Written by Regenia B.
Romans 13:8
“Owe no man any thing; but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.”
Love here is called a debt. For what reason is this? We are permanently in debt to Christ for the lavish love He has poured out on us. The only way we can repay this debt is by loving others. We must remember Christ’s love is always greater than ours, so we will always have the obligation to love our neighbors. When love demands it, we are to go beyond human legal requirements and imitate the God of love. God’s love is true love.
We are to love one another as Christ loved us. We are to treat all people as we want to be treated. We should not ignore the rich, because then we would be withholding our love. But we must not favor them for what they can do for us, while ignoring the poor because they can offer us little in return.
When we fail to love we are breaking God’s law. Love fulfills God’s requirements. This is the law of love. We are to love our neighbor. James 2:8,9. We are not to judge our Christian brothers and sisters, if we do, we go against the royal law of love, because love is the essence of the law of Christ, setting aside the royal law. We are to submit to and obey the royal law. James 4:11. I Peter 2:16,17- We are to act responsibly toward civil authorities, they are acting freely, remembering they are God’s bond slave.
When authorities require disobedience to God, the believer is to obey God rather than man. All people should be honored, brothers and sisters in Christ should be loved with God’s love. God is to be reverenced. This is different than the debt we owe to man, which we must pay back, because it is not freely given. We get something for something. This is not the way God works.
This is a spiritual debt, because of the father’s love for us, which is freely given, we are required to love others freely, not expecting anything in exchange for that love. It is unconditional love. This is the same kind of love the Father gave to us.
Food for thought: Is your love Christ-like and unconditional or do you expect something in exchange for the deceiving love you are showing others so you can find favor with man, rather than God?
What motivates your love toward others?
God’s true love will only endure!!