What does the Bible say about how to love God?

WHAT DOES THE BIBLE SAY?

We love God by giving Him our whole heart, soul, mind, and strength—devoting ourselves fully to knowing Him, obeying His Word, and spending time with Him. The Bible shows that true love for God is expressed through obedience, sincere worship, and a desire to know Him and be known by Him. Loving God also means loving others, since Jesus taught that love for God and neighbor are inseparable parts of the greatest commandment. Our love is not just emotional—it is seen in action, shaped by God’s Word, and empowered by the Holy Spirit to reflect His character. We love God because He first loved us, and our response is a life of surrendered devotion that impacts every area of how we live and relate to others.

FROM THE OLD TESTAMENT

• Deuteronomy 6:4–7 called the people of Israel to wholly love God, and the same is true for us today. Love for God comes from total devotion—heart, soul, and strength—flowing into every aspect of life.
• Love is shown by obeying God’s commandments and walking in His ways (Deuteronomy 10:12–13).
• We tell Him our desire to be close to Him. Psalm 42:1 says, "As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God." This conveys a level of heightened need, or even desperation, for God. We love God by turning the position of our hearts toward Him and by engaging honestly with Him.
• Loving God means treasuring His Word and aligning our lives with it. Psalm 119:10–11 says, “With my whole heart I seek you … I have stored up your word in my heart.”

FROM THE NEW TESTAMENT

• Jesus, quoting from Deuteronomy 6:4–7, said that the greatest commandment was: “you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength" (Mark 12:30). We are called to love God with all that we are. We show God love in many different ways, but overall, our love for God flows from how we position our hearts toward Him and how our actions follow His instructions.
• We see an example of the way to know God in the story of Mary and Martha, two sisters who hosted Jesus in their home. Martha was preoccupied by all of the serving she was doing for everyone else, and Mary sat by Jesus' feet to listen to His teaching (Luke 10:38–40). Jesus said, "Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things, but one thing is necessary. Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be taken away from her" (Luke 10:41–42).
• The woman who washed Jesus’ feet gives an example of love by her pouring out all she had in worship of Him (Luke 7:36–50).
• John 14:15 reveals that love is expressed through obedience to Christ as Jesus says, “If you love me, you will keep my commandments.”
• One of the main ways we show God love is by spending time with Him. God wants us to know Him—as would be the case in any close human relationship (see 1 Corinthians 8:3). We show God love by listening to Him and devoting time to be with Him.
• We show God love by reading His Word. In God's Word, we learn His instructions and we learn how to recognize His voice. In this way, we are both getting to know Him and being known by Him in light of the truth of His Word (Hebrews 4:12–13).
• Allowing the Word of God to teach and lead us demonstrates our love for Him. Second Timothy 3:16–17 says, "All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work."
• We love God by keeping His commandments: "For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. And his commandments are not burdensome" (1 John 5:3; see also John 14:15, 23; 15:10–11; 2 John 1:6; Psalm 40:8).
• We love God by loving others. In Mark 12:31, Jesus teaches the second half of the greatest commandment: "The second is this: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no other commandment greater than these." We are to love our neighbors as ourselves. This means we are to treat them as equals and even put their needs above our own (Philippians 2:1–11).
• James 2:8 says, "If you really fulfill the royal law according to the Scripture, 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself,' you are doing well." Romans 13:8–10 says, "Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. … Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law."
• As Christians, the way we love others is true evidence of our faith and it is part of how we share God with others: "Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God abides in us and his love is perfected in us" (1 John 4:11–12; cf. John 13:34–35).

IMPLICATIONS FOR TODAY

Loving God begins by surrendering our lives—our will, desires, and everything—to Him. To love Him is to seek to live for Him. Love for God reshapes our goals, habits, and relationships, gradually transforming our hearts to reflect His character. As we pursue Him above all else, sin and selfishness lose their grip. In every season of life—whether in comfort or hardship—loving God means choosing Him first, trusting Him fully, and walking in obedience with undivided devotion.

We love God by engaging relationally with Him, sharing our deepest thoughts and feelings with Him—our fears, frustrations, joys, and triumphs (Psalm 62:8). We show God our love and trust in wanting to know Him and be known by Him. Psalm 119 is the longest chapter in the Bible, and the psalmist devotes much time to revealing how God knows Him so intimately and how he, in return, delights in God's Word, meditating on it day and night as an act of love and devotion. This kind of relationship with God is not distant or formal—it is deeply personal, honest, and rooted in a desire to walk closely with Him. Loving God means cherishing His commands, not as burdens, but as life-giving guidance from a loving Father (1 John 5:3). It means returning to Him even after we fall, knowing His mercy is greater than our failures. Ultimately, our love for God is expressed in a life wholly oriented around Him—heart, soul, mind, and strength—because He first loved us (1 John 4:19).

Our love for God translates into remaining obedient and steadfast to His commandments, even in times of persecution or personal trial. We see examples of this time and time again in the stories of Paul, Peter, and other early church apostles being imprisoned, tortured, or even killed for the sake of Christ. Most of us will never have to face physical threat or death for keeping the commandments of Christ, but living a life obedient to God does require the sacrifice of dying to ourselves and our own sinful desires so we may live for Christ (Romans 12:1–2; Galatians 2:20; Titus 2:11–14). Loving God also translates into loving others well. Jesus taught that love for God and love for neighbor are inseparable—together they form the greatest commandment (Mark 12:30–31; see also John 15:10–12). When we serve, forgive, show compassion, and bear one another’s burdens, we reflect God’s heart and demonstrate that our love for Him is real (John 13:34–35; 1 John 4:11–12). This love is not merely a feeling but a choice to act in ways that honor God and uplift those around us. As we grow in love for God, it naturally overflows into our relationships, drawing others to His truth and grace through the witness of our lives.

Why do we love God? We love God because He first loved us (1 John 4:19). He sent Jesus for the forgiveness of our sins and eternal redemption (John 3:16–18; Romans 5:8). We show God our love with our total devotion, recognizing Him as the creator and sustainer of all things, by trusting in Him for salvation, and by turning back toward Him, even after moments we have failed. "Whom have I in heaven but you? And there is nothing on earth that I desire besides you. My flesh and my heart may fail, but God is the strength of my heart and my portion forever" (Psalm 73:25–26).

We love God by living lives dedicated to knowing Him, being known by Him, reading His Word, living in obedience, and loving others as we love ourselves. We love God by loving Him with our whole selves.

UNDERSTAND

• Loving God means full devotion of heart, soul, mind, and strength.
• Loving God is shown through obedience to and living for Him.
• Loving God overflows into loving others.

REFLECT

• How do you express your love for God with your heart, soul, mind, and strength? Where might you grow in deeper devotion?
• How do your daily habits and decisions reflect obedience to God’s Word as an expression of your love for Him?
• How does your love for God influence how you treat others in your life, especially those who are difficult to love?

ENGAGE

• What are the connections between the greatest commandments—loving God and loving others—and how should this shape how we live?
• How can we encourage one another to grow in loving God not just through feelings but also through obedience and knowing and being known?
• What does it look like to love God with our whole selves in the midst of everyday responsibilities, challenges, and distractions?