How are we supposed to love God?

  • Christian Chat is a moderated online Christian community allowing Christians around the world to fellowship with each other in real time chat via webcam, voice, and text, with the Christian Chat app. You can also start or participate in a Bible-based discussion here in the Christian Chat Forums, where members can also share with each other their own videos, pictures, or favorite Christian music.

    If you are a Christian and need encouragement and fellowship, we're here for you! If you are not a Christian but interested in knowing more about Jesus our Lord, you're also welcome! Want to know what the Bible says, and how you can apply it to your life? Join us!

    To make new Christian friends now around the world, click here to join Christian Chat.
just-me

just-me

Banned
#1
Mar 4, 2013
7,761
107
0
#1
Scripture tells us how to love God, and there are many places in the Bible to find that instruction. Many people might want to post that we are supposed to love God with all out heart, mind, and soul. This is true, but in no way is detailed information. These entities of heart, mind, and soul work as one because we are made in 'Their image.' Genesis 1:26

The heart, mind, and soul are entities that function together as motivation, thought, and discernment.

The questions are then;

"Where do we find the information that will motivate us in the correct direction according to God's will?"

"What instructions in righteousness are we given that invoke the mind and soul correctly and not carnally?"

"How are we supposed know how to love God?"

Don't just give opinion. Accompany your opinion with scripture to confirm your opinion. Please be as definitive as you can, and try to stay away from generic posts. We are to edify one another.

Here is one verse to begin. "All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:" 2 Timothy 3:16
 
S

sparkman

Guest
#2
#2
My guess is this is headed toward another lecture about the need to keep non-moral elements of the Old Covenant. :)

I John 3: 19By this we shall know that we are of the truth and reassure our heart before him; 20for whenever our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and he knows everything. 21Beloved, if our heart does not condemn us, we have confidence before God; 22and whatever we ask we receive from him, because we keep his commandments and do what pleases him. 23And this is his commandment, that we believe in the name of his Son Jesus Christ and love one another, just as he has commanded us. 24Whoever keeps his commandments abides in God,[SUP]d[/SUP] and God[SUP]e[/SUP] in him. And by this we know that he abides in us, by the Spirit whom he has given us.

Notice that these verses define "his commandment" as loving one another and placing one's faith in Jesus Christ.

Ever hear of "leading questions"?
 
E

eternally-gratefull

Guest
#3
#3
Loving God is not as hard as many want to say.

He proved his love by serving others, serving us, Everything he ever did was in relation to serving others and loving us.

So we love God by serving others and loving them unconditionally.
 
S

Sirk

Guest
#4
#4
eternally-gratefull said:
Loving God is not as hard as many want to say.

He proved his love by serving others, serving us, Everything he ever did was in relation to serving others and loving us.

So we love God by serving others and loving them unconditionally.
Click to expand...
with little victories over our flesh in His holy name. Choosing His way instead of our own. Seeking Him honestly and openly to the best of our ability.
 
S

sparkman

Guest
#5
#5
Matthew 25: 31“When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. 32Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left. 34Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world. 35For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, 36I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’ 37Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink? 38And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you? 39And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’ 40And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers,[SUP]f[/SUP] you did it to me.’
41“Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. 42For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, 43I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’ 44Then they also will answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?’ 45Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’ 46And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
 
S

sparkman

Guest
#6
#6
Oops..Jesus forgot keeping the Sabbath, feast days, unclean meats, triple tithing :)
 
G

Gr8grace

Guest
#7
#7
The kind of love required for us to love God with our ALL. Can't be done if we are not born-again.

We can't study His word and learn grace and knowledge without His Spirit. We can't learn how to love Him correctly without the Spirit.

The righteous deeds that a believer should do, can't be done apart from being born-again. We need the Spirit to do anything that we should do.

We are not going to love others with impersonal and unconditional love apart from having the Spirit in us(born-again).

If we could be "unborn" or "unsealed" we no longer have the Spirit to do the deeds that we should be doing......We need the Spirit to do them, because all of our deeds and righteousness comes THROUGH Him.

We cannot "love" like we are supposed to without the indwelling of the Holy Spirit.

An unbeliever can only hear and understand the Gospel. They need the Holy Spirit to hear and understand the rest of scriptures. And they need the Holy Spirits indwelling to apply their understanding.

We can't love God like we are supposed to apart from being born-again. It is virtue love. We love because of what is IN us..........And it is the Holy Spirit indwelling us that Gives us this kind of love.

If we could lose the Holy Spirit, we can't love like we are required to.
 
E

eternally-gratefull

Guest
#8
#8
Sirk said:
with little victories over our flesh in His holy name. Choosing His way instead of our own. Seeking Him honestly and openly to the best of our ability.
Click to expand...
I think scripture says it best, We love because God loves us first. Until we experience the true love of God. we can not comprehend what it means to love others, thus have no capacity to love only in our own flawed, self motivated way. Which is not love.
 
crossnote

crossnote

Senior Member
#9
Nov 24, 2012
30,779
3,681
113
#9
Be thankful to God, share with and help others.
Not rocket science until the 'theologians' come and we start doubting our salvation.
 
dcontroversal

dcontroversal

Banned
#10
Dec 12, 2013
46,515
20,402
113
#10
1st John 5:3 This is the love of God, that we keep his commandments and his commandments are not grievous.......obviously because we are saved and not to facilitate, get or maintain salvation which is a present, eternal reality for all who have exercised genuine faith into the work of Christ on our behalf.
 
JesusLives

JesusLives

Senior Member
#11
Oct 11, 2013
14,554
2,176
113
#11
John 14:

12"Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father. 13"Whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14"If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it.

15"If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.
 
E

eternally-gratefull

Guest
#13
#13
Love lord your God, and neighbor, in these two commands are ALL the law fulfilled.
 
just-me

just-me

Banned
#14
Mar 4, 2013
7,761
107
0
#14
A big amen to you both!!:)
dcontroversal said:
1st John 5:3 This is the love of God, that we keep his commandments and his commandments are not grievous.......obviously because we are saved and not to facilitate, get or maintain salvation which is a present, eternal reality for all who have exercised genuine faith into the work of Christ on our behalf.
Click to expand...
JesusLives said:
John 14:
12"Truly, truly, I say to you, he who believes in Me, the works that I do, he will do also; and greater works than these he will do; because I go to the Father. 13"Whatever you ask in My name, that will I do, so that the Father may be glorified in the Son. 14"If you ask Me anything in My name, I will do it.

15"If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.
Click to expand...
Although scriptures clearly define love, it has been given all manner of modern definition by various institutions and religions. Most souls think of love according to its attributes because love is rather difficult to define. Many Christians assert that “God is love” and one of the popular cliche's is to “just love the Lord.” But the manner of how one “ loves the Lord” brings up much opinion and debate, especially since Christians often teach a love that is quit the opposite of what scripture teaches.

For example, “By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous. For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.” (1 John 5:2-4)

The definition of love is best understood through Christ's life and teaching.

“If ye love me, keep my commandments. He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him. If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love.” (John 14:15, John 14:21, and John 15:10)
 
Last edited:
S

sparkman

Guest
#15
#15
Yes, and those commandments are the ones that apply to Christians under the New Covenant, not ancient Israelites under the Old Covenant.
just-me said:
A big amen to you both!!:)



Although scriptures clearly define love, it has been given all manner of modern definition by various institutions and religions. Most souls think of love according to its attributes because love is rather difficult to define. Many Christians assert that “God is love” and one of the popular cliche's is to “just love the Lord.” But the manner of how one “ loves the Lord” brings up much opinion and debate, especially since Christians often teach a love that is quit the opposite of what scripture teaches.

For example, “By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments. For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous. For whatsoever is born of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that overcometh the world, even our faith.” (1 John 5:2-4)

The definition of love is best understood through Christ's life and teaching.

“If ye love me, keep my commandments. He that hath my commandments, and keepeth them, he it is that loveth me: and he that loveth me shall be loved of my Father, and I will love him, and will manifest myself to him. If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love.” (John 14:15, John 14:21, and John 15:10)
Click to expand...
 
just-me

just-me

Banned
#16
Mar 4, 2013
7,761
107
0
#16
sparkman said:
Yes, and those commandments are the ones that apply to Christians under the New Covenant, not ancient Israelites under the Old Covenant.
Click to expand...
The new covenant was initiated at Christ's death according to Hebrews 9:16-17. In John 15:10, Jesus said that He kept His Fathers commandments, so how are we to have the mind of Christ if we reject some of God's words spoken to Israel? Wouldn't we also have to reject all the teachings of Jesus before His death since the New Testament wasn't in effect then?

Instructions for loving God is mentioned in Deuteronomy chapter 6 and instructions for loving our neighbor are in Leviticus 19 both being instructions to Israel under the old covenant.
 
Last edited:
P

psalm6819

Guest
#17
#17
We love Him by acknowledging Him in all our ways.
 
WebersHome

WebersHome

Senior Member
#18
Dec 9, 2014
1,940
32
0
#18
-
I think that one's love for a king is best expressed by loyalty; for example:

†. Luke 14:26 . . If anyone comes to me, and does not hate his own father
and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even
his own life, he cannot be my disciple.

That's the very same thing that Kim Jong Un demands from North Koreans;
and no surprise there because in Luke 2:29, Acts 4:24, 2Tim 2:21, 2Pet 2:1,
and Rev 6:10 the Greek word for lord and/or master is despotes (des-pot'
ace) from which we get our English word despot.

Christianity isn't a democracy; no, it's a theocracy headed by a monarch
who tolerates nothing less than total and complete submission to his
administration's wishes. Nothing new there-- God has always demanded that
degree of loyalty from His subjects; and to my knowledge; He hasn't changed.

†. Mark 12:30 . . Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all
your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.

Failure to give God his due is hell-worthy.

†. Isa 66:23-24 . . From one New Moon to another and from one Sabbath to
another, all mankind will come and bow down before Me: says the Lord.
And they will go out and look upon the dead bodies of those who rebelled
against Me; their worm will not die, nor will their fire be quenched, and they
will be loathsome to all mankind.

That's going to be a really grim tourist attraction; sort of like the La Brea
Tar Pits museum in Los Angeles where the remains of prehistoric creatures
are on display that were trapped to their deaths in the pitch deposits in that
area.

==========================================
 
Last edited:
just-me

just-me

Banned
#19
Mar 4, 2013
7,761
107
0
#19
Abiding in His love is clearly connected to “keeping the commandments" Jesus said in John 15:10 "my Father's commandments” always referring to Torah (instructions); and Jesus Christ taught that “if you love” Him, you will keep the commandments. In other words love has everything to do with sanctifying the name of God Almighty, which means to set His name and His Word (Torah) apart from all other authorities.

Christ Jesus clearly kept the commandments of His Father, but yet only a tiny minority of Christians would even consider the importance of these same commandments – even though the name “Christians” comes from the same root “the anointing” which means to be “Messiah like.”

Jesus Christ is the Word of God, and about his Spirit of Messiah Moses wrote: “And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments. Therefore thou shalt love the Lord thy God, and keep his charge, and his statutes, and his judgments, and his commandments, alway.” (Exodus 20:6 and Deuteronomy 11:1)
 
Last edited:
S

sparkman

Guest
#20
#20
This thread is just another attempt of Sabbath/festival/clean unclean meats guys to proclaim their doctrines again. It's a broken record. :)

The Old Covenant was an agreement between God and the nation of Israel (Ex. 31:12-17). The Ten Commandments are a summary of the Old Covenant (Ex 31:18, 34:28; Deut 4:13, 9:9, 11). The Old Covenant is no longer in effect for anyone (2 Cor 3:4-18, Gal 3:17-25, Heb 8:13-9:4). The Sabbath, therefore, is not in effect for anyone (Gal 4:10, Rom 14:5-6, Col 2:16-17). Christians are under the New Covenant, which has higher demands and different commandments (Luke 22:20, Heb 9:15; Jn 13:34, 15:12, 17; Rom 13:10). The chief of those commandments is to love others as Christ loved us (Jn 13:34).
 
You must log in or register to reply here.