Phileo: God Likes Us!

Word of the Week

November 29, 2025

Phileō: God Likes Us!

 

The Father himself loves you because you have loved me and have believed that I came from God.

 John 16:27 NIV

 

Thanksgiving not only fills us with turkey, it also fills our hearts with gratefulness.  I hope you were reminded of the many blessings that we have received from God.

Today I would like to celebrate one more reason for thankfulness: the fact that God loves us!

John 3:16 declares that God loved the world so much that He gave His Son to provide us with eternal life.  That’s the most spectacular display of love, and He did it for the whole world.  Logically, that includes me and you, so I can be sure that God loves us.

The Bible consistently uses the Greek word agape to describe the way God loves us.  However, Jesus surprises us in one passage by using one of the other words for love.

Gathered with His closest followers on the night before His crucifixion, Jesus was trying to prepare them for the seemingly catastrophic events that would soon shatter their world.  And at one point He told them, “The Father himself loves you” (John 16:27).

We read that verse and think, “That’s right!  God loves them with the agape love that motivates Him to act for the good of unworthy people like us.”

However, that’s not the word Jesus chooses here.  Instead of agape, He uses phileō, the other Greek word for love.

Though these two words can overlap, they have a different flavor.  Here is a chart taken from a past Word of the Week article:

Agape	Phileo
Used very little in secular Greek, but becomes the predominant word in the New Testament.   Primarily a matter of choice rather than emotions.   One-way love that can flow even toward someone who does not deserve or return it.	Used in secular Greek as the love of friends, which they considered the highest kind of love. Often an emotional response to someone or something that appeals to you.     Two-way love that instinctively flows toward someone who returns your love.

According to Jesus, the Father loves these men with phileō-type love, “the brotherly affection that characterizes true friendship.  God loves (agape) everyone in the world; but He has a genuine, enthusiastic intimacy (phileō) with those who have affection for Jesus” (Chris Tiegreen, At His Feet, p. 324).

The rest of the verse says that the Father truly has affection for those who have come to love (phileō) Jesus – that’s the word that describes the disciple’s love for Jesus.

It’s easy for us to imagine that God loves us because it’s His job.  Agapē is built into His nature, so He just does it automatically.  But this verse reminds us that God’s great goal is to have the kind of relationship with you and me that is enjoyable – for Him and for us.

It’s a biblical truth.  Notice these verses:

• The Lord your God is in your midst, a victorious warrior.  He will exult over you with joy; He will be quiet in His love, He will rejoice over you with shouts of joy (Zephaniah 3:17).
• For the LORD takes pleasure in His people (Psalm 149:4).
• As the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so your God will rejoice over you (Isaiah 62:5b).

It sounds suspiciously as if God not only loves you, He likes you if you are one who has believed in His Son.  What a gift!

Study Hint:

For a fuller discussion of the two words for love, check out my article on the Ezra Project site.

Coming Up

Christmas is coming, and we turn our attention toward that great story.  One of the core doctrines of our faith is the miraculous conception of Jesus.  Next week we will analyze the precise ways that you can see the truth of the virgin birth in the genealogies of Jesus.

©Ezra Project 2025