CHRISTIAN LOVE, by Hugh Binning

A Brief Book Summary from Books At a Glance

by Steve West

 

Table of Contents

1 Love and Self-Love
2 The Excellence of Christian Love
3 Motives to Christian Love
4 Christian Love in Practice
5 Humility and Meekness
Excerpt of three sermons from The Sinner’s Sanctuary

 

Summary

 

Chapter 1: Love and Self-Love

In God’s design, the perfect fit, unity, and harmony that exists in the whole of things is greater than that which is in the parts alone. God’s power is shown in creating all things out of nothing, but his wisdom is revealed in creating beauty by combining things into harmonious wholes that would have been discordant if left as individual entities. As the human body is a masterful arrangement of parts into a designed unity, so the human race is to function in unity and shared purpose. Out of love for God, we are to love one another and exist as one. The greatest commands are about love for God and love of each other, and love is the summary and fulfillment of the law. Sin has disordered and marred every relationship, and self-love has eclipsed our love for God and our neighbor. Rather than living and willing for God’s glory and the common good, people work for their own selfish advantage. When everyone puts themselves at the center, the human race will always be at cross-purposes and trying to achieve incompatible ends.

In the gospel, Christ has reconciled sinners to God and people to one another; he has removed the seeds of discord and enmity and planted the seeds of divine love. Loving each other was the original command, but now the additional element is that we are to love in accordance with our redemption and the love our Redeemer has given to us. We imitate our Father when we love our enemies, but we are also to have a special love for those who are chosen in Christ. The sine qua non of the Christian is love, and where love grows cold the soul is in decay. . . .

[To continue reading this summary, please see below....]