These two phrases cannot be separated, ”keeping His commandments,” and “abiding in the love of Jesus.” When abiding in the love of Jesus, life is under the law of Christ; and we will be able to prove that we are the joy of the Lord.
We must obey His commandments if we expect to enjoy the sunshine of His love. If we live in sin we cannot expect the blessing of the Lord to be upon us, for it is HOLINESS that makes the heart of God glad.
It is a sensitive position to the limit to make Jesus glad, and to enjoy the love of the Lord. Sin will affect the joy and love, as the lily of the valley is affected by the hot weather or cold weather. When our innermost being is on fire, and our thoughts and our will are under His command, then our lips will not cease from glorifying our Lord.
Then His great love will cover us; and if we want these blessings to continue, we need to live the life of HOLINESS. Sin will be the cloud that will cover God’s sunshine on us. If we watch, and live the life of obedience with full dedication, abiding in the Light as He is in the Light, then we abide in the love of Jesus, as He abides in the love of the Father.
This is a wonderful promise, but it starts with the conditional word, “IF.” God’s blessing is conditional. Lord, give me the power to use the word “IF” as a key to this priceless treasure.