Storge Love
“Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.” 1 John 4:7-8 (ESV)
Love is the most complicated and beautiful experience on this earth. It is messy and painful and takes work, but it is also natural, life-changing, and freeing. God gives us the greatest example of love by the sacrifice He made in sending His Son Jesus to die and rise again so that we could be set free from our sins and come into relationship with Him. The whole Bible is the love story of how God chases us down through an intentional plan to rescue us, as well as what our lives should look like mirroring His love in the aftermath. The greatest commandment according to Jesus is to love God with everything that is within us (Matthew 22:36-38). The second greatest commandment is to love the people around us as we love ourselves (Matthew 22:39). I think it’s interesting that when the disciples asked Jesus what the greatest commandment was, He didn’t only give the greatest but the second as well. This shows how important it is that we love those around us.
Storge Love (Background)
In the English language we only have one word for love which is “love”. In the Greek language, there are several words for love that describe the different types we can demonstrate and feel. Four of these types of love are found in the Bible. (I’m only talking about one type this week; stay tuned for the rest on the blog soon!) “Storge” love is a type of family-centered love; it’s the type of love a mother has for her children, a brother should have for his siblings, a type of natural love that all family members share. While the exact word “storge” isn’t found in the Bible, the opposite of the word – “astorgos” which means “heartless” – is found in Romans 1:31 and in 2 Timothy 3:3. In the passage in 2 Timothy, it’s a word that marks the lives of believers in the end times; there is an absence of brotherly, natural love for one another (Zavada, Jack). Familial love is one that protects and comforts like no other. It provides when there is a need and comforts through difficult times.
A “storge” kind of love is special in its own way because I believe it is the most natural feeling that is buried within our hearts. Our hearts yearn to belong. We were made to be in relationship with one another, and that naturally begins in our families. There is a desire in children to be loved entirely and openly by their parents, there is a desire within parents to be loved by their children, and there is an initial closeness we have with our siblings that can endure all through life. When I was growing up, there was nothing like the love I had for my family. Even now as an adult, when we have had big arguments and hard life circumstances create small rifts, there is still a desire within me to protect, defend, and love them. This type of love is one we can share with one another in the family of God.
A Family United by God
If we want to understand storge love, we have to first understand that, as believers, we are a family. Family language is used all through the Bible to explain our relationship with God and the relationship we should have with others. 1 John 3:1 (ESV) says, “See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are.” We are a part of God’s family. Just like all biological families, we are a messy and fractured one because we are all still sinners, but greater than our own blood unifying us as family, Jesus’ blood is what covers us and bonds us on a spiritual level. As a family, we should be there to protect and provide for one another. Just as a parent or older sibling protects a child, we should protect those who are weak or vulnerable or those going through hard times. Deuteronomy 10:18 (ESV) says, “He [God] executes justice for the fatherless and the widow, and loves the sojourner, giving him food and clothing.” It’s an amazing thing to take part in the work of God, serving those around us. There is always a need, whether it’s across the street or across the world. Protecting and providing are tangible ways we can show love to one another like a family would whether it’s a meal, some money, an extra room in your home, or fighting for justice for an oppressed group or individual. What a sacred thing it is to fill a need – big or small.
Protecting and Providing
There are countless verses about the orphans, widows, and fatherless – about how God loves these people who have suffered loss and about how we should love them. Isaiah 1:17 (ESV) says, “learn to do good; seek justice, correct oppression; bring justice to the fatherless, plead the widow’s cause.” And Psalm 82:3 (ESV) says, “Give justice to the weak and fatherless; maintain the right of the afflicted and the destitute.” God cares deeply for those who are hurting, and we have the beautiful opportunity to be the hands and feet of Jesus through meeting the needs of those around us. Jesus can be felt and seen through service; this is one big way we can bring people who might not know Him into the family of God. And this is the goal! To bring more people in to experience the life-changing love of God. When we are a family that is open about not being perfect and yet live out a love that is active and authentic, people will see that. When we protect and provide for needs as brothers and sisters and as fathers and mothers, we are living out the greatest calling from God.
Comfort
Right now, as I write this morning, my baby girl, awaking for the day, whines on the other side of the wall from her playpen. She calls out, “Mama, Mama, Mama” in her precious and needy baby voice. My heart is hurting and pulling to go get her up out of bed, to snuggle her and tell her, “Mama is right here. Mama loves you!” (Even though she will be fighting my love to get out of my arms and go play.) There is no desire I’ve ever felt more powerful than to comfort my babies. We always talk about “God the Father” which is how Scripture (and how Jesus) refers to God throughout the Bible, so we may forget that our motherly comfort is an image of God’s unending love – He comforts us like no other. His comfort is even better than a mother’s. Like a crying baby can only be comforted by her mother, we are comforted by God. Isaiah 66:12b-13a (ESV) says, “and you shall nurse, you shall be carried upon her hip, and bounced upon her knees. As one whom his mother comforts, so I will comfort you.” (There are more verses that illustrate God’s motherly qualities: Hosea 11:3-4, Hosea 13:8, Psalm 131:2, Matthew 23:37). Part of a storge love is to comfort others in the way God comforts us. 2 Corinthians 1:3-4 (ESV) says, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God.” We all face difficult things, and comforting those around us with the comfort of a mother or father is a way to exemplify storge love. There is no shortage of pain on this earth, and with God there is no shortage of comfort. Whether it’s just sitting and listening to someone who is mourning, making a warm meal, sending a text that says, “I’m thinking of you”, or any intentional act of comfort, this is what it means to be a family. It means we can walk hand in hand with each other and lift each other up with words, open ears and hearts, and encouragement.
Storge Love – For Our Best Friends And Worst Enemies
Some of the best people in my life are the family members I have in Christ – people who know me fully and help bring me closer to Jesus; these people encourage me, help me stay accountable in the areas I struggle, and point me to God’s Word. I know that if there was a circumstance where I had a physical need, these people would help provide that for me. I know that when something tragic happens in my life, my brothers and sisters in Christ will be there to help me through it – emotionally, physically, and spiritually. There are naturally going to be people we are drawn to in close relationships, which is important. These are the people that can know you fully and still love you – the people who feel like brothers, sisters, and parents. There are going to be people you naturally get along with, which is a gift. But the love should not stop there! There are people who really annoy me, who make me angry and get on my nerves like no other. We are called to love even these people. It might not feel as organic or innate, but it’s something we can practice; it’s something we are called by God to do. Love doesn’t always mean being best friends with someone. It can simply mean being there when there is a need or praying for your enemy or praying that God helps you see past irritations. It can mean celebrating when there’s a victory and mourning when there’s a tragedy with all of our brothers and sisters, no matter how much you like them (1 Corinthians 12:26).
This family is not perfect, but it provides the space to be a little piece of Heaven on earth through protection, provision, and comfort. Life is hard and brings unexpected circumstances and pain. It’s not always (if ever) glamorous or flashy to intentionally serve and love, but it is meaningful in the way we can be there for one another; it is significant in the eyes of Heaven. Sometimes it’s natural, sometimes it’s really hard. Jesus’ whole earthly ministry was based on serving others.
He looked into peoples’ eyes and made them feel like they had a place at His table; everyone was welcomed, seen, and loved. He not only met spiritual needs but physical needs, too. He was the greatest example of how to love people as family – whether you like them or not. I would love if you would intentionally pray with me this week to seek out ways to love our family in Christ – whether it’s one person or ten or a hundred. I can almost guarantee there is already someone on your mind. Don’t miss an opportunity to take part in the work of Heaven. What a blessing it is to be in a family with you!
Questions:
How can you intentionally protect, provide for, or comfort someone this week?
How has your biological family impacted your view of Storge love?
If you want a resource on the loves we will be writing about through this series, check out “The Four Loves” by C.S. Lewis!
Sources:
Zavada, Jack. “Storge: A Greek Word for Family Love in the Bible.” Learn Religions, 4 May 2021, www.learnreligions.com/what-is-storge-love-700698.