Affection 439
We cannot but stress the significance of our loving the Lord with
our whole heart. Nothing satisfies His heart as does our love. The
Lord looks not for our laboring for Him but for our loving Him. The
church at Ephesus, according to Revelation 2, works and toils for the
Lord, yet He is displeased with them because they have abandoned
their first love. If our service is rendered for love’s sake the Lord will
certainly be pleased; but what value is it to Him if we undertake
endeavors for Him without truly possessing a heart for Him? We
should be aware how possible it is to labor for the Lord and yet not
love the Lord. Let us ask God to cast light on the reason for our
activity. Is love for the Lord strong within us? What is the use of
calling out “Lord, Lord” and working diligently for Him while
simultaneously the heart has no love for Him? May we have a perfect
heart towards our dearly beloved Lord!
God’s children have never fully understood how their loved ones
could hinder their spiritual growth. As we begin to have other loves
besides a love for God, however, we do discover that He gradually
loses significance for us. And even should our loved ones love God,
we probably will love Him for the sake of our dear ones rather than
because of God Himself. Hence our relationship with God descends
from the spiritual to the carnal level. We never ought to love God for
the sake of another person or thing; we must love Him for His sake
alone. Should a believer love the Lord for his dear one’s sake, his
devotion towards Him is governed by the one whom he loves. God
has thus been done a favor in that the loved one has been responsible
for turning the believer’s love towards God. And consequently God
becomes indebted to that loved one for the devotion He receives
from the believer. Today the loved one propels the believer to love
God; tomorrow the same one may cause him to abandon his love to
God.
Moreover, when we are inclined towards someone we can hardly
preserve our heart in quietness; usually we will be stirred by our
emotion to seek feverishly to please the other one. Most likely the