Virtue begins in love

I read something yesterday in my devotional (Come to the Waters, by James Montgomery Boice) that really struck me. Boice is speaking about Abraham, and how though Abraham at times sinned, that did not change God's view of him. Abraham remained, through it all, "God's man." Boice writes:

It is good to serve a God like that, a good who remains sovereign even when we doubt his ability to care for us, a God who remains gracious even when we sin. To serve a God like that is the world's greatest joy and opportunity. To know that he is like that is the greatest incentive you will ever have to keep from sinning.

So, "the greatest incentive you will ever have to keep from sinning" is the knowledge of God. The knowledge that God is sovereign is not enough. The knowledge that he is, yes, sovereign, and also that he loves us, that he is patient and merciful with us, draws from us a response of love in return, and in that state of loving and being loved we find our incentive to "keep from sinning."

Paul has a lot to say about this matter in Romans and elsewhere, but I want to turn to the one who shows us the heart of God more vividly than any other. Jesus said:

If you love me, you will keep my commandments.

The life of a Jesus-follower can be one of progress in virtue. That is what it is meant to be. That is the promise. We "keep in step with the Spirit," we grow in Christlikeness, we build our house (our life) upon the rock, not shifting sand. It is good to look to the virtues, but we begin by looking to Jesus, and seeing how he loved us, we respond in love. Progress in virtue, progress in commandment-keeping, is a progress in love for God and for people. All virtue begins in love.