Love Is More Than a Choice - Revision history

Pcain: Protected "Love Is More Than a Choice" ([edit=sysop] (indefinite) [move=sysop] (indefinite))

2014-05-22T19:10:48Z

Protected "Love Is More Than a Choice" ([edit=sysop] (indefinite) [move=sysop] (indefinite))

← Older revision

Revision as of 19:10, 22 May 2014

Kathyyee at 04:51, 25 November 2013

2013-11-25T04:51:14Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 04:51, 25 November 2013
Line 30:		Line 30:
	</blockquote>		</blockquote>
	'''Our love for God is more than a decision.'''		'''Our love for God is more than a decision.'''
-	<blockquote>	+	<blockquote>“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” (Matthew 22:37). </blockquote><blockquote>
-	“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” (Matthew 22:37).	+	“There is laid up for me the crown of righteousness . . . for all who have loved his appearing” (2 Timothy 4:8). (That is we long for Jesus to be here; we desire him.)
-	</blockquote><blockquote>	+	</blockquote>
-	“There is laid up for me the crown of righteousness . . . for all who have loved his appearing” (2 Timothy 4:8). (That is we long for Jesus to be here; we desire him.)	+
-	</blockquote>	+
	'''Our love for fellow believers is more than a decision.'''		'''Our love for fellow believers is more than a decision.'''
-	<blockquote>	+	<blockquote>“Love one another with brotherly affection” (Romans 12:10). </blockquote><blockquote>
-	“Love one another with brotherly affection” (Romans 12:10).	+	“Love one another earnestly from a pure heart” (1 Peter 1:22).
	</blockquote><blockquote>		</blockquote><blockquote>
-	~~“Love~~ one another ~~earnestly from a pure heart”~~ (~~1 Peter 1~~:22).	+	“Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you” (Ephesians 4:31–32). (These affectional dimensions are what it means to “walk in love” according to Ephesians 5:2.)
	</blockquote><blockquote>		</blockquote><blockquote>
-	~~“Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to~~ one ~~another~~, ~~tenderhearted~~, ~~forgiving one another, as~~ God ~~in Christ forgave you”~~ (~~Ephesians 4~~:~~31–32~~). ~~(These affectional dimensions are what it means to “walk in love” according to Ephesians 5:2.)~~	+	“Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver” (2 Corinthians 9:7).
	</blockquote><blockquote>		</blockquote><blockquote>
-	~~“Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver” (2 Corinthians 9:7).~~	+	“Love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant . . . It is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth” (1 Corinthians 13:4–7).
-	~~</blockquote><blockquote>~~	+	</blockquote>
-	“Love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant . . . It is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth” (1 Corinthians 13:4–7).	+	'''Our love for our enemies is more than a decision.'''
		+	<blockquote>
		+	“But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Matthew 5:44). (A prayer for our enemy to be blessed without a heartfelt desire that he be blessed is hypocrisy.)
	</blockquote>		</blockquote>
-	~~'''Our love for our enemies is more than a decision.'''~~
-	<blockquote><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">“But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Matthew 5:44). (A prayer for our enemy to be blessed without a heartfelt desire that he be blessed is hypocrisy.)</span></blockquote>
	It is important to hear me say, “''more'' than a decision.” I am not denying there are crucial choices and decisions to be made in a life of love. I am not denying that those choices and decisions are part of what love is. So I am not saying the statements “love ''is'' a choice” or “love is a decision,” are false.		It is important to hear me say, “''more'' than a decision.” I am not denying there are crucial choices and decisions to be made in a life of love. I am not denying that those choices and decisions are part of what love is. So I am not saying the statements “love ''is'' a choice” or “love is a decision,” are false.

	But I am jealous that the richness and depth (and human impossibility) of what love is in the Bible not be lost. Hence this little pushback.		But I am jealous that the richness and depth (and human impossibility) of what love is in the Bible not be lost. Hence this little pushback.

Kathyyee at 04:49, 25 November 2013

2013-11-25T04:49:45Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 04:49, 25 November 2013
Line 1:		Line 1:
-	~~<p><span class="fck_mw_template">~~{{info}}~~</span>~~This is a gentle pushback on a popular slogan.	+	{{info}}This is a gentle pushback on a popular slogan.
-	~~</p><p>~~There is truth in saying, “love is a choice” or “love is a decision.” It is true that if you don’t feel like doing good to your neighbor love will incline you to “choose” to do it anyway. If you feel like getting a divorce, love will incline you to “choose” to stay married and work it out.	+
-	~~</p><p>~~If you shrink back from the pain of nails being driven through your hands, love will incline you to say, “Not my will but yours be done.” That’s the truth I hear in the statements: “Love is a choice,” or “Love is a decision.”	+	There is truth in saying, “love is a choice” or “love is a decision.” It is true that if you don’t feel like doing good to your neighbor love will incline you to “choose” to do it anyway. If you feel like getting a divorce, love will incline you to “choose” to stay married and work it out.
-	~~</p><p>~~But I don’t prefer to use these statements. Too many people hear three tendencies in them that those who use the statements may not intend.	+
-	~~</p>~~	+	If you shrink back from the pain of nails being driven through your hands, love will incline you to say, “Not my will but yours be done.” That’s the truth I hear in the statements: “Love is a choice,” or “Love is a decision.”
-	~~<ol><li>~~Saying “love is a choice” sounds like the tendency to believe love is in our power to perform, even when we don’t feel like it.~~<br /><br />~~	+
-	~~</li><li>~~Saying “love is a choice” sounds like the tendency to make the will, with its decisions, the decisive moral agent rather than the heart, with its affections.~~<br /><br />~~	+	But I don’t prefer to use these statements. Too many people hear three tendencies in them that those who use the statements may not intend.
-	~~</li><li>~~Saying “love is a choice” sounds like the tendency to set the bar too low: If you can will to treat someone well, you have done all you should. <br />	+
-	~~</li></ol>~~	+	#Saying “love is a choice” sounds like the tendency to believe love is in our power to perform, even when we don’t feel like it.
-	~~<p>~~I disagree with all three of these tendencies.	+	#Saying “love is a choice” sounds like the tendency to make the will, with its decisions, the decisive moral agent rather than the heart, with its affections.
-	~~</p><p>~~In their place I would say:	+	#Saying “love is a choice” sounds like the tendency to set the bar too low: If you can will to treat someone well, you have done all you should. <br>
-	~~</p>~~	+
-	~~<ol><li>~~Both at the level of desiring to do good, and the level of willing the good we don’t desire, we are totally dependent on the decisive grace of God. All that honors Christ — both affections and choices — are gifts to fallen sinners (1 Corinthians 4:7; Galatians 5:22)~~. <br /><br />~~	+	I disagree with all three of these tendencies.
-	~~</li><li>~~Beneath the will, with its decisions, there is the heart, which produces our preferences, and these preferences guide the will. “The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks” (Luke 6:45).~~ <br /><br />~~	+
-	~~</li><li>~~If our love is only a choice, it is not yet what it ought to be. <br />	+	In their place I would say:
-	~~</li></ol>~~	+
-	~~<p>~~Here are some of the verses from Scripture that cause me to shrink back from the statement, “Love is a choice,” or “love is a decision.”	+	#Both at the level of desiring to do good, and the level of willing the good we don’t desire, we are totally dependent on the decisive grace of God. All that honors Christ — both affections and choices — are gifts to fallen sinners (1 Corinthians 4:7; Galatians 5:22)
-	~~</p><p><b>~~God’s love for his people is more than a decision.~~</b>~~	+	#Beneath the will, with its decisions, there is the heart, which produces our preferences, and these preferences guide the will. “The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks” (Luke 6:45).
-	~~</p>~~	+	#If our love is only a choice, it is not yet what it ought to be. <br>
-	<blockquote~~><br /~~>“The Lᴏʀᴅ will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing” (Zephaniah 3:17). “I [the Lᴏʀᴅ] will rejoice in doing them good, and I will plant them in this land in faithfulness, with all my heart and all my soul” (Jeremiah 32:41). “As the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you” (Isaiah 62:5). “How can I give you up, O Ephraim? How can I hand you over, O Israel?. . . My compassion grows warm and tender” (Hosea 11:8). </blockquote>	+
-	~~<p><b>Our love for God is more than a decision.</b>~~	+	Here are some of the verses from Scripture that cause me to shrink back from the statement, “Love is a choice,” or “love is a decision.”
-	~~</p>~~	+
-	<blockquote><br />“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” (Matthew 22:37). “There is laid up for me the crown of righteousness . . . for all who have loved his appearing” (2 Timothy 4:8). (That is we long for Jesus to be here; we desire him.) Our love for fellow believers is more than a decision. </blockquote><blockquote>	+	'''God’s love for his people is more than a decision.'''
-	~~<p><br />“Love one another with brotherly affection” (Romans 12:10).~~	+	<blockquote>“The Lᴏʀᴅ will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing” (Zephaniah 3:17). </blockquote><blockquote>
-	~~</p><p>“Love one another earnestly from a pure heart” (1 Peter 1:22).~~	+	“I [the Lᴏʀᴅ] will rejoice in doing them good, and I will plant them in this land in faithfulness, with all my heart and all my soul” (Jeremiah 32:41).
-	</p><p>“Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you” (Ephesians 4:31–32). (These affectional dimensions are what it means to “walk in love” according to Ephesians 5:2.)	+
-	~~</p><p>“Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver” (2 Corinthians 9:7).~~	+
-	~~</p><p>“Love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant . . . It is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth” (1 Corinthians 13:4–7).~~	+
-	~~</p><p>Our love for our enemies is more than a decision.~~	+
-	~~</p>~~	+
	</blockquote><blockquote>		</blockquote><blockquote>
-	<p><~~br /~~>~~“But~~ I ~~say to~~ you, ~~Love your enemies~~ and ~~pray for those who persecute you”~~ (~~Matthew 5~~:44). ~~(A prayer for our enemy to be blessed without a heartfelt desire that he be blessed is hypocrisy.)~~	+	“As the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you” (Isaiah 62:5).
-	~~</p>~~	+	</blockquote><blockquote>
		+	“How can I give you up, O Ephraim? How can I hand you over, O Israel?. . . My compassion grows warm and tender” (Hosea 11:8).
	</blockquote>		</blockquote>
-	<p>It is important to hear me say, ~~“more~~ than a decision.” I am not denying there are crucial choices and decisions to be made in a life of love. I am not denying that those choices and decisions are part of what love is. So I am not saying the statements “love is a choice” or “love is a decision,” are false.	+	'''Our love for God is more than a decision.'''
-	~~</p><p>~~But I am jealous that the richness and depth (and human impossibility) of what love is in the Bible not be lost. Hence this little pushback.	+	<blockquote>
-	~~</p>~~	+	“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” (Matthew 22:37).
		+	</blockquote><blockquote>
		+	“There is laid up for me the crown of righteousness . . . for all who have loved his appearing” (2 Timothy 4:8). (That is we long for Jesus to be here; we desire him.)
		+	</blockquote>
		+	'''Our love for fellow believers is more than a decision.'''
		+	<blockquote>
		+	“Love one another with brotherly affection” (Romans 12:10).
		+	</blockquote><blockquote>
		+	“Love one another earnestly from a pure heart” (1 Peter 1:22).
		+	</blockquote><blockquote>
		+	“Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you” (Ephesians 4:31–32). (These affectional dimensions are what it means to “walk in love” according to Ephesians 5:2.)
		+	</blockquote><blockquote>
		+	“Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver” (2 Corinthians 9:7).
		+	</blockquote><blockquote>
		+	“Love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant . . . It is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth” (1 Corinthians 13:4–7).
		+	</blockquote>
		+	'''Our love for our enemies is more than a decision.'''
		+	<blockquote><span style="line-height: 1.5em;">“But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Matthew 5:44). (A prayer for our enemy to be blessed without a heartfelt desire that he be blessed is hypocrisy.)</span></blockquote>
		+	It is important to hear me say, “''more'' than a decision.” I am not denying there are crucial choices and decisions to be made in a life of love. I am not denying that those choices and decisions are part of what love is. So I am not saying the statements “love ''is'' a choice” or “love is a decision,” are false.
		+
		+	But I am jealous that the richness and depth (and human impossibility) of what love is in the Bible not be lost. Hence this little pushback.

Kathyyee at 04:13, 25 November 2013

2013-11-25T04:13:42Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 04:13, 25 November 2013
Line 1:		Line 1:
-	{{info}}	+	<p><span class="fck_mw_template">{{info}}</span>This is a gentle pushback on a popular slogan.
-		+	</p><p>There is truth in saying, “love is a choice” or “love is a decision.” It is true that if you don’t feel like doing good to your neighbor love will incline you to “choose” to do it anyway. If you feel like getting a divorce, love will incline you to “choose” to stay married and work it out.
-	This is a gentle pushback on a popular slogan.	+	</p><p>If you shrink back from the pain of nails being driven through your hands, love will incline you to say, “Not my will but yours be done.” That’s the truth I hear in the statements: “Love is a choice,” or “Love is a decision.”
-		+	</p><p>But I don’t prefer to use these statements. Too many people hear three tendencies in them that those who use the statements may not intend.
-	<br>	+	</p>
-		+	<ol><li>Saying “love is a choice” sounds like the tendency to believe love is in our power to perform, even when we don’t feel like it.<br /><br />
-	There is truth in saying, “love is a choice” or “love is a decision.” It is true that if you don’t feel like doing good to your neighbor love will incline you to “choose” to do it anyway. If you feel like getting a divorce, love will incline you to “choose” to stay married and work it out.	+	</li><li>Saying “love is a choice” sounds like the tendency to make the will, with its decisions, the decisive moral agent rather than the heart, with its affections.<br /><br />
-		+	</li><li>Saying “love is a choice” sounds like the tendency to set the bar too low: If you can will to treat someone well, you have done all you should. <br />
-	<br>	+	</li></ol>
-		+	<p>I disagree with all three of these tendencies.
-	If you shrink back from the pain of nails being driven through your hands, love will incline you to say, “Not my will but yours be done.” That’s the truth I hear in the statements: “Love is a choice,” or “Love is a decision.”	+	</p><p>In their place I would say:
-		+	</p>
-	<br>	+	<ol><li>Both at the level of desiring to do good, and the level of willing the good we don’t desire, we are totally dependent on the decisive grace of God. All that honors Christ — both affections and choices — are gifts to fallen sinners (1 Corinthians 4:7; Galatians 5:22). <br /><br />
-		+	</li><li>Beneath the will, with its decisions, there is the heart, which produces our preferences, and these preferences guide the will. “The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks” (Luke 6:45). <br /><br />
-	But I don’t prefer to use these statements. Too many people hear three tendencies in them that those who use the statements may not intend.	+	</li><li>If our love is only a choice, it is not yet what it ought to be. <br />
-		+	</li></ol>
-	#Saying “love is a choice” sounds like the tendency to believe love is in our power to perform, even when we don’t feel like it.<br><br>	+	<p>Here are some of the verses from Scripture that cause me to shrink back from the statement, “Love is a choice,” or “love is a decision.”
-	#Saying “love is a choice” sounds like the tendency to make the will, with its decisions, the decisive moral agent rather than the heart, with its affections.<br><br>	+	</p><p><b>God’s love for his people is more than a decision.</b>
-	#Saying “love is a choice” sounds like the tendency to set the bar too low: If you can will to treat someone well, you have done all you should. <br>	+	</p>
-		+	<blockquote><br />“The Lᴏʀᴅ will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing” (Zephaniah 3:17). “I [the Lᴏʀᴅ] will rejoice in doing them good, and I will plant them in this land in faithfulness, with all my heart and all my soul” (Jeremiah 32:41). “As the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you” (Isaiah 62:5). “How can I give you up, O Ephraim? How can I hand you over, O Israel?. . . My compassion grows warm and tender” (Hosea 11:8). </blockquote>
-	<br>I disagree with all three of these tendencies.	+	<p><b>Our love for God is more than a decision.</b>
-		+	</p>
-	<br>	+	<blockquote><br />“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” (Matthew 22:37). “There is laid up for me the crown of righteousness . . . for all who have loved his appearing” (2 Timothy 4:8). (That is we long for Jesus to be here; we desire him.) Our love for fellow believers is more than a decision. </blockquote><blockquote>
-		+	<p><br />“Love one another with brotherly affection” (Romans 12:10).
-	In their place I would say:	+	</p><p>“Love one another earnestly from a pure heart” (1 Peter 1:22).
-		+	</p><p>“Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you” (Ephesians 4:31–32). (These affectional dimensions are what it means to “walk in love” according to Ephesians 5:2.)
-	<br>	+	</p><p>“Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver” (2 Corinthians 9:7).
-		+	</p><p>“Love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant . . . It is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth” (1 Corinthians 13:4–7).
-	1.Both at the level of desiring to do good, and the level of willing the good we don’t desire, we are totally dependent on the decisive grace of God. All that honors Christ — both affections and choices — are gifts to fallen sinners (1 Corinthians 4:7; Galatians 5:22). <br><br>	+	</p><p>Our love for our enemies is more than a decision.
-		+	</p>
-	2.Beneath the will, with its decisions, there is the heart, which produces our preferences, and these preferences guide the will. “The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks” (Luke 6:45). <br><br>	+
-		+
-	3.If our love is only a choice, it is not yet what it ought to be. <br>	+
-		+
-	<br>Here are some of the verses from Scripture that cause me to shrink back from the statement, “Love is a choice,” or “love is a decision.”	+
-		+
-	<br>	+
-		+
-	~~'''~~God’s love for his people is more than a decision.~~'''~~	+
-	<blockquote><br>“The Lᴏʀᴅ will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing” (Zephaniah 3:17). “I [the Lᴏʀᴅ] will rejoice in doing them good, and I will plant them in this land in faithfulness, with all my heart and all my soul” (Jeremiah 32:41). “As the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you” (Isaiah 62:5). “How can I give you up, O Ephraim? How can I hand you over, O Israel?. . . My compassion grows warm and tender” (Hosea 11:8). </blockquote>	+
-	~~'''~~Our love for God is more than a decision.~~'''~~	+
-	<blockquote><br>“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” (Matthew 22:37). “There is laid up for me the crown of righteousness . . . for all who have loved his appearing” (2 Timothy 4:8). (That is we long for Jesus to be here; we desire him.) Our love for fellow believers is more than a decision. </blockquote><blockquote>	+
-	<br>“Love one another with brotherly affection” (Romans 12:10).	+
-		+
-	“Love one another earnestly from a pure heart” (1 Peter 1:22).	+
-		+
-	“Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you” (Ephesians 4:31–32). (These affectional dimensions are what it means to “walk in love” according to Ephesians 5:2.)	+
-		+
-	“Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver” (2 Corinthians 9:7).	+
-		+
-	“Love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant . . . It is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth” (1 Corinthians 13:4–7).	+
-		+
-	Our love for our enemies is more than a decision.	+
	</blockquote><blockquote>		</blockquote><blockquote>
-	<br>“But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Matthew 5:44). (A prayer for our enemy to be blessed without a heartfelt desire that he be blessed is hypocrisy.)	+	<p><br />“But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Matthew 5:44). (A prayer for our enemy to be blessed without a heartfelt desire that he be blessed is hypocrisy.)
		+	</p>
	</blockquote>		</blockquote>
-	It is important to hear me say, “more than a decision.” I am not denying there are crucial choices and decisions to be made in a life of love. I am not denying that those choices and decisions are part of what love is. So I am not saying the statements “love is a choice” or “love is a decision,” are false.	+	<p>It is important to hear me say, “more than a decision.” I am not denying there are crucial choices and decisions to be made in a life of love. I am not denying that those choices and decisions are part of what love is. So I am not saying the statements “love is a choice” or “love is a decision,” are false.
-		+	</p><p>But I am jealous that the richness and depth (and human impossibility) of what love is in the Bible not be lost. Hence this little pushback.
-	But I am jealous that the richness and depth (and human impossibility) of what love is in the Bible not be lost. Hence this little pushback.	+	</p>
-		+
-	~~<br>~~	+
-		+
-	~~Recent posts from John Piper:<br> ~~	+
-		+
-	~~Is There a Key to Godliness?~~	+
-		+
-	~~<br>~~	+
-		+
-	~~How Do We Rest in the Face of Horrible Calamity?~~	+
-		+
-	~~<br>~~	+
-		+
-	~~When Two So-Called “Married” Women (or Men) Repent~~	+
-		+
-	~~<br>Topic: Sanctification & Growth  ~~	+
-		+
-	<br>''John Piper (@JohnPiper) is founder and teacher of desiringGod.org and chancellor of Bethlehem College & Seminary. For 33 years, he served as pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis, Minnesota. He is author of more than 50 books.<br>''	+

Gburgplummer at 18:02, 23 November 2013

2013-11-23T18:02:27Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 18:02, 23 November 2013
Line 1:		Line 1:
	{{info}}		{{info}}

-	This is a gentle pushback on a popular slogan.	+	This is a gentle pushback on a popular slogan.

		+	<br>

		+	There is truth in saying, “love is a choice” or “love is a decision.” It is true that if you don’t feel like doing good to your neighbor love will incline you to “choose” to do it anyway. If you feel like getting a divorce, love will incline you to “choose” to stay married and work it out.

-	There is truth in saying, “love is a choice” or “love is a decision.” It is true that if you don’t feel like doing good to your neighbor love will incline you to “choose” to do it anyway. If you feel like getting a divorce, love will incline you to “choose” to stay married and work it out.	+	<br>
-		+
-		+
-		+
-	If you shrink back from the pain of nails being driven through your hands, love will incline you to say, “Not my will but yours be done.” That’s the truth I hear in the statements: “Love is a choice,” or “Love is a decision.”	+

		+	If you shrink back from the pain of nails being driven through your hands, love will incline you to say, “Not my will but yours be done.” That’s the truth I hear in the statements: “Love is a choice,” or “Love is a decision.”

		+	<br>

	But I don’t prefer to use these statements. Too many people hear three tendencies in them that those who use the statements may not intend.		But I don’t prefer to use these statements. Too many people hear three tendencies in them that those who use the statements may not intend.
Line 19:		Line 19:
	#Saying “love is a choice” sounds like the tendency to set the bar too low: If you can will to treat someone well, you have done all you should. <br>		#Saying “love is a choice” sounds like the tendency to set the bar too low: If you can will to treat someone well, you have done all you should. <br>

-	<br>I disagree with all three of these tendencies.	+	<br>I disagree with all three of these tendencies.
-		+

		+	<br>

	In their place I would say:		In their place I would say:

		+	<br>

		+	1.Both at the level of desiring to do good, and the level of willing the good we don’t desire, we are totally dependent on the decisive grace of God. All that honors Christ — both affections and choices — are gifts to fallen sinners (1 Corinthians 4:7; Galatians 5:22). <br><br>

-	1.Both at the level of desiring to do good, and the level of willing the good we don’t desire, we are totally dependent on the decisive grace of God. All that honors Christ — both affections and choices — are gifts to fallen sinners (1 Corinthians 4:7; Galatians 5:22). <br>	+	2.Beneath the will, with its decisions, there is the heart, which produces our preferences, and these preferences guide the will. “The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks” (Luke 6:45). <br><br>
-		+
-	2.Beneath the will, with its decisions, there is the heart, which produces our preferences, and these preferences guide the will. “The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks” (Luke 6:45). <br>	+

-	3.If our love is only a choice, it is not yet what it ought to be.	+	3.If our love is only a choice, it is not yet what it ought to be. <br>

	<br>Here are some of the verses from Scripture that cause me to shrink back from the statement, “Love is a choice,” or “love is a decision.”		<br>Here are some of the verses from Scripture that cause me to shrink back from the statement, “Love is a choice,” or “love is a decision.”

Gburgplummer at 18:01, 23 November 2013

2013-11-23T18:01:27Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 18:01, 23 November 2013
Line 1:		Line 1:
	{{info}}		{{info}}

-	This is a gentle pushback on a popular slogan.	+	This is a gentle pushback on a popular slogan.

-	There is truth in saying, “love is a choice” or “love is a decision.” It is true that if you don’t feel like doing good to your neighbor love will incline you to “choose” to do it anyway. If you feel like getting a divorce, love will incline you to “choose” to stay married and work it out.

-	If you shrink back from the pain of nails being driven through your hands, love will incline you to say, “Not my will but yours be done.” That’s the truth I hear in the statements: “Love is a choice,” or “Love is a decision.”

-	~~But I~~ don’t ~~prefer~~ to ~~use these statements~~. ~~Too many people hear three tendencies in them that those who use the statements may not intend~~.	+	There is truth in saying, “love is a choice” or “love is a decision.” It is true that if you don’t feel like doing good to your neighbor love will incline you to “choose” to do it anyway. If you feel like getting a divorce, love will incline you to “choose” to stay married and work it out.

-	~~#Saying “love is a choice” sounds like the tendency to believe love is in our power to perform, even when we don’t feel like it.<br>~~
-	~~#Saying “love is a choice” sounds like the tendency to make the will, with its decisions, the decisive moral agent rather than the heart, with its affections.<br>~~
-	~~#Saying “love is a choice” sounds like the tendency to set the bar too low: If you can will to treat someone well, you have done all you should.~~

-	~~<br>I disagree with all three of these tendencies.~~

-	~~In their place I would~~ say:	+	If you shrink back from the pain of nails being driven through your hands, love will incline you to say, “Not my will but yours be done.” That’s the truth I hear in the statements: “Love is a choice,” or “Love is a decision.”

-	1.Both at the level of desiring to do good, and the level of willing the good we don’t desire, we are totally dependent on the decisive grace of God. All that honors Christ — both affections and choices — are gifts to fallen sinners (1 Corinthians 4:7; Galatians 5:22). <br>

-	2.Beneath the will, with its decisions, there is the heart, which produces our preferences, and these preferences guide the will. “The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks” (Luke 6:45). <br>

-	3.~~If our love is only a choice, it is~~ not ~~yet what it ought to be~~.	+	But I don’t prefer to use these statements. Too many people hear three tendencies in them that those who use the statements may not intend.

-	<br>~~Here are some of~~ the ~~verses from Scripture that cause me~~ to ~~shrink back from~~ the ~~statement~~, ~~“Love is a choice~~,~~” or~~ “love is a ~~decision~~.”	+	#Saying “love is a choice” sounds like the tendency to believe love is in our power to perform, even when we don’t feel like it.<br><br>
		+	#Saying “love is a choice” sounds like the tendency to make the will, with its decisions, the decisive moral agent rather than the heart, with its affections.<br><br>
		+	#Saying “love is a choice” sounds like the tendency to set the bar too low: If you can will to treat someone well, you have done all you should. <br>

		+	<br>I disagree with all three of these tendencies.


-	~~'''God’s love for his people is more than a decision.'''~~
-	~~<blockquote>~~
-	~~<br>“The Lᴏʀᴅ will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing” (Zephaniah 3:17).~~

-	~~“I [the Lᴏʀᴅ] will rejoice in doing them good, and~~ I ~~will plant them in this land in faithfulness, with all my heart and all my soul” (Jeremiah 32~~:~~41).~~	+	In their place I would say:

-	~~“As the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you” (Isaiah 62:5).~~

-	~~“How can I give you up, O Ephraim? How can I hand you over, O Israel?. . . My compassion grows warm and tender” (Hosea 11:8).~~
-	~~</blockquote>~~
-	~~'''Our love for God is more than a decision.'''~~
-	~~<blockquote>~~
-	~~<br>“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” (Matthew 22:37).~~

-	~~“There is laid up for me~~ the ~~crown~~ of ~~righteousness~~ . ~~. . for all who have loved his appearing”~~ (~~2 Timothy~~ 4:~~8). (That is we long for Jesus to be here~~; ~~we desire him.~~)	+	1.Both at the level of desiring to do good, and the level of willing the good we don’t desire, we are totally dependent on the decisive grace of God. All that honors Christ — both affections and choices — are gifts to fallen sinners (1 Corinthians 4:7; Galatians 5:22). <br>

-	Our love for fellow believers is more than a decision.	+	2.Beneath the will, with its decisions, there is the heart, which produces our preferences, and these preferences guide the will. “The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks” (Luke 6:45). <br>
-	</blockquote><blockquote>	+
		+	3.If our love is only a choice, it is not yet what it ought to be.
		+
		+	<br>Here are some of the verses from Scripture that cause me to shrink back from the statement, “Love is a choice,” or “love is a decision.”
		+
		+	<br>
		+
		+	'''God’s love for his people is more than a decision.'''
		+	<blockquote><br>“The Lᴏʀᴅ will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing” (Zephaniah 3:17). “I [the Lᴏʀᴅ] will rejoice in doing them good, and I will plant them in this land in faithfulness, with all my heart and all my soul” (Jeremiah 32:41). “As the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you” (Isaiah 62:5). “How can I give you up, O Ephraim? How can I hand you over, O Israel?. . . My compassion grows warm and tender” (Hosea 11:8). </blockquote>
		+	'''Our love for God is more than a decision.'''
		+	<blockquote><br>“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” (Matthew 22:37). “There is laid up for me the crown of righteousness . . . for all who have loved his appearing” (2 Timothy 4:8). (That is we long for Jesus to be here; we desire him.) Our love for fellow believers is more than a decision. </blockquote><blockquote>
	<br>“Love one another with brotherly affection” (Romans 12:10).		<br>“Love one another with brotherly affection” (Romans 12:10).

Line 55:		Line 51:
	“Love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant . . . It is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth” (1 Corinthians 13:4–7).		“Love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant . . . It is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth” (1 Corinthians 13:4–7).

-	Our love for our enemies is more than a decision.	+	Our love for our enemies is more than a decision.
	</blockquote><blockquote>		</blockquote><blockquote>
-	<br>“But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Matthew 5:44). (A prayer for our enemy to be blessed without a heartfelt desire that he be blessed is hypocrisy.)	+	<br>“But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Matthew 5:44). (A prayer for our enemy to be blessed without a heartfelt desire that he be blessed is hypocrisy.)
-	</blockquote>	+	</blockquote>
	It is important to hear me say, “more than a decision.” I am not denying there are crucial choices and decisions to be made in a life of love. I am not denying that those choices and decisions are part of what love is. So I am not saying the statements “love is a choice” or “love is a decision,” are false.		It is important to hear me say, “more than a decision.” I am not denying there are crucial choices and decisions to be made in a life of love. I am not denying that those choices and decisions are part of what love is. So I am not saying the statements “love is a choice” or “love is a decision,” are false.

	But I am jealous that the richness and depth (and human impossibility) of what love is in the Bible not be lost. Hence this little pushback.		But I am jealous that the richness and depth (and human impossibility) of what love is in the Bible not be lost. Hence this little pushback.

		+	<br>

		+	Recent posts from John Piper:<br>

-	~~Recent posts from John Piper:<br> ~~	+	Is There a Key to Godliness?
-		+
-	Is There a Key to Godliness?	+
-		+
-		+

-	~~How Do We Rest in the Face of Horrible Calamity?~~	+	<br>

		+	How Do We Rest in the Face of Horrible Calamity?

		+	<br>

-	When Two So-Called “Married” Women (or Men) Repent	+	When Two So-Called “Married” Women (or Men) Repent

	<br>Topic: Sanctification & Growth		<br>Topic: Sanctification & Growth

	<br>''John Piper (@JohnPiper) is founder and teacher of desiringGod.org and chancellor of Bethlehem College & Seminary. For 33 years, he served as pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis, Minnesota. He is author of more than 50 books.<br>''		<br>''John Piper (@JohnPiper) is founder and teacher of desiringGod.org and chancellor of Bethlehem College & Seminary. For 33 years, he served as pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis, Minnesota. He is author of more than 50 books.<br>''

Gburgplummer at 17:56, 23 November 2013

2013-11-23T17:56:32Z

Show changes

Gburgplummer at 17:43, 23 November 2013

2013-11-23T17:43:14Z

← Older revision		Revision as of 17:43, 23 November 2013
Line 1:		Line 1:
-	{{info}}	+	{{info}}

-	~~Here is your page!! Thanks Gary!~~

-	~~Kathy~~	+
		+	Love Is More Than a Choice
		+
		+	byJohn Piper\|June 18, 2013
		+
		+	Subscribe to...
		+
		+	.
		+
		+	<br>This is a gentle pushback on a popular slogan.
		+
		+	There is truth in saying, “love is a choice” or “love is a decision.” It is true that if you don’t feel like doing good to your neighbor love will incline you to “choose” to do it anyway. If you feel like getting a divorce, love will incline you to “choose” to stay married and work it out.
		+
		+	If you shrink back from the pain of nails being driven through your hands, love will incline you to say, “Not my will but yours be done.” That’s the truth I hear in the statements: “Love is a choice,” or “Love is a decision.”
		+
		+	But I don’t prefer to use these statements. Too many people hear three tendencies in them that those who use the statements may not intend.<br> 1.<br>Saying “love is a choice” sounds like the tendency to believe love is in our power to perform, even when we don’t feel like it.
		+
		+	2.<br>Saying “love is a choice” sounds like the tendency to make the will, with its decisions, the decisive moral agent rather than the heart, with its affections.
		+
		+	3.<br>Saying “love is a choice” sounds like the tendency to set the bar too low: If you can will to treat someone well, you have done all you should.
		+
		+	<br>I disagree with all three of these tendencies.
		+
		+	In their place I would say:<br> 1.<br>Both at the level of desiring to do good, and the level of willing the good we don’t desire, we are totally dependent on the decisive grace of God. All that honors Christ — both affections and choices — are gifts to fallen sinners (1 Corinthians 4:7; Galatians 5:22).
		+
		+	2.<br>Beneath the will, with its decisions, there is the heart, which produces our preferences, and these preferences guide the will. “The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks” (Luke 6:45).
		+
		+	3.<br>If our love is only a choice, it is not yet what it ought to be.
		+
		+	<br>Here are some of the verses from Scripture that cause me to shrink back from the statement, “Love is a choice,” or “love is a decision.”
		+
		+	God’s love for his people is more than a decision.
		+
		+	<br>“The Lᴏʀᴅ will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing” (Zephaniah 3:17).
		+
		+	“I [the Lᴏʀᴅ] will rejoice in doing them good, and I will plant them in this land in faithfulness, with all my heart and all my soul” (Jeremiah 32:41).
		+
		+	“As the bridegroom rejoices over the bride, so shall your God rejoice over you” (Isaiah 62:5).
		+
		+	“How can I give you up, O Ephraim? How can I hand you over, O Israel?. . . My compassion grows warm and tender” (Hosea 11:8).
		+
		+	Our love for God is more than a decision.
		+
		+	<br>“You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind” (Matthew 22:37).
		+
		+	“There is laid up for me the crown of righteousness . . . for all who have loved his appearing” (2 Timothy 4:8). (That is we long for Jesus to be here; we desire him.)
		+
		+	Our love for fellow believers is more than a decision.
		+
		+	<br>“Love one another with brotherly affection” (Romans 12:10).
		+
		+	“Love one another earnestly from a pure heart” (1 Peter 1:22).
		+
		+	“Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you” (Ephesians 4:31–32). (These affectional dimensions are what it means to “walk in love” according to Ephesians 5:2.)
		+
		+	“Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver” (2 Corinthians 9:7).
		+
		+	“Love does not envy or boast; it is not arrogant . . . It is not irritable or resentful; it does not rejoice at wrongdoing, but rejoices with the truth” (1 Corinthians 13:4–7).
		+
		+	Our love for our enemies is more than a decision.
		+
		+	<br>“But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you” (Matthew 5:44). (A prayer for our enemy to be blessed without a heartfelt desire that he be blessed is hypocrisy.)
		+
		+	It is important to hear me say, “more than a decision.” I am not denying there are crucial choices and decisions to be made in a life of love. I am not denying that those choices and decisions are part of what love is. So I am not saying the statements “love is a choice” or “love is a decision,” are false.
		+
		+	But I am jealous that the richness and depth (and human impossibility) of what love is in the Bible not be lost. Hence this little pushback.
		+
		+	--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
		+
		+	Recent posts from John Piper:<br> <br>Is There a Key to Godliness?
		+
		+	<br>How Do We Rest in the Face of Horrible Calamity?
		+
		+	<br>When Two So-Called “Married” Women (or Men) Repent
		+
		+	<br>Topic: Sanctification & Growth
		+
		+	<br>John Piper (@JohnPiper) is founder and teacher of desiringGod.org and chancellor of Bethlehem College & Seminary. For 33 years, he served as pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church, Minneapolis, Minnesota. He is author of more than 50 books.
		+
		+	English
		+
		+
		+
		+
		+
		+
		+
		+
		+
		+
		+
		+	<br>Email<br> Print<br>
		+
		+
		+
		+
		+
		+	Categories<br> DG Resources<br>Recommendations<br>Conferences<br>Ministry Updates<br>Outside Events<br>Commentary<br> <br>--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
		+
		+	Best of the Blog<br>Questions to Ask When Preparing for Marriage<br>10 Resolutions for Mental Health<br>Motherhood Is a Calling (And Where Your Children Rank)<br>John Piper Interviews Rick Warren on Doctrine <br>Letter to an Incomplete, Insecure Teenager<br>How to Glorify God at Work<br>Beware: The Bible Is About to Threaten Your Smartphone Focus<br>What to Do If You Wake Up Feeling Fragile<br>Sexual Sin in the Ministry<br>The Mega Millions Lottery Is a Suicidal Craze<br>Don’t Give Up<br>The Story of Ian & Larissa<br>We Know They Are Killing Children—All of Us Know<br>Ten Big, Daily Reminders<br>Single, Satisfied, and Sent: Mission for the Not-Yet Married<br>Seven Things to Pray for Your Children<br>From Radical Lesbian to Redeemed Christian<br>The Truth (About Abortion) Will Set You Free<br>When the Not-Yet Married Meet: Dating to Display Jesus<br>14 Free eBooks for You<br>A Song for the Suffering (with John Piper)<br>Drafted: Why Chris Norman Said No to the NFL<br>Parents, Require Obedience of Your Children<br> <br> <br> <br>--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
		+
		+	Browse by Year<br> <br>2013  2012  2011  2010  2009  2008  2007  2006<br>

Kathyyee: Created page with '{{info}} Here is your page!! Thanks Gary! Kathy'

2013-11-22T04:14:13Z

Created page with '{{info}} Here is your page!! Thanks Gary! Kathy'

New page

{{info}}

Here is your page!! Thanks Gary!

Kathy