https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/02\/What-Is-this-Thing-Called-Love.mp3<\/a><\/audio>\n\tby Jeffrey W. Hamilton<\/p>\n\t
Text: Song of Solomon 8:6-7<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
I. We use the word “love” freely today. Perhaps too freely.<\/p>\n
A. I love to have another piece of cake.<\/p>\n
B. Mama loves her baby.<\/p>\n
C. He fell in love with her at first sight.<\/p>\n
D. He loved her through fifty yeas of marriage.<\/p>\n
E. I love my country.<\/p>\n
II. The Greek language had four words for love<\/p>\n
A. Storge<\/i> – This the love between members of a family. <\/p>\n
1. Referred to in the negative as unloving – Romans 1:31; II Timothy 3:3<\/p>\n
B. Eros<\/i> – Sexual or romantic love<\/p>\n
1. Not found in the New Testament<\/p>\n
2. It was used in the Septuagint to translate Proverbs 7:18<\/p>\n
C. Philia<\/i> – Brotherly love, friendship, or companionship<\/p>\n
D. Agape<\/i> – A devoted love, a love expressed in serving others<\/p>\n
III. Love seen in relationships<\/p>\n
A. Love within a family<\/p>\n
1. A mother’s love – Titus 2:4<\/p>\n
a. A strong bond – Isaiah 49:15<\/p>\n
2. A father’s love<\/p>\n
a. David pleading for his son’s life – II Samuel 12:16<\/p>\n
b. The father’s love toward his wayward son – Luke 15:20<\/p>\n
3. Love between in-laws – Ruth 1:16<\/p>\n 4. God intends for us to first learn about love through our family\nrelationships. Love should strongly seen in the home and defines the\nhome.\n
B. Love between friends<\/p>\n
1. A lasting love that endures through adversity – Proverbs 17:17<\/p>\n
2. Strength is found in friendship – Ecclesiastes 4:9-12<\/p>\n 3. No greater example found than the friendship between David and Jonathan\n– I Samuel 20:17\n
4. Such love is selfless – John 15:13-14<\/p>\n
C. Love between Christians<\/p>\n
1. Commanded by Jesus – John 13:34-35<\/p>\n
2. Its existence shows we are following God – I John 2:9-11<\/p>\n
3. It is not just claimed, it is shown – I John 3:10-18<\/p>\n
D. Love between God and the believer<\/p>\n
1. God shows us His love by making us His children – I John 3:1<\/p>\n 2. God is the source of all love and shows His love by sending His son – I\nJohn 4:7-11\n
3. There is no fear in love – I John 4:17-19<\/p>\n
a. So many are afraid of facing God in judgment<\/p>\n b. John points out the missing ingredient – we haven’t yet perfected\nour love for God\n
E. Love between a husband and wife<\/p>\n
1. A combination of the various types of love<\/p>\n
2. The sexual attraction, the romance, is strong, especially in the beginning.<\/p>\n a. It is what draws two people together and motivates them to become\none in marriage\n
b. Hebrews 13:4 – In marriage sexual intercourse is undefiled<\/p>\n
c. Eros<\/i> is the excitement in a marriage, but it cannot sustain it<\/p>\n
d. It is not infatuation<\/p>\n (1) Infatuation is when you have a mental image of your ideal\nmate.\n
(2) You meet someone who resembles your mental ideal<\/p>\n
(3) Excitedly, you “fall in love.”<\/p>\n (4) But it isn’t true love because it dies over time. In its death it\nis either replaced by true love or the relationship dies.\n (5) What happens is that as you get to know a person, you\nrealize he or she is not as perfect as you imagined. \n
(a) Either you come to love who they really are<\/p>\n
(b) Or you are repulsed.<\/p>\n
e. True love takes time because it takes time to get to know someone<\/p>\n (1) In true love, you are aware of both a person’s assets and\ntheir flaws. \n
(2) You love who they are in totality<\/p>\n
f. An infatuated person<\/p>\n (1) Is unaware of the flaws because they haven’t had time to\nget to know the person\n
(2) Pretends they don’t exist<\/p>\n
(3) Pretends they don’t matter<\/p>\n
(4) Believes he can change the person to match his ideal<\/p>\n
3. Marriage is also about companionship<\/p>\n
a. Man was never meant to be alone – Genesis 2:18<\/p>\n b. Your spouse is your companion, your best friend, your confidant –\nMalachi 2:14 (end of the verse)\n
c. It is the type of love a woman is to have for her husband – Titus 2:4<\/p>\n
d. It has to be worked on and developed. <\/p>\n
e. Don’t settle for cheap substitutes<\/p>\n
4. Marriage is also about devotion<\/p>\n
a. It is the ultimate expression of love – I Corinthians 13:4-8<\/p>\n
b. Each sees the other as more important than themselves<\/p>\n c. Many marriages fail as the partners focus on what “I want” instead\nof what “we need”\n
d. It is not a give and take relationship.<\/p>\n
(1) It is not “I love because my spouse loves me.”<\/p>\n (2) Agape<\/i> love gives regardless of whether it is returned. It is\nnot dependent on a reciprocal love.\n e. It is a commitment to love no matter what happens – Song of\nSolomon 8:6-7\n f. It is the type of love command of husbands toward their wives –\nEphesians 5:25\n
IV. Agape<\/i> love describes God’s love for you and I – Romans 8:35-39<\/p>\n
A. With such love shown for us, we become more than conquerors. <\/p>\n B. God loves you, even if you don’t return it. He sent His Son to die for you and I\nthough we did not deserve it or asked for it.\n
C. How callous to face such love and not love Him in return.<\/p>\n D. Sadly most of the world doesn’t really love God. Oh, many mouth the words, but\nyou can see in their deeds that the love is not there.\n
E. Will you not return His love and become His child?<\/p>\n F. God doesn’t want any perishing – II Peter 3:9, but many will. Don’t be one of the\nlost.\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Song of Solomon 8:6-7 I. We use the word “love” freely today. Perhaps too freely. A. I love to have another piece of cake. B. Mama loves her baby. C. He fell in love with her at first sight. D. He loved her through fifty yeas of marriage. E. I love my country. II. The Greek…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[119,32],"tags":[173,233,90,580,65,64],"class_list":["post-19542","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-audio","category-sermon","tag-family","tag-friends","tag-god","tag-infatuation","tag-love","tag-marriage"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":89476,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/judgment-and-love\/","url_meta":{"origin":19542,"position":0},"title":"Judgment and Love","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 17, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"by Raymond Warfel Download Audio","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":78966,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/love-for-the-brethren\/","url_meta":{"origin":19542,"position":1},"title":"Love for the Brethren","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"November 17, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"by Raymond Warfel","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":9209,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/brotherly-love\/","url_meta":{"origin":19542,"position":2},"title":"Brotherly Love (Warfel)","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 8, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"by Raymond Warfel","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":58884,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/the-truth-about-gods-love\/","url_meta":{"origin":19542,"position":3},"title":"The Truth About God’s Love","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 12, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"by Jeffrey W. Hamilton Text: Psalms 5 \u00a0 I.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0The world is filled with varying and confusing ideas about how God loves us. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0A.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Typically the emphasis is placed so heavily on God\u2019s love that many think that God is incapable of a negative thought against anyone. \u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0B.\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0Others see God as so\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":64067,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/gods-love-for-us-and-our-love-for-others\/","url_meta":{"origin":19542,"position":4},"title":"God’s Love for Us and Our Love for Others","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"May 29, 2016","format":false,"excerpt":"by Raymond Warfel","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":60337,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/love-the-brethren\/","url_meta":{"origin":19542,"position":5},"title":"Love the Brethren","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"April 16, 2023","format":false,"excerpt":"by Raymond Warfel","rel":"","context":"In "Audio"","block_context":{"text":"Audio","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/audio\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19542","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=19542"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/19542\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=19542"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=19542"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=19542"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}