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The Four Loves: Philia-Our Love for Others

February 8, 2025 | David Jeremiah

All who are with me greet you. Greet those who love us in the faith.
Titus 3:15

In the early 1680s, William Penn made a treaty of friendship with a Native American chieftain named Tamanend. Penn built a port city on the Delaware River to serve as a governmental center. He knew the word philia meant “friendship,” so he named his city Philadelphia—City of Brotherly Love. Penn had experienced persecution, and he wanted to build a city where people loved and respected each other.

Every city, town, church, marriage, and home should have the spirit of philia. In Christ, your husband is also your brother; your wife is also your sister. The Bible says that within the faith we should be “gentle, not quarrelsome” with each other (1 Timothy 3:3). The apostle Paul said, “And a servant of the Lord must not quarrel but be gentle to all” (2 Timothy 2:24). In Titus 3:15, Paul spoke of those who loved (philia) him in the faith.

Ask God to give you philia, and let’s love each other as friends in the faith of our Heavenly Father.

In a good marriage the husband and wife are also friends. Friendship means companionship, communication, and cooperation. This is known as philia.
H. Norman Wright

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