Living, but by Love
Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law. (Romans 13:8, NKJV)
The beginning word of this verse, “Owe”, calls on one to sit up. There are few people who have no debt to another person, maybe a debt of money, favour, a promise or something else agreed between two people or groups. Owing from a simplistic lens means there is one who borrows from another who is the lender, and they are bound to an agreement, an expectation of the fulfilment of the conditions they have agreed upon. The saying that no man is an island is often quoted to suggest that we all need one another, a fact that we are all part of each other. The Bible refers to believers as members of one body (1 Corinthians 12:12) and, therefore, the truth that we are part of each other. We have also been socialized to accept that when we do something for another person, then there is an obligation on the other person to pay us back. We give to receive in return. This seems to be a healthy arrangement where we collaborate with each other for the good of society from the natural man's perspective therefore, borrowing and lending is a normal and expected arrangement in a relationship.
With the above understanding of the wisdom of man, our reference verse becomes interesting. There is no word that God has allowed to be in the bible, which is not for our benefit. We are reminded in (2 Timothy 3:16-17) that all scripture is God-breathed and useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness so that the believers are equipped for every good work. Yes, every word written is for our benefit in our faith walk. This tells me that there is something about owing that God would want us to be careful about; it is not just an issue of having something that belongs to another; there is much more. Our verse advises us not to owe anyone anything except love, the love of God. In short, love is what we give to others, and love is what we should be focusing on as a currency for our relating with others. When love is our medium of relationship, we have then satisfied all the laws.
As I reflected on this, I wondered what we are to do with our daily material needs, which we tend to borrow or lend to others. I suggest that the Bible is asking us to focus on love more than the material things and the reasons for our borrowing; while we may borrow and lend material things, all should be done in love so that love remains the primary thing. Could it also be that we are being redirected on where we look for what we need? Could it be a reminder that God is our source and not a man so that we do not depend on those who can lend to us to meet our needs or demands but that we focus on God, the giver of all? He reminds us that He supplies ALL our needs according to His riches in glory (Philippians 4:19), He is the owner of the cows on a thousand hills (Psalms 50;10), and all silver and gold belong to Him (Haggai 2:8), He is all-sufficient and desires to satisfy His children’s needs. He invites us to ask and He will supply to us (John 15:7), He is Jehovah Jireh – our provider. What a mighty God He is indeed, and we are privileged and blessed to be His children.
When I think of how rich our Father is and how He wishes to give us His riches so that we do not have any need, then I start to grasp why He discourages us from owing others, borrowing when we do not have to and being careful to check with Him before we commit ourselves to others in debt. His word reminds us that when we borrow and have a debt to repay, we become slaves to the lender (Proverbs 22:7). He does not want us to be beholden to anyone else but Himself, He is all able to supply for us and when we do not know what to God, we are reminded to ask of Him for wisdom (James 1:5) and we are assured that He will give it to us in the measure that we can handle.
Brethren, this has been a verse that I have struggled with, but as I have continued to digest it, I have found the wisdom and illumination of God in focus, His caring desire for His children and guidance to us so that we are not enslaved by the spirit of debts, to be harassed by the lenders. Indeed, His word wants us to be so blessed so that we are lenders to the nations (Deuteronomy 15:6), not borrowers, not to be owing but to be giving out on the premise of love. This is a mind-shift which the world does not support but can only be accepted by one with a Kingdom seeking mindset.
Thoughts:
What are your thoughts on this topic?
What debts do you have and to whom?
Are you a borrower for things you could have stayed without?
How will you seek revelation and wisdom on this topic?