Love of the Highest Form

When opening God’s Word, sometimes the Bible can be incredibly complex, and other times, what seems to be the simplest verses, hit our hearts with immense power and strength. Did you know that the word “love” actually has multiple meanings? As athletes, we may have a love for our sport, and as Christians we love God, but we also may use the word love when we’re talking about a meal after a long practice. It’s a simple word that is truly more complex than you might have imagined, though the world has twisted “love” to have various connotations that God never intended it to have.

The Bible is clear on what it means to love and to know love; those who know God truly know love because God is love! I remember singing a hymn growing up that repeated “God is love, God is love,” and it has been stuck in my head ever since. Because of my relationship with God, I know what true love is.

God’s love for us is agape love, the highest form of love there is. Jesus represented agape love in the flesh; He came to the Earth with the mission to honor God and bring the world the truth of God’s love. By sacrificing His life to pay for the debt we have, His death on the cross and His resurrection represents the perfect love that God has for us: a love that knew us before we knew we needed it. Agape love is eternal and unconditional. God’s love for us is not based off of how we love Him or expect anything in return. If you have a personal relationship with the Heavenly Father, you know this love well. Whether you win or lose, come in first or last, practice well or give up; God’s love for you is unconditional

You have been loved with the most perfect love! God calls us to love one another, and though we may desire to love our friends, family or fellow competitors perfectly, sometimes we fail. God is the only One who can personify agape love. As competitors for Christ, we can love those around us by pointing them straight to the most perfect love, by pointing them to God. By loving our teammates, coaches and even our competition with the love that God has shown us, we can direct people to finding unconditional, eternal, sacrificial and perfect love—that is, God himself. To know God is to know agape love and to love God is to point others to that love.