One of the most talked about words in the biblical Greek is the word for love, agape. It is a word that is preached about and has been studied for centuries. This love is what defines us as disciples of Jesus, it’s the love that Christ shone on the cross. In our study today as we end this series, Peter wants his readers to add to their faith this kind of love. 

In John 13:35 Jesus says, “By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” By showing love to one another we can identify ourselves as followers of Jesus. The kind of love forms an identity separate from the way the world values things and operates. Jesus would later use the example of his death as the greatest example of this kind of love. 

In Romans 15:30 we learn that this love is also shown through our treatment of one another. Putting other people’s needs and thoughts before our own is showing agape love. 1 Corinthians 8:1 tells us that love builds one another up. If we are to strengthen each other and each other’s faith, we must have love for one another and this will only strengthen our faith which is what Peter has in mind for his readers.  

There are many more passages we could walk through that describe this agape love. It is a love only given by the Spirit, and it is a love that makes our faith stronger through Jesus.