Last week, we began studying the primacy and nature of "love" as taught in the Bible. When asked to identify the greatest commandment, Jesus noted that the most fundamental command given by God was to "love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind" (Matt. 22:37). To understand the characteristics of that love required, we examined the nature of that love as it was explained in 1 Corinthians 13:4-7.
Having introduced the study, today we will look a little more at the implications of that love God expects us to have towards Him. What does the commanded love demand of us? In a practical sense, how do we know if we have the love for God which He requires from us? In answering these questions, we should always remember that Jesus used words taken from Deuteronomy 6 to identify the foundational nature of the love God expects from man. We will return to that passage at the end of our study for some practical help in evaluating our love for God to see if it matches the expectations set by God.
Regarding spiritual matters, a proper love for God always involves two elements, both of which are essential. First, we are to love God from the heart, being motivated to serve Him with a whole heart. No service to God is complete that omits a motivation of pure and total love for Him. Second, our love for God demands that we follow His commandments declared in the pattern of His word. Notice how the Bible ties the two together:
But God be thanked that though you were slaves of sin, yet you obeyed from the heart that pattern of doctrine to which you were delivered. And having been set free from sin, you became slaves of righteousness (Romans 6:17-18).
Deuteronomy 6:5 - "You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your might."
Hebrews 10:22 - "Let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled from an evil conscience and our bodies washed with pure water."
David gave wise advice to his son regarding this matter. "As for you, my son Solomon, know the God of your father, and serve Him with a loyal heart and with a willing mind; for the Lord searches all hearts and understands all the intent of the thoughts. If you seek Him, He will be found by you; but if you forsake Him, He will cast you off forever" (1 Chron. 28:9).
It is plain, then, that God will not be pleased with anything less than our whole-hearted devotion unto Him. No ritualistic attempt to be acceptable to God without our hearts involved will please Him. If we are to live with Christ in eternity, we must give Him our hearts today!
John 14:15, 21 - "If you love Me, keep My commandments.... He who has My commandments and keeps them, it is he who loves Me. And he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and manifest Myself to him."
John 14:23-24 - "Jesus answered and said to him, If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our home with him. He who does not love Me does not keep My words; and the word which you hear is not Mine but the Father's who sent Me."
1 John 5:3 - "For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome."
Some people today teach that God will accept whatever service one offers to the Lord with the heart, even if that service is not directed by His will found in the Bible. Yet, God has clearly insisted that we must obey Him not only with a heart-felt service, but by keeping His commands. Notice how plain that instruction is:
Now by this we know that we know Him, if we keep His commandments. He who says, I know Him, and does not keep His commandments, is a liar, and the truth is not in him. But whoever keeps His word, truly the love of God is perfected in him. By this we know that we are in Him (1 Jn. 2:3-5).
(1) "And these words which I command you shall be in your heart" (Deut 6:6). Have we studied the word of God sufficiently to have it implanted within our hearts (Col. 3:16)? How much of it have we committed to memory?
(2) "You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk by the way, when you lie down, and when you rise up" (Deut. 6:7). How diligent are we in teaching our children the word of God (Eph. 6:4)? How much discussion time do we spend in the home on the Scripture? Are spiritual matters the first things our children hear each morning and the last thing they hear from us at night?
(3) "You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates" (Deut. 6:8-9). How often do we place things in our homes, workplaces and cars to remind us of God's will? The Scripture affirms the need for our memories of God's word to be stirred (2 Pet. 3:1-2). Is there any place in our decoration scheme for reminders of spiritual things? No, the reminders will not assure our obedience, but they may very well help us remember what is truly important lest we get blinded by the cares of the world, the pursuit of materialism and the vain scramble which too often take over our life.