What Matters to God Most?
Paul was thrilled at the way the Christians in Philippi were now living. A repeated theme is that they were openly living for the Lord Jesus.
“I always pray with joy because of your partnership in the gospel from the first day until now” Philippians 1:4-5
“. . . most of the brothers and sisters have become confident in the Lord and dare all the more to proclaim the gospel without fear.” Philippians 1:14
“The important thing is that . . . Christ is preached. And because of this I rejoice.” Philippians 1:18
“For to me, to live is Christ and to die is gain.” Philippians 1:21
“Whatever happens, conduct yourselves in a manner worthy of the gospel of Christ.” Philippians 1:27
“I will know that you stand firm in the one Spirit, striving together as one for the faith of the gospel without being frightened in any way by those who oppose you.” Philippians 1:27-28
This is exemplary, a young church has made its priority to live for Christ above all else and to make his gospel widely known. This is uncommon in many churches today. What was it that motivated this single-minded devotion? Surely it was that they understood the wonder of what Jesus had come to do for them.
Paul continued:
“. . . have the same mindset as Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature of a servant, . . .” Philippians 2:5-7
This should be the motivation for all Christians:
“. . . continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act in order to fulfil his good purpose.” Philippians 2:12-13
There is no suggestion that a lackadaisical, apathetic faith is acceptable to God. The manner with which they live should help the proclamation of God’s message to all people:
“so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.” Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky as you hold out the word of life.” Philippians 2:15-16
An alternative translation to ‘as you hold out the word of life’ is ‘hold firmly to the word of life’ but as so much of this letter to the Philippians is about living for Christ in society so that he becomes known, it seems more coherent to use the original NIV translation. In the subsequent paragraphs Timothy was praised as someone ‘who has served with me in the work of the gospel’ and Epaphroditus was acknowledged as ‘brother, fellow worker and fellow soldier’. Epaphroditus almost died ‘for the work of the gospel’. Paul’s longing is that nothing should all Christians should openly ‘rejoice in the Lord.” (3:1).
There were then, and unfortunately are today, those who claim to be Christians but whose lives do not centre on Jesus.
“For, as I have often told you before and now tell you again even with tears, many live as enemies of the cross of Christ. Their destiny is destruction, their god is their stomach, and their glory is in their shame. Their mind is set on earthly things.” Philippians 3:18-19
Living our lives for the Lord Jesus should be the focus of all Christians. Paul goes on to say to this church that he deeply loves:
“Therefore, my brothers and sisters, you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, dear friends! Philippians 4:1
This new relationship with the Lord God should fill people’s hearts with praise;
“Rejoice in the Lord always. I will say it again, rejoice,!. . . The Lord is near.” Philippians 4:4
We all need people to model our lives on and Paul is able to say to all Christians, imitate me and my priorities:
“Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me—put it into practice.“ Philippians 4:9
This is surely what it means to be apostolic Christians, it is more than accepting the theology taught by the apostles, it also means having their evangelistic drive. This will not happen easily. We have to learn to live this way, just a Paul had to learn:
“I have learned to be content whatever the circumstances. . . . I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation.” Philippians 4:11-12
Love is the key
When you love someone you will do all you can to please them. Paul recognised that a love for Jesus was the key to a Christ-centred life:
“ Therefore if you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any common sharing in the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and of one mind.” Philippians 2:1-2
It was this same love that Paul had for the members of the church in Philippi.
“Therefore, my brothers and sisters, you whom I love and long for, my joy and crown, stand firm in the Lord in this way, dear friends!” Philippians 4:1
The theme that loving God is central to being accepted by Him is strongly rooted in the Old Testament. While obedience, covenant faithfulness, and fear of God are often highlighted, these are consistently tied to love—a deep, personal devotion that God desires from His people. Below are several key examples):
1. Deuteronomy 6:4–5 – The Shema
"Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength.”
This is the foundational command in Jewish faith. Jesus later identifies this as the greatest commandment (Matthew 22:37–38). It stresses that total love for God is the starting point of relationship with Him.
2. Deuteronomy 10:12–13
"And now, Israel, what does the Lord your God ask of you but to fear the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him, to love him, to serve the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul, and to observe the Lord’s commands and decrees…”
Love is placed alongside fear, service, and obedience—but note that it's the heart and soul that are involved. It's not just external law-keeping; love drives obedience.
3. Deuteronomy 11:1
"Love the Lord your God and keep his requirements, his decrees, his laws and his commands always.”
Love is the first in the list—obedience flows from love, not the other way around.
4. Deuteronomy 30:19–20
"Now choose life, so that you and your children may live and that you may love the Lord your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the Lord is your life…"
Here, loving God is literally tied to choosing life. Relationship with God depends on this love.
5. Joshua 22:5
"But be very careful to keep the commandment and the law that Moses the servant of the Lord gave you: to love the Lord your God, to walk in obedience to him, to keep his commands, to hold fast to him and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul.”
Again, love is the heart of covenant life—it motivates obedience, loyalty, and service.
6. Psalm 145:20
"The Lord watches over all who love him, but all the wicked he will destroy.”
This psalm emphasises that God’s people must really love God. It is further explored later.
7. Hosea 6:6
"For I desire mercy, not sacrifice, and acknowledgment of God rather than burnt offerings.”
Though the word “love” isn't used here in English, the Hebrew word for "mercy" (hesed) carries the sense of loyal love. God prefers loving relationship over ritual performance.
8. 1 Samuel 15:22
"Does the Lord delight in burnt offerings and sacrifices as much as in obeying the Lord? To obey is better than sacrifice…"
Though not using the word love, this shows that inward alignment with God's will (which the Law consistently connects with love) is better than ritual. Love leads to sincere obedience.
In the New Testament, love for God is just as central and arguably even more clearly stated as the key to salvation. However, love for Jesus is deeply intertwined with faith in Christ, grace, and obedience, forming the heart of what it means to belong to God. Love is not merely an emotion but a relational commitment that reflects a transformed life.
Here are several passages that show how love for God is integral to salvation in the New Testament:
1. Matthew 22:37–40 – The Greatest Commandment
"Jesus replied: ‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment."
Jesus reaffirms the Shema (Deuteronomy 6:5), placing love for God at the very centre of God's will. Everything else flows from this—love for neighbour, obedience, and righteousness.
2. John 14:21, 23
"Whoever has my commands and keeps them is the one who loves me. The one who loves me will be loved by my Father..."
"Anyone who loves me will obey my teaching. My Father will love them, and we will come to them and make our home with them.”
Love for Jesusis not just a requirement but a mark of authentic discipleship and communion with the Father and Son.
3. Romans 8:28
"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.”
This famous verse identifies love for God, love for Jesus as the mark of those who are saved and called. Salvation is for those who love God—not as a way to earn salvation, but as evidence that they belong to Him.
4. 1 Corinthians 2:9
"What no eye has seen... what God has prepared for those who love him.”
The future blessings of salvation are for those who love God. Love is not optional—it’s the sign of truly knowing Him.
5. 1 Corinthians 16:22
"If anyone does not love the Lord, let that person be cursed! Come, Lord!”
This is a strong warning: love for Jesus is not optional. Without it, a person remains under judgment.
6. James 1:12
"Blessed is the one who perseveres under trial... that person will receive the crown of life that the Lord has promised to those who love him.”
The reward of salvation is explicitly promised to those who love God—not merely to those who know about Him or perform good works.
7. 2 Timothy 4:8
"...the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day—and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.”
Love for Christ appears as longing for Him—a key sign of saving faith.
8. 1 John 4:19
"We love because he first loved us.”
Here, love for God is the response to grace. Salvation begins with God's love, and those who are saved respond with love for Him and others. Later in this letter:
"Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love." 1 John 4:8
The Bible is clear, love for God is not a way to earn salvation, but it is inseparable from saving faith.
It is both a fruit of salvation and a test of it (cf. 1 Cor 16:22; James 1:12 - see above). The New Testament does not contrast love with faith—rather, it shows that faith works through love:
“The only thing that counts is faith expressing itself through love.’ Galatians 5:6
Psalm 145
This remarkable psalm also focuses on the need for God’s people to have a deep love for God. Love for God is contrasted with wickedness—not mere external behaviour, but an inner devotion to the Lord distinguishes the faithful. It describes what a man of God expresses about his Lord. The psalmist clearly loves him. It begins:
“ I will exalt you, my God the King;
I will praise your name for ever and ever.Every day I will praise you
and extol your name for ever and ever.Great is the Lord and most worthy of praise;
his greatness no one can fathom.” Psalm 145:1-3
Here he uses the first person singular, ‘I will praise you’. Any saving faith must start with a personal recognition of what God has done for each of us individually.
Then he goes on to say that this will be the effect that understanding God’s love will have on every one of God’s people.
“One generation commends your works to another;
they tell of your mighty acts.They speak of the glorious splendor of your majesty—
and I will meditate on your wonderful works.They tell of the power of your awesome works—
and I will proclaim your great deeds.They celebrate your abundant goodness
and joyfully sing of your righteousness. Psalm 145:4-7
Notice that in between what other’s of God people will do, the author slips in that he keeps on both meditating on what God has done and that he continues to share this news with others.
It is the nature of the Lord God that thrills him:
“The Lord is gracious and compassionate,
slow to anger and rich in love.The Lord is good to all;
he has compassion on all he has made.” Psalm 145:8-9
Here he is repeating what God told Moses on mount sinai about his character. Again, as he considers the importance of this fact, he realises that it cannot be kept secret: Both nature and God’s people make the love of God clear.
“All your works praise you, Lord;
your faithful people extol you.They tell of the glory of your kingdom
and speak of your might,so that all people may know of your mighty acts
and the glorious splendour of your kingdom.Your kingdom is an everlasting kingdom,
and your dominion endures through all generations.” Psalm 145:10-13
What is striking is that the psalmist talks repeatedly about God’s kingdom and he is clear what this means. It is a spiritual kingdom, that lasts for eternity. Its members are those who have ‘faith’ and who speak about their Lord. John the Baptist, Jesus and Jesus’ apostles all emphasised this kingdom.
John the Baptist taught:
“Repent, for the kingdom of heaven has come near.” Matthew 3:11
Jesus similarly taught:
”The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel". Mark 1:15
These verses highlight the arrival of God's kingdom with the coming of the Lord Jesus as its King and the need for repentance and faith in the good news to be accepted into this kingdom.
The apostle Paul also kept emphasising this kingdom of God. When he met with the elders of the church in Ephesus he reminded them:
“Now I know that none of you among whom I have gone about preaching the kingdom will ever see me again.” Acts 20:25
I have just received an e-mail from an old colleague who said,
“I have now come to my own opinion about God”
I replied,
“Who has taught you? God is infinite so to know about him you have to have a teacher. Is he as reliable as Jesus whose character, teaching, miracles and resurrection revealed his authority?”
Another friend told me some years ago that he has been thinking seriously about God. I rep[lied,
“That’s wonderful. But you will never find God in your mind. You have to look where the infinite God has revealed himself’
The Psalmist has understood how we mortals can know God:
“The Lord is trustworthy in all he promises and faithful in all he does.” Psalm 145:13b
He understands that this understanding is not given to those who are independent of God but to those who are dependent on the Lord, because they have recognised their shortcomings.
“The Lord upholds all who fall
and lifts up all who are bowed down.The eyes of all look to you,
and you give them their food at the proper time.You open your hand
and satisfy the desires of every living thing.” Psalm 145:14-16We can feel the joy as the psalmist composed this psalm. He shares the gospel:
“The Lord is righteous in all his ways
and faithful in all he does.The Lord is near to all who call on him,
to all who call on him in truth.He fulfils the desires of those who fear him;
he hears their cry and saves them. Psalm 145:17-19
If we are to be admitted into God’s kingdom we need to know that he loves us and is listening to us. What we must do is call on him sincerely and acknowledge that he is now our Lord. It is with this start that we begin to love the Lord. Without this love there is no salvation, but for those who repent there is great security. Love for the Lord Jesus is essential if we are to be accepted into God’s kingdom.
“The Lord watches over all who love him,
but all the wicked he will destroy.” Psalm 145:20
The choice is ours. The apostle John emphasised this same message:
“Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them.” John 3:36
No wonder the psalmist finishes in the way he began. How can anyone who has understood this message and responded to God’s love keep quiet about this message?
“My mouth will speak in praise of the Lord. Let every creature praise his holy name for ever and ever.” Psalm 145:21
Nehemiah
Most of God’s people were still exiles in a distant land. Cyrus of Persia had defeated the Babylonians in 539BC. The following year he gave an edict allowing the Jews to return home to Israel and a group led by Zedekiah did so. Ezra returned in 458 BC. Those who had returned to Jerusalem were having a hard time, the wall of the city had not been built.
Nehemiah was the cupbearer to King Artaxerces of Persia. He was a devoted Jew who was concerned about his people. He knew from the Scriptures that this exile was the result of God’s people turning their backs on serving the Lord and he acknowledged this in prayer. God’s people had lost their love for the Lord. But he remembers the character of God as revealed to Moses in the Torah (Exodus 34:6) and summarises this in his prayer:
““Lord, the God of heaven, the great and awesome God, who keeps his covenant of love with those who love him and keep his commandments, let your ear be attentive and your eyes open to hear the prayer your servant is praying before you day and night for your servants, the people of Israel.” Nehemiah 1:5
So he then repents both for his own sin and those of his people:
“I confess the sins we Israelites, including myself and my father’s family, have committed against you. We have acted very wickedly toward you. We have not obeyed the commands, decrees and laws you gave your servant Moses.” Nehemiah 1:6-7
He recognised that sin is primarily against God although it nearly always has social implications. Then Nehemiah remembers the words God had said to Moses, given in Leviticus 28:27-33:
“Remember the instruction you gave your servant Moses, saying, ‘If you are unfaithful, I will scatter you among the nations, but if you return to me and obey my commands, then even if your exiled people are at the farthest horizon, I will gather them from there and bring them to the place I have chosen as a dwelling for my Name.’” Nehemiah 1:8-9
God primarily speaks to us authoritatively in his word, the Bible. Could this be the explanation why many churches are becoming weaker and smaller. We show we don’t love the Lord by refusing to live with his priorities.
Yesterday I was talking with a man in his twenties who said,
“I am a baptised Christian but I have lost interest now.”
What a disaster, to turn our backs on the living God.. Nehemiah understood the gospel, we are sinners and we need him to rescue us and this he loves to do if we will repent and turn back to serve him.
BVP
