Romans 13:10 - Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.
Message: Love your neighbor
Time: Written in AD 57 from Greece, to the Christians, both Gentile and Jewish in Rome
What the Lord is Saying:
From Tabletalk: Love consists mainly of warm affection, and often means whatever people want it to mean. If someone doesn't feel love for someone, then they can do such things as divorce a spouse. And then also love allows anything to happen. If two people love each other, then they should be allowed to be together (married or not, any choice of sexual lifestyle). Even polygamy is viewed okay because it is based on love. What does love demand? If we are the people of God, then we must follow the law of love as presented in the Bible. Paul in the previous passage tied love to our neighbor to our love of God. God did this, obviously with purpose, in the giving of the 10 commandments. How we treat others has an affect on our relationship with God. We need to be guided by God's spirit as we love. (Note, Tabletalk doesn't really offer an answer to the observation that they made that we do anything in the name of love. But, what I need to do is continue be guided by God's definitions of love and not the world's because love will mean many things to people.)
I think the big thing I see from this thought and these verses is God is still love and He still defines love and He created love in us. And love has parameters. It is true that my life needs to be more about love than discipline or correction. I admit, I struggle with this. I am selfish and want my way and want what I think is best. I am often not driven simply by love. I want to define it in my way.
I was watching an episode of Good Wife and Alicia, in response to a woman thinking that she should get a divorce because her husband slept with another woman, and a woman shouldn't stand for that, made the comment that she doesn't care about what the world thinks or what people think is the right decision, she must make the right decision for her family. Now, there are other issues with her life and decisions on that show and adultery that takes place, but my life needs to be guided by Truth and her character was saying, that her decisions shouldn't be affected by the worlds.
"Love does no wrong to a neighbor." If I lived this way and other people lived this way, how different our world would be. I live my life wanting to escape bad decisions, but often am bothered when other people escape those bad decisions. I was sitting at a graduation party the other night, looking at all of these wealthy people and realizing that they can do so much (because of all the money they have) and money is never an issue in their life. Megan would get a car in that scenario and I could provide it. We could buy things for the house, windows, a yard, things to make it more appealing to us and more enjoyable to be in. We would have money for vacations, rather than trying to figure out how to live the cheapest way we can. I have a lot of envy and jealousy in me and it affects me. Help me God to be freed from this. That is not love for my neighbor. That is not what this verse is talking about.
Albert Barnes makes the statements: The gambler desires the property of his neighbor without any compensation, and thus works ill to him. The dealer in lotteries desires property for which he has never toiled, and which must be obtained at the expense and loss of others. Many employments work ill toward others.
Isn't this what I often want? A free pass? I hate the decisions I have made. But, the above is true. My boss made the statement that, even after all his hard work, he still thinks the ultimate is winning the lottery. Money still is what we think takes away all the problems of life. We believe the lie. It dangles in front of us and we believe it.
But, what I need to do is really be motivated by love. I have a lot of problems with my neighbors and I have a hard time thinking great things about them. It is too much of a competition with me and that is sin.
Promise: Love is the fulfilling of the Law
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