Empowered in Holiness to Love Like God Does
David W Palmer
Can we actually love the way God wants us to—as described in 1 Cor. 13 and in the Sermon on the Mount? For example, he tells us to love our enemies, and to be “perfect” in love, etc. (Mat. 5:43–48)—in other words, to be holy. We see from Rom. 7 that initially Paul found this impossible; when he relied on his own willpower to choose what God wanted, it only led to condemnation—not love and holiness. But thankfully, God showed him how to do it; and he has written his solution for us in Romans 8, etc.
(Romans 8:13 NKJV) “… if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.”
The key to this is found in Rom. 8:13, where he reveals that we can only be free from the law of sin and death and the works of the flesh if we put them to death by spirit power. This enables us to be holy—with the nature of the Holy Spirit. Thus, it enables us to be like our Father God; we can be his true sons and daughters, imitating him in every way. We see this very clearly in the next verse of Rom. 8:
(Romans 8:14 NKJV) “For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.”
In the Eastern mindset, God’s sons are those who act like God. For us, acting like God is called being holy—exhibiting the fruit of the Spirit, the gifts of the Spirit, and everything else the Holy Spirit stands for:
(1 Peter 1:15 NLT) But now you must be holy in everything you do, just as God who chose you is holy.
God’s grace is not an excuse to sin without it mattering. On the contrary, grace is God’s power to overcome sin; it is his help when tempted and/or in need:
(Hebrews 2:18 CSB) “For since he himself has suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are tempted.”
(Hebrews 4:16 CSB) “Therefore, let us approach the throne of grace with boldness, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in time of need.”
“It is of faith that it might be by grace” (Rom 4:16 KJV). Faith in God’s word, along with yieldedness to his will in worshipful surrender, lead to being led by his wonderful Holy Spirit. This yields holiness—the fruit of the Spirit—which is borne out in the following passages:
(Galatians 5:16 NKJV) “I say then: Walk in the Spirit, and you shall not fulfill the lust of the flesh.”
This is a straightforward fact of Scripture; the only way to be free of the flesh’s domination is to walk in the Spirit—God’s Spirit of holiness—including having your mind on the things of the Spirit, etc.:
(Galatians 5:18 NKJV) “But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the law.”
Moreover, being led by the Spirit is the only way to be free of the condemning, weak law. Without walking in the Spirit and being led by him, you are under the law, dominated by the sinful flesh, and unable to be free of the resulting condemnation.
So, the only way to love in the way 1 Cor. 13 says is to be led by the spirit, walk in the spirit, have your mind on the things of the spirit, to live by faith, be born again and baptized in the Holy Spirit. This is simply another way of saying, “being in Christ Jesus”:
(Romans 8:1 NKJV) There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit.
(2 Corinthians 5:17 NKJV) Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.
Notice how the advantages listed in these two passages are contingent on being “in Christ.” Additionally, in the following passage observe how all the promises and benefits God provides are only ours if we are “in him.” And as we have seen, this is a dynamic lifestyle of love, faith, walking in the Spirit, and being obediently, worshipfully led by him—continually:
(Ephesians 1:3–7 NKJV) Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places in Christ, {4} just as He chose us in Him before the
