I Love You

 

The phrase “I love you with all my heart” is one that is used a lot to express a true and deep love for another person. I say it a lot to my wife. In saying that, what does it really mean?

 

In the Greek language there were four words we translate love. Only three are used in the New Testament. The one that is not used is eros. It means sexual passion or sexual desire or it can mean a love of the physical attributes of a person. It is not used in the New Testament but that does not mean all sexual desire is wrong. God created us with sexual desire and it is a good thing when used as God intended it, to be expressed in a marriage relationship between one man and one woman. And certainly, appreciating someone who we see as beautiful is not wrong as long as it does not turn into lusting. It is not used because the focus on the New Testament is a different kind of love.

 

The three words used in the New Testament for love are agapao, phileo, and storge. Storge is used only a very few times and it means affection, the kind we feel toward parents and children. Phileo means brotherly love and is the concept of being a good friend to another person. The word that is used by far the most is agapao and it means an unconditional, no boundaries, timeless love that is shown by our actions.

 

Agapao is the kind of love that God has for us and the kind of love that we are to show to Him. The difference between it and the other three kinds of love is that agapao is not based on emotions but of an intentional choice of the mind to love. It is not a person just feeling an emotion of love, it is a person deciding to love and showing that love in actions.

 

In Mark 12:30 Jesus tells us that we are to love God with all our heart and soul and mind and strength. We are to love God with our entire being, meaning using our mind to do that.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Wall is about loving God with our whole life by intentionally choosing to do that.

 

In Romans 12:2 we are told to let God transform our minds so that we can know God’s will and understand that His will is good and acceptable and perfect. We come to know God’s will with our minds. We let God transform our minds and that allows us to choose to obey God.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is about letting God transform our minds so we can choose to obey His will and come to know how good God’s will is.

 

In Colossians 3:2 we are told to set our minds on the things above, eternal things, because things below are of the earth and temporary. We choose to focus our minds on the things of God.  

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is about setting our minds on eternal things, not temporary earthly things.

 

In Philippians 4:6-7 we are told not to be anxious about anything but to pray about everything, and that God’s peace will guard our hearts and minds. God’s peace does not just calm our emotions but steadies our minds, our thinking and decision making.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is bringing everything to God in prayer and experiencing His peace in our lives.

 

In Ephesians 6:17 we are told to put on the helmet of salvation. The helmet protects our minds. Salvation is a work of the Holy Spirit to bring conviction of sin and the acknowledgement of our need for Jesus as Savior and Lord.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is about experiencing by choosing with our minds to surrender our lives to Jesus as our Lord.

 

In 2 Corinthians 2:16 we are told that have the mind of Christ. We as followers of Jesus have the Holy Spirit forming the mind of Christ in us.

 

Raise the Roof and Remove the Walls is about knowing that as disciples of Jesus, the Holy Spirit is forming His mind in us.

 

1 John 3:18 says, “Little children, let us not love in word or talk but in deed and truth.”

 

That is the essence of agapao. We choose to love and do it in actions and truth.

 

In Agapao Love by Raising the Roof and Remove the Walls,

                                        Joe