Tuesday: The God of Love
Daily Lesson for Tuesday 22nd of September 2026
In the ancient pagan world, people did not believe that the gods loved humans. Instead, the gods were malevolent and furious, and were supposed to be appeased. The idea of a God of love, as we see in the Bible, was a novelty. As surprising as this statement was in his time, Paul characterizes our God as “the God of love and peace” (2 Corinthians 13:11).
Read 2 Corinthians 13:11. How can you draw hope from what is said here? How can you better experience what this verse teaches?
Image © Sherry Boettcher at Goodsalt.com
The phrase “the God of love and peace” can be interpreted in two different ways. On one hand, God is seen as the source of love and peace. On the other hand, God is characterized by love and peace. It is not necessary, however, to decide between the two. Because love and peace are intrinsic characteristics of God, He gives us love and peace.
Elsewhere, Paul refers to God as “the God of endurance and encouragement” (Romans 15:5, ESV); “of hope” (Romans 15:13, ESV); “of peace” (Romans 15:33, Romans 16:20, 1 Corinthians 14:33, Philippians 4:9, 1 Thessalonians 5:23), “the Father of mercies” (2 Corinthians 1:3), and “the God of all comfort” (2 Corinthians 1:3). God is the source of all these blessings. He gives them to us all out of His unfailing love.
Also, although the phrase “God of peace” is somewhat common in the Bible, the phrase “God of love” occurs only here (2 Corinthians 13:11), and, hence, it deserves our most profound reflection.
As many interpreters have noticed, Paul’s reference to the God of love a few verses before the trinitarian benediction in 2 Corinthians 13:14 suggests that he thinks of God as three Persons. “Though he uses the word ‘God’ here as one of the three, his understanding of Jesus and the Spirit elsewhere in his letters . . . forces us to see the whole phrase as describing the one God whom the earliest church came to see in threefold form. It would be over a century before theologians . . . began to use words like ‘trinity’ as a shorthand way of expressing what Paul is already articulating.”—Tom Wright, Paul for Everyone: 2 Corinthians (London: Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge, 2004), p. 148.
We believe in one God, the unity of three Persons who live eternally in a relationship of love. This triune God loves us and summons us to love one another in a way that reflects the love among the Three Members of the Godhead.
I took this photograph of a Great Egret last week. It was one of those moments when the lighting was right and the bird was elegant. A couple of days later, I was walking in the same area and started talking with a woman walking her dog. I was carrying my big camera of course, and she asked me if I had photographed anything interesting. I told her I hadn’t that day, but I showed her the photograph of the Egret from two days previously.
“Wow!”
Sometimes our Christianity is a bit like that. We read and think about the love of God and we say, “Wow! that is so amazing!” But God’s love is not just “Wow!” it comes with the tag that we must act on the Wow. It is not just a case of singing “Amazing Grace!” and then going out into the world and not making a difference. Jesus gives the invitation to be salt and light in a world that is tasteless and dark.
When I share my bird photographs, I am happy for the “Wow!” but my photos come with the message that we are to look after our environment and protect if. The “Wow!” of Jesus love comes with the message that we also should share that kind of love in our environment.
A prayer for today: Lord, fill our hearts with your active love that takes us into our environment and makes a difference.
Wow, you’ve remimded me of the “light and salt” parable, this has showed me how distant i have been from God and his word, i learnt the lesson way back, when i was 8 or nine years old at the seminary school i went to
The two words, that were once a mere verse i had to memorize back then, now strikes me as an answer to the questions i have been asking:why is there war, hatred and selfishness?- is it our only way to thrive as humans?, no,
We have to the be salt and the light of the world!!
So, thank you for referring to the parable, means a lot to me
Fabulous picture! Love it!!
One significant feature of Christianity’s universal appeal was its proclamation of a God of love whose love extended beyond ethnic, social, political and economic boundaries. The God of love “so loved the world…”, He had to do something to save mankind because He is a God of love. As God loves, we should also love others. If we have no love for others, it means that we have not allowed the God of love to change us. God of love tells us that the God we encounter is characterised by love. All that we do should be motivated by love.
“Follow God’s example, therefore, as dearly loved children and live a life of love, just as Christ loved us and gave himself up for us as a fragrant offering and sacrifice to God.” ( Ephesians 5:1–2, NIV)
The GOD of love.
We can’t even comprehend it!
Todays devotional by Charles Spurgeon reads as follows, and speaks for itself:-
“I will rejoice over them to do them good.” Jeremiah 32:41
How heart-cheering to the believer is the delight which God has in his saints! We cannot see any reason in ourselves why the Lord should take pleasure in us; we cannot take delight in ourselves, for we often have to groan, being burdened; conscious of our sinfulness, and deploring our unfaithfulness; and we fear that God’s people cannot take much delight in us, for they must perceive so much of our imperfections and our follies, that they may rather lament our infirmities than admire our graces.
But we love to dwell upon this transcendent truth, this glorious mystery: that as the bridegroom rejoiceth over the bride, so does the Lord rejoice over us. We do not read anywhere that God delighteth in the cloud-capped mountains, or the sparkling stars, but we do read that he delighteth in the habitable parts of the earth, and that his delights are with the sons of men.
We do not find it written that even angels give his soul delight; nor doth he say, concerning cherubim and seraphim, “Thou shalt be called Hephzibah, for the Lord delighteth in thee”; but he does say all that to poor fallen creatures like ourselves, debased and depraved by sin, but saved, exalted, and glorified by his grace. In what strong language he expresses his delight in his people!
Who could have conceived of the eternal One as bursting forth into a song? Yet it is written, “He will rejoice over thee with joy, he will rest in his love, he will joy over thee with singing.” As he looked upon the world he had made, he said, “It is very good”; but when he beheld those who are the purchase of Jesus’ blood, his own chosen ones, it seemed as if the great heart of the Infinite could restrain itself no longer, but overflowed in divine exclamations of joy. Should not we utter our grateful response to such a marvellous declaration of his love, and sing, “I will rejoice in the Lord, I will joy in the God of my salvation?”
Amen …
One thing about the God of love is seen not only in what He says but also in what He has done for us. While other gods were portrayed as receiving offerings, our God gave His only Son; He demonstrated His love for us. “But God demonstrates His own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). When Jesus came he did not merely ask us to say that we love others; He showed His love by entering our sinful world. The God of love was revealed in His washing the disciples’ feet, healing the sick, and spending time with people rejected by society. He even loved those who crucified Him. This is the clear demonstration of God’s love—a love that enables us, when someone wrongs us, to look at that person with compassion and grace. As Jesus taught, “Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Matthew 5:44).
In 2 Corinthians 13, Paul connects the God of love with the way believers should live together: “Be perfect, be of good comfort, be of one mind, live in peace. And the God of love and peace shall be with you” (2 Corinthians 13:11). Choosing the God of love does not mean pretending to be perfect; it means choosing patience, kindness, forgiveness, unity, and peace. This teaching agrees with Paul’s description of love in 1 Corinthians 13: “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud” (1 Corinthians 13:4). Love is more than a feeling; it is an action, a decision, and a lifestyle. When we choose the God of love, we reflect His heart to the world, because “whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love” (1 John 4:8).
Maybe Motanya I am intrinsically selfish or still being converted. I have a profound dislike for disrespectful , crude and self imposing people. The words of my Lord and Saviour instructing me to love my enemies still comes to me as a shock !
Our God who derobed himself of his majesty and powers of Divinity and became a man – in the likeness of sinful man -soley on the basis of love for His creation, is mind boggling.
The point is this; the kind of love that you are discussing is clearly more than mere human. I don’t understand how folks can discuss these things as if it were simply a matter of choice.
Personally I am convinced that I need to encounter nothing short of the miraculous to love these people. I have begun to entrench myself in the Word on a daily basis. However I need to pray fervently.
For some of us, to be a Christian, clearly is a miracle of Grace.
True @Steve you have highlighted the true nature humanity and the state of our sinful hearts. You have underscored the need for God of love to give us true conversion, otherwise it is naturally hard to love on our own.
We all have our own understanding of the Creator GOD, in whom we pray daily. I believe in one GOD who manifests himself as a triune Spirit. HE came to earth as CHRIST the anointed one, to be sacrificed by showing HIS love for the world HE created. Jesus final teaching before the cross was for us to love one another, as HE loved us. I personally believe that HIS death on the cross was the end of HIM as the Christ or for His “Messianic duties”. HIS death and resurrection became HIS coronation as KING. And for us who are subjects of our king will follow HIS commands. Before HIS ascension HE commanded the disciples to wait for the Holy Spirit, and the Great Commission to make disciples of all nations. If we really believe this, we are to make ready a world, for the KING of KINGS to return. HE taught us love is the greatest command just as HE laid down HIS life for humanity, we are to as well onto death, because we have HIS promise of resurrection.
We have the second type of love today, that is the God of Love. Yesterday was the love of God. Today we describe our God of love. Yesterday we studied another character of God, the love of God. Today we characterize Him, He is the God of Love.
It is mind twisting to try to explain the difference between the Love of God and the God of Love, so I am going to give you my belief and testimony on the Trinity, or Triune if you prefer, as the author gave the background. Opposite of what some people believe, I believe that there is Our Father, His Son, and the Holy Spirit, as separate individuals. I have had people try to convince me of the contrary, yet my belief in the Trinity is as unshakeable as my belief that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, as our Messiah and Saviour.
What evidence do I have? The author gave one by Paul in 2 Corinthians 13:14. Christ referred to all three of the God head. Matthew 28:19. Peter referred to the Trinity also naming them as individuals. 2 Peter 1:2. Christ was driven by the Holy Spirit into the wilderness. Mark 1:12. Matthew informs us, Christ was led by the Holy Spirit. Matthew 4:1. Both are actions which requires individuals. Also, Christ said, “those who ask of the Father for the Holy Spirit He will give.” Luke 11:13.
It is the love of God and a God of love who created us in His own image. Genesis 1:27. The other image I am speaking of is the Family of God, Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit were always and will always be each part of the Family of God. The Bible led me to believe that we can be a part of the family of God also. I’m so glad I’m a part of the family of God, I’ve been washed in the fountain cleansed by His blood, joint heirs with Jesus as we travel the sod, I’m a part of the family, the family of God.
Yes, sounds like love to me. The love of God, from the God of love.
Thank you for your comment, John.
I believe that the two topics are just different ways of looking at the character of God. God has a heart of infinite love – so much so that His very character IS love!
To connect with your reference to our tri-une God, I recommend a couple of books by Ty Gibson. The first, The Heavenly Trio, he demonstrates convincingly that if God truly “IS love, as the Apostle John asserts, then He must exist as Three Persons. I cannot reproduce His argument in a comment, and that’s why I’m recommending the book.
I don’t think it’s safe to refer to God as a “family.” He has told us repeatedly that He is One God. The problem is compounded when you write, “we can be a part of the family of God also.” That makes it sound like we can also be God – which is what spiritualism explicitly teaches. And I don’t think you believe that.
For clarity on the subject, read Ty’s book. He wrote another on The Sonship of Christ, which addresses a concept that has often led to arguments in the church. It is also very readable and clarifying.
Thank-you Inge for the books suggestion. My wife and I listen to Ty’s sermons on YouTube from time to time on Sabbath afternoon. Even one suggested by our son who likes his sermons too. We have them ordered and I am sure will make good addition to our library, and to read together also soon.
No, I don’t want any part of even sounding like I can also be God . I rescind my illistration of family related to God.
I can see “Comfort, and living in peace, and The God of Peace being with us now.” But being “Perfect, and of One Mind,” probably not until, Jesus, returns and renews us and gives us “Glorified Bodies.”
Pete, the word some translations render as “perfect” is better rendered as “mature” or “complete” in today’s language. And if we truly “seek first the Kingdom of God,” we will be of “one mind” in our goals. God does not want us to surrender our individuality any more than He wants all birds to sing the same song.
I find it helpful to consider Paul’s letters from the perspective of helping the people to learn about and understand the new God he introduced. He met with his former countrymen first, but also introduced his God to the local people who followed their own pantheon of deities and invited them to assess his God – the God of Love and Peace.
Putting myself into their shows, determined to find the right God, open to receiving Paul’s introduction of the new God, I would have been persuaded to worship Him. Especially because He was introduced as the ‘God of Love and Peace’. Love and Peace are, in my opinion, the most important aspect of any human engaged in life. The God who bases His relationship with man on those aspects would be welcomed and accepted by many.
There is no deceit, no falsehood, no hidden agenda in/with our God. He fully declared Himself to us through His Son, our Savior Jesus Christ. Military minded kings and leaders who seek power to dominate others, could not identify with Him. They would rather followed the gods of commerce and establish their power through war, conquest, and intimidation. But our God is different – He is the God of ‘Love and Peace’.
I see our Father’s Creation in Light of the name He gave Himself – “I AM Who I AM” – the God of Order of the Universe. Love – Wisdom – Justice and the Peace resulting from their application, form His foundational building blocks with established heaven and earth and all that is within. He is not an ancillary god, He is the only God, the source of all Life and Truth.
God does not share His power with others when He declares/defines Justice, He is the source of all Justice. He does not incline His ear to the council of other gods, He establishes and manifests Wisdom and Knowledge. He shares Himself – Love and Peace – Wisdom and Justice – Grace and Mercy – with all who identify with Him. He offers us to participate in His Life – inviting us to trust Him, love Him, and accept living our life within His Son, our Savior Jesus Christ unto eternity. Rev.1:8
Love flourishes as God blooms in the heart. God is the source of all love, patience, kindness, mercy, and peace! While we strive for these things, we are following God’s way.
The God of love is the Source.
The love of God is His character expressed.
The cross is the supreme revelation of that love.