What is Love?

Small update about myself. Just finish my exams yesterday, but most of my friends, either they left for holiday, or they went back to Malaysia already, so the hostel is quite empty now. The day before ENT exam I fell sick, having running nose, cough, fever. So ironic, a person with ENT problem was preparing for ENT exam. Just after exam I have severe headache, not just simple headache, but pulsating or pounding headache. After some rest, some Vitamin C and chinese herbal tea from friend of mine, the symptoms went away. Thank God for thy mercy. By the way, though now on holiday, but just feel very lazy to update my blog =P.

One of the most frequent asked question: What is love? When answering this question, christians usually refer to these few passages in the Bible.

But God demonstrates his own love for us in this:
While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Romans 5:8

This is love: not that we loved God,
but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins.
1 John 4:10

and more......

Many people especially the non-believers might not satisfied with these answers, since all these passages or verse are about God's love toward humans, they want to know more about love between humans. So here is one of the most frequent quoted verses when talk about love.
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Now only I realised that my camera got this manual focus (MF) function
that can help me take picture in very very close distance.

Love is patient, love is kind. 

It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 

It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, 

it keeps no record of wrongs. 

Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 

It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 

Love never fails.
1 Corinthians 13:4-8

Though read these verses many many times, but I still can't really grasp the meaning fully, until recently during winter exam, when I read an explanation of  1 Corinthians 13:4-5 by Jerry Bridge.

• I am patient with you because I love you and want to forgive you.
• I am kind to you because I love you and want to help you.
• I do not envy your possessions or your gifts because I love you and want you have the best.
• I do not boast about my attainments because I love you and want to hear about yours.
• I am not proud because I love you and want to esteem you before myself.
• I am not rude because I love you and care about your feelings.
• I am not self-seeking because I love you and want to meet your needs.
• I am not easily angered by you because I love you and want to overlook your offenses.
• I do not keep a record of your wrongs because I love you, and "love covers a multitude if sins."

Source: The Discipline of Grace: God's Role and Our Role in the Pursuit of Holiness, by Jerry Bridge, page 38-39.

I understand more about 1 Corinthians 13:4-5, and what I can say is, I am far from that. Sometime there are things that we spend most of our life in it, to learn about it, but we know that we are still far from it. Suddenly remember a part of a lyrics in the song "The Greatness of Our God"

I spend my life to know
And I'm far from close
to all You are
The greatness of our God

It is not easy to love, to love someone is not easy. 1 Corinthians 13:4-8 set the bar so high, that almost no one in this world can do it, except one person, and his name is Jesus Christ.
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God is love.
1 John 4:8, 16