Love to Jesus, the essential test of salvation. By Charles Spurgeon.

1 Corinthians chapter 16, verse 22. If anyone does not love the Lord, that person is cursed.

There are many who profess to be Christians who attend church, read scripture, and maintain a moral life. But there is a solemn and searching question that pierces through all outward forms and reaches the very heart. Do you sincerely love the Lord Jesus Christ?

The Apostle Paul, under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, declares in the most direct terms that love to Jesus is not optional. It is essential. If anyone does not love the Lord, that person is cursed. This is not mere emotional affection, but a deep, spirit-wrought devotion flowing from the soul that has been redeemed by grace. To lack genuine love for Jesus is to prove oneself still in darkness, still under divine wrath, and an utter stranger to salvation.

Why is this the test? Because true salvation unites the soul to the Lord Jesus, He is not merely the giver of blessings. He is the blessing itself. The regenerated heart is drawn irresistibly to Him. It delights in His beauty, trusts in His sin-atoning sufferings and death, rests in His righteousness, and yearns for His presence.

Love to Jesus is the surest fruit of the new birth. It is the mark of one who has seen Him as precious, who has tasted His mercy and who has surrendered to His Lordship. This love is not perfect, nor is it always fervent. At times it may flicker low, but it is genuine. The believer may mourn his coldness, weep over his dull heart, and cry with Peter, Lord, you know that I love you. But he cannot deny his love for Jesus, for it has been planted in his heart by the Holy Spirit and it binds his soul to his Savior.

On the other hand, many merely religious people remain dead in sin because they have never been brought to love Jesus Himself. They admire His ethics, speak of His example, and even take His name upon their lips, but their hearts are far from Him. They have never seen the preciousness of the Lord Jesus.

Let us then examine ourselves. Do we love the Lord Jesus Christ supremely? Does He dwell in our thoughts, rule in our hearts, and hold first place in our affections? Do we long to please Him and be with Him forever?

May God's grace be eternally upon all who love our Lord Jesus Christ.

Ephesians chapter 6 verse 24.