Many people want to say God is love. And they would be right. Many of these same people also say that all we need to do is love. And they would again be right. But the question is: what is love? According to the word of God, love is obedience to God.
Deuteronomy 11:1
Love the LORD your God and keep his requirements, his decrees, his laws and his commands always.
Joshua 22:5
But be very careful to keep the commandment and the law that Moses the servant of the LORD gave you: to love the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, to obey his commands, to hold fast to him and to serve him with all your heart and all your soul.”
Nehemiah 1:5
Then I said: “O LORD, God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and obey his commands,
Daniel 9:4
I prayed to the LORD my God and confessed: “O Lord, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with all who love him and obey his commands,
Matthew 22:36-40
36 “Teacher, which is the greatest commandment in the Law?” 37 Jesus replied: ” ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ 38 This is the first and greatest commandment. 39 And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ 40 All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments.”
Mark 12:30-31
30 Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.’ 31 The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no commandment greater than these.”
John 14:15
If you love me, you will obey what I command.
John 14:21
Whoever has my commands and obeys them, he is the one who loves me. He who loves me will be loved by my Father, and I too will love him and show myself to him.
John 14:23-24
23 Jesus replied, “If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him. 24 He who does not love me will not obey my teaching. These words you hear are not my own; they belong to the Father who sent me.
John 15:10
If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father’s commands and remain in his love.
1 John 2:4-6
4 The man who says, “I know him,” but does not do what he commands is a liar, and the truth is not in him. 5 But if anyone obeys his word, God’s love is truly made complete in him. This is how we know we are in him: 6 Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus did.
1 John 5:2-4
2 This is how we know that we love the children of God: by loving God and carrying out his commands. 3 This is love for God: to obey his commands. And his commands are not burdensome, 4 for everyone born of God overcomes the world. This is the victory that has overcome the world, even our faith.
2 John 1:5-6
5 And now, dear lady, I am not writing you a new command but one we have had from the beginning. I ask that we love one another. 6 And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love.
If we say we love God, we must obey. If we do not obey, we do not love God.
Wbmoore's Biblical Insights 
I agree! Although just because we slip up does’nt mean we don’t love God. We’re just not showning him we love him. That does’nt mean we don’t love him.
I agree. We are all sinners. None of us are perfect. But the idea is, do you have a pattern of obedience to God, or do you have a pattern of disobedience to God? Do you put yourself, your thoughts, your desires before God, and so become an idolator (with yourself as the idol)? Or do you put God first?
So often in the church, we see people who claim Christ, but have no fruit – which is something Christ warned about (Mt 7).
Trust me, I try my very best to always put God first. In fact I’m on a book fast this month because they we’re getting in the way of God. It’s been very relaxing because in the time I usualy read I can just sing and write songs and other stuff to God.
And my church we have lots of fruit (well most of us) and we believe all this stuff on your blog pretty much. I have a distasnt friend who’s gay and I’m going to foward the link to your article.
When I said ‘you’, I meant the general ‘you’, as in people. So many times people want to think that because God is love, they can do what they want. They confuse ‘love’ with ‘letting me do what I want.’
In fact, love is not just an emotion. Love is not allowing someone to do whatever they choose. Love is a choice to do what is best for the other person. People get divorced because they become selfish and confuse love with being allowed to get their way, rather than recognizing that love is actually about sacrifice for the other person.
If we love God, we sacrifice for God. It is not that those sacrifices will get us into heaven, but they show that we in fact do love God.
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