From year to year certain Bible verses speak to me, becoming favorites. This year it\u2019s John 13:1: \u201cNow before the feast of the Passover, when Jesus knew that His hour was come that He should depart out of this world unto the Father, having loved His own which were in the world, He loved them unto the end.\u201d<\/p>\n
It\u2019s the last phrase that grabs the heart\u2014\u201cHe loved them unto the end!\u201d The Greek word for \u201cend\u201d is telos<\/i> meaning end or toll. Telos<\/i> love is an enduring, toll-paying love.<\/p>\n
In several places, like Revelation 22:13, the word \u201ctelos\u201d is used to describe the actual character of Jesus: \u201cI am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end (telos).\u201d The Bible has several significant applications for the word \u201ctelos,\u201d all linked to Jesus\u2019 character of love\u2014\u201ctelos love.\u201d<\/p>\n
For example, the word telos<\/i> describes endurance. \u201cAnd because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold. But he that shall endure unto the end (telos), the same shall be saved\u201d (Matthew 24:12-13). In contrast to the human race, plagued with relationships that start well and fail to endure, Jesus\u2019 love endured to the end\u2014\u201ctelos endurance.\u201d When the love of even His closest disciples froze in abandonment and denial\u2014His love remained hot!<\/p>\n Peter sees in Jesus\u2019 eyes a look of love that swallowed up his words of betrayal.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Paul uses telos<\/i> when instructing us to \u201cpay to all what is due them\u2014taxes to whom taxes are due, revenue to whom revenue (telos) is due… owe no one anything, except… love\u201d (Romans 13:7-8, NRSV). In our time, as in Paul\u2019s, paying revenue is not always easy (think IRS). Yet \u201clove\u201d constrains us to pay \u201ctoll-telos.\u201d Paul was motivated by Calvary where Jesus did not fail to love broken, wretched human beings, no matter what the toll.<\/p>\n In Luke 18:5, telos<\/i> speaks to the justice of God: \u201cYet because this widow keeps bothering me, I will grant her justice, so that she may not wear me out by continually [telos] coming\u201d (Luke 18:5, NRSV). The widow\u2019s telos<\/i> for justice is a reflection of the just character of a loving God.<\/p>\n Telos<\/i> also suggests a goal or aim. \u201cFor Christ is the end [telos] of the law for righteousness to every one that believeth\u201d (Romans 10:4). \u201cGoal telos\u201d informs us that the goal of law and righteousness is to be like Christ.<\/p>\n In Matthew 26:58 telos<\/i> suggests finality: \u201cBut Peter followed Him afar off unto the high priest\u2019s palace, and went in, and sat with the servants, to see the end [telos].\u201d In this \u201cend-telos,\u201d Peter sees in Jesus\u2019 eyes a look of love that swallowed up his words of betrayal. Perhaps this inspired John to write, \u201cHe loved them unto the end.\u201d<\/p>\n Telos<\/i> love is the enduring, just, toll-bearing, goal of all human experience grounded in God\u2019s undying, debt-paying love for us. Humanity has failed, but God\u2019s love has prevailed. Amen.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" From year to year certain Bible verses speak to me, becoming favorites. This year it\u2019s John 13:1: \u201cNow before the feast of…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":11734,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"content-type":"","_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[99,47,100,39,8,101],"class_list":["post-7827","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-devotional","tag-calvary","tag-character","tag-human","tag-justice","tag-love","tag-relationship"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/lightbearers.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/12\/Telos_Love.jpg?fit=2560%2C1440&ssl=1","jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/paAh8r-22f","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lightbearers.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7827","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lightbearers.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lightbearers.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lightbearers.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lightbearers.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7827"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/lightbearers.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7827\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11733,"href":"https:\/\/lightbearers.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7827\/revisions\/11733"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lightbearers.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/11734"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lightbearers.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7827"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lightbearers.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7827"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lightbearers.org\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7827"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}