This Kind of Love

When we think of love, most of us think of romance. I am guilty of this … I love to see love happening between two people. We see so many romance movies with pretty painted plot lines of how love grows or exists between two people. But, our world has multiple definitions of love. What if true love is more than a romantic connection? What if there is a deeper, fuller kind of love than the romance you find between two people? What if I tell you this kind of love does exist, it’s called agape love and it is more than we can ever imagine or dream of?

So what is agape love?

Agape love is selfless, unconditional, faithful and sacrificial. It extends way beyond emotions, feelings and sentiment. It is active and is seen through actions. It is a kind of love that comes from God (1 John 4:8). If we draw closer to God, we experience His love —agape— and we’ll understand what real love is. God shows the ultimate act of love by the action on the cross (John 3:16, Romans 5:8). Because God shows this kind of love towards us, we are able to show this love towards others (1 John 3:16).

If we look to Scripture, we can find agape love over 200 times. But, if we want to know the actions that show agape love, we can turn to 1 Corinthians 13:4-7. It is a verse that many of us are familiar with. This verses gives us a guide to what this kind of love looks like.

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It does not dishonor others, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.”

So what does that mean for us? As Christians we talk a lot about it but we need to actually show it. You see, agape is not a feeling or attraction, it’s a choice. Showing agape love should be something all Christians strive for. The problem is, that love doesn’t naturally come from us because of our sinful nature. This kind of love can only come from us when we abide in the Spirit.

I want to challenge you to ask yourself if you are showing agape love to others. As Christians, we are called to love God above all else and to love our neighbors (Matthew 22:36-40). Showing love is something God calls us all to do. When we show this kind of love, we will impact the lives of others and be the light we were made to be.