Devotional - 98-08-17 - Jonathan Edwards

The Spiritual Giants Series, Part 3

Historians have called Jonathan Edwards the greatest thinker America has ever produced. He was a preacher most of his life, but at his death was President of Princeton College. I have narrowed his thoughts today and I am simply sharing some thoughts of his on our love towards God. Enjoy:

LOVE TO GOD: "How far the generality of mankind are from their duty, with respect to love to God...true love to God primarily consists in a supreme regard to him for what he is in himself."

"...it is evident, that true virtue must chiefly consist in LOVE TO GOD; the Being of beings, infinitely the greatest and best."

"There is an infinitely excellent Being offered to be chosen, to be rested in, to be loved, to be rejoiced in, by us: even God himself, who is infinitely lovely, the fountain of all good; a fountain that can never be exhausted, where we can be in no danger of going to excess in our love and joy: and here we may be assured ever to find our joy and delight in enjoyments answerable to our love and desires."

"The love of God in the most eminent saints in this world, is truly very little in comparison of what it ought to be."

"Love to God makes a man seek the honour of God, and desire to please him...Love to God causes a man to delight in the thoughts of him, in his presence; to desire conformity to God, and the enjoyment of him..."

"Those men who have a high degree of love to God, greatly delight in God."

"We are under greater obligations to love a more lovely being than a less lovely; and if a being be infinitely excellent and lovely, our obligations to love him are therein infinitely great. The matter is so plain, it seems needless to say much about it."

"True love to God seeks to please him in every thing, and universally to conform to his will."

"...a high degree of love to God will strongly move a person to do that which he believes to be agreeable to God's will..."

"...love to God is most essential to true virtue; and that no benevolence whatsoever to other beings can be of the nature of true virtue without it."

"The saints' love to God is the fruit of God's love to them, as it is the gift of that love. God gave them a spirit of love to him, because he loved them from eternity; his love to his elect is the foundation of their regeneration, and the whole of their redemption."

"And so it is with respect to our exercise of love, and gratitude, and other graces, towards God; they are defectively corrupt and sinful, and, take them as they are, in their manner and measure, might justly be odious and provoking to God, and would necessarily be so, were we beheld out of Christ."

"The heart of a natural man is as destitute of love to God, as a dead, stiff, cold corpse is of vital heat."

Soli Deo Gloria,
T-