IDEA 13
Knowing GOD versus Loving Him
He uses metaphors, such as The Light of the heavens and the earth, to point our thoughts in particular directions; but as with spotlights shining up into a clear sky, we never see the end of them. There is no solid object there to receive these rays and reflect them back to where we stand and watch. (IIQ, page 16)
In this blog, I have written about knowing GOD (Idea 6) and intelligence (Idea 11) as key to what we were created for — to seek Him (Idea 12). But I have also presented loving GOD as selfless giving (Idea 7), the next step on the path of personal development (Idea 12), and the ultimate Divine Act (Idea 10).
An observant reader may well ask, ‘Which is it to be, then? Knowledge and love are clearly divergent operations. Lovers and scholars have distinct characters, and utilize different faculties. So please make up your mind.’
Many aim to see GOD, but seeing demands a finite, visible object, and thus no one can see The Unlimited in this life. The aiming, however, is well within our power. What GOD wants from us is not the sight, but the look. And so He gives us signs, of which the greatest are within us. Guided by those signs, we may not see the destination, but we can work out which way to go. That requires cumulative experience, i.e., knowledge, and keen intelligence.
Love also feeds off of signs. Most of us not only accept them, we gorge on them. To rise above this voracity, typical of herbivores, social media scrollers, and other bottom feeders, we need to cultivate gratitude. The lowest level lives for what it gets. The middle echelon rejoices that it came to them. But the highest save their gratitude for The One Who gave it (regardless of what was given and to whom).
To see this, you need discernment — intelligent love. The two meet here. Yet here is where the difference between knowing and loving GOD also becomes apparent. If knowing is your goal, then you are following an endless spotlight into heaven. The joy is in the search itself, soaring without scoring. You will never gain control, but you will advance. But if loving is what you want, then you have all you need to love GOD with your entire being. All it takes is gratitude.
Just reflect on that for a moment. To know The Infinite is forever beyond you, because you and your knowledge are finite. But to love The Infinite is well within your power, and exceeds it too; it overflows from your minuscule existence with every smile, kind word, or good deed that you will just as He wills it … since The Infinite loves you infinitely.
In the race between knowing GOD and loving Him, Love wins in a heartbeat.
Download the PDF version for free at Ideas Inspired by the Qur’ān – Mont Redmond complete version, or purchase a hard copy at Ideas Inspired by the Qur’an: Redmond, Mont: 9781738842506: Books – Amazon.ca.
