Grace giving and Truth Telling - Pt. 3

 

Owe no one anything, except to love each other, for the one who loves another has fulfilled the law. For 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: “You shall love your neighbor as yourself.” Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law. (Romans 13:8-10 ESV).

 

I am often confronted with the notion that without laws and commandments our society would be torn apart and reduced to chaos. While there is a need for laws and commandments, we cannot simply apply them without love. The Apostle Paul in our reading today is clear. He would never advise others to ignore the law; however, he does explicitly say the doing of the law must flow from a person who understands loving others as themselves. In fact, he says the entirety of the Law is summed up in “you shall love your neighbor as yourself” (v. 10).

 

Love is a moral principle. A principle covers all the world’s moral activity. There are a few other moral principles, such as be holy, do justice, and do no harm. These principles apply in all times and places. We can never say, “No, I don’t have to love here,” or “I don’t have to do justice there.” In all cases moral principles apply.

 

When we love someone, we should not need to be reminded not to steal from them, or lie about them, or cheat them. Such reminders are almost impertinent for someone who loves another. Paul says, “Love does no harm to a neighbor.” But doing no harm, or merely observing the law, is not enough. Only the perfect love that Christ showed when he gave his life for ours is sufficient to fulfill the law. Christ removed the curse of lawlessness and has given us everlasting life.

 

To love as Jesus did means that we incorporate God’s self-sacrificing love into our hearts. In Christ, God showed us not only perfect obedience to the law but perfect love. Of course, only Christ fully lives out that perfect love. We who live in this hostile world still struggle with desires to make gains for ourselves or to harm others. Since we still live with this tension, we still need the law. However, our goal is to achieve balance in behavior rooted and expressed in love.