Love, Love, Love

"All we need is love! All we need is love!"

Well, that's what the Beatles sang years ago. Man, I wish that were true, but let me put it this way:

-Love doesn't pay the rent.

-Love doesn't pay the bills.

-Love is fickle and indecisive.

-Love can be affected by outside circumstances.

-Love can blind you to the truth.

-Love can put you in a pickle (LOL)!

John 3:16 tells us that God so loved us that He sent His only begotten Son to die for our sins and give us the opportunity for new life. That message of love for you and me is conveyed all throughout the Bible.

The Greek language had four words for love and here is how God used them:

-The word eros, from which we get the English word erotic. Eros was the word often used to express sexual love or the feelings of arousal that are shared between people who are physically attracted to one another. The word was also used as the name of the Greek god of love, Eros (the Romans called him “Cupid”). By New Testament times, this word had become so debased by the culture that it is not used even once in the entire New Testament.
-The second word for “love” was storge, which referred to natural, familial love. Storge (a word not found in the Bible) referred to the type of love shown by a parent for a child.

-The third Greek word for “love” was philia, which forms part of the words philosophy (“love of wisdom”) and philanthropy (“love of fellow man”). This word speaks of the warm affection shared between friends. Whereas eros is more closely associated with the libido, philia is associated with the heart (metaphorically speaking). We feel love for our friends and family, obviously not in an erotic sense, but in the sense of being kind and affectionate. However, philia is not felt between people who are at enmity with one another. We can feel philia toward friends and family, but not toward people whom we dislike or hate.

Different from all of these is the fourth Greek word for “love,” agapé, typically defined as the “self-sacrificing love.” This is the love that moves people into action and looks out for the well-being of others, no matter the personal cost. Biblically speaking, agapé is the love God showed to His people in sending His Son, Jesus, to die for their sins. It is the love that focuses on the will, not the emotions, experience, or libido. This is the love that Jesus commands His disciples to show toward their enemies (Luke 6:35). Eros and philia are not expressed to people who hate us and wish us ill; agapé is. In Romans 5:8, Paul tells us that God’s love for His people was made manifest in that “while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Once again, did you know that Jesus loves you so much that He died for your sins and your salvation? It was and is His agape' love that continues to transform and change people's lives today. You need it. I need it. Everyone who wants to go to heaven needs it. Why don't you receive His love today? Just ask Him to be the Lord of your life and He will be.