Dr. Elmer Towns was my favorite Liberty University professor. I also enjoyed hearing my father and reading what he wrote. Both agreed on a significant issue that many miss. In part, through them I heard this amazing truth. “God is love” (1 John 4:16).
God does not love us for ourselves, but because He is love. He loves because that is what He does. What He does comes from Who He is. His love is not dependent on the object of His love.
My father pointed out God has to be faithful because He cannot deny Himself (2 Timothy 2:13). Jesus’ command flows from this—love because of God’s love; not because of the object of your love (John 15:12). A surprising idea—just as God loves because of Who He is, we are to love because of who we are (due to our connection with God); not the object of our love.
This means that as God loves those who deserve the opposite, we are to do the same. What a great way to do this, working at Water Street Rescue Mission. Imagine not just obeying God, but being given opportunities to do it. This I owe in part to my professor and my father.
-Michael Haines, Men’s Ministry
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2 comments:
Great concept- loving as a result of who "we are" because we are His and we become more like him as an outpouring of being in His prescence and feeling His Love because "He is Love"...Rather than loving because of what who we are or are not or out of obedience. This concept supercedes our earthly loving merely because someone needs love- desires love-or is worthy of love(all of which none of us are). When you can communicate this grasp clearly I think others will understand your views more clearly.
well said brother Michael, great challenge - HARD to put into practice. I would disagree only a little in that I would hope there is a small degree of love because we are made in God's image and he can see the good we were created to be and exhibit. Maybe I'm just too human to be able to think of love devoid anything to do with the object. Thanks for a great article Michael - CA
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