Seek the Vision of Love

In the New Testament, there are 7 or 8 different words that denote different types of love. But the word that John uses in his gospel is agape. Agape is a very special kind of love. In Scripture, it is only used to refer to God’s kind of love towards us. It is a holy, awesome, powerfully freeing kind of love.

On the other hand, natural, or human love comes in a lot of varieties. But whatever form it takes, natural love originates from the soulish and fleshly aspects of the human being. By contrast, God’s love is spiritual in nature— that is, of the Spirit of God. Natural love can never really free us, enlighten us, heal us, or sanctify us the way God’s agape love can.

Listen to Paul’s prayer over the Ephesians in Chapter 3:

“…I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God.” (Ephesians 3:17-19).

Paul prays that we may be “rooted and established in love.” Other translations say “grounded in love.” Paul was teaching us that love--God's love--is the bedrock, the foundation or starting point, of being filled with the fullness of God. If that is so, then it stands to reason that God’s love is also the starting point for our ability to love God and others.

The word Paul uses here is also agape—God’s very own love for us. It is a love that cannot be comprehended by our rational minds. But we can experience God’s holy love nonetheless. Isn’t that a powerful promise?

Listen to Pastor Cliff teach us about how our Lord loved those He encountered. May God give us the vision of His love, each day.