charity suffereth long, and is kind; charity envieth not; charity vaunteth not itself, is not puffed up, Doth not behave itself unseemly, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil; Rejoiceth not in iniquity, but rejoiceth in the truth; Beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
It can be easily identified from this text that love or charity is a behavior. We can confuse this because the affections and desires we hold will sometimes stimulate such attractive and noble behavior as this, but that is not what the Bible teaches. The Bible instructs us to behave in this way regardless of our feelings. Learning to love is a lifetime project. Marriages that last most commonly begin with a false sense of what love really is, but if they last, there is a growth into the true nature and behavior of love. It requires trust, obedience and faith. Love is the greatest skill and behavior you can develop. In the words of Paul, it is the, “greatest thing”.
