This one is so familiar to us that we're inclined to miss how radical it is. Even non-believers have heard that, "God is love," or that, "God so loved the world," and it's perhaps in danger of becoming a religious slogan, rather than a mind-blowing, life-changing truth.
"Yahweh Elohim Ahavah - the Lord your God loves you," is a phrase that appears several times in the Old Testament. This was a revolutionary idea because the gods of ancient peoples were distant and untouchable; they didn't have love for mere human beings. The word ahavah appears three times in Jeremiah 31: 3 -
"I have loved you with an everlasting love, and drawn you to myself with lovingkindness."
The New Testament picks up the theme, of course, and Jesus demonstrated it: that our God is a God who loves us; in fact, His love encompasses everyone in the world. It's a strong theme in John's first letter, where he even goes as far as to say, "Theos esti Agapē - God is Love." Not just that God loves or that He is loving, but that His very being personifies for us what love is.
🧡 No, the heart shaped lake in the photo isn't AI. It's actually Lough Ouler in Co. Wicklow, Ireland, and I believe the photo credit goes to Mark McGuire.
