Advent Series#3 - 2022

Advent Love!

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

1 John 4:7-12 “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.”

Love came down at Christmas, Love all lovely, love Divine; Love was born at Christmas; Star and angels gave the sign. – Christina Rossetti

This is the very antithesis of one of my favourite Christmas characters, Dr Seuss, the Grinch - “The Grinch hated Christmas-the whole Christmas season. Oh, please don’t ask why, no one quite knows the reason. It could be, perhaps, that his shoes were too tight. It could be his head wasn’t screwed on just right. But I think that the most likely reason of all…may have been that his heart was 2 sizes too small.” – Suess

And the reason for this? “You’re a rotter, Mr. Grinch / You’re the king of sinful sots / Your heart’s a dead tomato splotched with moldy purple spots / Mr. Grinch! / You’re a three-decker sauerkraut and toadstool sandwich with arsenic sauce!”

But then he changed in response to the love shown him by Cindy Lou - “Help me, I’m FEELING!...And what happened then? Well, in Whoville they say that The Grinch’s small heart grew three sizes that day.”

We all love Christmas because LOVE takes centre stage as the major emotion or “spirit” of the season! BUT WHAT DO WE MEAN BY LOVE?

Usually we are referring to a feeling of deep affection.

In Scripture and Christian theology, love explains and provides the basis for our relationship with God and also dictates how we should treat others.

This, Jesus when asked about the greatest sommandment in Scripture says in Matthew 22:37-40 “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”

Love in the Hebrew language:

Now in the Bible there are lots of different words for love - for example, in the Old Testament דּוֹד (dod) which means “uncle” (e.g., Lev 10:4; 1 Sam 10:14) or “beloved” when used between a man and a woman (Song 1:13, 14). חָשַׁק (chashaq), which means “to desire” and generally refers to a man’s desire for a woman (Deut 21:11), but can also refer to a person’s desire for God (Ps 91:14). רַעְיָה (ra’yah), which in the Song of Solomon means “beloved” or “lover” as is • יָדִיד (yadid) when used as a noun (Jer 11:15) and is used interchangeably with דּוֹד (dod) in the Song of Solomon

The most frequent verb for “love” (אָהֵב, ahev) in the Old Testament occurs over 200 times in both its noun and verb forms. It refers to the relationship between two people, either a parent and a child (Gen 22:2; 25:28; 37:3) or a husband and a wife (Gen 24:67; 29:18). The Pentateuch also uses the word to describe the relationship between God and the people of Israel. Deuteronomy 6:5, quoted by Jesus. The nation manifests their love for God by following the law (Deut 11:1, 13, 22; 19:9; 30:16, 20).

The most frequent noun for “love” in the Old Testament, חֶסֶד (chesed), occurs over 250 times in the Hebrew Bible. The KJV translates it as “lovingkindness,” while newer translations use “steadfast love” (ESV) or “loyal love” (LEB). Some translators use “mercy,” following the Septuagint translation (ἔλεος, eleos). חֶסֶד refers to two people or groups of people who have previously formed a relationship, who have an attitude of loyalty between the two, which also requires some sort of action. So, for example, David uses the term as he reminds Jonathan of a previous covenant promise made between them (1 Sam 20:8). Hezekiah and Nehemiah demonstrate “loyal love” in acts of mercy and good deeds (2 Chr 32:32; Neh 13:14). Hosea indicts the people for their lack of “steadfast love” (Hos 4:1) and describes their practice of “swearing, lying, murder, stealing, and committing adultery” (Hos 4:2). Micah exhorts the people to show “loyal love” by loving kindness through acts of justice (Mic 6:8).

And beautifully, God’s “loyal love” (חֶסֶד, chesed) is “steadfast” protecting and sustaining life (Pss 94:17–18; 119:88, 149, 159; Psa 143:12). It speaks wonders of the fullextent of His mercy, for example, though God could genuinely pour out His wrath, He offers forgiveness, for as Micah puts it: Mic 7:18 “Who is a God like you, pardoning iniquity and passing over transgression for the remnant of his inheritance? He does not retain his anger forever, because he delights in steadfast love.”

God is “slow to anger and great in His love” (Exod 34:6; Num 14:18; Joel 2:13; Jonah 4:2; Pss 86:15; 103:8). Human loyalty to God is described as weak, but divine love is enduring and eternal (Isa 54:10; Pss 89:2; 103:17; 117:2 see on 1 Chr 16:34; 2 Chr 5:13; 7:3, 6; 20:21; Ezra 3:11).

God’s loyal love lays a foundation for His covenantal promises. חֶסֶד is frequently connected with the Abrahamic covenant (Deut 7:12; Mic 7:20), the Davidic covenant (2 Sam 7:15; 1 Chr 17:13–14), and the Mosaic covenant (Exod 15:13). The covenantal structures form a relationship similar to that between a father and son, which require some type of reciprocal response to God’s loyalty. This is rooted in God’s character (Exod 34:6) and in this sense, חֶסֶד, chesed resembles grace: God is faithful despite the unfaithfulness of those in the covenantal relationship (Jer 31:3). Those in relationship with God should respond with love toward Him and others, but when they fail, He will restore that relationship out of His loyal love to Israel! Think for example of Hosea, who uses his own relationship with an adulterous wife to describe God’s relationship with the nation (Hos 2:5, 7, 10, 12). Hosea is to love his wife despite her unfaithfulness (Hos 3:1–5), because He represents the covenantal faithfulness that God has for the nation of Israel despite its unfaithful response (Hos 11:1).

Love in the Greek language:

There are 3 Greek word groups referring to love - φιλέω (phileō), which generally refers to the relationship between two people. The ἐράω (eraō) word group, which carries more of a sensual connotation (e.g. Ahasuerus’ love for Esther). The ἀγαπάω (agapaō) word group, which refers to an attraction toward someone or something or a more intimate love.

Greek speakers used ἐράω (eraō) and φιλέω (phileō) with the greatest amount of frequency.

In the NT, the noun ἀγάπη (agapē), always refers to a positive love within a theological context. It can refer to: God’s love (Luke 11:42; John 5:42; Rom 5:8; Jude 1:21). A person’s love for God (Rev 2:4) and Christian love for one another (Rom 13:10; Gal 5:13).

The fine distinction between ἀγαπάω and φιλέω is best evidenced in John 21:15–20 where Jesus asks Peter three times if he loves Him. The first two times, Jesus uses ἀγαπάω (agapaō), and the third time He uses φιλέω (phileō). Peter replies each time with φιλέω (phileō) probably because, He could not commit to an unconditional love, now that his heart has revealed itself as so fickle in the face of danger!

1. LOVE IS THE ESSENCE OF THE SEASON OF ADVENT:

This is clearly expressed in John 3:16 “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

So here we have John’s Gospel describing the Father’s love for the world in sacrificial terms (John 3:16).

“The Father loves the Son” (John 3:35; 5:20), and because of this love, Jesus sacrifices His life out of obedience to the Father. This reinforces the Father’s love (John 10:17) and accomplishes the Father’s purpose to redeem the world (John 3:16–17).

The tragedy is, that like Israel of old, the “world” rejects this message and “hates” those who come from the Father—namely Jesus and His disciples (John 15:18).

Even though God reached out to the world, the world loved the things of the world (John 3:19).

For John, a person’s relationship with the world has an eternal impact: “The one who loves his life, will lose it, and the one who hates his soul in this world, will keep it in eternal life” (John 12:25).

2. LOVE IS THE CONSEQUENCE OF THE SEASON OF ADVENT:

1 John 4:7-12 “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only Son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.”

The concept of love in John’s Gospel is concentrated in Jesus’ farewell discourse (John 13–17). Here Jesus gives His disciples a “new commandment”: love one another just as Jesus has loved them. It is by this love that the disciples will know one another (John 13:34–35; 15:12, 17; see also 2 John 1:5–6). Uniquely, in John’s Gospel love represents a key soteriological category: It defines the relationship between the Son and the Father and marks believers who have entered into this relationship. The command to love one another also has a key ethical component, as believers are to love those inside and outside the community in the same sacrificial manner as Christ.Application of the New Command. In the Gospel of John, the believer enters into a relationship with the Father through the Son. As the Father loves the Son, the Son loves those who abide by Jesus’ commands (John 15:9). By following Jesus’ command to love, believers enter into this relationship between the Son and the Father (John 15:10; Smalley, “The Christ-Christian Relationship,” 100). John describes those who remain outside of this relationship as loving the world while hating the Father and Son (John 15:18–23). First John reflects this concept, depicting belief and love for one another as the marks of a disciple (1 John 3:10–11, 14, 23–24).