The Love That Defines True Virtue: God and Created Things in Right Order | Jonathan Edwards

Deep Dive into The Nature of True Virtue by Jonathan Edwards - Showing How That Love, wherein True Virtue Consists, Respects the Divine Being and Created ThingsJonathan Edwards asserts that true virtue fundamentally consists in supreme love to God, because God possesses the greatest share of universal existence and moral excellency. Because all beauty in the universe is merely a reflection of the divine glory, placing God at the center of moral affection is a rational necessity.Edwards directly addresses the objection that human benevolence should only target fellow creatures since humans cannot physically profit or enrich God. He counters this by arguing that benevolence also encompasses rejoicing in a being's happiness and serving as an instrument to promote their glory, making God a proper and supreme object of our affection. He heavily critiques moral philosophers who minimize the Deity in their ethical frameworks, maintaining that without prioritizing a supreme love for God, true virtue cannot exist.A significant portion of the text critiques "private affection," which refers to love directed toward a limited system or particular group—such as self-love, family loyalty, or a specific society—when it is detached from general benevolence. Edwards argues that this limited love is not genuinely virtuous. Instead, it tends to clash with universal existence and exalts an infinitely inferior, private interest above the supreme reality. Elevating a lesser object above God is described as an act of enmity against the rightful sovereign and the true moral order of the universe.Therefore, love toward created beings is only virtuous when it is subordinate to and directly derived from a supreme love for God. Edwards notes that even God's goodness toward creatures flows from His ultimate love for Himself. A truly virtuous mind aligns with God's ultimate purpose by promoting His glory and guiding creatures toward joy and union with Him. Ultimately, any scheme of moral philosophy lacking supreme devotion to God is fundamentally defective, as true virtue requires God to be its initial source and ultimate end.Reformed Theologian GPT: https://chat.openai.com/g/g-XXwzX1gnv-reformed-theologianYoutube: https://www.youtube.com/@ReformedExplainerSpotify Music: https://open.spotify.com/artist/1t5dz4vEgvHqUknYQfwpRI?si=e-tDRFR2Qf6By1sAcMdkdwhttps://buymeacoffee.com/edi2730