Christian Ethics: The Study of Love

If you were going to create a study of love, what would you call it? You could call it “loveology” or perhaps “Valentinianism” if you wanted to be fancy. But what if I told you that such a name already exists for the study of love? You may be surprised to find out that the study of love is named “Ethics.” Ethics isn’t ultimately a study of yes vs no, right vs wrong. That is the practice that comes out of a proper study of love. Now, I’m not just saying that because it is February and love is in the air. I’m not even saying this because it's a particularly original idea. This goes all the way back to Jesus. In John 14:15, Jesus says, “If you love me,” What? “Keep my commandments.” If you want to study how to love Jesus, then you need to study His commandments. If you want to comprehend how to love your neighbor, then you need to know God’s laws.