Practicing Agape

In my sermon yesterday on the call of God to practice “selfless not selfish” love, known as Agape in the Greek, I stated that the Greeks of the first century did not like this concept because it was seen to them as representing weakness in a person’s character.   They thought that by practicing a selfless version of love, you would ultimately be used up by those around you.  They argued that “agape” placed you in a position of vulnerability where others would take from you until you had nothing left to give.

 However, in God’s Word, He clearly calls His children to follow His supreme example in practicing agape.  The Holy Spirit Himself is the agent of this kind of love and works in and through us to produce a love so powerful that it has the strength to change lives, families, and even cultures.  Yet many are afraid to give the Holy Spirit freedom to bear this good fruit of love in them because they still believe the same old lies that the Greeks believed thousands of years ago.  So for the sake of the truth, let me clarify some of the key components of this love we call agape.

 First of all, agape does not excuse, ignore or accept the sin of others.  On the contrary, agape gives the freedom to openly confront and hold accountable those who sin against us and God.  Agape says “I love you too much to look away and ignore your sin.”  It sees the best in a person and calls them to repentance and a heart-change that reflects true spiritual growth.  It calls for a brokenness that humbles us before God so that He can offer the full benefit of his salvation.  This is tough love.  Agape.

 Second, agape does not give a person what they want.  It is true that most people in this world love with a selfish love that takes instead of gives.  However, agape frees us to be good stewards of all resources and we can look honestly past a person’s wants to see their needs.  God certainly loves us selflessly but he does not give us everything we want but rather looks to our deepest need.  In the same way, when we put agape into practice we are free to say no without feeling guilty because we know that we have the other’s best interest at heart.

 Finally, agape does not require us to be dominated or controlled by those around us.  Rather, it places us in the unique position of being completely surrendered to the lordship of Jesus Christ.  Jesus once told his disciples that if the people did not accept them, to “shake the dust off their feet” and move on.  (Matt. 10:14)  He was clearly concerned for them and did not want them to be in a compromising situation because of their agape.  By letting Jesus have complete rule in our lives, we never have to worry about being dominated by others.   Agape is the work of the Holy Spirit who will never call us to be controlled by anyone or anything other than Jesus Christ, the Lord of Lords.

 So, the Greeks were wrong.  (And I don’t like their yogurt either.)  Agape is not a weakness but will enable us to live in the most victorious way possible on this side of glory.