34. In every situation, Love does whatever is necessary to act in the best interest of the Other.
This is what the Sovereign Lord says: “When any of the Israelites set up idols in their hearts and put a wicked stumbling block before their faces and then go to a prophet, I the Lord will answer them myself in keeping with their great idolatry. I will do this to recapture the hearts of the people of Israel, who have all deserted me for their idols.” {Ezekiel 14:4-5}
If selfless-ness is the essence of Love, that means a person who is acting in a loving way in any given situation is doing whatever is in the best interest of the other person or persons involved. They are not giving thought to what might be in their self-interest, but giving thought first and foremost to what is in the best interest of the Other.
This principle covers every aspect of every relationship in life—marriages, parent/child relationships, friendships, dating relationships, and even business relationships. Whenever a person is acting from love, then he is operating from a desire to do what is in the best interest of the other person in the relationship, even if it’s hard or unpleasant.
You will notice that there is nothing here about categorizing the specific action or evaluating any outcome the action may lead to. If selfless-ness is the essence of Love, and if loving actions are defined by selfless motives, then any action that is done with the best interests of the Other at heart can be viewed as a loving deed.
If you want to dig deeper—
Exodus 14:10-22
Exodus 16
Joshua 10:1-14
Luke 15:1-32