Love = Keeping

14 times, in both the Old and New Testaments, love is defined as keeping God's commandments.

In the Old Testament, the Nation of Israel demonstrated their love for God by keeping His commandments.

• Exodus 20:6 & Deut 5:10 And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.
  
• Deut 7:9 Know therefore that the LORD thy God, he is God, the faithful God, which keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments to a thousand generations;
  
• Deut 11:1 Therefore thou shalt love the LORD thy God, and keep his charge, and his statutes, and his judgments, and his commandments, alway.
  
• Deut 11:22 For if ye shall diligently keep all these commandments which I command you, to do them, to love the LORD your God, to walk in all his ways, and to cleave unto him;
  
• Deut 19:9 If thou shalt keep all these commandments to do them, which I command thee this day, to love the LORD thy God, and to walk ever in his ways;
  
• Deuteronomy 30:16 In that I command thee this day to love the LORD thy God, to walk in his ways, and to keep his commandments and his statutes and his judgments, that thou mayest live and multiply:
  
• Joshua 22:5 But take diligent heed to do the commandment and the law, which Moses the servant of the LORD charged you, to love the LORD your God, and to walk in all his ways, and to keep his commandments, and to cleave unto him, and to serve him with all your heart and with all your soul.
  
• Daniel 9:4 And I prayed unto the LORD my God, and made my confession, and said, O Lord, the great and dreadful God, keeping the covenant and mercy to them that love him, and to them that keep his commandments;

In the New Testament, the same definition for love is given. Love is an actionable demonstration of keeping commandments.

• John 14:15 If ye love me, keep my commandments.
  
• John 14:23 Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my words: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him.
  
• John 15:10 If ye keep my commandments, ye shall abide in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and abide in his love.
  
• 1 John 5:2 By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments.
  
• 1 John 5:3 For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous.

The Bible teaches us that IF someone claims to be a follower of Christ, they should have a desire to want to keep the commands given them by God. Keeping God's commands doesn't save a person's soul. However, it IS evidence that a saved person love's God more than they love themselves.

When a preacher or another Christian points out something in someone's life that needs changing, that doesn't make them a legalist. It may have revealed that that person doesn't love God as much as they think you do.

The carnal, modern church is full of Christians that proclaim: "Legalism."

The conservative, biblical church that preaches truth is full of Christians that proclaim: "Let's love God more by keeping his commandments!"