It’s February, and Love is in the air!

This month our culture sets aside time in February to celebrate LOVE!

Now, before you write this Valentine holiday off as complete commercialism, first consider the opportunity we have to demonstrate what REAL LOVE IS!

First, and foremost, GOD IS LOVE! It is not a character trait that He posses, it is not an attribute that He maintains, it is not merely a piece or a part of Him, IT IS HIS VERY NATURE!

“But anyone who does not Love does not know God, FOR GOD IS LOVE.” 1 John 4:8

GOD IS LOVE, so if we know God, then we have that LOVE in us!

Instead of being haters, let’s lean into that LOVE. Let’s take advantage of this opportunity of a month set aside for LOVE, to LOVE others the way God intended us to!

God speaks about four different kinds of LOVE in His ‘LOVE LETTER” to us, The Bible.

The brilliant author C.S. Lewis wrote an exquisite description of each one of these four loves in his book by the same title, ‘The Four Loves.’ It’s a great read and I HIGHLY recommend it. If you want to go into depth about these four loves we are going to talk about this month, then this is the book for you!

In a smaller version, a condensed version if you will, we are going to take the month of February and examine these Four Loves.

The first is PHILEOS. Philileos Love, comes from the Greek word ‘phileo’, and means “brotherly love.” In the Greek, phileo is most commonly translated as “friendship or affection.” Phileo speaks of affection, fondness and liking the other. This LOVE is companionable and relational. It’s brotherly LOVE and friendship LOVE. Yes, it is where the name for the city in Pennsylvania derives it’s meaning. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania is know as the “city of brotherly LOVE.”

How cool is it that the ‘PHILADELPHIA EAGLES’ just won the Super Bowl?
Now I digress! We are not going down that road! Just saying though, how cool is it that a team named “brotherly LOVE’, just won the Super Bowl! PRETTY COOL I THINK!

The Bible sets the bar high for brotherly or friendship LOVE! It says,

“A FRIEND LOVES AT ALL TIMES.” Proverbs 17:17

Sweet, short, simple and to the point. If a friend is truly a friend, that friend loves at ALL TIMES!

Friends come in all shapes, sizes, varieties, ages and stages. Some even come to us as a SURPRISE! Listen and find out how that recently happened to me!

TRUTH BOMB

A TRUE FRIEND LOVES AT ALL TIMES!

How do we know if we have a true friend? How do we know if we are a true friend?
We love at ALL times! When it is easy and when it is hard. When it is convenient and when it is NOT! When we are being loved back and when we are not!

A true friend, demonstrating the PHILEO LOVE that Jesus talks about, LOVES AT ALL TIMES!
Let’s take this opportunity of a month of LOVE, to demonstrate true brotherly LOVE to the world around us!

God put us in this world. Let’s show the world HIs LOVE!
So go ahead, and have those ‘GALentine’ celebrations! Send those Valentines with your friends and invite your BFF’S for a coffee date, and don’t spare the chocolate! Let all your friends know they are LOVED! PHILEO THEM TO DEATH!

Happy February everyone!
I LOVE YOU!

Speak Truth Love