19/06/08

Agape - God kind of love

Romans 13:10 - Love worketh no ill to his neighbour: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.

Agape (one of the Greek words for love) is associated as one of the main characteristics of God. It refers to selfless love. Love that only gives; it heals, it enriches and blesses. And it does not expect anything in return. But agape - love is not blind, for God does not love evil, He hates evil. God loves, keeping His wisdom and righteousness in consideration. His love has a reason and that reason is to build the recipient not destroy. Love that does not build is not love.

Sometimes we do things for others to please them for the moment or to please our own self ego. Such actions are not called love. God chastens us only because He loves us. He could have ignored our doings and left us to our destiny - towards death and damnation. We would have been happy for the time being because of our blindness. But since He loves us, He cannot watch us blindly continue our path towards destruction. God also does not pounce on us the moment we do wrong. Knowing us and our capacity He deals with us in the best way for us.

God does not love Satan; He hates him and his every doing but did not crush him immediately. God tolerates Satan because God loves us. He is waiting for the right time to crush Satan when we reject Satan and his works and come unto God.

In the Old Testament to the Israelites a neighbor referred to any person who dwelled in their midst. It would mean an Israelites or an outsider - who dwelled among them keeping within the laws. In the New Testament a neighbor did not refer to any and everybody. It refers to a person who believes in God (not just by words) or one who internally had a seed of God (fruit of the Holy Spirit) in him. It is not easy to identify a far neighbor (outsider) from not a neighbor (a total unbeliever); therefore Jesus used a parable to explain the same. It does not mean we harm or hate a un-believer, we still love them, not an agape love - means being just with them.

God kind of love, keeping God's righteousness in mind and using God given wisdom in application is true love and fulfils the law.


[ Prayer Starter ]

Father God, show me to love as You love. Open my spiritual eyes and give me the wisdom to love, so as to build others in You. I ask this prayer in Jesus' Name, Amen.


[ Reference Scriptures ]

Luke 10:30-37
30 And Jesus answering said, A certain man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and fell among thieves, which stripped him of his raiment, and wounded him, and departed, leaving him half dead.
31 And by chance there came down a certain priest that way: and when he saw him, he passed by on the other side.
32 And likewise a Levite, when he was at the place, came and looked on him, and passed by on the other side.
33 But a certain Samaritan, as he journeyed, came where he was: and when he saw him, he had compassion on him,
34 And went to him, and bound up his wounds, pouring in oil and wine, and set him on his own beast, and brought him to an inn, and took care of him.
35 And on the morrow when he departed, he took out two pence, and gave them to the host, and said unto him, Take care of him; and whatsoever thou spendest more, when I come again, I will repay thee.
36 Which now of these three, thinkest thou, was neighbour unto him that fell among the thieves?
37 And he said, He that shewed mercy on him. Then said Jesus unto him, Go, and do thou likewise.

The Word of God was given free to us, therefore we should also share it freely with others.
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