We love God by loving his word

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English: An image of Psalm 23 (King James' Ver...
English: An image of Psalm 23 (King James' Version), frontispiece to the 1880 omnibus printing of The Sunday at Home. Scanned at 800 dpi. Français : Illustration du Psaume 23 (version autorisée par le roi Jacques), en frontispice de l'édition omnibus du Sunday at home. Version numérisée à 800 dpi. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
I am to love God by loving His Word. Therefore, it is my delight to receive it. Again, think about receiving a present. The word present is just another way of saying "gift." And what does the word gift mean? It means an act of grace—that a person gives you something not because you deserve it, but because they decided to express their love.

Ten times in the great Psalm 119 we read of the psalmist praising the Lord for receiving the Lord's Word, saying he "delights" in the Word (Ps. 119:14, 16, 24, 35, 47, 70, 77, 92, 143, 174). Why? Because the Word is the living Word of the Lord to us, His people. The psalmist also describes his delight in the Word in comparison to other delightful things. He compares the Word to gold and silver, saying in verse 72, "The law of your mouth is better to me than thousands of gold and silver pieces" (cf. v. 127). He compares the Word to honey, saying in verse 103, "How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!" Elsewhere in Scripture, we read of the Word being compared to other things such as these. The Word is compared to a sword that defends against spiritual enemies (Eph. 6:17). The Word is compared to a lamp that guides us (Ps. 119:105). The Word is compared to milk that nourishes our souls (1 Peter 2:2).

If you love God, it is your duty to read the Word and your delight to receive it as the very Word of the true and living God.

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