We continue to look at what should be the very focus and center of theology. Unless theologians and those who deal with Scripture turn from man-centeredness and from looking at God as if He is man-centered, our theology and our biblical studies will be no better than forms of humanism and will be a form of humanism itself. We have traversed some teachings and will traverse a few more trying to show the difference that the biblical God who is centered upon Himself in His perfect Trinity has with the god of modern America who is focused on man. As we think about the source of love, we are forced into the view that the source of love is either from ourselves or from God. But we must face this issue with clear thinking and above all Scripture. The source of love is what determines the object of our love. If the source of love is from ourselves, then we will love ourselves first and foremost. We can see that from Luke 6:32: “If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you? For even sinners love those who love them.” What we see from this text is that those who have themselves as their source for love will love themselves and all those that do something that is good for their chief love which is self. The Greatest Commandment is to love God with all of our being and then to love our neighbors as ourselves. The sinner, however, is focused on himself as his chief love and so loves himself rather than God and his neighbors. The Pharisees demonstrate to us what religion is when self is not delivered from love for self. Self-love becomes enamored with self in religion and so does all from love for self and for what self thinks it can obtain from others and God for self. The source of love will determine the object of love.
Scripture teaches us that in order to have true love we must have God work it in us. Apart from Christ we can do nothing (John 15:5) so true love must come through Christ to the believer in order to be fruit from God. Anything that we call love is not love if it comes from self because self only produces self-love. The Holy Spirit must pour out the love of God in the soul (Romans 5:5) which is the fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:22ff). If God is the source of love in our hearts, then what is the object of His love that He works in us? If God does not love Himself as triune first and foremost, then what is the love that He works in us by the Holy Spirit? If God as triune is the source of all true love, then He is also the object of all true love as the Greatest Commandments teach us. The fruit of the Holy Spirit is love and that love must be for God or the Holy Spirit would be working in us that which is idolatrous. Does the Holy Spirit work in man a love for human beings as our primary love in contradiction to the Greatest Commandment or does the Holy Spirit work a love for God in man? If God as triune does not love God as triune more than human beings, then how can He work love for Himself in us? If the phrase “God is love” simply means that He must love human beings with a focus on human beings, then there is no way He could work love for Himself in our hearts which is indeed the greatest love that there is. Unless God loves God above all and whatever He loves He loves for His own sake there is no source of love that we have access to that will lift us from idolatry.
I John 4:7-9 speaks with perfect clarity to this: “Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God; and everyone who loves is born of God and knows God. 8 The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love. 9 By this the love of God was manifested in us, that God has sent His only begotten Son into the world so that we might live through Him.” What we see is that love is from God (v. 7). The source of true love is from God. True biblical love is from God and all other love is from the self-love and self-centeredness of wicked man. This is why the words of Christ in John 13:35 should hit us with such force: “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” The disciples of Christ are known by their love for each other. This is how we can tell if we or others are true disciples of Christ. This is also a teaching in differing passages in I John. The reason that a true disciple has true love for other true disciples is because Christ lives in them and the love God has for Himself is worked in His people and they are known for their true love.
We then go on and see in I John 4:7 that since love is from God all who love (truly love) have been born of God and known God. On the other hand, the one that does not love (true love from God) does not know God for God is love. In other words, the God who is love gives His people true love and those people are born of God and they know God. To know God includes a love for God. Verse 9 then tells us that the love of God was manifested in us. Simply put, the source of love determines the object of love. If a person truly loves God and not just because that person thinks God has done something to benefit that person, then the love of God has worked itself in that person and that person is born of God and knows God. Since a believer loves God the love that God has for Himself as been worked in the believer and so love is from Him, and through Him, and then to Him (Rom 11:36). Without any real question God must love Himself with all of His heart if He is to work love for Himself in us.
God Loves... Himself 
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