What are the 4 loves?

Hey lover,

your life is worthless…

… without Love.

Love is so essential to life that John writes:

You see, here’s the problem: the English language uses one word to describe everything.

I love nutella.
I love popping a fresh pimple.
I love my wife.

The same word used for wildly different meanings.

“Love” gets thrown around so much that it loses its meaning.

Anyways.

The Greeks were smarter.

They had not one, but at least FOUR different words for love.

And since Greek is the language the New Testament was written in… might as well learn it.

The first Greek word for “love” is:

This is natural affection between family members (not romantic love). It’s the love between you and your annoying little brother.

The second is:

This one is used to describe your love for friends. It’s about camaraderie.

Jesus meant it when he said, “I have called you friends (Philia), because I have made known to you everything that I have heard from my Father.” (John 15:15)

You will love the next one:

Frank’s favorite word in the dictionary.

It means romantic, passionate, and sometimes, sexual love.

Since the bible is basically one big marriage story from start to finish, Eros is used everywhere in it.

Pope Benedict XVI gave my favorite definition of eros: “the upward impulse of the human heart towards what is True, Good, and Beautiful.”

Fun fact: the English word “erotic” comes from “eros”.

Moving on.

Now, to the last word.

The big one.

The fourth and MOST IMPORTANT Greek word for love, is…

This is the crown jewel of love. The highest form of love.

It is also the most used word for love in the Bible.

Why? Because it is the love that God showed us on the cross. It is the love that He commands us to have for one another (John 15:12-13; Matthew 22:37-39); selfless, sacrificial, unconditional, and generous.

Because it is not based on merit of the person being loved, but rather based on their inherent worth as an image bearer of God. It is a love that continues to give even when the other is unkind, unresponsive, and unworthy.

Caution: Many think that eros is bad and agape is the solution. Not true! Agape is not a replacement for eros but a perfection of eros.

Agape redirects your focus from "what can I get?" to seeking the ultimate good of the beloved.

Without agape, eros becomes lust.

Without agape, a person becomes an object for your use, not someone whom you desire for their own good.

But it’s also true in reverse! Without eros, there is no agape. Without Christ’s mad love for us, there is no sacrifice.

So the two together (eros and agape) is what we call “true love”.

Relax, Frank. We just learned that the “love” you have for Nutella is the bottom floor of the word.

You’re still living the lowest possible depth of love.

Add a lil bit of agape to it!

You should begin noticing that love deepens when it becomes less about self-interest and more about self-giving.

There you go.

Now you’re learning to give what you love, as an act of love!

Baa,

Stay Holy 🐑

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P.P.S. read also What does the rainbow mean? 🌈

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