Agape Saves
Yahweh conquers the struggle
I was sitting in church a long time ago, and I heard a constant from the pastor, “ God saves,” so it came to my mind. How does God’s Love save? And is there another word for it? So I began to ask my mother, and she said that “ Another word for God’s Love is Agape which means unconditional love, and Agape saves because God loves unconditionally that he gave his son Jesus Christ as a sacrifice for our sins. He loves us so much that he wants us to be back with him in eternity in heaven. “
I honestly, at this moment, understood what God’s Love was, but I think everyone, including myself, wants to know how God’s Love saves us through our struggles? So I continued to ask my mom somewhat of that question, and her response was interesting.
“ Mom, has Agape ever saved you in your struggles? “
“ Agape has saved me plenty of other people that I know during their struggles. That’s sometimes the best time to be saved because you know God is real. Agape doesn’t save only if you believe that it won’t. When you have an absolute lack of faith and a stubborn heart toward hearing anything about the true God, it won’t save. “
After asking these questions, to be honest, my mom and I have are disagree’s sometimes, but this time, I agree with her Agape can save. I’ve seen countless people myself go through things, and after being in God’s presence and spending lots of time in his love, be fixed and almost look brand new after spending time with God.
In the book I’ve been reading called Blue Like Jazz, Donald Miller and I reached chapter 13 on romantic love. Miller describes love as a “ risk.” or Miller even compares Love to God’s “grace.” how this romantic love was the Love that God risked when he died for us more so goes on, and questions the worlds views of romantic love and compares this view to God’s way of romantic love the worlds view that Miller questioned was, “if you love, I will love. I will redeem you if you will redeem me?” and continues to challenge this thought but then understands later in the book starts questioning then coming to the understanding of God’s Love, “Is this God’s way of meriting grace, of teaching us of the labyrinth of His Love for us, guiding us, in degrees, that which He is sacrificing to join ourselves to Him? “.
In addition to Miller’s thoughts on romantic love, which by C.S. Lewis terms is Eros, I can say that some parts of what Miller is saying are genuine, love is a “ risk “; being in Love with God is a risk now the best question to ask is why is it such a “ risk “ being in Love with God? Maybe because his children were so imperfect with all of the sins we commit in a day, week, or even month, sometimes you wonder how God can love a person like me but is that the reason. Why Agape save us? Because he’s so perfect, and we’re not perfect in any matter.
The Bible explains in 1 Corinthians 13 what romantic love is and isn’t; it says, “Love is patient and kind; love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant or rude. It does not insist on its way; it is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing but rejoices with the truth. Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things. “. But the Bible even explains how doing goods without “ love.” is dead and means nothing in God’s eyes to God love is,” faith, hope, love abide, these are the three; greatest of these is love. “.
Furthermore, after reading the on love, it puts agape in a whole different sense as doing good works but not doing these works in God’s love then those good works don’t matter at all like for example giving a homeless man money or helping the homeless these things that we do if not in love don’t matter were doing it for attention. I find this passage in the Bible so appealing because it shows us how important Agape is; that Agape is in us, we have to realize that some people like myself and you don’t know what God’s love is or have never experienced it. Maybe people can experience agape through you and what you do for a simple homeless man is about as important as your life itself.
C.S. Lewis argues that “In God, there is no hunger that needs to be filled, only plenteousness that desires to give.”. C.S. Lewis believes that with God in our lives, we don’t hunger or long for the worldly things but long for God because he is our true Love and when we have him we don’t need those material things.
I agree with everyone on what “ Agape ” is. I see it now Agape is all around us; that’s how it saves outside of the church; it’s through us and the love that we show to each other whether it’s a homeless man or a millionaire we all need Agape in our lives because it can change our whole perspective on what life is. To my future wife and my future, everything love is what they say: kindness, faith, hope, trust, and even forgiveness. But another that is true on why it’s so hard to love is because each of us has hardships, struggles, and baggage that we have to trust and learn about each other and comfort each other through. These things but what I can promise you like the good husband I know my mother and father raised me to be. I will be your comfort through those bad times; I will be your support in the hard times; I will trust you even when I don’t see a way to charge you; I will constantly, throughout my days, fall in love with you and only you; but the essential part of this letter is that I will unconditionally they way God wants me too.