THE DAY IS NEAR

Romans 13:8-14 / Keywords 13:8

Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for he who loves his fellowman has fulfilled the law.

Love Fulfills the Law

13:8 Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law. 9 The commandments, “You shall not commit adultery,” “You shall not murder,” “You shall not steal,” “You shall not covet,”[a] and whatever other command there may be, are summed up in this one command: “Love your neighbor as yourself.”[b] 10 Love does no harm to a neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.

The Day Is Near

11 And do this, understanding the present time: The hour has already come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. 12 The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. 13 Let us behave decently, as in the daytime, not in carousing and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissension and jealousy. 14 Rather, clothe yourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ, and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the flesh.[c]

Footnotes

a. Romans 13:9 Exodus 20:13-15,17; Deut. 5:17-19,21

b. Romans 13:9 Lev. 19:18

c. Romans 13:14 In contexts like this, the Greek word for flesh (sarx) refers to the sinful state of human beings, often presented as a power in opposition to the Spirit.

 

1. Paul admonishes us to love one another. Through love, Paul reasons, we are fulfilling God’s law. How wonderful that is! Love is the character of God and Jesus. In our sinful nature, we cannot love others. Even at a small mistake from others, we start hating and holding grudges in our heart. We are sinful human beings. But may we come to God in prayer. Through the Holy Spirit’s work in our life, may we grow each day to truly love one another. Paul strongly warns us, “The hour has already come for you to wake up from your slumber, because our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed.” We should put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light. We should repent of our old sinful nature daily before Jesus: lust, anger, unbelief, fear, and anxiety. We should put on the armor of light, which is Jesus and live these last times fully filled with the Holy Spirit. We should clothe ourselves with the Lord Jesus Christ.

 

2. People of the world think about how to gratify the desires of the flesh. They wear nice clothes to look better. They study hard to earn respect. They earn lots of money to enjoy and to be regarded as most important in this world. Rather than gratifying our sinful nature with these things, we should put on Jesus and try to live each day glorifying Jesus with our lives.

 

Prayer Lord, help us to wake up from our slumber.

One Word The hour has already come