(June 13, 2016 at 1:02 pm)Thomas Kelly252525 Wrote:(June 13, 2016 at 8:55 am)Drich Wrote: The greeks believed love was sub divided into four distinct form or expressions. (and this is important because the sub-division of love expressed follows the greek model in that we have been commanded to Agape'/Love God)
Agape' was a form of respect and reverance. Agape' was a choice.
Eros was passion/emotion.
Philia was a brotherly/friend based love it too was a choice
Storge' is the type of love or bond between parent and child.
So from A historical perspective it is possible to both choose and to simply feel love, it just depends on what aspect of love one is referring to.
But here the command is for one to Agape' but the command does not end there, which kinda leads to your next questions
The command is to Agape' God with all your being. as we are only heart mind body/strength and spirit this would mean all of our aspects are needed to full fill this command. As you pointed out not all aspects are fully under our control (hence the heart wants what the heart wants.) So then this process must start with what we do have control over and that is our minds.
We must decide this full expression of Love God is asking of us is something we want to give Him. Then we simply ask God to provide us with the ability to harness and control the love he has asked us to provide.
It's simple, in that we use what he gives us to His glory and he will give us more.
Drich,
It may be thought that by serving people in the right way for God it shows a person's respect or reverence for him and the person's goodwill towards other people and God.
I think there are many ways a person may work to serve people and God and goodwill must be the force behind serving people and God.
I think it may be thought that a man may be thought of as a brother, friend, parent, son, teacher, servant, doctor and so on and it may be thought of how many different ways a man's goodwill may be shown in the various positions.
The first of the greatest commands is to Love God with all your being, the second is to love your neighbor as yourself. In these two command Jesus said the whole Law can be honored or full filled. Meaning if one can love God with all that he is and simply Love his neighbor as himself then then the basis of all of God's law can be honored.
Now I completely understand what you are saying, in that loving your fellow man is apart of loving God. The answer to that is both yes and no. No in that if by simply loving your fellow man was the same as loving God with all of your heart mind spirit and strength their would not need to be the second of the two greatest commands Jesus points out. ...And Yes loving your fellow Man is the apart of Loving God, because loving only those who love God follow His commands.. and as "loving your neighbor" represents 50% of all of God's commands one can not love God without loving his neighbor.
But again, the love of God does not stop there with loving your fellow man. The love God asks of us encompasses all of our being, this is something we do not have access to and is impossible to do with out God helping us. so then again we take what we have access to (our will/minds) and ask God to turn the rest of ourselves over to us so that we may choose to give him the Agape' asked of us.
