Lesson 28. Love Knows How to Speak

Does God communicate with His creation? Can we hear God’s voice? Does God desire to tell us something? Job 12:7–9 says: “But ask now the beasts, and they shall teach thee; and the fowls of the air, and they shall tell thee: or speak to the earth, and it shall teach thee: and the fishes of the sea shall declare unto thee. Who knoweth not in all these that the hand of the Lord hath wrought this?”

What distinguishes us from the animal world is that we can speak and possess will, reason, and intellect. We are able to analyze, set goals, and attain them. We possess freedom of choice and can distinguish good from evil. Yet in order to attain personal ambitions, for selfish interests, or simply for pleasure, a human being is prepared to destroy both himself and others like him. Sin entered our life and became its norm. Sin has penetrated every area of human activity so thoroughly that it can no longer be distinguished from holiness. It appears that no means remains by which to be freed from it. People are born selfish, develop this quality within themselves, live in it, and die, often without ever understanding that something better exists.

But God did not leave the sinful world without hope. He offers a beautiful way of salvation from the dominion of sin and deliverance from selfishness. God gave His Beloved Son; He gave Him to our world forever. If during Old Testament times God spoke with humanity through Jesus, after Christ’s birth He began speaking to the world in Jesus. And now He has decided to speak to me, within me, within my heart, through His Son.

God gives His love to the world, desiring to set it in opposition to selfishness. He waits for people to notice it and decide to acquire it. God gave humanity the Bible, in which He expressed His will very clearly, called sin by its proper name, pointed out the way and means of salvation, revealed to us the depth of His love, gave us hope, and assured us that by believing in Jesus we can become different—new people living according to the law of love and Eternity. In confirmation of His words, God sends those who believe in Him the gift of the Holy Spirit, through Whom He has fellowship with each of us.

The Holy Spirit, abiding within my heart, reveals God’s will to me, comforts me in sorrow, teaches me to distinguish sin from goodness, reveals the mysteries of a holy spiritual life, transforms my mind, and writes God’s laws within it.

Under the influence of Divine Powers, I am transformed and begin to live according to the spirit of love, bearing the fruit of holiness.

Now God can speak to this world through me. By believing in Christ, I become God’s instrument through which He manifests His power and proclaims His will.

God gives me His love, through which He reveals Himself and the beauty of His character to me and to the world. Love expresses itself in different ways. It knows how to speak, and it speaks many languages.

It searches for a way to every person’s heart and studies how, through its manifestations, it can reach that person’s mind.

When I begin speaking about love, every reasonable person desires to know whether I love that person, whether my love can touch that person’s soul, and whether it can do something for it. But there is a distinctive feature: every person perceives love in their own way. Love is revealed to each person in the language closest to the heart and most understandable to that person. Sometimes a person near me may not even know that they speak their own language of love. But through interpretation and study, it is easy to determine very quickly what is closest to that person’s heart.

It is also very important to know which language of love is most understandable to me and to the person near me. Otherwise, by expressing love in the way understandable to me, I may appear to the other person as a foreigner because that person perceives love differently.

There are five principal languages of love: communication, touch, gifts, spending time together, and help. Other languages may be added to this list, but all of them belong to one of these groups to one degree or another.

The Lord seeks to reach every soul at the level and in the language that the person understands and perceives.

For example, I speak much about love and try to reveal its many facets to people. I often hear—and you will also hear from people—that they need deeds, not merely words. My language of love is communication. I understand it very well and can express my thoughts and feelings in it very clearly. But to someone else I am merely a talker. When I embrace a person or touch them tenderly, if this is appropriate, I may touch that person’s heart. If this is the language of love of the person near me, that person opens up. Or when I simply help someone with the ordinary affairs of life, I become the most loving person to them, provided that this person speaks precisely the language of help.

Many people love gifts, but for some this is the clearest expression of love, and they in turn express love in precisely this way. Another person needs you simply to be near, to leave everything else and devote your time to them, without even saying or doing anything. To such a person, you will be the best of all.

Another person is ready to listen and speak, and in such communication hears another person’s heart and opens their own.

Our task is not to teach others our language of love but to reach people in a language they understand.

For this purpose, we are given the gift of the Holy Spirit and knowledge of the human soul, so that we can discern the distinctive qualities and perceptions of those with whom we communicate.

Unfortunately, people who do not understand the language of communication do not remain in schools like this, because to them every field of knowledge is merely words. Therefore, we must take this fact into account and not measure others by ourselves.

In the lessons that follow, we will examine all these and other languages of love in greater detail and try to identify our own language if we do not know it.

1. In the light of our lesson, please read Mark 16:17 and 1 Corinthians 14:22.

2. What did you understand from this lesson?

3. Do you know the language of your heart?

4. Are you prepared to learn languages of love that are unfamiliar to you?

5. Did you see in this lesson new opportunities for reaching the hearts of those near you?

6. Does the prospect of learning other people’s languages of love bring you joy?

7. How can you discover your own language of love?