“Love the Lord, all His faithful people! The Lord preserves those who are true to Him, but the proud He pays back in full” Psalm 31:23, NIV

Psalm 31:23 encourages believers to love the Lord and to be faithful to Him. Are we doing a good job of that? Have we watered down the word Love today?

“I love that car.”

“I love your house.”

“I love those boots.”

It seems as though we love everything and everybody but the Lord. Furthermore, we’ve watered down the word “love” so much. We no longer understand the true meaning behind the concept. The Hebrew word translated “love” in this verse is ‘ahab’ which means “to have affection for” (see Strong’s H157).

We don’t have affection for a car, house, or boots. What we mean in those cases is that we like them a lot. Yet, we are called to more than merely “like” God. We are called to have affection for God, to truly love the Lord. As a matter of fact, we are called to love God with “all the heart and with all the understanding and with all the strength” (Mark 12:33). Our love should compel us to put God first in everything, in all our decisions. Our hearts, understanding, and strength should be tied up in our love for Him.

True Love

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