September 7, 2008 at Saint Mark Church in Norman, OPK
Ezekiel 33:7-9 + Psalm 95 + Romans 13:8-10 + Matthew 18:15-20
In verses just before these, Paul has given his Roman community instructions about how they are to relate to civil society. He speaks of their “obligations” and how believers are to fulfill those obligations within their society. They are to pay all their dues, taxes to whom taxes are due, too to whom a toll is due, respect where respect is due; honor where honor is due. These are things that the believer owes to the greater community, and in that frame of thinking, the verse begins today addressing one last great debt. It is a debt that can never be repaid, the deepest and biggest debt of all: love. Having fulfilled all other obligations, there is one left that defines and completes what is expected and asked of those who would be counted as members of a community of faith in Jesus Christ.
As we discovered last week, the heart of morality in Paul’s teaching is the recognition of what God has done for us and the stirring desire to seek God’s will. As I put it last week, “You make me want to be better.” is the way we respond when we live in awareness of what God has done. In Paul’s development of this kind of morality, today’s instruction begins to address the question: “Why?” Why is God so merciful, generous, and kind? What is it about God that brings out these divine actions? How is it that everyone merits this mercy, generosity, and kindness? Paul knows, and we do too. It is Love. It is love for us. It is love for us all; and as soon as we recognize that, we begin to understand what it takes to live a moral and good life. We know what it is that colors, shapes, and motivates our search for what God desires for us; love.
Paul speaks of this love as an obligation, not an option. It is a duty, a debt we owe to God – not simply to love God; but love as God loves. Divine love is self sacrificing not self serving. Divine love is not a feeling or emotion. It is a way of life that we have seen in Jesus Christ. It is way of life that reaches out to others that includes and embraces everyone. It is a way of life that seeks the will of the Father; that finds time for prayer and fellowship. It is a life marked by forgiveness, simplicity and truth. It is a life of justice and passion for the outcast, the hungry, the grieving, the refugee. This is the Will of God for us that we love as God loves. It is no anemic or emotional experience. It locks us into active concern for the good of others and permits no hint of retaliation or vengeance in the human heart. All of that evil is put out by the transformation we seek in the Spirit.
This love is a simple idea; but a huge obligation on our part. If God loves us in spite of our unfaithfulness, in spite of what we have done and how we have dismissed his Son, we owe God something. We owe God the obligation of that same love for one another. It is a debt created by the infinite love we have received from God in Christ. Deserving and undeserving alike know the love of God, and so it must be for us who stand in this grace. We do not love and care for only those who deserve our respect, our sacrifice, and our service.
Parents, you know and understand this. It is the way you love your children even when they do not seem to deserve it, or take you for granted. Children see your parents and how they care for you even when you misbehave, are rude, and selfish. This is the love Paul speaks of today. It is the love that keeps us together, the love that reconciles, and heals. It is the love that does no evil. It is a love that is found where ever two or three have gathered. It is the love that we find then in this place, a house of love, a house of God.