LOVE – The greatest of them all.

Faith, Hope and Charity (Love)

Friday, January 12, 2018

1:36 PM

“Faith, Hope and Love. But the greatest of these is Love.”

1 Corinthians 13:13

 These are the essence of successful living. Think about it/dwell on it!

Want an advance? A promotion? We work hard, diligently, no? We have ‘hope’ that we will get the promotion we earned, worked for, no? We have faith (which is the essence of ‘hoping’) that we will achieve what we worked for. Now let us examine these three important biblical themes.’’

Faith (Hebrews 11) Now by faith we understand God’s Word. Faith is the confidence in what we hope for and the assurance about what we do not see. By faith we understand that the universe was created by the Word of God, so that what is seen was not made out of things that are visible.

Hope (HOPE, n. L. cupio).

1. A desire of some good, accompanied with at least a slight expectation of obtaining it, or a belief that it is obtainable. Hope differs from wish and desire in this, that it implies some expectation of obtaining the good desired, or the possibility of possessing it. Hope therefore always gives pleasure or joy, whereas wish and desire may produce or be accompanied with pain and anxiety.

The hypocrite’s hope shall perish. Job 8

He wished, but not with hope–

Sweet hope!

He that lives upon hope will die fasting.

2. Confidence in a future event; the highest degree of well-founded expectations of good; as a hope founded on God’s gracious promises; a scriptural sense. A well-founded scriptural hope is, in our religion, the source of ineffable happiness.

3. That which gives hope or that which furnishes grounds for expectation, or promises desired. The hope of Israel is the Messiah.

The Lord will be the hope of his people. Joel 3

4. An opinion or belief not amounting to certainty but grounded on substantial evidence. The Christian indulges a hope that his sins are pardoned.

5. To cherish a desire of food, with some expectation of obtaining it, or a belief that it is obtainable.

Hope for good success.

Be sober and hope to the end. 1 Peter 1

Hope humbly, and then with trembling pinions soar.

6. To place confidence in; to trust in with confidant expectation of good.

Why art thou cast down, O my soul and why art thou disquieted within me? Hope thou in God. Psalm 43.

7. To desire with expectation of good, or a belief that it may be obtained. But as a transitive verb, it is seldom used and the phrases in which it is so used are elliptical, for being understood.

So stands the Thracian herdsman with his spear,

Full in the gap and hopes the hunted bear.

8.  A sloping plain between ridges of mountains. Not in use. (noun)

HOPED. Desired with expectation.

HOPEFUL, a. Having qualities which excite hope; promising or giving ground to expect good or success; as a hopeful youth; a hopeful prospect.

1. Full of hope or desire with expectation.

I was hopeful the success of your first attempts would encourage you to the trial of more nice and difficult experiments.

HOPEFULNESS. Promise of good; ground to expect what is desirable.

HOPING. Having hope; indulging desire of good with the expectation of obtaining it, or a belief that it is obtainable. Confiding in.

HOPINGLY. With hope or desire of good, and expectation of obtaining it.

Now let us examine Charity (Love)– The GREATEST of all these. 

Step back! What is “love”, that is l-o-v-e? (Small ‘l”)  Is it someone “kissing butt”, doing all within their ability to bring things to pass? Let us examine L-o-v-e:

Love

ləv/

noun

noun: love; plural noun: loves

1. An intense feeling of deep affection. “Babies fill parents with intense feelings of love”

synonyms:  deep affection, fondness, tenderness, warmth, intimacy, attachment, endearment; more

devotion, adoration, doting, idolization, worship;

passion, ardor, desire, lust, yearning, infatuation, besottedness

“His friendship with Helen grew into love”

• compassion, care, caring, regard, solicitude, concern, friendliness, friendship, kindness, charity, goodwill, sympathy, kindliness, altruism, unselfishness, philanthropy, benevolence, fellow feeling, humanity “their love for their fellow human beings”

• relationship, love affair, romance, liaison, affair of the heart, amour

“their love will survive”

antonyms: hatred

• a deep romantic or sexual attachment to someone. “it was love at first sight”

• synonyms: • become infatuated with, give/lose one’s heart to; 

• informal fall for, be bowled over by, be swept off one’s feet by, develop a crush on

• “she didn’t mean to fall in love with him”

• infatuated with, besotted with, enamored of, smitten with, consumed with desire for; captivated by, bewitched by, enthralled by, entranced by, moonstruck by; devoted to, doting on; informal mad/crazy/nuts/wild about “he’s in love with Gillian”

• a personified figure of love, often represented as Cupid. noun: Love

• a great interest and pleasure in something. “his love for football”

• synonyms: • liking of/for, enjoyment of, appreciation of/for, taste for, delight for/in, relish of, passion for, zeal for, appetite for, zest for, enthusiasm for, keenness for, fondness for, soft spot for, weakness for, bent for, proclivity for, inclination for, disposition for, partiality for, predilection for, penchant for

• “her love for fashion”

• affectionate greetings conveyed to someone on one’s behalf.

• synonyms: • best wishes, regards, good wishes, greetings, kind/kindest regards

• “my mother sends her love”

• a formula for ending an affectionate letter. “take care, lots of love, Judy”

2. A person or thing that one loves. “she was the love of his life”

synonyms: beloved, loved one, love of one’s life, dear, dearest, dear one, darling, sweetheart, sweet, angel, honey; More

lover, inamorato, inamorata, amour, paramour

“he was her one true love”

• BRITISH informal a friendly form of address. “it’s all right, love”

• BRITISH informal used to express affectionate approval for someone. noun: a love “don’t fret, there’s a love”

3. Feel a deep romantic or sexual attachment to (someone). “do you love me?”

synonyms: care very much for, feel deep affection for, hold very dear, adore, think the world of, be devoted to, dote on, idolize, worship; More

be in love with, be infatuated with, be smitten with, be besotted with;

informal be mad/crazy/nuts/wild about, have a crush on, carry a torch for

“she loves him”

antonyms: hate

• like very much; find pleasure in. “I’d love a cup of tea, thanks”

• synonyms: • like very much, delight in, enjoy greatly, have a passion for, take great pleasure in, derive great pleasure from, relish, savor; More

• have a weakness for, be partial to, have a soft spot for, have a taste for, be taken with;

• informal get a kick out of, have a thing about, be mad/crazy/nuts/wild about, be hooked on, get off on

• “Laura loved painting”

We search for a definition, where does it come from? 

Origin

Old English lufu, of Germanic origin; from an Indo-European root shared by Sanskrit lubhyati ‘desires,’ Latin libet ‘it is pleasing,’ libido ‘desire,’ also by leave and lief.

I know we have talked quite a bit; hopefully we have a bit to dwell/meditate on.

Eros- Erotic

Agape- Love in a Spiritual sense, Selfless love, unconditional love

Philia- Deep love, deep friendship, platonic between two individuals 

Lubus- Playful love

Pragma- Long standing love, enduring

Philautia- Love of self

Storge- Empathy

Let us define these:

As we struggle to define love, the ancient Greeks seemed to have no problem at all defining multiple kinds of love. I think we all go through each stage at one point, but if you want a better definition of the kind of love you give or the kind of love you seek, here are the seven kinds of love according to the ancient Greeks.

1. Eros: Love of the body 

Eros was the Greek God of love and sexual desire. He was shooting golden arrows into the hearts of both mortals and immortals without warning. The Greeks feared that kind of love the most because it was dangerous and could get them into the most trouble. Eros is defined as divine beauty or lust. Eros is mainly based on sexual attraction and it is where the term “erotica” came from.

2. Philia: Love of the mind 

Also known as brotherly love, Philia represents the sincere and platonic love. The kind of love you have for your brother or a really good friend. It was more valuable and more cherished than Eros. Philia exists when people share the same values and dispositions with someone and the feelings are reciprocated.

3. Ludus: Playful love

Ludus is the flirtatious and teasing kind of love, the love mostly accompanied by dancing or laughter. It’s the child-like and fun kind of love. If you think about it, this generation loves Ludus more than anything else.

4. Pragma: Longstanding love

The everlasting love between a married couple, which develops over a long period of time. Pragma was the highest form of love; the true commitment that comes from understanding, compromise and tolerance. It is pragmatic this is why it is referred to as “standing in love” rather than “falling in love” because it grows over time and requires profound understanding between lovers who have been together for many years.

5. Agape: Love of the soul

It is the selfless kind of love, the love for humanity. It is the closest to unconditional love. The love you give without expecting anything in return reflected in all charitable acts. It is the compassionate love that makes us sympathize with, help and connect to people we don’t know. The world needs more Agape.

6. Philautia: Love of self

The ancient Greeks divided Philautia into two kinds: There is one that is purely selfish and seeks pleasure, fame, and wealth often leading to narcissism and there is another healthy kind of love we give ourselves. Philautia is essential for any relationship, we can only love others if we truly love ourselves and we can only care for others if we truly care for ourselves.

7. Storge: Love of the child

This is the love parents naturally feel for their children. It’s based on natural feelings and effortless love. Storge is the love that knows forgiveness, acceptance and sacrifice. It is the one that makes you feel secure, comfortable and safe.

Defining love can help us discover which kind we need to give more of and which kind we want to receive. If we incorporate Eros, Ludus & Pragma into our relationships and Agape, Philia and Storge into our lives, we will reach Philautia and live a happier life.