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<\/a>1. Love is sometimes equated with sex\/romance, self-indulgence, sentimentality, or extreme tolerance.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n 2. Biblical writers are sometimes unclear about love\u2019s meaning.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n 3. Biblical writers sometimes portray God as unloving.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n 4. The Bible has no precise definition of love.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\n The final reason many theologians and biblical scholars fail to affirm the priority of love arises from confusion over what we mean by love. This confusion emerges from a failure to clarify terms. I put it this way\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n 5. Theologians often fail to define love well.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n Most theologians do not <\/em>define love. Even those who focus on love rarely clarify what they mean. This practice is especially odd, because most theologians know love has diverse and often confusing meanings. There\u2019s a dearth of explicit definitions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The few theologians who do define love often fail to use their definitions consistently. They\u2019ll say we ought to love the world, for instance, which sounds like we should treat creation well. In the next breath, they\u2019ll say we shouldn\u2019t love the world but should love God instead. Others say God causes or permits evil but also claim God loves everyone. The harmed and hurting doubt this. Theologians will say suffering is a necessary part of love, but they\u2019ll claim heaven is a loving place without suffering. Others say God loves everyone, but God does not<\/em> love the wicked. Some say God loves us like a friend and then say friendship with God is impossible. Or theologians will say love isn\u2019t about feelings, but then urge us to feel compassion for the needy. Some claim humans are incapable of love but criticize them for being unloving.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Theological claims about love often make no sense!<\/p>\n\n\n\n So\u2026 theologians need to define love well. And then employ their definitions consistently. Of course, definitions cannot capture everything that\u2019s true. Just as we will probably never grasp the full meaning of God, we will never grasp the full meaning of love. Words cannot provide all-encompassing explanations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Despite imprecision and failure to be comprehensive, however, words are<\/em> meaningful. They can partially describe reality. Words also move us to act, feel, think, and live in particular ways. We often need them to, as the Apostle Peter put it, \u201cmake a defense to anyone who demands from you an accounting for the hope that is in [us]\u201d (1 Pet. 3:15). If we thought words useless, we would stop using them altogether. And yet we persist.[1]<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n Because I think theologies of love should offer clear definitions of love, I devote a whole chapter to defining love and explaining what I mean. <\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n\n\n\nWe Need a Definition of Love<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n
I define love as acting intentionally, in relational response to God and others, to promote overall well-being. <\/h4>\n\n\n\n