We all have preferred ways we like to receive or express love in a relationship, be it with friends, family or significant other. It’s easy to determine what our preferred love language is and that of others just by observing what lights us and others up. We may have several ways we want to receive love but the one in which we feel the most loved is our primary love language and the others may fall under the category of secondary love language. Just as we have our respective love languages, God also has a love language. Remember we are created in His image and likeness. We experience all sorts of emotions such as joy, laughter, anger, pity, etc. and so does God, and we see examples of God showing these emotions throughout the bible especially in the old testament.
Understanding the love language of God is paramount to building a close-knit relationship with Him. When we experience love from our loved ones in our primary love language, it makes us feel valued and cherished, naturally we tend to exhibit a deep affection towards them in return. Expressing God’s love language will also have the same impact and I’ll show you how as you read along.
This is not to say that God’s love is conditional, God has an unconditional love towards all His creation. He is the source of love anyway and according to Romans 8:38-39 “……neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord”. But when you study the bible, do you observe that they were some certain people that had a level of grace and favor with God more than others? one person that may come to mind is King David, right?
From my bible studies and research, I have observed that God has two primary love languages. I chose the word primary because if we study the bible in depth, we may observe others which may likely be classified under the secondary love language category. God’s primary love language is Obedience and Faith! Let’s take a look at them one after the other.
Obedience:
John 14:15 “If you love me, you will keep my commandments”
Obedience simply means doing what God has asked us to do. God loves when we obey His commandments and in response, He causes us to abide fully in His love such that He expresses a deeper form of endearment towards us.
John 15: 10 “If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love, just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love”.
In Exodus 19:5, God tells the Israelites “Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession”.
God moves miraculously in our lives when we are obedient to Him. When we are in right standing with God through obedience to His commands, we see His hand move in might ways especially when we pray. James 5:16 says that the prayer of a righteous person avails much. In other words, it is powerful and effective. As we express God’s primary love language, we become His treasured possession. He begins to look towards us with a deeper sense of affection and also desires to reward us; just like we typically would do to our loved ones who repeatedly express their love to us in the ways we like and communicate.
In Isaiah 1:19, God tells the Israelites, “If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good of the land”. Obedience to God causes reward, it stirs up one of His primary love language.
Now, let us dive into more examples from the bible to see how God moved tremendously in people’s lives simply by expressing this love language.
Abraham is the first case in point. After all, he is well-known as the patriarch of faith and obedience. God gave him an instruction to leave his family and everything he knows to a place that He (God) will show him, there was no specific location and he was leaving all that he had known behind, however Abraham obeyed. He was also willing to sacrifice his beloved son Isaac, a child he desired to have throughout most of his lifetime. As a result of Abraham’s obedience, the whole world has been blessed through his lineage. For a simple act of obedience, the reward was definitely greater than the sacrifice, don’t you think? – the sacrifice being doing what God asked him to do.
When Saul disobeyed God, God removed him as the King of Israel and made David the new king. See what the scripture says made David a candidate for the kingship – Acts 13:22 “And when He had removed him, He raised up David to be their king, of whom He testified and said, ‘I have found in David the son of Jesse a man after my heart, who will do all my will”.
Jesus Christ is another example for us. He was sent to die for our sins, though He was a bit apprehensive when the time came knowing the pain and suffering, He was to endure. However, obedience to God was more paramount to Him, He was going to do the will of God regardless. Upon His death and sacrifice on the cross, He ascended to heaven and is now seated at the right hand of God the Father and He will judge the living and the dead (ref: Mark 16:19 and 2 Timothy 4:1 respectively)
Reflection: We see that obedience stirs up something in God that causes Him to move in our lives in bigger ways. The reward is always greater than the sacrifices we make. What action is God calling you towards? Have you acted on it? We do not need to wait for a big assignment. In the bible, God has already given specific instructions and commands to obey. Are you acting on it?
Need a refresher on some commandments of God? Here you go:
Read: Exodus 20: 1-17; Micah 6:8; Matthew 6:33; Mark 16:15.
However, it is important to remember that we need the help of the Holy Spirit. The rules of the law tell us what is right, but they don’t help us want to obey. The law does not change our heart but the Holy Spirit does. The Holy Spirit teaches us what is right, draws us close to God and helps us grow and live as disciples of Christ, and as we walk intimately with Him, so does our love grow. And because we love God, we do not want to disappoint Him or grieve the Holy Spirit within us, so we want to obey what He says. Romans 8
Faith:
Hebrews 11:6 “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him”.
We cannot please God without having faith in Him. Why? you may ask. Simply picture this –
You were employed into an entry level position in a big multinational corporation. In just 3 years, you quickly rose through the ranks to a managerial level due to consistent good performance and sheer hard work. However, at this new position, you are now required to report to a new boss who micromanages you, always questions your ability to do the work and meddles in your work simply because he doesn’t trust you.
How would you feel in such a situation? Knowing that you’re capable of delivering and you have also proven your abilities in the last 3 years. You will feel so frustrated with your boss, right?
Now, let’s apply this example to God.
We know God is mighty. From times past, He has shown His greatness, sovereignty and has done many mighty miracles. He has the ability to do and undo and there is nothing too small or too great for Him to handle. So, when we present our request to Him, knowing who He is, yet we somehow doubt His ability, it’s no surprise that He won’t be pleased with our lack of faith and trust.
David is a good example of a man who had strong faith in God and was steadfast to God’s command. As a result, God called him a man after His own heart.
Whenever he was faced with a difficult situation (and he mostly did – ref the book of Psalms for scriptures written by King David), he always took it to God knowing that God was able to help him and he had an attitude of complete surrender. Even when God did not answer right away, he kept praying regardless until he saw God’s hand move.
Job is another example of a person whose unwavering faith in God enabled him to overcome the biggest trials and tribulations in his life. He refused to curse God and had a profound trust and fear of Him. As a result, God rewarded him with things greater than that which he lost.
To have faith, we first need to start by believing that the sovereign God created the world and everything in it. He also sent His only begotten Son, Jesus Christ to come into the world, to die for our sins in order to save us from death and eternal condemnation. The bible says faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen – Hebrew 11:1. We must believe that from the invisible, the visible was created – Hebrew 11:3.
As we continue in our walk with God, we must keep our faith alive, trusting Him completely in all circumstances knowing that all things work together for our good even though our present circumstances may not look like it. Let your complete trust be in God, that what it means to have faith.
