Let us take the Book of the Songs as an example of the soul’s love for God. What are the reasons for such love?
1- God’s love is the soul’s pleasure, it is better than wine, as the soul says in the Song (Song 1: 2).
It makes the soul drunken, or lovesick (Song 2:5). The soul can no more bear such huge power of the divine love. The body is much weaker than the spirit, so it becomes sick, like a person with high temperature. The divine love raises the fervency of the spirit making it sick, or as said to Paul the Apostle, “Much learning is driving you mad.” (Acts 26: 24).
Would that all of us be stricken by such holy madness of Paul!
The great divine love in Paul made him say words which people could not understand, so they thought him mad! The problem with the people is that the love of the world in them wrestles with the love of God, “The flesh lusts against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh.” (Gal 5: 17) They want to enjoy the world and to love God at the same time. This makes their life unstable. But a person who truly loves God and enjoys this love will experience no wrestling within. Implementing God’s commandment will cause him no trouble, but will rather be his pleasure.
A person who truly loves God will sing to Him as David said, “Your statutes have been my songs,” “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path,” “Oh, how I love Your law! It is my meditation all the day,” (Ps 54, 97, 105) or as the Virgin in the Song said, “Your name is ointment poured forth; therefore the Virgins love You.” (Song 1: 3) By “the virgins” is meant the souls that love the Lord from all the heart, whether they are celibate or married. That is why those who will attain salvation are called “the five wise virgins”.
2- The soul loves God because He has no similar.
We sing to Him in the Praise Songs, saying, “Who among the gods resemble You, O Lord? You are the true God who works wonders.” His love surpasses all the pleasures and the gods of the world. Therefore the Virgin in the Song says, “My beloved is white and ruddy, chief among ten thousand.” (Song 5: 10) He is white with the purity of His heart and in being the True Light, and He is ruddy with the blood He shed for us and for our salvation. He is Chief and distinguished, surpassing whatever pleasures that may be in the heart.
All the lusts of the world are passing, but God’s love is everlasting. The worldly lusts are external and brings a person down, but God’s love is deep and holy and lifts a person high.
Indeed, O Lord, the more I love You, the higher You lift me up unto the heavenly matters. But if I love another, I go down unto dust and earthly matters.
3- We love God for His magnificence.
He is fairer than the sons of men (Ps 45: 2). The virgin in the Song says to Him, “You are fair, my love!” (Song 1) Do we really see Him fair? Some people may only see the narrow gate and the difficult way (Mt 7: 14), and find the commandment hard, and but for fear of the eternal judgment they would not continue in God’s way. Such people say to the Lord; “From the moment we knew You, we knew tribulations; we knew the cross and Gethsemane and tears.” (Jn 16: 33; Mt 5: 4).
Such people cannot see the beauty of the life with God!
On the contrary whoever loves God will see everything beautiful, even His cross, His tribulations and His commandments. He will find the Lord’s way beautiful even though very narrow, suffice that it leads to the kingdom. He sees in the tribulations their blessings, and says with James the Apostle, “My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials,” and sings with Paul the Apostle, “Rejoice in the Lord always. Again I will say, rejoice!” And with John the Apostle he says, “His commandments are not burdensome.” (Jas 1: 2, Phil 4:4; 1 Jn 5: 3)
The Virgin in the Song describes the beauty and the other attributes of God, saying:
“His mouth is most sweet,” “His countenance is like Lebanon, excellent as the cedars.” (Song 5: 15, 16) How beautiful it is to meditate in God’s attributes! It implants His love within the heart. It helps us to replace the worldly lusts with the desire to enjoy communion with God. In Him we will find our pleasure and happiness, and with Him we will need nothing.
It is beautiful to meditate in His attributes as loving, long-suffering, bounding in mercy and compassionate. He has not dealt with us according to our sins, nor punished us according to our iniquities (Ps 103: 10). He is all holiness, all wisdom, omnipotent, in Him are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge (Col 2: 3). We sing His praises in the liturgy of St. Gregory, in the Absolution of each Prayer of the hours, and in the Psalms.
4- We love God because He first loved us (1 Jn 4: 19).
He loved us and redeemed us, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life,” “He sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins.” (Jn 3: 16; 1 Jn 4: 10) He inscribed us on the palm of His hands and promised that no weapon formed against us shall prosper, not even Hades will prevail against us (Isa 49: 16; 54: 17; Mt 16: 18).
5- We love God because He is our Father and Shepherd.
With Him we shall not want; He restores our souls and leads us in the paths of righteousness (Ps 23) He is the Good Shepherd who gives His life for the sheep (Jn 10: 11, 14). He seeks the lost and brings back the driven away, binds up the broken and strengthens the sick (Ezek 34: 16). He feeds His flock among the lilies (Song 2: 16).
He gives His children bountifully, as David the Prophet sings, saying, “… who forgives … heals … redeems… satisfies…” (Ps 103: 1-5).
6- We love God because He is powerful and able to guard and support.
Whoever loves Him feels himself under His protection, surrounded with wonderful power and saved by a strong arm. He comforts us that thousands may fall around us, and nothing shall come near us but we shall see the reward of the wicked (Ps 91).
Indeed, unless the Lord guards the city, the watchman stays awake in vain! (Ps 127: 1).
7- We love God for innumerable reasons; for with God’s love a person lives in continual happiness led by Him in triumph and enjoying His benefits. Sin will have no place in his heart. It is removed by His love.
Any wars will be external, while peace reigns over the heart with love and joy as fruits of the Spirit (Gal 5) we shall no more fear judgment or people or sin or the devil. As far as we love God, our happiness will be in eternity where one star differs from another in glory (1 Cor 15: 41) according to the extent of one’s love.
My brethren, I want you to train yourselves in God’s love; go to the depth of love away from the outward spirituality. Your love for God gives your spirituality value. When Peter denied His Master wit h curses and oaths the Lord did not blame him after the resurrection but asked him if he Loved Him more than the others. And Peter asserted that he loved Him, and because of such love he was forgiven and he restored his rank.
If God’s love is of such importance, what than may kinder it?
The ego is the first hindrance.
Many people love themselves more than they love God. They make of the self an idol which they worship, providing it with its lusts, with whatever glory, honor, praise, greatness, and fame it may desire. For this purpose they commit many sins and deviate from God. That is why the Lord said:
“If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself.”
He also said, “Whoever desires to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake will find it.” (Mt 16: 25; Mk 8: 34, 35) Ask yourself then:
Is there any other love competing God in your heart?
Remove away any such love. Do not be like Samson who loved Delilah more than God, so he lost his vow; nor like Lot who loved the good land in Sadom, so he fell in captivity and tormented himself with their sinful deeds every day (Jud 16; 2 Pet 2: 8).
Do not let even the holy natural love for the relatives be more than your love for God, for He says, “He who loves father or mother… son or daughter more than Me is not worthy of Me,” “a man’s enemies will be those of his household.” (Mt 10: 37, 36) This applies if those prevent a person from consecration or from God’s love, or lead him away from God.
Another hindrance is the love of the world, the flesh, and the material things.
Therefore the Scripture warns us against the love of the world (Jas 4: 4; 1 Jn 2: 15). Our fathers fled from the world to enjoy God’s love, but since we are in the world we should not use it, for the form of this world is passing away (1 Cor 7: 31).
Material things, like money for instance, of ten hinder our love for God.
The Lord commanded us to avoid it as a competitor to God because we cannot serve money and God (Mt 6: 24). Money was a hindrance to the rich young man, so he went away sorrowful (Mt 19: 22). So, if you have money or possessions, spend it for God and people’s love to have a treasure in heaven lest it reign over you (Mr 19 : 21).
The lusts of the body are a hindrance to God’s love.
“For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. Because the carnal mind is enmity against God,” “For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.” (Rom 8: 6, 7, 13) The bodily lusts may be adultery, food and drink, or rest that detains a person from prayer and ministry.
Involvements also may be a hindrance.
Any involvement that takes all the time and occupies the whole mind will take up the time of prayer and meditation or spiritual meetings.
My advice is that you keep an accurate balance and let not any involvement prevail over your spiritual life, for what would a person profit if he gains the whole world and loses his own soul? (Mk 8 : 36). Let the love of God of His spiritual means have the first place in your heart, and say with David the Prophet, “It is good for me to draw near to God.” (Ps 73: 28)
I would speak to you next week-God willing about how to reach God’s love…