Why should I love God? - Love - TouchPoints

1 Chronicles 16:34Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever.

Psalm 25:8-9The Lord is good and does what is right; he shows the proper path to those who go astray. He leads the humble in doing right, teaching them his way.

Psalm 33:5He loves whatever is just and good; the unfailing love of the Lord fills the earth.

Psalm 96:1-4Sing a new song to the Lord! Let the whole earth sing to the Lord! Sing to the Lord; praise his name. Each day proclaim the good news that he saves. Publish his glorious deeds among the nations. Tell everyone about the amazing things he does. Great is the Lord! He is most worthy of praise!

We should love God because God is perfectly good, merciful, wise, powerful, and loving. He deserves all our love and praise!

John 3:16“For this is how God loved the world: He gave his one and only Son, so that everyone who believes in him will not perish but have eternal life.”

John 15:13“There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.”

Romans 8:14-15All who are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. So you have not received a spirit that makes you fearful slaves. Instead, you received God’s Spirit when he adopted you as his own children. Now we call him, “Abba, Father.”

1 John 3:1See how very much our Father loves us, for he calls us his children, and that is what we are! But the people who belong to this world don’t recognize that we are God’s children because they don’t know him.

1 John 4:19We love each other because he loved us first.

We love God because of his love for us. Christ’s sacrifice shows how extravagant God’s love is for his children. How can we respond with anything but love in return?

Deuteronomy 6:5, 18, 25“And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your strength. . . . Do what is right and good in the Lord’s sight, so all will go well with you. Then you will enter and occupy the good land that the Lord swore to give your ancestors. . . . For we will be counted as righteous when we obey all the commands the Lord our God has given us.’”

Hosea 6:6“I want you to show love, not offer sacrifices. I want you to know me more than I want burnt offerings.”

Matthew 6:1-2“Watch out! Don’t do your good deeds publicly, to be admired by others, for you will lose the reward from your Father in heaven. When you give to someone in need, don’t do as the hypocrites do—blowing trumpets in the synagogues and streets to call attention to their acts of charity! I tell you the truth, they have received all the reward they will ever get.”

Matthew 15:8“‘These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far from me.’”

Mark 12:29-30;Jesus replied, “The most important commandment is this: ‘Listen, O Israel! The Lord our God is the one and only Lord. And you must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, and all your strength.’”

Luke 11:42“What sorrow awaits you Pharisees! For you are careful to tithe even the tiniest income from your herb gardens, but you ignore justice and the love of God. You should tithe, yes, but do not neglect the more important things.”

John 15:9-11“I have loved you even as the Father has loved me. Remain in my love. When you obey my commandments, you remain in my love, just as I obey my Father’s commandments and remain in his love. I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow!”

John 17:25-26“O righteous Father, the world doesn’t know you, but I do; and these disciples know you sent me. I have revealed you to them, and I will continue to do so. Then your love for me will be in them, and I will be in them.”

We should love God because he tells us to. Love is not simply an emotion but a choice to act in someone’s best interests. Thus, love for God involves humble submission to him—love for God and obedience to God go hand in hand. Authentic love leads to obedience: Jesus says that if we love him, we will obey his commands (John 14:15). In the same way, obedience without love is not true obedience. Throughout the Bible, God criticizes those who try to obey the letter of his laws but neglect the heart behind them.

If we are obeying only because we are afraid of God or don’t want to feel guilty or are trying to impress, then we are missing the point. The greatest commandment is to love God. When we love someone, we enjoy being with them, we delight in making them happy, and we desire to grow in that loving relationship. This is the kind of relationship God desires with us—not one of cold obedience, but one of heartfelt love and trust as we follow him. Without this love, all our rule-following and accomplishments are worthless (1 Corinthians 13:1-3).

Psalm 116:1I love the Lord because he hears my voice and my prayer for mercy.

We should love God because he listens to us. God’s listening to us requires him to have an understanding only he can have.

Deuteronomy 5:10“But I lavish unfailing love for a thousand generations on those who love me and obey my commands.”

Deuteronomy 7:9“Understand, therefore, that the Lord your God is indeed God. He is the faithful God who keeps his covenant for a thousand generations and lavishes his unfailing love on those who love him and obey his commands.”

We should love God because his love for us literally reaches across many generations. This promise should comfort and inspire us, increasing our gratitude and commitment to our gracious Lord.

Psalm 91:14-16The Lord says, “I will rescue those who love me. I will protect those who trust in my name. When they call on me, I will answer; I will be with them in trouble. I will rescue and honor them. I will reward them with a long life and give them my salvation.”

We should love God because just as a loving parent cares for every detail in a young child’s life, so God watches over every detail in our lives. Nothing escapes his notice, and nothing is beyond his care. How could we reject such love?

John 15:10-11“When you obey my commandments, you remain in my love, just as I obey my Father’s commandments and remain in his love. I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow!”

We should love God because loving him brings overflowing joy into our lives.