Can God Command our Emotions?

There are many Scriptures which suggest that we are to have certain emotional responses to the Lord. But is it possible for our emotions to be commanded, even by God? Can we really control our emotions? Here is John Piper's response to this question.

"Jesus Commands the Emotions:

"I recall reading a book in college that argued: Love cannot be a feeling because it is commanded, and you can't command the feelings. In other words, love must simply be an act of the will or a deed of the body without involving the emotions or affections. But the problem with this argument is that the premise is false: Jesus does command the feelings. He demands that our emotions be one way and not another.
"He demands, for example, that we rejoice in certain circumstances (Matt 5:12), and that we fear the right person (Luke 12:5), and that we not feel shame over him (Luke 9:26), and that we forgive from the heart (Matt 18:35), and so on. If a feeling is proper to have, Jesus can demand it. The fact that I may be too corrupt to experience the emotions that I ought to have does not change my duty to have them. If Jesus commands it, I should have it. My moral inability to produce it does not remove my guilt; it reveals my corruption. It makes me desperate for a new heart - which Jesus came to give." [1]

 

REFERENCE

[1] John Piper. What Jesus Demands from the World. Crossway Books, Wheaton Illinois. 2006. pp 52-53