Dr Paul Allen

The difference between secular love and Christian love is that secular love is not rooted in the cross of God’s Son, is not sustained and shaped by the power of God’s Spirit, and is not acted for the glory of God the Father. So the source of it is different, its sustaining power of it is different, and its goal of it is different. Let’s think about each of these one at a time and see if we can fill it out. Rooted in the Cross First, there’s a different source between these two loves. First John 4:19 says, “We love because he first loved us.” And how did he first love us? Well, John says in 1 John 3:16, “By this, we know love, that he laid down his life for us, and we ought to lay down our lives for the brothers.” So, Christian love is rooted in Christ’s sacrifice for me and for you. By this, our sins are forgiven. We’re justified, accepted, and loved by God. We have the hope that everything in life will work together for our good and bring us everlasting joy, so that fear and greed, th...

How many people do you know that have made it to the hall of fame in music, art, literature, or sports because of their love? We elevate people to the status of heroes because of their gifts, their talents, and their power, but not because of their love. Yet, from God’s perspective, love is the chief of all virtues. But what is love? Love is said to make the world go round, and romantic love certainly makes the culture go round in terms of advertising and entertainment. We never seem to tire of stories that focus on romance. But we’re not referring to romantic love when we speak of the Christian virtue of love. We’re talking about a much deeper dimension of love, a virtue so paramount that it is to distinguish Christians from all other people. Moreover, love is so important to the Bible’s teachings that John tells us, “God is love” (1 John 4:7–8).  Whatever else we say about the Christian virtue of love, we must be clear that the love God commands is a love that imitates His own. T...