Are there levels of Allah's love for His servant, and is love a more sublime station than contentment?

Allah’s love for His servants varies. His love for His prophets and messengers is greater than His love for all other righteous people. The more complete a servant’s righteousness, and the more their piety and diligence in seeking Allah’s pleasure increase, the more Allah’s love for them increases.

There is no consensus on the hierarchy of the stages of spiritual journey. Shaykh al-Islam indicated that the classifications of stations (maqamat) and stages (manazil) mentioned by some Sufis do not necessarily apply to all of Allah’s awliya (saints).

All these stages must accompany the traveler on their path. It does not mean that because one is higher than another, the lesser one is abandoned. For example, repentance accompanies the seeker through all their stations, and it is their ultimate end.

The purpose of arranging these stages is to arrange the conditioned upon its accompanying condition. For example, the station of contentment (rida) cannot be reached except by first attaining the station of patience (sabr).