Goldenoldie,
Thanks for teaching me about love being "the perfect bond on unity".

Pilgrim,
I am having a hard time believieng I cannot love God "with my all". With God, all things are possible. In addition, I just don't see the Word teaching this to mature Christians.

The Fall is the 'root cause' for when Adam sinned ALL died (spiritually) and one of the two punishments resulting from Adam's transgression was the inheritance of a corrupt nature. Even after regeneration, there is a remnant of the old sin/corrupt nature that prevents a true Christian from being perfect in thought, word and/or deed. (cf. Rom 6:6ff, 7:14-25; Eph 4:22-24)

Rom 6:6-7 knowing this, that our old self was crucified with Him, in order that our body of sin might be done away with, so that we would no longer be slaves to sin; for he who has died is freed from sin. NASU
Gal 2:20-21 "I have been crucified with Christ; and it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself up for me. NASU
I looked up your reference to Rom 6:6 and read verse 7 to see context. This passage is clearly telling me that the purpose of crucifying my old self is that I no longer be a salve to sin. It doesn’t say I should be “less of a salve to sin”, it plainly says I should “no longer be a slave to sin”. As a result, I do not see the Fall as something that disables my ability to Love God. Gal 2:20 sheds more light on Paul’s point of view of being crucified in this life. Look what he says! When he is crucified he no longer lives. Instead, it is Christ who lives in him. In other words, it is Christ who is taking possession of his physical life when his old self is crucified. I want the closeness to God that Paul had and I am willing to crucify my old self so that I no longer be a slave to sin. This is what I believe is required to be able to love the Lord my God with all my heart, and with all my soul, and with all my might in this life. “With God, all things are possible!”


Rom 7:14-25 For we know that the Law is spiritual, but I am of flesh, sold into bondage to sin. For what I am doing, I do not understand; for I am not practicing what I would like to do, but I am doing the very thing I hate. But if I do the very thing I do not want to do, I agree with the Law, confessing that the Law is good. So now, no longer am I the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me. For I know that nothing good dwells in me, that is, in my flesh; for the willing is present in me, but the doing of the good is not. For the good that I want, I do not do, but I practice the very evil that I do not want. But if I am doing the very thing I do not want, I am no longer the one doing it, but sin which dwells in me. I find then the principle that evil is present in me, the one who wants to do good. For I joyfully concur with the law of God in the inner man, but I see a different law in the members of my body, waging war against the law of my mind and making me a prisoner of the law of sin which is in my members. Wretched man that I am! Who will set me free from the body of this death? Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, on the one hand I myself with my mind am serving the law of God, but on the other, with my flesh the law of sin. NASU

To understand this passage one must understand why Paul speaks this way to them. He speaks to them “in human terms” because of the “weakness of their flesh” (Rom 6:19). In Romans 7 he is getting in the trenches with them, admitting there is a battle with the flesh pulling him away from God’s will for him. But he does not give up because there is a reason for thanksgiving! He then says what the reason is: “I myself with my mind am serving the law of God, but on the other, with my flesh the law of sin”. Is it obvious that his flesh (the old self in Rom 6:6-7) is in the way of God’s will and as can be seen in Gal 2:20, he can crucify the old man to be set free from this death. So then, I to can give thanks! For it is with my mind that I will be able to love the Lord my God with all my heart, and with all my soul, and with all my might in this life.


Eph 4:22-24 that, in reference to your former manner of life, you lay aside the old self, which is being corrupted in accordance with the lusts of deceit, and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind, and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth. NASU
Again, I am using your reference and again we see the importance of the mind. It makes a decision to lay aside the old self and put on a new self which in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness and holiness of the truth. I do not see anything here that would cause me to conclude that loving God “with my all” has been put out of my reach.

I will admit that loving God "with my all" "all of the time" is something I have not been given the grace to do. Nevertheless, I still pray for it often and, while I am at it, I pray that I would be "filled with the Spirit" "all of the time". With man this is impossible but with God, all things are possible.