God is LOVE! (1 John 4:8) Love is God’s Manner of Living. It’s His characteristic way of acting. 

As a reflection of Himself (Genesis 1:26-27)  the Creator designed humans to love and be loved. When asked about the greatest commandment in the Law (the way things operate), Jesus replied: Love the Lord your God with every passion of your heart, with all the energy of your being, and with every thought that is within you. And, you must love your neighbor in the same way you love yourself.’ (Matthew 22:37-39) Love is the modus operandi of living. 

Love is giving oneself for the benefit of another. In the beginning, God created (gave of Himself) the world for the benefit of humankind. (Genesis 1:1) Creation was God’s first act of love. His second and greater act of love was Jesus. God showed his great love for us by sending Christ to die for us while we were still sinners. (Romans 5:8) 

Love involves surrender. That sounds negative so consider this. Hours before His death Jesus told a mini parable. Unless a grain of wheat is buried in the ground, it’s never more than one grain of wheat. But if it is buried, it sprouts and reproduces itself many times over.  (John 12:24-27) Think of it. All of creation operates via surrender!

 Jesus was a “human-being-seed,” filled with all of God’s character. (Colossians 2:9) His purpose was to display the extravagant dimensions of God’s love. (Ephesians 3:18) Yet, He struggled: Right now I am storm-tossed. Why? His fulfillment, like a seed, would only come via the route of surrender: giving His heart away for the well being of others, sinners (Romans 5:8) and enemies. (Romans 5:8)

Love is risky business! “Love means to commit oneself without guarantee, to give oneself completely…” (Erich Fromm, The Art of Loving) “To love at all is to be vulnerable. Love anything, and your heart will certainly be wrung and possibly be broken. If you want to make sure of keeping it intact, you must give your heart to no one. Avoid all entanglements; lock it up safe in the casket of selfishness” (C. S. Lewis, The Four Loves)

We know what real love is because Jesus gave up His life for us. 
1 John 3:16