The Nature of Genuine Love
In 2 Cor 8:1-6 Paul gives us a specific example of an act of love by the churches of Macdonia . These churches gave money to the churches in Jerusalem who were in great financial need. (cf. also 1 Cor 16:1-4; Rom 15:25-27) The churches in Macedonia hear of this need and out of "their abundance of joy and their extreme poverty" flowed an "overflow in a wealth of generosity." (2 Cor 8:1)
In Chapter 5 of The Dangerous Duty of Delight, Piper points out to us that in this act we see four (4) evidences of the nature of genuine love:
As Piper notes, "the liberality expressed horizontally toward men was an overflow of joy in God's grace." Thus, we see that the motivating factor of genuine acts of love is joy in God. What we see here is that what we find our joy in, what truly gives us pleasure, will drive what we give ourselves to and express our love for. So we must pursue our joy in God because to do so would be to abandoned our love for God. Hence, as Piper notes, "to abandon the pursuit of joy is to abandon the pursuit of love."
In Chapter 5 of The Dangerous Duty of Delight, Piper points out to us that in this act we see four (4) evidences of the nature of genuine love:
- Genuine love is a work of divine grace. (2 Cor 8:1)
- Genuine love is filled with a joy in God, not a joy in things/riches. (2 Cor 8:2)
- Genuine love overflows with generosity to meet the needs of others. (2 Cor 8:2)
- Genuine love is an overflow of joy in God. (2 Cor 8:3-4)
As Piper notes, "the liberality expressed horizontally toward men was an overflow of joy in God's grace." Thus, we see that the motivating factor of genuine acts of love is joy in God. What we see here is that what we find our joy in, what truly gives us pleasure, will drive what we give ourselves to and express our love for. So we must pursue our joy in God because to do so would be to abandoned our love for God. Hence, as Piper notes, "to abandon the pursuit of joy is to abandon the pursuit of love."
