A Simple Way to Love God More

Discipleship, Teaching | by Pastor Adam Sinnett

It’s a common problem. How do I love God more? Every genuine follower of Jesus wants to grow in their love for God. But the question is, how? What do we do when we have a hard time loving God? We get an important clue to the answer in 1 John 4:10 where we read, “In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” You might want to read that again.

God’s initiating love

John is saying that God’s love, from beginning to end, is an initiating love – “not that we have loved God but that he loved us”. Whose love comes first? God’s love. Where do we see God’s initiating love? When God sent “his Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” (Propitiation is a fancy word for saying that Jesus redirected, and received, the wrath of God that we justly deserve for our sin. That happened on the cross.) In other words, God’s love is an initiating love and we see that initiating love most clearly at the cross. The apostle Paul says the same thing in Romans 5:8, “God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Even when we were running from him (i.e. “still sinners”) God displayed his initiating love by dying for His people on the cross.

Our responsive love

What does all of this tell us? This tells us that all genuine love for God finds its origin in God’s initiating love for us, in Jesus. Our love for Him is always – and only – a response to His love for us. God initiates with His love and we respond with our love. So, what do you do when you are having a hard time loving God? Answer: Reflect on God’s love for you, in Jesus. If you want to love God more, don’t begin with your love for Him, but with His love for you.

Getting it backwards

We have to be careful because our hearts have a tendency to reverse that order by prioritizing and emphasizing our love for God. We tend to (wrongly) think that God’s love for us is based on our love for him. That is not the gospel. More often than not this is the root of our struggle to love God more. Why would our love for God bloom if we’re not sure how he feels about us? It won’t. The good news of Jesus is that God sent his Son out of love for lost sinners, while we were still sinners (see Romans 5:8 above). God initiates with his love, in Jesus. We respond with our love. That order is crucial and we should be diligent to ensure it is never inverted in our hearts.

Putting it all together

So, all that said, how do we love God more?

First, we need to get the order right. God loves us first, always. Our love for Him is always a response to His love for us, in Jesus. Be sure your heart has the order right.

Second, we must keep in mind that the measure of his love for us isn’t some warm-and-fuzzy feeling or sense that He loves us. The measure of His love for us is the cross. The cross is the objective historical sign and seal of God’s love for you, in Jesus. The cross assures you that His love for you will forever be at flood stage.

Third, once we get the order right and see the cross as God’s eternal pledge of love for us, we should take time to enjoy His initiating love. When did you last take time to reflect on God’s initiating love for you? I’m not talking about his love for people generally, or his church specifically, or your friends who also follow Jesus – but for you? In Jesus, you are perfectly and forever loved by God. His love for us is full, unceasing, and unchangeable, even on our worst days. Take time to consider and enjoy His initiating love. Reflect on how your day-to-day would change if you lived in light of it.