Jesus’ letter to the church in Ephesus in Revelation 2 identified many very commendable things about the church in that city. They were doctrinally discerning, diligent in ministry activities, and persevering in serving the Lord. But there was one overwhelmingly devastating problem, they had forsaken their first love. The first and greatest commandments is that we are to love the Lord our God with all our heart, soul, strength, and mind (Matthew 22:37). The believers in Ephesus had that love in the beginning. But by this time that love for Jesus had grown cold. It’s a powerful lesson to teach us that busyness and orthodoxy are no substitutes for devotion for the lover of our souls.
Two of the Bible’s most prominent themes are God’s love for us and our love for Him. The cross is the greatest proof of God’s love for us. And the essence of the Christian life is our love for Him. The first motivates and thrills us, and the second shapes how we please Him. As our Bibles are full of passages about both, so also are our hymnals full of compositions about both His love for us and our love for Him. A quick check of the topics in the table of contents in the front and those in the topical index at the back will not confirm that, but also make an impressive demonstration of that.