by Carol Jo Campbell

Created on: March 17, 2010

Bible Study: Love of God

Most people confuse love of God with an emotional reaction to God’s love for human beings.  It is true that God’s love is superlative and non-exhaustive and that he is indeed the source of Love.  However, when we begin to talk about human love demonstrated toward God as the Universal Sovereign, it must be more than words and emotion.

As a child my mother would remind me, under certain circumstances, that ‘talk is cheap’. Today many Christians seem to think that their ability to mince words without foundation is a sign of their love for God. What is often clear is that many clergy have no concept of the Love of God and since the leadership is gone astray, the flock follows.

One of the simplest ways of seeing what is meant by Love of God according to the Bible is to consider 1 John 5:3 which reads:  “For this is what the love of God means, that we observe his commandments; and yet his commandments are not burdensome,”

Love of God means obeying - doing his commandments. What are some of those commandments?

(Mark 12:29-30) . . .Jesus answered: “The first is, ‘Hear, O Israel, Jehovah our God is one Jehovah, 30 and you must love Jehovah your God with your whole heart and with your whole soul and with your whole mind and with your whole strength.’ (Mark 12:31) . . .The second is this, ‘You must love your neighbor as yourself.. . .There is no other commandment greater than these

 People frequently quote these two commandments without giving thought to the meaning of either. What does it mean to love your God with your ‘whole heart and your whole soul and with your whole mind and with your whole strength.’ There is no partial effort here with part of the heart, mind and strength reserved for other use.  What does it mean to serve Jehovah God “whole-souled?” The Greek term used for “whole-souled” literally means “from the soul.” The “soul” does not mean some ethereal part of the human being, but refers to the entire person, with all its physical and mental abilities. To serve God 'whole-souled' means living our lives completely and unreservedly in harmony with His will and purpose.  It means directing our energies to the best of our abilities and to the fullest extent possible in God’s service. The apostle Paul put it well: (1 Corinthians 10:31). . .

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