The Love of God
W. Macritchie. Jude 1:20 But you, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost, I. ILLUSTRATE THE IMPORT AND EXTENT OF THE PRECEPT — "Keep yourselves in the love of God." To form a right notion of this duty, we must remember that our love to God is not such a familiar affection of the mind as we bear towards our equals — such as one friend has for another. The man who loves God will honour and reverence Him. Like a dutiful child, he will be fearful of offending the most tender and beneficent Parent. To keep ourselves in the love of God likewise imports the most ardent and affectionate desire of being united to Him, as the supreme good and the chief happiness of man. To keep ourselves in the love of God doth further imply, that we prefer His favour and service to everything that may come in competition with Him. In order to discover, therefore, whether our love to God be genuine, it will be necessary for us to consider what are the genuine effects which the genuine love of God is naturally calculated to produce on our minds and manners. It will produce a submission of our wills to the will of God; it will produce a love of the duties of religion; it will produce a sincere obedience to the Divine commandments; it will produce a quickness on our part in discovering our own frailties and imperfections; and lastly, it will produce an unfeigned charity to all mankind. II. SUGGEST SOME OF THOSE MOTIVES AND OBLIGATIONS WE LIE UNDER TO THE OBSERVANCE OF THIS PRECEPT. And in order to "keep ourselves in the love of God," in order to inflame our souls with this holy and devout affection, let us only consider, first, how glorious a being God is in Himself; and second, how good and gracious He hath been to us, His unworthy creatures. Conclusion: 1. Let us consider how numerous those blessings are which we have received, and which we every moment receive from Almighty God. 2. Let us consider how much we stand in need of a continual supply of those mercies which we enjoy. 3. Let us reflect how miserable our lives would become by the want of those good things of which we are now possessed. (W. Macritchie.) Parallel Verses KJV: But ye, beloved, building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Ghost, WEB: But you, beloved, keep building up yourselves on your most holy faith, praying in the Holy Spirit.