Excerpt
Divine love is perfect and infinite—but never detached from law, covenant, or personal responsibility. President Nelson teaches that God’s love lifts us, but it also leads us.
Intro
There are many ideas in the world about love—“unconditional love,” “love accepts everything,” “love is all that matters.” But President Russell M. Nelson gently corrects this. Divine love is deeper, higher, and holier than the world’s definition. It is love that lifts, but also directs. Love that embraces, but also invites repentance, covenant keeping, and discipleship.
Notes From the Speaker
President Nelson teaches:
- Divine love is perfect—complete and free of selfishness.
- Divine love is infinite—extending to all who ever lived or will live.
- Divine love is enduring—God keeps covenant and mercy “to a thousand generations.”
- Divine love is universal—He sends rain on the just and unjust, and invites all to come unto Him.
But he also clarifies something rarely discussed:
“While divine love can be called perfect, infinite, enduring, and universal, it cannot correctly be characterized as unconditional.”
Not unconditional—in the worldly sense.
Divine love includes law.
Divine love invites us to rise.
Divine love calls us home through covenant.
Perspective (Direct Quotes)
“God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son.”
“The Lord keepeth covenant and mercy with them that love him and keep his commandments.”
“He denieth none that come unto him.”
Divine love is not passive.
It moves.
It sacrifices.
It teaches.
It commands.
And it changes us.
Practice (Today, Not Someday)
- Love God by keeping commandments.
- Love others in ways that lift them toward Christ, not just toward comfort.
- Pray with real intent, trusting that His love is shaping you—not indulging you.
- Stand firm when the world pushes to redefine love into permission.
- Anchor your identity in God’s love, not the world’s applause.
Final Reflection
Divine love is not a soft pillow—it is a guiding compass.
It doesn’t remove the need for obedience; it empowers it.
It doesn’t eliminate consequences; it helps us grow through them.
It does not excuse sin; it rescues us from sin.
President Nelson’s message reminds me that God’s love is best understood not when everything feels easy, but when we recognize that His love shapes us into something greater than we could ever create alone.
Pocket I’m Keeping
God’s love is infinite, but His blessings are predicated on my willingness to keep commandments and walk the covenant path. His love always points me toward the next step.
What I Hear Now (Direct Quotes)
“Divine love cannot be correctly characterized as unconditional.”
“He inviteth all to come unto him.”
“The Father and the Son are one—in purpose and love.”
