Yesterday was Valentine's Day, the day the country takes to express love to family and friends. Oh if all could only know what true love is and know the Person of Love, Christ Jesus our Lord! The love I refer to, of course, is agape -- God's love; selfless and unconditional.
"...Love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God."
1 John 4:7

This is the love that we are called unto for Scripture tells us:
 "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life." John 3:16

"But God shows and clearly proves His [own] love for us by the fact that while we were still sinners, Christ (the Messiah, the anointed One) died for us." Romans 5:8 The Amplified Bible

"...God, being rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in our transgressions, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved)." Ephesians 2:4-5

"By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another." 1 John 4:9-11

"...God is love, and he who dwells and continues in love dwells and continues in God, and God dwells and continues in him. In this [union and communion with Him] love is brought to completion and attains perfection with us, that we may have confidence for the day of judgment [with assurance and boldness to face Him], because as He is so are we in this world."
1 John 4:16-17 The Amplified Bible

"We love, because He first loved us." 1 John 4:19

Christ's love is our standard!
"Just as the Father has loved Me, I have also loved you; abide in My love.
This is My commandment, that you love one another just as I have loved you."
John 15:9 & 12

The Apostle Paul describes this love in 1 Corinthians 13:2-8a (you all know it, but it bears repeating often lest we forget).
"Love is patient, love is kind, and is not jealous, love does not brag and is not arrogant, does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. Love never fails..."

Therefore,
"...May the Lord cause you to increase and abound in love for one another, and for all men..." 1 Thessalonians 3:12

Ours is not a one day a year expression of love, but a daily moment by moment "...walk in love, just as Christ also loved you and gave Himself up for us..."  (Ephesians 5:2) so we too are to give of ourselves to others.

Let us worship our great and glorious God and Savior for His wonderful call and plan for our lives. He is greatly to be praised and honored above All things. Amen