This is the fourth post outlining the things that make New Life Fellowship unique.  For more information on our Statement of Faith, click on the link to “Our Beliefs”.

Church Distinctive #4) Agapé love in all we do and say

  • “A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this all men will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”       John 13:34-35

Agapé (ag-ah’-pay) is the Greek word used to describe the kind of love that God has for us.  It is unconditional, never seeking anything in return and cannot be increased or diminished by circumstances.  It is completely different from sensual feelings or even brotherly love.

This kind of “no-strings attached” love is how God calls us to interact with each other.  In fact, according to the verse above, it should be a hallmark of Christian churches everywhere, being our primary witness to the world that we are followers of Jesus.  It never says that people will know we are Christians because of our extensive learning, our great deeds or our prosperous business acumen, but because of the love we show to one another.

So many times in society (unfortunately in church as well), people in the world are skeptical - wondering what we want from them or what angle is behind our interest in them.  At New Life Fellowship, we strive to let everything we do and say come from a place of agapé love; doing only to/for others what we have so mercifully experienced from God ourselves.

As true followers of Jesus, we ought to see in our lives the same characteristics used to describe love in the famous passage in First Corinthians:

Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud.  It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs.  Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth.  It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.  Love never fails.      1 Corinthians 13:4-8

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