Last Monday we celebrated Valentine’s Day with our loved ones. Many bought chocolates and flowers and some went out to dinner to celebrate. But, what were we really celebrating? We were celebrating love. While we were shopping for the perfect gift, did we think about why and how much we love those in our lives, such as our parents, siblings, children, and friends?
Do we ever stop to think about what love is? Since Valentine’s Day is a day about love, this is a great opportunity to reflect on what love means. The dictionary defines love as “an intense feeling of deep affection, a great interest and pleasure in something, to feel a deep romantic or sexual attachment to (someone).” The Bible shows that there are different words used to define our English word “love.” Two common Greek words for love are Phileō and Agapē. Phileō is a companionable love that speaks of affection, fondness, or liking. Many times it is described as brotherly love or friendship. Agapē is a love that is selfless, sacrificial, and unconditional. It is the noblest word for love in the Greek language. Agapē perfectly describes the kind of love Jesus Christ has for His Father and His followers. This kind of love keeps on loving even when the loved one is unresponsive, unkind, unlovable, and unworthy.
We should strive for Agapē love. To better understand this type of love, we can look to our Heavenly Father and Jesus as examples. In 1 John 4:8 and 16 we learn that God is love and, in verse 19 we see that God first loved us. The Gospel of John and John’s writings in 1, 2 and 3 John are all about love. God doesn’t need us to love Him, but He delights and takes pleasure in our love toward Him (Psalm 147:11). The Creator of the universe who gave us life, breath and every spiritual blessing (Ephesians 1:3) wants to have a personal relationship with us and desires our love in return.
God loved us so much that He came to earth to save us from eternal separation from Him (John 3:16). What is even more amazing is that He tied healing to forgiveness! When God forgave us for our sins and saved us, healing was included in the package. This gift of love from God is so awesome and powerful that He wants us to live a healed and whole type of life—free from sickness, poverty, oppression, depression, pain, etc.
1 Peter 2:24 shows that healing is part of Christ’s atonement. Peter is talking about Jesus in this verse:
“who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree, that we, having died to sins, might live for righteousness—by whose stripes you were healed.”
Notice this scripture says that Jesus took stripes for our healing! It is past tense meaning it has already happened. Jesus’ sacrifice already paid for our sins and, with His own body, our healing. This scripture is clear that healing is a done deal. How can we think that God can heal but doesn’t heal all the time since this scripture shows that healing happened in Christ’s own body when he hung on the tree (cross)? It was even prophesied by Isaiah over 400 years before Jesus died on the cross. Isaiah 53 says that Jesus would be wounded for our transgressions (sins), bruised for our iniquities (guilt), and by His stripes we would be healed. Matthew 8:16-17 makes it clear that Jesus took our sickness at the cross and healing belongs to us.
16 When evening had come, they brought to Him many who were demon-possessed. And He cast out the spirits with a word, and healed all who were sick, 17 that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by Isaiah the prophet, saying: “He Himself took our infirmities And bore our sicknesses.”
John 3:16 says that God so loved the world (everyone), that He sent Jesus to die on the cross so we could live an everlasting life that includes healing, wholeness, and an abundant life.
John, a disciple of Jesus, reveals in the Gospel of John that he is the disciple that Jesus loved. We might think this is arrogant on his part but I think we should all strive to be able to say the same, “I am the one that Jesus loves.” John walked with Jesus on an intimate basis and had the confidence to say that Jesus loved him. This intimate, personal, Agapē type of love is available to each one of us. It is a love so powerful and caring that healing flows out from Him. We are all children of God; we are sons and daughters; and God loves us so much that He physically came to earth to reveal and give us all His blessings. A disciple is a follower of someone. We should all want to be called disciples of Jesus Christ and the ones that Jesus loves.
On this Valentine’s month, let this be a reminder to reach out to the God of love and let His love heal you physically, mentally, and emotionally.
~Donna Jones