The past couple weeks or so, I’ve been listening to several messages concerning this topic. It’s insane how God keeps raining this down on me.

Here’s a scenario. Person A wants to be a strong Christian, but he has a sin he is struggling with. Let’s say it’s online gambling. In the beginning he justified it as a job, but now he knows it’s weighing him down. So he says to himself, “Alright that’s it. I can’t be living this double life. I’m done gambling.” So the next week or so, he tries extra hard to prevent himself from falling into sin. But then comes one night and he succumbs. The next day he affirms his resolution, “Alright. That was the last time. No more.” He manages to get by another week without gambling. Ultimately, he falls into a night of online gambling again. “This is for real. That was the last time. No more.”

Been there? I have. In fact, Paul has been there.

Romans 7:15
For I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate.

What a struggle. But check this out.

I John 5:3
For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome.

So we need to keep his commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome. Wait. How is our struggle with sin not burdensome? It’s a daily fight. Paul said so himself. Okay, let’s dissect this a bit. Firstly, what are His commandments? The Bible is full of them. Here is a sample.

Romans 12:9-21
Let love be genuine. Abhor what is evil; hold fast to what is good. Love one another with brotherly affection. Outdo one another in showing honor. Do not be slothful in zeal, be fervent in spirit, serve the Lord. Rejoice in hope, be patient in tribulation, be constant in prayer. Contribute to the needs of the saints and seek to show hospitality.
Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse them. Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be haughty, but associate with the lowly. Never be wise in your own sight. Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.

If you skipped that passage, it was basically a to-do list. Goodness. What a bunch of commands just in one chapter. How can John say that this is not burdensome? Fortunately, Jesus simplified it for us so we don’t have to remember all of these rules.

Matthew 22:36-39
“Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?” And he said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.”

Loving God and loving people sum up God’s law. But what does love have to do with anything? Let’s put it in more familiar terms.

Person A (male) is in love with Person B (female). Person A does not like sushi. In facts he hates the idea of stepping into a sushi restaurant. Person B likes sushi. Few things in life bring her as much joy as sushi does. One day, Person B approaches Person A and asks him to accompany her to go to a sushi restaurant. Person A is given a choice, and he is forced to confront an issue. Does he love her more, or does he hate sushi more? If he loves her more than he hates sushi, he will accompany her to the sushi restaurant. And perhaps even eat sushi with her. Why would he do something he hates? Because he loves her. Hate is a strong word, but love can be so much stronger.

It’s no different with God. We keep His commandments because we love Him. John 14:15 says, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.” We obey commandments not out of obligation but out of love. I choose not to partake in gambling, not to cheat on tests, not to lust after girls, not to be prideful, not to disobey authorities, because I love God. Just how a guy would hate to disappoint a girlfriend, I would hate to disappoint God. What a beautiful picture. It changes the focus. It’s not about me trying to fix myself. It’s about how God and I have this thing going on.

The next step. How do we love? Isn’t love an uncontrollable emotion? Oh we can tell God, “I love you,” but how do we mean it?

I John 4:7-8
Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.

Love is from God. God is the one who gives us the ability to love. To love, we must be born of God, and we must know God. Let’s put it in familiar terms again.

How does a guy fall in love with a girl? In a non-lustful non-infatuating way? There is a random guy, and there is a random girl. How do they fall in love? They get to know each other. They talk, and they hang out. And if the characteristics of the two people are attractive and perhaps complementary to the other, they fall in love. What if the guy loves the girl, but the girl doesn’t love the guy? The typical line of choice, though often not very effective, goes, “Just get to know me, and you’ll see how great of a guy I am. Then you’ll fall in love with me.” Ha. But hold on. What if this guy was actually a great guy? Let’s put it this way. What if this was God talking? “Just get to know me, and you’ll see how great of a God I am. Then you’ll fall in love with me.” Think about that for a while. If we so easily fall in love with flawed people, how can we resist falling in love with a perfect God?

If we know God, we cannot help but to love God. I’ll say it again. If we know God, we cannot help but to love God. As John Piper puts it, “Good theology leads to personal transformation.” We see God, and our actions are our responses to God. A person who truly knows God will truly love God. His love will overflow into our actions. It will be like breathing. Jesus prayed in John 17:3, “And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.” And the more we know God, the more we will love Him, and the more we will keep the commandments.

Absolutely amazing.

– Larry