The Greatest Love

The Bible says in 1 John 4:7-16 NIV Dear friends, let us love one another, for love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. Whoever does not love does not know God, because God is love. This is how God showed his love among us: He sent his one and only Son into the world that we might live through him.

This is love: not that we loved God, but that he loved us and sent his Son as an atoning sacrifice for our sins. Dear friends, since God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; but if we love one another, God lives in us and his love is made complete in us.

This is how we know that we live in him and he in us: He has given us of his Spirit. And we have seen and testify that the Father has sent his Son to be the Savior of the world. If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God. And so we know and rely on the love God has for us. God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.

I think that we all have a basic understanding of what human love is and know that there are many different types of love that we exhibit towards others such as our spouses, children, family members, and friends. Now, we wouldn’t love a close friend the same way that we would love our spouse or a parent. Also, we wouldn’t love a favorite coworker on the same level as we would for a close family member.

Now, since this sermon is from a biblical perspective, let’s dive into some biblical descriptions of love. There are 4 different types of love mentioned in the Bible that have been translated from the ancient Greek language; let's explore them:

Eros - romantic love; for example matrimonial love between a man and woman.

Storge - family love; for example the natural bond between parents and children.

Philia - brotherly love; for example love that unites believers in Christ.

Agape - divine love; for example God’s love for humankind.

The first three biblical descriptions of love (Eros, Storge, Philia) fall within the human spectrum. These three types of love are those that we form with people who we truly care about. As special as this love is though, human love is not flawless. Human love sometimes comes with limitations and conditions. An example of this is telling your spouse, “I will love you more if you do this for me or if you buy me that.” This is not what true selfless love is. True love is not conditional or situational.

The fourth biblical definition of love is “agape.” Agape means “divine.” Agape love is the deep unconditional love that God has for us. Now, let’s take a moment and mentally ponder the following, our divine God who made the heavens and the earth loves each one of us like a father loves his own child. God loves us even though we are flawed sinners. God still loves us even when we turn our back on Him, curse Him, or reject Him.

Now before I close out this message I want to ask you these two questions:

1. Could you sacrifice your own life in the place of your spouse, parent, or sibling?

2. Could you give up your only child like Abraham almost did when he tried to sacrifice Issac on a stone altar in tribute to God?

Well, God did. God unselfishly sacrificed His only Son for us. He gave up his only Son to be killed in our place so that sinners like you and I could live. This is how much God deeply loves us. God’s love is unfathomable and unmeasurable. God’s love cannot be earned or bought. God’s love is freely given to us without conditions or limitations.

As Christians, God tells us again in 1 John 4:11 that because He loves us, we must also love one another. In verse 12, the Apostle John writes that if we truly love each other God will remain in us. What this means is that God will intimately fellowship with us through the Holy Spirit. God calls us to exhibit His love towards others by our words and through our actions. God even commands us to love those that most consider deplorable like violent criminals and murderers. God tells us not to judge because in the final tribulation He will be the ultimate judge. Instead, God simply commands us to love others because since the beginning of creation, He first loved us. AMEN