Behind the Word Love

Dan B. Hodge
Greenwood, South Carolina
Sometimes love goes bad.
Now we know that love is always supposed to be good. It is unselfish,
generous, and always caring first about the other guy. But sometimes the very same
word that describes this kind of love becomes selfish and evil. Let me explain.
Agape (uh GAH pay) is a foreign word. It is the Greek word most often
translated love in the New Testament. It is used both as a noun and a verb.
Surprisingly, agape has not been found in any classical Greek literature. The verb
form has been found a few times, but the noun form, never.
In the Greek New Testament the noun agape is always used in a good and
holy way, but the corresponding verb (agapao ah gah PAH oh) does not have
such a perfect record. This verb form of love is used 142 times in the New
Testament, and six of these uses are decidedly rotten! In these six places the
otherwise pure kind of love becomes selfish, grasping, and evil.
Luke 11:43 For you love the chief seats in the synagogues.
John 3:19 Men loved the darkness rather than the Light.
John 12:43 They loved the approval of men.
2 Tim 4:10 Demas, having loved this present world.
2 Pet 2:15 Balaamloved the wages of unrighteousness.
1 John 2:15 If anyone loves the world, the love of the Father is not in him.
How can our beautiful word agapao be used in such texts? A look at the
context of these six verses will tell us. In Luke 11:43 the Pharisees had turned their
love away from God to focus it on seats of honor. In John 3:19 the men had turned
away from God's love and light and pointed their love toward darkness. Demas,
having once loved God, turned his love to embrace the world (2 Tim 4:10). In
every one of these six verses there is a contrast between love for God and love for
evil. The love which should have been directed toward God was misdirected
toward something else. And whenever love is misdirected away from God, it goes
bad.
Gods kind of love is foreign to most people. God does not love us IF we
are lovable enough, or if we are good enough. In fact, He loves us IN SPITE of the
fact that we are NOT lovable, NOT good. Gods love is a matter of His own
choice and His own will. It is not the fleeting emotion of St. Valentines Day. It is
the only kind of love that can be commanded, because it is an act of will. It is our
choice. Gods love can be (and is) produced in people. But people must take care
not to let that love go bad.