86. 愛Love
作者: 史鮑爾 (R.C. Sproul)
譯者: 姚錦榮
摘自《神學入門》《Essential Truths of the
Christian Faith》231頁, 更新傳道會出版
在我們的社會裏，常常用被動的方式談及愛，愛好像是一件臨到的事情，而我們自己並不能控制。我們說自己「墮進」愛河，主要是因為我們視愛為一種特別的感情或感覺，而這種感情不是按一按鈕，或是運用有意識的意志就能產生的；我們並不能自己「決定」跟某人墮進愛河。
但聖經是以更積極的語氣論及愛，它用動詞，而非名詞來表達愛的觀念。愛是一種責任——是我們必須去行的。神命令我們愛鄰舍、愛配偶和愛仇敵。在腦中產生愛仇敵的感覺是一回事，以實際行動去愛他們又是另一回事。
聖經只用了幾個詞匯來表達這個複雜的愛的觀念。舊約聖經絕大多數用希伯來文aheb一詞來表達愛，而新約聖經則主要用兩個希臘詞匯來表達愛——就是phileo和agape。phileo是「非拉鐵非」（意即「弟兄之愛的城』，編者註：美國費城名字即由此而來）一字的由來，乃指朋友之間的情誼。另一個意義相反的希臘字egos，是聖經沒有用過的，它是指性愛和愛欲，也就是我們一般所指的浪漫愛情。這兩種愛，phileo和eros是所有人類都有的，而產生這兩種愛的動機常是為一己的利益、一己的滿足，和一己的保障。
可是新約聖經提到第三種的愛agape。agape（音譯「愛加倍」）所代表的是一種與人類基本感情不同的愛，它最大的特色是不為一己之利益，而是自內心發出一種對別人的愛顧與關懷，它的特質就是保羅在哥林多前書十三章所描寫的。agape的愛足恒久忍耐，又有恩慈；不嫉妒；不自誇，不張狂；不求自己的益處，不輕易發怒；很快地饒恕人，喜歡良善與真理。凡事包容，凡事相信，凡事盼望，凡事忍耐。
由此可知，聖經中的愛並不是純粹指感情而已，它是一種主動的愛。基督徒的呼召主要不是去培養出一種愛別人的感覺——因為那常常不在我們的控制之下——但是我們能夠控制自己對別人的行動和反應。基督徒要去愛，好將神無私的愛反映出來。
因此這種愛是最終的聖靈果子。保羅說：「如今常存的有信、有望、有愛；這三樣，其中最大的是愛。」（林前13：13）
由於這種愛完全反映出神對我們的愛，因此，我們可稱它為一種堅定不移的愛，忠誠不渝的愛。它的特色就是建立在信任上的忠誠。這種愛是永恒的委身，是永遠不會改變的。
總結
1.聖經中的愛是主動的愛。
2 .聖經中的愛是神命令我們去行的一個責任。
3. 在眾多有關愛的希臘文用語中，我們特別需要分辨其中三個:
(1)Dphileo
：弟兄之愛
(2)eros ：性愛或 浪 漫 的 愛 情
(3)agape
：神 之 愛 或屬靈之愛
4 .
Apage 之愛說明了神堅定不移的愛，這是一種向著別人的愛。
思考經文：
申6 : 4-5；林前13:1-13；弗 5 ：25-33；約壹4 ：7-21；太5 ：43-48
LOVE
In
our society, love is usually spoken of in passive terms. That is, love is
something that happens to us over which we have little or no control. We “fall”
in love. We speak this way chiefly because we associate love with a particular
feeling or emotion. Such emotion cannot be produced by pushing a button or by a
conscious act of the will. We do not “decide” to fall in love with someone.
The
Bible, however, speaks of love in far more active terms. The concept of love
functions more as a verb than as a noun. Love is a duty—an action we are
obliged to perform. God commands us to love our neighbor, to love our spouse,
and even to love our enemies. It is one thing to conjure up feelings of love
and affection for one’s enemies; it is another thing to act in a loving manner
toward them.
The
Bible has a complex concept of love that is expressed in relatively few words.
The Old Testament predominantly used one Hebrew word, aheb, to express love.
The New Testament primarily used two Greek words for love—phileo and agape.
Phileo, from which the city Philadelphia derives its name (meaning the “city of
brotherly love”), is the Greek word that is used to denote the affection shared
by friends. By contrast, the term eros, which is not used in the Bible, refers
more to sexual or erotic love. It is the kind of love we often associate with
romance. These two types of love are common to all human beings. These types of
love have a tendency to be motivated by self-interest, selfgratification, and
self-protection.
The
New Testament, however, describes a third kind of love. Agape stands in
contrast to the more basic affections. Its most distinguishing feature is a
lack of self-interest. It proceeds out of a heart of care and concern for
others. Its characteristics are enumerated by Paul in 1 Corinthians 13. Agape
love is patient and kind. It neither boasts nor envies. It is not proud, rude,
self-seeking, or easily angered. It is quick to forgive; it seeks the good and
the true. It protects, trusts, hopes, and perseveres always. It never fails.
Biblical
love is therefore more than a mere emotion. It is active. The calling of the
Christian is not primarily to develop feelings of love for others. In many
instances that is outside the Christian’s control. However,
we
can control how we respond and act toward a given person. The Christian is to
be loving, to mirror the selfless love of God.
Agape
love, then, is the ultimate fruit of the Spirit. As Paul wrote, “now abide
faith, hope, love, these three; but the greatest of these is love” (1
Corinthians 13:13).
Insofar
as agape love mirrors and reflects the character of God’s love for us, it may
be called a steadfast love, a love that endures with loyalty. It is
characterized by fidelity—the faithfulness that is built upon trust. Such love
is incapable of being fickle; it is the love of permanent commitment.
Summary
1. Biblical love is active love. 2. Biblical love is a duty commanded by God.
3. Of the various Greek words for love, three important ones need to be
distinguished: (a) phileo = brotherly affection (b) eros = sexual or romantic
love (c) agape = godly or spiritual love 4. Agape love reflects the steadfast
love of God and is oriented toward others.
