Abu Idris Khulani (may Allah have mercy on him), one of the most famous student of Companions (a tabi’i) says that once I visited Ma’adh ibn Jabal in the mosque of Damascus and told him that,

“By Allah I love you for the sake of Allah.”

He repeatedly asked me to swear if it was so and when I answered in affirmative every time, he pulled me by my garment (shawl) and said,

“Hear the good news!

I have heard the exalted and blessed Messenger of Allah saying that “Allah says, My love shall certainly be for those who love each other for My sake, who sit in each other’s company for My sake, who visit each other for My sake and spend money on each other for My sake.”

Muwatta Imam Malik, Kitab-al-Shi’r quoted in ‘Easy Good Deeds’ by Sayyidi wa sanadi Mufti Taqi Usmani (may Allah preserve him), page 48