Title: How do you love someone?
How do you love someone?
Text/ Luke 10:25-37, Mark 12:28-31, Matthew 22:34-40
1. Introduction
It is said that the life of a true man is “a life that loves God and loves people.” So, last week, I meditated on <How to love God?>, and today I would like to meditate on <How to love people?>.
Let's compare the text and read it deeply. What is the greatest commandment of the Pharisees in the Gospels of Mark and Matthew? To the question asked, Jesus himself said <love of God and love of man>, and in the Gospel of Luke, the Pharisee answered the question of <what do you think it is?>.
And this time, Jesus gave the famous parable of the good Samaritan to the Pharisee who asked, “I understand the love of God, but how do you love people?” Therefore, <The Parable of the Good Samaritan> is Jesus' answer to the <How to love people?>. So, to love people means to love people like the good Samaritan.
2. What does this world say about love?
In the days of the early church in Korea, when someone threw a stone and saw that many windows of the chapel were broken, the missionary of that church said, <Who destroyed these windows?>. did you break it? Did you destroy something to do? did it. As such, there are many words in Korean that have the same meaning, but have different meanings. A typical example of this is the word “love”. We often say love, love, love... but the word we use to love and the love Jesus speaks of are completely different.
So, let's think about how the love we speak of in this world is different from the love Jesus speaks of. These are the things we talk about in love.
This is libido love. Romeo and Juliet, Lee Do-ryung and Seong Chun-hyang, Lee Soo-il and Shim Soon-ae, etc... There is love based on the rational instinct between a man and a woman.
This is eros love. This love is usually called lustful love between a man and a woman, but the original meaning of eros is "a burning desire to satisfy what I don't have, what I have lost, and what I want", as Plato clearly stated in <Feast>. Money, power, lover, health, education, art, etc... Those who have lost, missing, or wishing for these things, the passionate desire to regain or fill them, is erotic love.
It is philian love. The friendship between the audience and Po Suk-ah (Gwanpo Jigyo), Impression and Yeompa's 刎頸之交 (Mungyeongjigyo), Baek Ah and Zhongki's Jieumjigyo (Jieumjigyo), David and Jonathan's friendship... of love.
Stolke love. It is a mother who plows away a dry place, infidelity silently waiting for a child who has left home, reconciliation between brothers and sisters, and love between relatives.
3. What kind of love is Jesus talking about?
Jesus valued this kind of love very much. “But if you love those who love you, what reward will you have? Thieves love it, too. Even those who do not know God do such love Matthew 5:43-48> He said that the love of those who believe in God is more than such love. That love is agape love. When Jesus tells you to love, that love is not Libido, Eros, Philia, or Stolke love, but Agape love.
Then what is agape love? Jesus said that what the good Samaritan did was agape love.
4. If so, what was the agape love of the good Samaritan?
first. Agape Love is concern! The priest, the Levite, was not interested in the person who was robbed, that is, someone who needed help right away. So there was no love. The Samaritan was deeply concerned. Love starts with interest.
second. Agape Love is action! Faith without works is dead faith. Love is not an idea. not a thought. not the mind. Love is an action. The Samaritan acted. After the appearance of the Samaritan, the verb suddenly increases. To see, to pity, to go, to pour, to bind, to burn, to take care of, to pay, ..., etc. Suddenly, numerous verbs appear. Love is an action.
third. Agape Love is giving freely (Love is present!). The Samaritan gave the price freely, without any desire (應無所住而生其心). Giving something in return is not love (Luke 14:12-14).
In conclusion, Jesus said, <Go and do likewise!>. Amen.
Weekly <Fountain of the Word>