"So the God who is love is first and foremost light, and sentimental ideas of his love as an indulgent, benevolent softness, divorced from moral standards and concerns, must therefore be ruled out from the start. God’s love is holy love. The God whom Jesus made known is not a God who is indifferent to moral distinctions, but a God who loves righteousness and hates iniquity, a God whose ideal for his children is that they should “be perfect. . . as your heavenly Father is perfect” (Mt 5:48). He will not take into his company any person, however orthodox in mind, who will not follow after holiness of life. And those whom he does accept he exposes to drastic discipline, in order that they may attain what they seek. “The Lord disciplines those he loves, and he punishes everyone he accepts as a son. . . God disciplines us for our good, that we may share in his holiness. . . It [discipline] produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it” (Heb 12:6-11). God’s love is stern, for it expresses holiness in the lover and seeks holiness for the beloved. Scripture does not allow us to suppose that because God is love we may look to him to confer happiness on people who will not seek holiness, or to shield his loved ones from trouble when he knows that they need trouble to further their sanctification."

Packer, J. I. (2011-09-26). Knowing God (pp. 137-138). Intervarsity Press. Kindle Edition.

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