EVERGREEN LOVE

EVERGREEN LOVE

A Devotional Thought presented by Cornelius A. Osuntade to the Aviation students of Andrews University, Michigan, on Friday, April 19, 2013, at 7.30am.

KEY BIBLE TEXT: Jeremiah 31: 3 - The Lord appeared to us in the past, saying: “I have loved you with an everlasting love; I have drawn you with unfailing kindness.”

          I looked up the synonyms of “evergreen”, and I found out the following words: “Immortal”, “perennial”, “constant”, “recurrent”, “perpetual”, “persistent”, “lasting”, “continuing”, “permanent”, “classic”, “timeless”, “ageless”, “ever popular”, “old time favorite”, etc. I have brought out these words so as to be convinced that God’s love for you and me is indeed evergreen in spite of who you are, what you did, what you are doing and what you will do. Our sins do not stop God from loving us, but He wants us to repent, hence, in 1^st John 2:1, God says: My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One.

Human beings have come up with different types of love; I have summed them up into these seven types:  

storge, (Greek: στοργή) Based on  Affection or fondness through familiarity (a brotherly love ), especially between family members or people who have otherwise found themselves together by chance.

Phileo (Greek: φιλία) is the love between friends. Friendship is the strong bond existing between people who share common interest or activity.

Eros (Greek: ἔρως): This love is most associated with romance. You strive for time together romantically. Eros love is not sustainable. http://talkaboutmarriage.com/general-relationship-discussion/3991-five-kinds-love.html

Epithumia  (Greek:ἐπιθυμία): Lustful desire; eagerness for inordinate desire and lust.  It means to mutually desire each other sexually and to be engrossed  in love making that is driven both by desire and selflessness in pleasing each other. http://talkaboutmarriage.com/general-relationship-discussion/3991-five-kinds-love.html

Ludus: Ludic lovers are players. More interested in quantity than quality of relationships, ludic lovers want to have as much fun as possible. Ludic lovers regard sex as a conquest or a sport. The disadvantage of this love style is the likelihood of infidelity. In its most extreme form, ludic love can become sexual addiction

Pragma Pragmatic lovers think rationally and realistically about their expectations in a partner, and select them via comparison shopping or shopping-list love. Pragmatic lovers want to find value in their partners, and ultimately want to work with their partner to reach a common goal. Pragmatic lovers will avoid infidelity to avoid adverse consequences, and carefully weigh the costs and rewards of a relationship. Pragmatic lovers view sex as a reward or a means of procreation, and view marriage and children as potential liabilities and assets http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Love_styles#Ludus.

Agapē (Greek: ἀγάπη) is the love that brings forth caring regardless of the circumstance http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Four_Loves. This is God’s love for man. This is an unconditional love.

Agape love is the one God talked about in Jeremiah 31:3 - “everlasting” and “evergreen”. All other types of love are transient and have conditions attached to them, but God loves you and I, not because we are rich or poor, not because we are white, black or brown, not because you have a degree or not, God loves you not because your parents are rich or poor, He loves you not because you are studying to be a pilot or an aeronautic engineer or a mechanic, or whatever you aspire to be. God loves you not  because you are going to give Him money, food, clothing, or shelter, He loves you not because you are going to run errands for Him, God loves you when you and I are unlovable; He sent Jesus to die for us because He just loves us; our beings and backgrounds notwithstanding; our color and ethnicity do not count in this matter; our tribe and origin are not taken into cognizance; our world view, mindset, or opinion are insignificant, He just loves us.

The question is: What would you give Him back for lavishing this love on you? Note that His love for us goes beyond this world into eternity, He will continue to love us as you and I prepare to cross over to Zion the city of God. And when we finally see His face, He will love us more. What would you give to Him to appreciate this great, evergreen, undying, unfading, and unfailing love? The only thing He requires from you is to allow the Holy Spirit to inhabit your heart.

Revelation 3:20 says:  Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with that person, and they with me. You don’t need to pay Him any money to get the love, you don’t need to bribe your way to possess it, and you don’t need to go through any Pastor or Reverend to have access to it. You don’t need to do anything extraordinary to enjoy His agape love, just be willing to open your heart for Jesus to come in, and sure enough,  you already have His love lavished on you every second of your life. Will you open your heart to Him today?