Rom 13: 8-10 Debt of Love

8 Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for the one who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the Law.

9 For this, “YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY, YOU SHALL NOT MURDER, YOU SHALL NOT STEAL, YOU SHALL NOT COVET,” and if there is any other commandment, it is summed up in this saying, “YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.”

10 Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the Law.

11 Do this, knowing the time, that it is already the hour for you to awaken from sleep; for now salvation is nearer to us than when we first believed.

12 The night is almost gone, and the day is near. Therefore let’s rid ourselves of the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.

13 Let’s behave properly as in the day, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual promiscuity and debauchery, not in strife and jealousy.

14 But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts.

Last week, we talked about the christian’s  responsibility in dual citizenship.
earth and heaven.

it was described in verse 7 as a “due”

due (ὀφειλή, opheilē, n.  [4053]. debt, duty; (pl.) taxes

we discussed the overlaps and contradictions to be faced and responded to within scriptural examples.

(our debt owed:

7 Pay to all what is due them: tax to whom tax is due; custom to whom custom; respect to whom respect; honor to whom honor.

This week, we dive into Paul’s explanation of two more dues (responsibilities or debts owed):

1. our neighbor
2. ourselves

verses 8-10 describe our debt to our neighbor

verses 11-14 describe our debt to ourselves 

let’s discuss our debt to our neighbor first  

8 Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for the one who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the Law.

9 For this, “YOU SHALL NOT COMMIT ADULTERY, YOU SHALL NOT MURDER, YOU SHALL NOT STEAL, YOU SHALL NOT COVET,” and if there is any other commandment, it is summed up in this saying, “YOU SHALL LOVE YOUR NEIGHBOR AS YOURSELF.”

10 Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the Law.

 

some may have difficulty with the concept of a debt of love owed to another or even to oneself

(just as certainly many already have difficulty with paying taxes, customs, respect, and honor to our government)

that’s ok (difficulty liking something does not preclude obeying that something

(it simply challenges our character)

“how can I owe love to someone who never loved me?”  is the most likely objection to this concept of a love debt to another.

Matt. 18

21 Then Peter came up and said to Him, “Lord, how many times shall my brother sin against me and I still forgive him? Up to seven times?”

22 Jesus *said to him, “I do not say to you, up to seven times, but up to seventy-seven times.

23 ¶ “For this reason the kingdom of heaven is like a king who wanted to settle accounts with his slaves.

24 “And when he had begun to settle them, one who owed him ten thousand talents was brought to him.

25 “But since he did not have the means to repay, his master commanded that he be sold, along with his wife and children and all that he had, and repayment be made.

26 “So the slave fell to the ground and prostrated himself before him, saying, ‘Have patience with me and I will repay you everything.’

27 “And the master of that slave felt compassion, and he released him and forgave him the debt.

28 “But that slave went out and found one of his fellow slaves who owed him a hundred denarii; and he seized him and began to choke him, saying, ‘Pay back what you owe!’

29 “So his fellow slave fell to the ground and began to plead with him, saying, ‘Have patience with me and I will repay you.’

30 “But he was unwilling, and went and threw him in prison until he would pay back what was owed.

31 “So when his fellow slaves saw what had happened, they were deeply grieved and came and reported to their master all that had happened.

32 “Then summoning him, his master *said to him, ‘You wicked slave, I forgave you all that debt because you pleaded with me.

33 ‘Should you not also have had mercy on your fellow slave, in the same way that I had mercy on you?’

34 “And his master, moved with anger, handed him over to the torturers until he would repay all that was owed him.

35 “My heavenly Father will also do the same to you, if each of you does not forgive his brother from your heart.”

what was the reason the master said his servant was wicked ?

why should the servant have forgiven a fellow slave ?

what is the principle being taught here by Jesus ?

1 John 4

7 Beloved, let’s love one another; for love is from God, and everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God. 

8 The one who does not love does not know God, because God is love. 

9 By this the love of God was revealed [a]in us, that God has sent His only Son into the world so that we may live through Him. 

10 In this is love, not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son to be the [b]propitiation for our sins. 

11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. 

12 No one has ever seen God; if we love one another, God remains in us, and His love is perfected in us. 

13 By this we know that we remain in Him and He in us, because He has given to us of His Spirit. 

14 We have seen and testify that the Father has sent the Son to be the Savior of the world.

15 Whoever confesses that Jesus is the Son of God, God remains in him, and he in God. 

16 We have come to know and have believed the love which God has [c]for us. God is love, and the one who remains in love remains in God, and God remains in him. 

17 By this, love is perfected with us, so that we may have confidence in the day of judgment; because as He is, we also are in this world. 

18 There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear, because fear [d]involves punishment, and the one who fears is not perfected in love. 

19 We love, because He first loved us. 

20 If someone says, “I love God,” and yet he hates his brother or sister, he is a liar; for the one who does not love his brother and sister whom he has seen, cannot love God, whom he has not seen. 

21 And this commandment we have from Him, that the one who loves God must also love his brother and sister.

what is our cause for loving others (what enables and motivates us to love others) ?

God loved us first, then tells us to go and do the same

It’s a debt  …  Pay it Forward

sometimes is a forgiveness payment

sometimes is a grace payment

both are acts of love payed forward.

we are commanded to by the Lord Himself

John 13:34

34 I am giving you a new commandment, that you love one another; just as I have loved you, that you also love one another.

35 By this everyone will know that you are My disciples, if you love one another.”…

John 15:12

“This is My commandment, that you love one another, just as I have loved you.

How did Jesus love His disciples ?

• yes, of course, He sacrificed Himself, lowered Himself to , served them

but in what context ?

do you think He was distant, cold, detached from their feelings and trials ?

John 11:35 “Jesus wept.”

it would not make sense for Jesus to be crying at the loss of a friend whom He was about to bring back to life

It does make sense that He was empathizing the grief of Mary and Martha

on the cross, He takes the time to appoint John to take care of His mother (John 19:26-27)

rather, than just thinking “God will take care of her, it’s not my problem”

love is not meant to be detached, obtuse from any relationship

(it is not meant to be cold and unfeeling)

remember back in Rom 12:9

9 Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. 

sincere = without hypocrisy

this means our heart has to be in alignment with what our mind is telling our body to do

(cant serve with our hands, but hate or begrudge with our heart at the same time)

let’s look at some verses about love in the light of this fact

our heart must be “in it” for it do be without hypocrisy 

Leviticus 19:18

Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against any of your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD.

Matthew 5:44

But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you,

John 15:17

This is My command to you: Love one another.

Romans 12:10

Be devoted to one another in brotherly love. Outdo yourselves in honoring one another.

Romans 13:8

Be indebted to no one, except to one another in love. For he who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the law.

Romans 13:10

Love does no wrong to its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.

Galatians 5:14

The entire law is fulfilled in a single decree: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”

Ephesians 5:2

and walk in love, just as Christ loved us and gave Himself up for us as a fragrant sacrificial offering to God.

1 Thessalonians 4:9

Now about brotherly love, you do not need anyone to write to you, because you yourselves have been taught by God to love one another.

1 Peter 1:22

Since you have purified your souls by obedience to the truth so that you have a genuine love for your brothers, love one another deeply, from a pure heart.

1 John 3:11

This is the message you have heard from the beginning: We should love one another.

1 John 3:23

And this is His commandment: that we should believe in the name of His Son, Jesus Christ, and we should love one another just as He commanded us.

1 John 4:7

Beloved, let us love one another, because love comes from God. Everyone who loves has been born of God and knows God.

1 John 4:10

And love consists in this: not that we loved God, but that He loved us and sent His Son as the atoning sacrifice for our sins.

1 John 4:21

And we have this commandment from Him: Whoever loves God must love his brother as well.

2 John 1:5

And now I urge you,–not as a new commandment to you, but one we have had from the beginning–that we love one another.

God’s word explains love as a “pay it forward” currency

This notion of love contexted in empathy (relationship) is not new (maybe just forgotten)

what is the reason Jesus died on the cross for us ?

(just to save us from hell … NO)

to restore our relationship with the Father !

I mentioned a second debt: a debt to ourselves

let’s look in the next three verses

12 The night is almost gone, and the day is near. Therefore let’s rid ourselves of the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light.

13 Let’s behave properly as in the day, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual promiscuity and debauchery, not in strife and jealousy.

14 But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh in regard to its lusts.

Paul is saying “look at the lateness of the hour” He expected the return of Jesus any day.

Did you know, every generation of Christians has expected His return ?

what would that sense of His imminent return do for your daily walk ?

everyone understands the notion of kids trashing the house while the parents go out for dinner

then spend the last half hour straightening it up before the parents come back home.

“they’ll be back any minute, quick … fix this before they come in and see it”

Paul says to reject all the works of darkness and put on the armor of light (armor of God is one of conduct, not some ceremony to perform each morning to get a warm fuzzy over)

He lists more deeds of darkness in verse 13 (things which were socially acceptable in Roman culture … even considered acts of pagan worship) to remind them that they may be in the world but not of the world (just as he earlier wrote about our dual citizenship)

in verse 14 He says, put on the Lord Jesus Christ and make no provision for the flesh.

what does “make no provision” mean  ?

how does one plan to avoid temptations that have become habits, when the temptation is allowed to stay next to us ?

we continue to use freedom of choice to give make ourselves slaves to sins.

who would be willing to surrender freedom in order to be free ?

the more we surrender to God’s love, the more we experience it, the more we can give it.

The more we surrender the freedoms of flesh , the more freedom we gain in Christ.

Matt 10:39; 16:25

Luke 9:24, 17:33

John 12:25

Whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for my sake will find it

the word for lose in greek

ἀπόλλυμι, apollymi, v.  [608 + 3897]. to destroy (an inanimate object), to kill (by taking a life), cause to lose (especially a life); to die or perish.

this is the same root word for apollyon (destroyer a title of satan)

life

ψυχή, psychē, n.  [6038]. life, soul; heart, mind; a person; the immaterial (and eternal) part of inner person, often meaning the animate self, which can be translated by pronouns: “my soul” = “I, myself”

this does not mean our physical life, it means our heart and mind … what makes us “us”

Jesus says “if we dont surrender what we think is “us” to Him, we will never get the “real us”

I’ve got a new nature from Christ. and I have tons of old nature hanging around acting like it is part of the real me.

(i’m even convinced that this stuff is “me”)

I need to surrender all that, to find the “real me”

the problem is that I cant reliably tell what is me and what is false me, old me.

Jesus says “surrender it all” heart, mind, soul, strength … and let Him sort it out, separate it

This prepares the way for me to love the way I am meant to … without hypocrisy 

I am able to love others, and even do what is the most loving thing for myself as well.

I am able to pay the debt of love forward only by surrendering myself in His name, to His hands