(Back to Study Home Page) (Sermon May 25, 2008)
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May 25, 2008 – Mark 12.31a (Romans
13:8-14)
Open
It
1. What
sort of actions communicate love to you?
2. What are some of the evil activities tolerated and even
promoted by our society?
Explore
It
3. In
what area of life is a Christian to maintain a continuing debt? (13:8)
4. What is
the sign that a Christian has fulfilled the Law? (13:8)
5. What
one command sums up all the other commands? (13:9)
6. What
act and attitude is the fulfillment of the Law? (13:10)
7. What
"hour" had arrived for the Roman Christians? (13:11)
8. How
did Paul encourage his audience to live godly lives? (13:11-12)
9. What specific behaviors does God forbid? (13:12-13)
10. What
kind of behavior contrasts with what God wants of us? (13:13)
11. With
what are Christians to clothe themselves? (13:14)
12. What
should a Christian be thinking about each day? (13:14)
Get
It
13. What
does it mean that love is the fulfillment of the Law?
14. What
specific acts of love can Christians show to friends, family, neighbors, and
strangers?
15. What
are the signs that the present age is nearly over?
16. How
would you live if you knew the world would end in six months?
17. What
deeds of darkness practiced in our world today sometimes attract and seduce
Christians?
18. In what
practical ways can a person clothe himself or herself with Jesus Christ instead
of pursuing evil desires?
19. What
personal relationship do you want to improve by earnestly loving that person as
yourself?
Apply
It
20. What
specific gesture of love or kindness can you use to build a relationship this
week?
21. When
can you take time this week to identify habits or tendencies in your life that
hinder your relationship with the Lord?
Romans 13:8: Why is love for others called a
debt? We are permanently in debt to Christ for the lavish love he has poured
out on us. The only way we can even begin to repay this debt is by loving
others in turn. Because Christ's love will always be infinitely greater than
ours, we will always have the obligation to love our neighbors.
Romans 13:9: Somehow many of us have gotten the
idea that self-love is wrong. But if this were the case, it would be pointless
to love our neighbors as ourselves. But Paul explains what he means by
self-love. Even if you have low self-esteem, you probably don't willingly let
yourself go hungry. You clothe yourself reasonably well. You make sure there's
a roof over your head if you can. You try not to let yourself be cheated or
injured. And you get angry if someone tries to ruin your marriage. This is the
kind of love we need to have for our neighbors. Do we see that others are fed,
clothed, and housed as well as they can be? Are we concerned about issues of
social justice? Loving others as ourselves means to be actively working to see
that their needs are met.
Romans 13:10: Christians must obey the law of
love, which supersedes both religious and civil laws. How easy it is to excuse
our indifference to others merely because we have no legal obligation to help
them, and even to justify harming them if our actions are technically legal!
But Jesus does not leave loopholes in the law of love. Whenever love demands
it, we are to go beyond human legal requirements and imitate the God of love.
See James 2:8-9; James 4:11 and 1 Peter 2:16-17 for more about this law of
love.
Romans 13:12-14: The night refers to the
present evil time. The day refers to the time of Christ's return. Some
people are surprised that Paul lists dissension and jealousy with the gross and
obvious sins of orgies, drunkenness, and sexual immorality. Like Jesus in his
Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 5-7), Paul considers attitudes as important as
actions. Just as hatred leads to murder, so jealousy leads to strife and lust
to adultery.
13:14 How do we clothe ourselves with the Lord Jesus
Christ? First we identify with Christ by being baptized (Galatians 3:27). This
shows our solidarity with other Christians and with the death, burial, and
resurrection of Jesus Christ. Second, we exemplify the qualities Jesus showed
while he was here on earth (love, humility, truth, service). In a sense, we
role-play what Jesus would do in our situation (see Ephes. 4:24-32; Col.
3:10-17).