The Fruit of the Spirit by Rick RennerSample

The First Fruit Is Love

When the New Testament was being written, there were four primary Greek words to describe the concept of “love”: 1) eros; 2) stergo; 3) phileo; and 4) agape. These four words conveyed four very different types of love. 

Eros is the Greek term for sexual love, and it is where we get the word “erotic.” This type of “love” is so flesh-based—and so far removed from the level of love that God expects of believers—that it is never included in New Testament language. 

The Greek word stergo primarily pictures the love that exists between parents and children or the love that exists between members of a family. The real idea of stergo is devotion.

The next Greek word, phileo, describes affection—such as the affection between a boyfriend and girlfriend or even the affability between two friends. Although this word describes the attributes of friendship, it is not representative of the highest form of love, which is agape. 

Agape is the word chiefly used in the New Testament to depict the love of God. And it is this word that Paul uses in Galatians 5:22. This is what I call high-level love, for there is no higher, finer, or more excellent love than agape love. Perhaps the best example of agape is found in John 3:16. In the phrase, “For God so loved the world,” the word “love” is agape.    

You see, agape is a love that loves so profoundly that it knows no limits or boundaries in how far, wide, high, and deep it will go to show that love to its recipient. If necessary, agape love will even sacrifice itself for the sake of that object or person it so deeply cherishes. This is the profound love God has for the human race. God loved man when he was still lost in sin with no ability to love Him back. God loved without any thought or expectation of receiving love in return, and His love drove Him to action. 

You may ask, “But how can I possess such love?” Because the Seed of God’s Word has been sown into your re-created human spirit, the potential for this divine love is within you all the time. Now it’s time for you to “loose” that love and allow the Holy Spirit to manifest it in your life (Romans 5:5)!