8Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for he who loves his fellowman has fulfilled the law. 9The commandments, "Do not commit adultery," "Do not murder," "Do not steal," "Do not covet," and whatever other commandment there may be, are summed up in this one rule: "Love your neighbor as yourself." 10Love does no harm to its neighbor. Therefore love is the fulfillment of the law. (NIV)
Main Points
1) Christians must not hesitate to pay off debts (v.8).
2) Nevertheless, there is one thing that Christians can never "pay off" and then be done with, and that is the payment of love (v.8).
3) The "second tablet" of the Law (Exo 20:12-17; Deut 5:16-21) can be summarized as "love your neighbour as yourself" (v.9).
-"Love...as yourself" is a summary, not a reduction.
-Some use this passage to claim that Christians should have nothing more to do with the Law whatsoever. They also use passages like Gal 3:23-25; 5:18; and 5:22-23 to state their position. But these passages do not teach that we are finished with the Law; rather, they reinforce that because we are in Christ, the Law no longer has any power to condemn us. In this sense, we are free from the Law.
-Still, we hear from no less than the Lord Jesus Christ that He did not come to abolish the commands of the Law but fulfill them - and He then says that those who practice them will be called great in the kingdom of heaven (Mt 5:17-20).
-So while the Christian's endeavour to obey the Law is motivated by love (13:9-10) and empowered by the Holy Spirit (Rom 8:3-4), we can also say that love must be guided by the Law (Jn 14:21; 1 Jn 5:2-5).
4) Love to our neighbour fulfills the Law (v. 8,10).
-"Neighbour" - suggests someone in our proximity, but it's worth noting, too, that it literally means "other of a different kind" (Hughes, Preaching the Word: Romans, 1991, p. 252) - what story does this bring to our mind? (Lk 10:25-37)
-Question: Does Paul overlook the First part of the Law (Ex 20:1-11; Dt 5:1-15) or the First Great Commandment of Jesus (Mt 22:35-37) when he says what he says in verse 10? In other words, is he suggesting that loving others is sufficient to fulfill the Law, without love for God?
NO! Implicit in Paul's statement is that love for others is the "practical proof" of one's first love to God (Jas 3:9-12; 1 Jn 4:20-21; 1 Jn 5:2).
