Unconditional Love in the Bible

God's unconditional love—the biblical agape—depends neither on merit, nor on behavior, nor on the response of the one loved. Romans 5:8 proclaims it: "God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us." This love is the foundation of all redemption and the model for every human relationship. It is not naive indulgence, but a sovereign decision of the divine heart. John 3:16 sums it up admirably: "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." Without conditions, without expecting any return, by pure grace, God gives himself to the sinner. The prophet Jeremiah hears the LORD declare: "I have loved thee with an everlasting love: therefore with lovingkindness have I drawn thee" (Jeremiah 31:3). This love precedes any response from the creature and persists even when we are unfaithful. It is rooted in the very character of God, for "God is love" (1 John 4:8). To receive such love profoundly transforms the one who welcomes it and makes him able to love in turn. "We love him, because he first loved us" (1 John 4:19). Thus the one and only source of unconditional love toward others springs from the love God has poured into our hearts by his Spirit.