Do Christians today have a correct understanding of what Jesus taught about Love?
Are our words of Love shown by our acts of Love?
Does the world know us by our Love or by our Condemnation?
35 “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” John 13:35 NASB
What Did Jesus Teach About Love?
Too many times what the church offers the world is not Love. Rather, it is “sloppy agape” “holier-than-thou” judgement, or strict adherence to rules by “legalistic lemmings.”
Is “Sloppy Agape” What Jesus Truly Taught?
“sloppy agape” n.
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Lavish but merely verbal or superficial affirmations of love and care for someone that are not backed up by concrete action or long-term support.
Someone has characterized this unscriptural counterfeit of love as “sloppy agape.”
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A permissive relationship or environment in which people are not held accountable for the consequences of their mistakes; any teaching that emphasizes God’s forgiveness over and above the need for believers to be holy and obedient.
“Sloppy agape,” … refuses to address personal moral values revealed by God or to call each other to accountability. Instead, this sentimental love allows each individual to do his own thing.
sloppy agape
Yes, Yeshua offers salvation, freely, to all who would follow Him.
But His Grace is not without responsibility. And consequences. Belief in Jesus demands our response, not our passivity.
Did Yeshua call us to be “holier-than-thou” Christians?
I’m sure you’ve met one (or two, or three? or me?). Someone who is adamant about their Christian beliefs. Sure confidence in Christ and in His power to forgive sin is admirable. But some go far beyond this belief in their certainty of what they believe.
- They may believe that the version of the Bible they use is the “only” one anyone should use. (God spoke to Moses in the English of King James of England, didn’t He?)
- They may believe that their interpretation of the Bible is the “only” one; and all beliefs otherwise are heresy. (We need to “only” study the writings of Paul because he was the apostle to the Gentiles, and we are Gentiles.)
- They may believe that certain behaviors are the norm (long dresses and no make-up for women) and other behaviors (smoking, drinking wine, or going to movies) are sins against the Almighty.
Got Questions? answers What does it mean to have a holier-than-thou attitude?
A holier-than-thou attitude is pride displayed through words or actions when people consider themselves more righteous or moral than other people, based upon their own standards of judgment. When someone has adopted a particular lifestyle or been convicted about certain behaviors that are not necessarily shared by other Christians, they may begin to think of themselves as better than those who differ from them. A holier-than-thou attitude is a slippery trap that can easily ensnare.
Did Jesus seek to create “legalistic lemmings”?
Actually, I thought I had made this one up.
But, hey, I googled it.
Ta-da!
I found it used in First Wash the Inside: Escaping Hypocrisy A Guidebook to Freedom in Christ, by Lynne Suszek, with Mark Suszek, Xulon Press: 2009.
In the Old Testament, the Ten Commandments are really about the heart, not actions … It’s your motives that matter to God. Discovering the reasons why you do what you do is the first step toward repentance. …
It’s not easy to change our hearts, which is why so many people would rather be mindless rule followers, or legalistic lemmings you might say.
So, What Is Love?
“How do I love thee? Let me count the ways.” Elizabeth Barrett Browning, Sonnet 43
The Greek language has several words for various kinds of “Love.”
The main four are Phileō, Storgē, Eros, and Agapē.
- Phileō: Φιλἐω
Friendliness, brotherly love, kiss
philéō5368 (from phílos5384, “affectionate friendship”) – properly, to show warm affection in intimate friendship, characterized by tender, heartfelt consideration and kinship.
27 for the Father Himself loves you, because you have loved Me and have believed that I came forth from the Father. John 16:27 NASB
- Storgē: Στοργή
Closeness of familial love, affection for spouse, child
In Paul’s letter to the Romans, he combines Storgē with Phileō, as philóstorgos: φιλόστοργοι, “devoted”:
10 Be devoted to one another in brotherly love; give preference to one another in honor; Romans 12:10 NASB
- Eros: Εροσ
Erotic love, overwhelming passion
Eros is not used in the Bible.
- Agapē or Agapaō: Ἀγάπη or Ἀγαπάω
Unconditional love, originates with God, from God’s own nature – Love
love, benevolence, good will, esteem
agápē26 – properly, love which centers in moral preference. So too in secular ancient Greek, (agápē26) focuses on preference; likewise the verb form (agapáō25) in antiquity meant “to prefer” (TDNT, 7). In the NT, (agápē26) typically refers to divine love (= what God prefers).
Agapē: Not Just a Feeling
The Agapē type of love is more than a mere emotion, more than a mere feeling.
True biblical love is expressed primarily in acts, not in words.
The “Love” described by Paul 1 Corinthians 13 is agapē 26:
4 Love is patient, love is kind and is not jealous; love does not brag and is not arrogant, 5 does not act unbecomingly; it does not seek its own, is not provoked, does not take into account a wrong suffered, 6 does not rejoice in unrighteousness, but rejoices with the truth; 7 bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. 1 Corinthians 13:4-7 NASB
John, in his gospel, quotes Jesus as using agapē:
34 “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. John 13:34 NASB
15 “If you love Me, you will keep My commandments. John 14:15 NASB
Agapē: Jesus’ Love In Action
Yeshua showed the Father’s love, and His own love, through His actions:
- healing
- casting out demons
- forgiveness of sins
- raising the dead
- provision of food and drink.
Healing
Yeshua showed His compassion and love through healing.
35 Jesus was going through all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom, and healing every kind of disease and every kind of sickness. Matthew 9:35 NASB
Numerous specific instances of His healing are recorded in the Gospels.
28 Then Jesus said to her, “O woman, your faith is great; it shall be done for you as you wish.” And her daughter was healed at once. Matthew 15:28 NASB
52 And Jesus said to him, “Go; your faith has made you well.” Immediately he regained his sight and began following Him on the road. Mark 10:52 NASB
Casting out demons
Another sign of the love (and power) of Jesus was when He cast demons out of people possessed by evil spirits.
16 When evening came, they brought to Him many who were demon-possessed; and He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were ill. Matthew 8:16 NASB
Forgiveness of sins
Forgiveness is the purpose of Yeshua’s mission.
Because of His great love for humanity, He lived; He died; and He rose again to life, to give us life everlasting.
27 And when He had taken a cup and given thanks, He gave it to them, saying, “Drink from it, all of you; 28 for this is My blood of the covenant, which is poured out for many for forgiveness of sins. Matthew 26:27-28 NASB
Raising the dead
Jesus, the Son of God, is sovereign over death – the death of others, as well as His own.
Yeshua brings a Young Girl to life
18 While He was saying these things to them, a synagogue official came and bowed down before Him, and said, “My daughter has just died; but come and lay Your hand on her, and she will live.” 19 Jesus got up and began to follow him, and so did His disciples.
23 When Jesus came into the official’s house, and saw the flute-players and the crowd in noisy disorder, 24 He said, “Leave; for the girl has not died, but is asleep.” And they began laughing at Him. 25 But when the crowd had been sent out, He entered and took her by the hand, and the girl got up. Matthew 9:18-26 NASB
Yeshua raises Lazarus from the dead.
43 When He had said these things, He cried out with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come forth.” 44 The man who had died came forth, bound hand and foot with wrappings, and his face was wrapped around with a cloth. Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.” John 11:1-43-44 NASB
Jesus Provides Food and Drink
25 “For this reason I say to you, do not be worried about your life, as to what you will eat or what you will drink; nor for your body, as to what you will put on. Is not life more than food, and the body more than clothing? 26 “Look at the birds of the air, that they do not sow, nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them. Are you not worth much more than they? Matthew 6:25-26 NASB
Yeshua Provides Food – The Feeding of the 5,000
41 And He took the five loaves and the two fish, and looking up toward heaven, He blessed the food and broke the loaves and He kept giving them to the disciples to set before them; and He divided up the two fish among them all. 42 They all ate and were satisfied, 43 and they picked up twelve full baskets of the broken pieces, and also of the fish. 44 There were five thousand men who ate the loaves. Mark 6:41-11 NASB
Yeshua Provides Food – The Feeding of the 4,000
5 And He was asking them, “How many loaves do you have?” And they said, “Seven.” 6 And He directed the people to sit down on the ground; and taking the seven loaves, He gave thanks and broke them, and started giving them to His disciples to serve to them, and they served them to the people. 7 They also had a few small fish; and after He had blessed them, He ordered these to be served as well. 8 And they ate and were satisfied; and they picked up seven large baskets full of what was left over of the broken pieces. 9 About four thousand were there; and He sent them away. Mark 8:5-9 NASB
Yeshua Provides Drink – The Wedding in Cana
3 When the wine ran out, the mother of Jesus said to Him, “They have no wine.”
7 Jesus said to them, “Fill the waterpots with water.” So they filled them up to the brim.
9 When the headwaiter tasted the water which had become wine, and did not know where it came from (but the servants who had drawn the water knew), the headwaiter called the bridegroom, 10 and said to him, “Every man serves the good wine first, and when the people have drunk freely, then he serves the poorer wine; but you have kept the good wine until now.” John 2:3, 7, 9-10 NASB
What Did Jesus Teach His Disciples About Love?
Jesus taught His followers to exhibit Love as their defining characteristic.
35 “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” John 13:35 NASB
Jesus taught His disciples to live by a higher standard than that of the Ten Commandments (Torah).
The Torah (Old Testament) defines the behavior YeHoVaH desires for and from His people. The Torah also defines the consequences behavior not meeting God’s standards.
The Torah (The Directions) asks for obedience shown through actions.
The new, higher level of compliance Jesus demands is, not merely external obedience of actions. But, rather, the obedience must come from the heart. The obedience must include the rightness of the motivations and intentions behind the actions.
21 “You have heard that the ancients were told, ‘YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT MURDER ‘ and ‘Whoever commits murder shall be liable to the court.’ 22 “But I say to you that everyone who is angry with his brother shall be guilty before the court;
27 “You have heard that it was said, ‘YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY ‘; 28 but I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lust for her has already committed adultery with her in his heart
Jesus taught His disciples not to obey the commands (Oral Torah) of the Pharisees.
The Pharisees were the super-ultra-orthodox Jews of their day. They went beyond the directives of the written Torah of Moses. Over time, they created multiple, separate categories, and sub-categories, of behavior they considered appropriate for each “Law.” When Yeshua speaks of “the tradition of men” He is talking about these “man-made “laws,” and not the God-given Law – the Torah.
1 The Pharisees and some of the scribes gathered around Him when they had come from Jerusalem, 2 and had seen that some of His disciples were eating their bread with impure hands, that is, unwashed.
8 “Neglecting the commandment of God, you hold to the tradition of men.” 9 He was also saying to them, “You are experts at setting aside the commandment of God in order to keep your tradition. Mark 7:1-2, 8-9 NASB
Yeshua’s lack of deference to the pharisees, especially the “laws” of their own making, was the root of their animosity against Him and His teachings.
The most proximate cause of the Pharisees’ antagonism toward Jesus, however, lay in His ignoring of their hundreds of elaborate but petty rules that they had devised for interpreting the law of God. Not only did they devise these hundreds of man-made rules, but they had also elevated them to the level of Scripture, so that to break one of their rules was to violate the law of God itself.
Jesus taught His Disciples not to judge others.
1 “Do not judge so that you will not be judged. 2 “For in the way you judge, you will be judged; and by your standard of measure, it will be measured to you. Matthew 7:1, 2 NASB
However, for fellow believers Jesus taught:
3 “Be on your guard! If your brother sins, rebuke him; and if he repents, forgive him. 4 “And if he sins against you seven times a day, and returns to you seven times, saying, ‘I repent,’ forgive him.” Luke 17:3-4 NASB
As believers, our forgiveness from the Father is related to our forgiveness of those who have offended us.
12 ‘And forgive us our debts, as we also have forgiven our debtors. Matthew 6:12 NASB
How Can We Love Like Jesus?
We love like Jesus when the world sees our love through our actions.
Love in Action
By loving YeHoVaH and our Neighbor:
35 One of them, a lawyer, asked Him a question, testing Him, 36 “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” 37 And He said to him, ” ‘YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.’ 38 “This is the great and foremost commandment. 39 “The second is like it, ‘YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.’ 40 “On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets.” Matthew 22:35-40 NASB
By responding in love because He first loved us:
19 We love, because He first loved us. 1 John 4:19 NASB
By replacing our fear with His love:
18 There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love. 1 John 4:18 NASB
By loving our enemies:
27 “But I say to you who hear, love your enemies, do good to those who hate you, 28 bless those who curse you, pray for those who mistreat you. Luke 6:27-28 NASB
By turning the other cheek:
29 “Whoever hits you on the cheek, offer him the other also; and whoever takes away your coat, do not withhold your shirt from him either. Luke 6:29 NASB
By living according to the Golden Rule:
31 “Treat others the same way you want them to treat you. 32 “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them. 33 “If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners do the same. Luke 6:31-33 NASB
By not judging other people:
36 “Be merciful, just as your Father is merciful. 37 “Do not judge, and you will not be judged; and do not condemn, and you will not be condemned; pardon, and you will be pardoned. Luke 6:36-37 NASB
By being generous with what God has given us (Spoiler: It’s not ours. It’s His!):
38 “Give, and it will be given to you. They will pour into your lap a good measure -pressed down, shaken together, and running over. For by your standard of measure it will be measured to you in return.” Luke 6:38 NASB
By laying down our life for another:
13 “Greater love has no one than this, that one lay down his life for his friends. John 15:13 NASB
So what do you think?
In the “culture wars” of today:
Who, as shown by their Love (actions in response to God’s love), are truly following Jesus?
Who are those who merely call themselves Christians?
(And, which one are you?)
Blessings,
TLThomas
See also:
God, The Word, Beth Moore, and Twitter