Intro: Can  you  describe  your  love  for  that  special gal in 1 word? Young men, listen.

When  you  are  dating  someone,  it  is  hard  to  describe  them.  And  descriptions  are  nearly  impossible. And because  dating CAN lead  to  marriage,  people  actively dating,  at  any age, need  to  listen  to  what  the  Bible  says.

The  Bible  does  have  a  single  word  to  describe  the  relationship  that SHOULD  be  between  husbands  and  wives.  Ephesians  5:25  speaks  of  a love  that  a  husband  should  have  for  his  wife.  This  love  was  to  be  done  to the  same  extent  that  Jesus  loved  the  church.

In  the  New  Testament,  which  was  written  in  Greek,  there  are  3  kinds  of love.  First  there  is  Eros  which  is  sexual  love.  Second  there  is  phileo  love.  It is  a  love  Between  Brothers  and  Best  Friends.  And  then  there  is  agape  love. This  is  a  love  that  incorporates  decisions  not  just  feelings.  Feelings  are allowed  but  love’s  determination  is  the  distinguishing  characteristic.

Great  husbands  make  a  DECISION  to  love  their  wives.  It  is  not  about  how attractive  she  is  to  him.  That  tends  toward  Eros  love,  and  will  decrease over  time.  It  is  not  about her  being  your  best  friend.  That  is  phileo  love.  It  is good  to  have.  But  husbands  should  have  a  more  powerful  love.  He  should DECIDE and  make  a COMMITTMENT to  her,  and  to  her  alone. This  is agape love.  It  is  a  love  of  choice  and  determination.

How  big  should  this  choice  and  determination  be? A  husband’s  choice  and  determination  should  be  to  the  same  magnitude that  Jesus  loved  His church,  his  bride.

So  how  did  Jesus  love  the  church.? It  was  agape  love  that  caused  Jesus  to  leave  the  glories  of  Heaven,  the place  where  we  all  want  to  go,  to  come  down  here  and  live  on  this  planet that  he  had  created,  along  with  all  the  people he  had  made.

It  was  Jesus’s  agape  for  you  that  caused  him  to  leave  his  eternal  form  and take  on  a  corruptible,  physical  body  like  ours.

It was Jesus’ agape love that demonstrated compassion on lepers; kindness and generosity to the hungry; gentleness to the woman at the well; meekness as he corrected the Pharisees; self-controlled in all threatening situations.  

It was agape love that caused him to stop pleading with the Father of Heaven in the garden of Gethsemane, and DECIDED to follow the Father’s plan. He was CHOOSING to love you to the full extent of life. 

 It was his CHOICE to love those who would become His church. He endured the beatings, the mocking, the trials, the nails, and hanging on a cross. That was DETERMINATION to love us. He CHOSE to suffer the end result of your sins and mine.  Each of us should have been on the cross. But because of his agape-love for us, he took our place. And because of his love for you and me, he was resurrected. 

All of this put together is what it means when it says “as Christ loved the church” in Ephesians 5:25.

 Those of you who are dating, when things begin to get serious, make your choice very carefully. It is the 2nd most important decision you will ever make. Will your wife-to-be help you get to heaven? And once you have DECIDED, make the FULL COMMITMENT to her and her alone, just like Jesus did. 

Husbands, today, recommit yourself to loving her with everything you have, and with everything you are, even if it costs you your life.  Let’s finish by reading Ephesians 5:25. “Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her”

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-Tim Estes, via Timeless Talks.   http://timelesstalks.net