hisalone,

I do not claim to have read all of the posts in their entirety; but, I do think you might benefit from thinking about this in a different way or with different categories. Not that there's anything wrong with the classic distinction between the love of benevolence, the love of beneficence, and the love of complacency; but, when I find myself beating my head against a wall about something for a while I check to see if there's another way to the other side. I would heartily second Marie's recommendation of John MacArthur's excellent and inspiring book The Love of God.

You can also read his sermon series on the same subject:

The Love of God, Part 1

The Love of God, Part 2

The Love of God, Part 3

The Love of God, Part 4

the Love of God, Part 5

The Love of God, Part 6


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