And what this love consists in is this: that we live and walk in accordance with and guided by His commandments (His orders, ordinances, precepts, teaching). This is the commandment, as you have heard from the beginning, that you continue to walk in love [guided by it and following it]. 2 John 1:6 AMPC
Context and Charge:
Who do you go to if you need the correct definition of love? Would that be the movies produced by Hollywood, or what your friends say? Would it be the product of your own imagination, or the result of research and logical thinking? Whichever position you take, one thing that is apparent from today's extract is that love is seen from the perspective of what I am first, and then this leads to what I do. All other definitions or perspectives see love first from the perspective of what is visible or tangible. This is the language that the world understands - what its senses can relate to. If the senses cannot perceive it, then it is not real. For those who know how the things of the spirit work, you know how deceptive and deadly that position can be. The things of God don't follow the pattern of the world, and the world cannot fully understand or explain the things that the spirit births or sustains.
Obedience to God's command is the physical evidence of my love for Him. The two are closely linked, and you cannot do one without the other. I cannot claim to love God, yet constantly and consistently kick against his commands and instructions. If I claim to love God, the proof is my daily devotion to what God has made expressly clear in His Word. Like we also know, it is one thing to speak the language because you know what it is like, but it is a different thing to live it out on a daily basis. That is what this verse makes clear: I must live and walk in accordance with God's instructions. There is this connection again: live and walk. It is hard work being a hypocrite, or just merely paying mere lip-service to God's command; I cannot afford to be lukewarm or lackadaisical about the commitment required for this life that God calls me to; I have to be consistent and focused on what God says.
Conviction and Conclusion:
Do not forget that love is a command, as well as a relationship. It is the start of all beautiful things that God does, and it is the full content of all that God is. You cannot separate God from love, and you cannot separate God's love from all that He does. In fact, it is love that drew up the plan of salvation that was fulfilled in Christ Jesus, and it is love that continues to sustain the life that is now available to all who come to God through Jesus. And when you truly love, your life can flow out with all that God has birthed in you, and you can be a blessing to other people. God is the definition, expression, and the fulfilment of love, and all who will be like God must love exactly the same way He does, which is selflessly. That is love that the world cannot ignore. As I obey, I represent Christ as His ambassador. His light will speak, and the world will know that God is real. God's time of favour is here.
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