13:8 Owe no one anything, except to love one another; for the one who loves another has
fulfilled the law.
13:9 The commandments, "You shall not commit adultery; You shall not murder; You
shall not steal; You shall not covet"; and any other commandment, are summed up in
this word, "Love your neighbor as yourself."
13:10 Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore, love is the fulfilling of the law.
13:11 Besides this, you know what time it is, how it is now the moment for you to wake
from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we became believers;
13:12 the night is far gone, the day is near. Let us then lay aside the works of
darkness and put on the armor of light;
13:13 let us live honorably as in the day, not in reveling and drunkenness, not in
debauchery and licentiousness, not in quarreling and jealousy.
13:14 Instead, put on the Lord Jesus Christ, and make no provision for the flesh, to
gratify its desires.
I am fascinated by the concept that we "owe" each other love. It is as though we are indebted, but to whom. Certainly if someone shows us love we are indebted to them, but what if they haven't. Do we owe a debt to the law still? Do we pay our debt to Christ through our love to others? There is a long sermon in the first nine words of this passage. RevIsrael
In response to "owing Love to others" - according to the "New Interpreter's Bible" we are asked to consider the question to be "what is due them." Are not all people "due" love. Jesus tells us that we are even to "love our enemies." Not easy stuff this loving as Jesus teaches us to love. But for me it is the strength and power of the message of God as revealed through the life of Jesus and as I understand it Jesus and God are one in the same according to John. Love is not about obeying a law so that I will be "safe" but about giving up my life for someone else as Jesus teaches.
The great and joyous discovery I and many others have made is that when we love others - no matter what- the flow of love and joy comes back into our own lives 7 fold!!
My loving others is not "pay back" for what God has done for me, it is my way of loving God. Getting off from under the law means that we do not "owe" God - God's love in unconditional!! God's love for me stirs up my love for God and that stirs up my love for all people.
Whew! I did not know I would go on so!! Love is a topic I LOVE!!
jmj in Montana
In regard to "Owe" - It is interesting that when we see or hear the word "owe" we connect it with obligation and law. Webster's has a most insightful meaning for "owe" - to have or cherish a certian feeling toward another.
In Mortaon T. Kelsey's book "Caring - How Can We Love On Another?" he writes on page 15 "The love that we are talking about refers to that complex of emotions, attitudes, movements of will and actions in which we reach out to others in caring, concerned manner, desirieng to let other people know that we care about them and wish to facilitate the achievement of their potential. My love is neer complete until the other person feels more loved by me. Love is my total behavior (emotions, feelings and actions) directed toward making another person feel more cared for by me and by the Divine Lover who is at the heart and center of the universe."
And on page 21 he writes "Jesus explained that the reason that we [are to] be loving is not only for the good it creates and the joy it brings, but because by loving we share in the very nature of God['s self]. We are to love with sincerity and sometimes that kind of love can only come from God to us. It comes when we Love God and are seeking to Love as God loves. It is gift from the Great Lover!!
Nancy WI-Thanks for your prayers. Seems yesterday was a hard day and today was much better for our new freshman. She gravitated toward the campus ministry and there is finding a sense of familiarity and family. The wonderful web.
Aslanclan
I often tell people you don't have to like me but you have to love me. there are some people I don't care to be around because of their life style. But that dosent release me from caring enough about them to pray for them and if there is a need to do my best to fullfill that need. To be down right honest we all probably have some church members we don't like but that dose not give us the right to not love them. Jesus said it this way, " By this people will know you are my disciples if you have love for one another."
Harold in Alabama
I always think of love, not as having a natural affinity for someone, or necessarily always getting along, but simply wanting the best for the other, regardless of whether or not we like them. "Love does no wrong to a neighbor" goes further by actually wanting God's will and good things for the neighbor. DGinNYC
