At our General Conference of Elders in May, the theme for our presentations was, “Transforming Lives through the Spirit and Word of God,” taken from John 6:63. My presentation focused on the importance of God’s divine love in transforming lives.

God’s love (agape in New Testament Greek) is the first fruit of the Holy Spirit (Galatians 5:22). It is a faithful and unselfish love for others, even our enemies. Jesus said: “You have heard that it was said, ‘You shall love your neighbor and hate your enemy.’ But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven; for He makes His sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust. For if you love those who love you, what reward have you? Do not even the tax collectors do the same?’” (Matthew 5:43-46). And Jesus also said: “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. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved” (John 3:16-17).

The apostle John wrote: “He who does not love does not know God, for God is love. In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through Him. In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another…If someone says, ‘I love God,’ and hates his brother, he is a liar; for he who does not love his brother whom he has seen, how can he love God whom he has not seen?” (1 John 4:8-11, 20).

Jesus made clear that loving God and loving others with this godly love is the greatest commandment of all: “Then one of the scribes came, and having heard them reasoning together, perceiving that He had answered them well, asked Him, ‘Which is the first commandment of all?’ Jesus answered him, ‘The first of all the commandments is: ‘Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God, the Lord is one. And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ This is the first commandment.And the second, like it, is this: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these’” (Mark 12:28-31).

If we love God we will obey Him and keep His commandments. “For this is the love of God, that we keep His commandments. And His commandments are not burdensome” (1 John 5:3). If we love others we will serve them and not sin against them. “Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law” (Romans 13:10).

The apostle Paul wrote that if we are not motivated by God’s love, all that we do will come to nothing: “And though I have the gift of prophecy, and understand all mysteries and all knowledge, and though I have all faith, so that I could remove mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. And though I bestow all my goods to feed the poor, and though I give my body to be burned, but have not love, it profits me nothing” (1 Corinthians 13:2-3). But receiving God’s love transforms our lives and gives us a godly motivation to unselfishly serve others: “Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit [which] was given to us” (Romans 5:5).

God’s love is a powerful force that helps us overcome fear in our lives: “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind” (2 Timothy 1:7). The apostle of love wrote: “There is no fear in love; but perfect love casts out fear, because fear involves torment. But he who fears has not been made perfect in love” (1 John 4:18).

Yes, God’s love transforms lives. Let us pray for each other, for all of God’s people, and ask for more of His great love!