The Love of God

The Love of God

There is an essential difference between the love of God and human love. There is neither variation nor shadow of turning in the love of God. Human love, on the other hand, varies and is influenced by the conduct of the others. There are many people who fall in love with each other and get married, and afterwards they have something against each other, get divorced, and even end up hating each other.

“And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold. But he who endures to the end shall be saved.” Matt. 24:12-13.

The ones whose love will grow cold have had a human love, or they have come out of the love of God. The others—those whose love will not grow cold—possess the love of God, a love that does not vary according to circumstances or how people conduct themselves. Jesus proclaimed this divine love when He said, “Love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven . . . .” Matt. 5:44-48.

Jesus proclaimed the gospel. Through the work that Jesus finished in the days of His flesh and which He proclaimed in the Sermon on the Mount, it had now become possible to partake of a divine life. Matt. 11:5-6; Heb. 5:7-10.

“Purify your souls in obedience to the truth unto unfeigned [uncolored—Ger. tr.] brotherly love, and love one another fervently from the heart.” 1 Pet. 1:22.

The love of God is unfeigned, uncolored. If my love is influenced—or colored—by other people’s conduct, by the way they are, it is evident that I have given expression to my egotism. If I am to abide in God’s love, then situations and other people’s conduct need to work a cleansing in me so that I can abide in the love of God. I must not purify the others to ensure that my love is not colored by their conduct.

“In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins . . . .” And we have known and believed the love that God has for us. God is love, and he who abides in love abides in God, and God in him. . . . “We love Him because He first loved us.” 1 John 4:7-21.

The source of our love must not be in people and their conduct, but in God. Jesus gave His life while we were yet enemies. Jesus would have sinned, and the devil would have gained power over Him, if His love had been colored because of the way He was treated by people. Then He would not have remained in the Father and the Father in Him. Then He would have had to die for His own sins, and He would not have become the Savior of the world. In other words, He had to remain in God for His own salvation and to become the Savior of the world. This was also the case with Stephen when it concerned his own salvation. And it is also the case with us “for the obtaining of the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ.” 2 Thess. 2:14.

“Purify your souls in obedience to the truth.” Because a person does not want to acknowledge the truth, he blames the others and situations. He becomes restless when he has to suffer unjustly. Then he does not abide in God—in love. If he had loved the truth and cleansed away his egotism, he would have remained in God—in love—and in rest. The love of God would have increased.

In the epistle of Jude we read about the bad situation that prevailed there, and they received this exhortation: “But you, beloved, building yourselves up on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit, keep yourselves in the love of God, looking for the mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ unto eternal life.” Then one can also do a work among people, as we read further.