It Is He Who Loves Me

It Is He Who Loves Me

Who? He who 1) has My commandments and 2) keeps them. When someone does not love God, it is not just that he does not keep God’s commandments, he does not even have them; they are not present in his heart, mind, and thoughts. He does not remember them, he is not conscious of them, and in many cases he is not even aware that they exist. Even if he has been converted for many, many years, he has still not noticed them in the writings of the new covenant. He has not paused for them; he has not taken the Word seriously, and has not taken God’s laws and commandments to heart—for example, that divisions belong to works of the flesh, and those who do them will not inherit the kingdom of God. Gal. 5:19, ff. These are terribly serious words! For example, wives shall obey their own husbands in all things! For example, servants (everyone in a subordinate position) shall not answer back to their superiors. Tit. 2:9.

Why have people not reflected seriously on these words? Why do they not have them as their rightful possession in their hearts and keep them? Jesus says it is because they do not love God. They say that they love God, but they simply do not. They do not speak the truth. 1 John 2:4.

On the whole, it is sad to experience and to realize how minimal most converted people’s knowledge is of the Savior’s commandments (as Peter writes), or of the laws of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus (as Paul writes).

This is exactly the same as saying that very few among all those who say they love God actually love Him.

When you love God, you have His commandments and you keep them.

I have dwelt on these words for a long time: the person who loves God’s commandments also keeps them. However, there is also much to be gained by reflecting on and contemplating the other part of this word: “He who has My commandments . . . .”

A lack of knowledge of the laws of the Spirit of life is the result of a lack of love for God.