Wk 3 | True Love

Ephesians 5:25-29

What is something you love? We toss around that word so often and so flippantly. It means so many different things. We use it to say, “I love waffles,” and in the same breath can say, “She is the love of my life.”

What is love? How would you define it?

So, we’re in a series about relationships. What does the Bible have to say about love and relationships, and what can we learn from it about what it means to love?

Read Ephesians 5:25-29

Before we get to this kind of love, we need to understand the different forms of love in their culture. We have one word, “love.” They had four which translate to our one word. What language was the New Testament written in? Greek. Out of the four Greek words for “love,” three of them are found in the Bible.

eros – Sexual love; This is the word that, though it was prevalent in their culture, it is not found in the Bible. This word was used in such instances when referring to cult prostitutes. It emphasized loving the beauty or sensuality of something. It’s where we get our word erotic from. To be honest, I think this is the what a boy or girl at your age means most of the time when they say “I love you.” They have very strong feelings for you. But, what are those feelings based on? As we will see in a little bit, are those feelings willing to sacrifice?

philia – friendship love; This word is rarely found in the New Testament, and it’s always paired with another word. When you see the word “brotherly love,” this Greek word is within it. This is the type love that good friends have for one another. It’s where the city Philadelphia gets its name. Do you know what they call Philadelphia? The city of brotherly love.

storge – family love; Like eros, this word is not found, as is, in the Bible. But, the opposite of this word is found. If you take a word and put “a” in front of it, what does it mean? What is a theist? Someone who believes in God. Put an “a” in front of it. What is an atheist? Someone who doesn’t believe in God. We find the Greek word astorgos which is translated as “heartless.” In Romans 1:31, unrighteous people are described as “foolish, faithless, heartless, ruthless.” The word “heartless” is astorgos. And in 2 Timothy 3:3, the disobedient generation living in the last days is marked as “heartless, unappeasable, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not loving good.” Again, “heartless” is translated from astorgos. So, a lack of storge, the natural love among family members, is a sign of end times.

agape – unconditional love; By far, this is the word used for love in the Bible. Over 90% of the time you see the word “love” in your New Testament, it is referring to this type of love. Thomas Aquinas referred to this type of love as “to will the good of the other.” Thomas Merton said of this type of love, “love seeks one thing only: the good of the one loved.” This type of love, agape, is often translated as “charity,” which shows you some of its intention. It exists for the good of another.

It shouldn’t be overlooked that of the many words for love that existed in the time, that the primary form of love to be expressed in the Bible is self-sacrificial love for the sake of another.

Agape is self-sacrificial love for the sake of another.

Now back to our text. This is the type of love that is meant between a man and a woman, specifically within marriage.

How is a husband to love his wife according to this text? As Christ loved the church…and gave Himself for her. Sacrificed Himself for her…for you. Out of love. For your good.

Love is a commitment to the best of another, even if the other doesn’t recognize or accept the reality of the good.

The best thing you can do for someone is to tell them about Jesus. Even if they don’t recognize it and don’t believe it. Telling someone about God’s sacrificial love for them ends up for their earthly and eternal good if they believe it. That is THE best you can do.

T