Over the last few posts we have learned that obedience to God is about love. It has nothing to do with our character or whether we are a bad person or a good person, a success or a failure but instead it is about our love for God. This is an amazing statement because we now come to realize that God is not looking for us to be righteous and perfect but he is looking for us to love him. He desires our love. From the time we are first saved until our last breath, we start out on a path of growth. We are born again. Each Christian is at a different place in their growth. As we mature, we mature in love. The Spirit turns our hearts from cold, hardened, and selfish to warm, soft, and compassionate. So how do we measure where we are on this road of growth?
Just as a highway has markers to show us where we are as we drive down the road, our path of growth also has markers that help us to understand where we are in comparison to where we should be. Desire for God is that marker or measurement. To desire His ways, His laws, His compassion, His word, His teaching, and His Spirit is to desire God himself. God is love as John so boldly declares. It is our responsibility as Christians to see our Father as love and move towards becoming the same. Jesus gave us a new commandment. What this means is that the old law has passed away and the new has come. This new commandment was to love one another as He loved us. Compassion and sincerity are the hardest things to find in this world. If we are honest with ourselves we are not near as compassionate and sincere as we try to make everyone believe. Yet no matter what our imperfections or where we are in our growth, we should always be moving towards loving one another. So many have their theories on the purpose of life but I feel that life is a series of lessons on how to love and it is not as easy as it may sound.
Consider King David. God said that David was a man after his own heart. David loved God. From David we can learn allot about desiring God and loving him. As we learn how to love God, we also learn how to love others. Notice David's desire for God in the following verses.
Psalm 119: 13-18
13 With my lips I recount
all the laws that come from your mouth.
14 I rejoice in following your statutes
as one rejoices in great riches.
15 I meditate on your precepts
and consider your ways.
16 I delight in your decrees;
I will not neglect your word.
Psalm 119:129-136
129 Your statutes are wonderful;
therefore I obey them.
130 The unfolding of your words gives light;
it gives understanding to the simple.
131 I open my mouth and pant,
longing for your commands.
132 Turn to me and have mercy on me,
as you always do to those who love your name.
133 Direct my footsteps according to your word;
let no sin rule over me.
134 Redeem me from the oppression of men,
that I may obey your precepts.
135 Make your face shine upon your servant
and teach me your decrees.
136 Streams of tears flow from my eyes,
for your law is not obeyed.
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Desire of the heart is what God looks for. He is looking for our desire and our love. He is not worried whether or not we are bad or good but instead He is looking to see if we are good because we desire Him and love Him. Now that what we do doesn't matter, (for we are saved by the free gift through Jesus Christ), what we do now is purely an expression of our love for God. Through our actions, our desire is seen and witnessed not only by God but by others.
