BUT WHOEVER LOVES GOD IS KNOWN BY GOD. — 1 CORINTHIANS 8:3
How do we show that we love God? Is it by church attendance? Giving? Doing good deeds? Prayer? These may be manifestations of our love for God, or they may be things we do out of a sense of duty; but loving God is first and foremost a response to being known and loved by God. We can't muster emotion or feeling toward God nor do we love Him simply by willing ourselves to acts of obedience. We begin to love God when we grasp what it means to be known by God.
He knit us together in our mothers' wombs.
He knows the number of hairs on our heads.
He knows every quirk of our personality and gave us every talent that we have.
He accepts us as we are because of Christ's sacrifice for us.
He has compassion for our weakness.
He forgives our sins.
He longs to commune with us.
He delights to hear our prayers.
He desires to help us, strengthen us, and bless us.
He has given us the Holy Spirit as our comforter, our helper, and our teacher.
He wills all this for us before we ever turn to Him in repentance. We need to reacquaint ourselves with the gospel often, to meditate on what Christ has done for us, and to remember that He first loved us.
LET'S PRAY:
Lord... renew my love for You. Help me to remember that You knew me and loved me before I ever knew You. Amen.
