THE BIBLICAL I.O.U.
ROMANS 13:8-10 NKJV
8 Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law. 9 For the commandments, "You shall not commit adultery," "You shall not murder," "You shall not steal," "You shall not bear false witness," "You shall not covet," and if there is any other commandment, are all summed up in this saying, namely, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." 10 Love does no harm to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfillment of the law.
Typically, an I.O.U. is a written paper/document that states what is owed to an individual. If I give you an I.O.U., I will acknowledge a debt that I am to pay to you.
In our verses for today, Paul gives us a biblical I.O.U. This is what we owe to those around us. To walk in love.
Paul states that when we love our neighbor, we are fulfilling the ten commandments. If we love those around us, we will not do anything to cause them harm. We will not commit adultery, lie, steal, kill, or covet their stuff. Paul says any of the commandments are summed up with loving our neighbor as ourselves.
Love does no harm to a neighbor. And yet the scriptures tell us we are to speak the truth in love. (Ephesians 4:15) People often claim they are hurt when we tell them the truth, but if our motive is love, then speaking the truth is to help someone, not harm them.
The reason I veered off in this direction is that way too often, people have claimed harm from someone giving them the truth. Welcome to my world. But the word harm is the word for evil. If I tell you the truth with the intent to help you, I have not done evil to you. In reality we should appreciate those who love us enough to help us.
Love is the underlying motive behind what we do. To help, not to harm. To lift up, not put down. To treat others as we would want to be treated.
APPLICATION:
How we treat one another is important in God's kingdom. The idea that we just love God but can't stand people does not hold up.
I find it helpful to remember that the people I encounter are people God loves. And when it comes to other believers, these are God's children and part of my family.
What if we carried slips of paper around with us? On these slips of paper were written "I.O.U. love." I am not suggesting we do this. We'd have to spend half our day explaining. But the visual is powerful. We owe love.
PRAYER:
Lord, help me to remember what You have done for me and to pay that love forward.