We all know the two greatest commandments:
"Love the Lord your God with all your heart, soul, strength, and mind. And love your neighbor as you love yourself."
If we are to have any hope of living out these commands up to God's standards, we had better make sure we know what "love" is.
When the world talks of love, it means something along the lines of "unconditional acceptance" or "desire for another".
But neither of those definitions really cut it, do they?
One of my professors, Dr. Chris Bounds, pointed out that genuine, biblical "love" involves one's will along with the desire.
"Desire alone is not love," he says.
Dr. Bounds defines love as "the alignment of the will with the desire for union, oneness, or fellowship with someone or something".
So for example, if a young man says he loves his girlfriend and desires to spend his life with her, but acts in a way that is out of alignment with her will, then it's not really love. Let's say he drinks too much or he puts sexual pressure on their relationship.
That clearly is not love which he is feeling.
It's the same with our relationship with God.
When we say we love God, what exactly do we mean?
Jesus says, "If you love me, you will obey my commands." (John 14:15)
Our desire must be accompanied by a realignment of our will.
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