There are 4 Loves that are described in detail in C. S. Lewis’s The Four Loves
The First of these loves is Affection, or familial love. This is the humblest of the loves and it does not discriminate. There are no other requirements to it other than familiarity. However, people can begin to feel they have a right to this love when actually no right exists. This can cause people to become overbearing, dying for attention from other “family” members. They start to become selfish in the pursuit of this love that they begin to worship this desire to be loved by their family. This ruins the love shared in the family, causing rifts and arguments. This is a type of demon that love can cause if not used in its proper way.
The second of these loves is Friendship. It is the love that unites two people on a spiritual level, because they are about the same truth. A truth is something that the two friends share in common. Even though this love is the most unnatural, it is the most spiritual. I failed to mention this in the video above but Iron does sharpen Iron. Friendship loves allows the friends to build up each other, resulting in a stronger, more grounded spirituality about the person. However, this friendship, if not careful, can allow the group to not allow other opinions to influence their thinking. Friendships can be used to block other groups out and what those groups believe end, just because they are not apart of your group. This is not smart, for we can all grow from one another, no matter what their beliefs are. Also, friendships can be about evil things, thus causing the individuals in the relationship to grow deeper into their sin, instead of sharpening each other in the spirit of God. Finally, a friendship formed solely on the basis of the friendship its self. This has no true basis, and will not allow the friendship to be used properly. There will be no iron sharpening iron, just friends trying to be friends over nothing.
Eros is the romantic love. The love that most people think about. Dramatized in chick-flicks and anything Nicholas Sparks, it is a love that demands complete obedience. It requires the individuals in the relationship to look past themselves and try to fit the need of the other person. Like Christ loved the church, so should the individuals in the relationship. In other words, you must “die” to your needs, and put the needs of your partner in front of your own. However, we as humans are fickle. We constantly change our minds, and in the present, most people are willing to just get divorced rather than work through their problems. Men believe they can “upgrade” to a younger, blonder female. Females believe they can “upgrade” to a younger, hunk. Of course these are stereotypes, but it is scary just how true this can be. People get divorced, they cheat, they show how fickle they can be about Eros love. And those who are truly fickle, is usually because they are not in Eros but in Venus. Venus is sexual desire. Sex, when used in Eros, is a good thing. It is the way God had intended it to be used, between a man and a woman after they are married and only with that other individual. Mentally, oxytocin is released during sex. When sex is with one individual, then the oxytocin causes us to fall deeper in love with that person. However, when there is sex with multiple people, the oxytocin is still released, but since it is with multiple people, we fall in love with the action, not the person. Eros love is all about loving the other person over ourselves.
Agape, or God love is personally my favorite love. God is love. Period. He is patience, and kind, and everything else that is mentioned in 1 Corinthians 13. Not only is he love, but he truly loves us. John 3:16 states that God loved the world so much that he let his son Jesus die for us so he could be with us in eternity. That just shows how selfless God is. So what can we do about it? Well first and foremost we must accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior. Then we have to figure out what exactly God wants us to do in order to help build his kingdom. Then finally, we have to take the love that we have received vertically (*side note: we are on a lower plane of existence, while God is on a higher plan. We can receive his love from him vertically,) and spread his love horizontally to all of those that we can find. See people are supposed to be able to see Jesus in us, that is the love that we receive from God. When we interact with those people, seeds of the spirit are to be planted in their souls. We then have to figure out those who are open to allowing the seed to grow and prosper. What better way to show the love of God, than to disciple those who have allowed the seeds of the spirit to prosper? We must show love to all of those who are God’s children and help those who are in need. So I implore you, please show love to all you encounter, for it is love that propels everyone in life. It gives people hope, peace, and possibly love as well.
Recommended Readings
The Four Loves by C.S. Lewis
The Bible
Music: Arrow Theme Music and One Thing Remains by Jesus Culture.
TEAMzao 