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God is Love
ὁ θεὸς ἀγάπη ἐστίν
God is Love — love is not merely what God does; it is what He is
Symbol: The heart — not a feeling God has, but the nature God is
“Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love.”
1 John 4:8
John does not say God is loving — he says God IS love. Love is not an attribute God has; it is the essence of who He is.
What the name means
All of God's attributes are expressions of love — His justice loves the victim, His wrath loves the wronged, His mercy loves the guilty.
Love has been defined for us at the cross: 'This is how God showed his love among us: he sent his one and only Son.'
To know God is to love — because God is love, you cannot know Him and remain cold toward people.
How to pray this name
- Pray: 'God who is Love, I receive Your love and I extend it — I cannot do one without the other.'
- Pray it when you feel unloved — Love Himself is your God, not an absence.
God of Love, You are what You are. Fill me with Your love until it overflows to everyone I meet. In the Mighty Name of Jesus! Amen.
Declaration
God is love — and because I know Him, I love, because I have been loved first.
Study further
1 John 4:16 · 1 John 4:9-10 · John 3:16 · Romans 5:8