“For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome.”

John folds three spiritual dynamics into one: 1) trust in the truth, 2) application of truth to experience, and 3) manifestation of love for God.  The believer who brings these dimensions together is a spiritual believer. 

For this is the love of God,

The word “for” explains the preceding verse (5:2).  Applying God’s principles to experience is the key to knowing that we love God’s family.  Love in God’s economy involves more than sentimental love; God’s love revolves around His principles.  “For” explains the substantiation that our love for God is synonymous with doing His commandments. 

It is our love for God that is at issue here and not God’s love for us.

that we keep His commandments.

When we obey divine directives for our lives, we demonstrate love for God.  Observation of God’s commandments flows from loving Him.  Keeping God’s commandments maintains us in the sphere of His will because His commandments reveal His character. 

2 John 6, “This is love, that we walk according to His commandments. This is the commandment, that as you have heard from the beginning, you should walk in it.”

PRINCIPLE: 

Christians apply divine directives to their lives because they love God. 

APPLICATION: 

God’s commandments reveal His nature.  The believer shows God’s character by applying God’s Word to experience. Each time we apply the principles of God’s Word to experience, we reveal God’s glory. 

It is possible to blaspheme God’s love.  If we claim to love God but live contrary to His principles, we blaspheme His name and detract from His glory.  People will then speak against the Bible and God’s name because we do not live consistently with His truth.  People will say that we are inconsistent.

Ti 2:5, “…to be discreet, chaste, homemakers, good, obedient to their own husbands, that the word of God may not be blasphemed.”

The Word of God is the only infallible rule of faith and practice.  It is our compass, our plumb line for life, and our measuring rod of truth.  The Bible is our standard for living, so there is no relative ethic in biblical Christianity.  Relative ethics say that what is wrong in Canada may be all right in the United States or Europe.  Biblical commands are always true in any culture of any age.  They never change.  They are the same in every period of history and every society.