God's Love


 Some of the marks which belong to those who know God's love.
There is one place where all God’s people meet. They meet within the great declaration — “We love Him who first loved us.” This is, therefore, a reciprocating love. All whom Christ loved will come to love Christ. We know, of course, that there are degrees of this love within the Church of God, but, in this world, none can love Him in the measure in which He deserves. No, nor yet throughout eternity.
Now, the love of Christ in the heart is not a mere emotion. It is certainly something which lodges in our heart, but which has also its outward manifestation in the life of all His people. To love Christ is to obey Him. “If ye love me keep my commandments.” And to His own His commandment is not grievous but joyous. God’s child loves God’s will as it is revealed in His Word, and, like David, when he or she sees God’s law disparaged and trampled under foot of men, “rivers of waters run down their eyes.”
Those who love Christ would serve Christ. In this our own day when “the harvest truly is plenteous and the labourers are few” how we ought to exert ourselves in His service! But with iniquity abounding on all sides the love of many has waxed cold. O! that we might in this day of small things and during life’s brief hour, show our love to Him by doing what we can, and especially by wrestling with Him in secret that His kingdom may come and that the kingdom of darkness might be destroyed.
His people not only serve Him but they also suffer for Him. “Unto you it is given on behalf of Christ not only to believe on Him but also to suffer for His sake.” The page of history tells us of the physical sufferings of the Church in other days. To her, literally speaking, His love was better than life. Many lay down their lives for their love to Him. But we believe that the greatest trials of God’s people are often inward, and proceed from their conflicts with sin and Satan. A great Divine once wrote a letter to a friend in which he said that in the measure in which we love God in the same measure will Satan hate us. “For thus,” he said, “is the nature of the love of God, according to the measure of it in the heart the most fiery and envenomed darts of Satan will pierce through our spirits tempting us to despise Him whose glory we account preferable to all creation.” But His love in our heart “endures all things”. If we are His, very soon we shall be drawn beyond the reach of all that distresses us here.
Then, in that fair world beyond the skies, we shall sing together His praise
“But as for me I with my mouth
Will greatly praise the Lord,
And I among the multitude
                                                            His praises will record.” (Ps. 109).                                                            Murdoch Campbell

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