Slices
Prepare
‘Know yourself’ said an ancient oracle. Ask the Lord to show you yourself as well as your Saviour.
Bible passage
Love fulfils the law
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,’ and whatever other command there may be, are summed up in this one command: ‘Love your neighbour as yourself.’ 10 Love does no harm to a neighbour. Therefore love is the fulfilment 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 armour 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.
Explore
‘Wake up!’ The words may mean we have lost concentration, or that it is time to rise and get dressed at the beginning of the day. There is an urgency in Paul’s words (vs 11,12). He is reminding the Christians in Rome that a new day has dawned with the resurrection of Jesus and the present old era will pass away without further notice. The trouble is that we believers can blithely carry on as if in a daze, oblivious that our behaviour still reflects the dark old times. ‘Change now!’ is the message. We need a change of clothes into new behaviour that reflects Jesus Christ (v 14).
So some old behaviour needs to be thrown away: in fact, all the ugly items in verse 13. They are quite out of place in Christ’s new world. Then we need to kit ourselves out with some new behaviour – in summary, love for other people. For example, we must choose to respect people’s life and property so that we do not steal or kill. We must choose self‑control in sexual matters so that we do not commit adultery. We must choose contentment so that we do not covet what belongs to another (v 9). This is the love required (v 10). This is the love Jesus taught (Matthew 19:18,19).
Respond
Do you have a pattern of behaviour that needs changing? Can you think of a strategy for achieving it?
Bible in a year
Read the Bible in a year: Job 11,12; Luke 17
Pray for Scripture Union
Give thanks to God for Barry and all Faith Guides across the country – it is such a joy to hear how God is Revealing Jesus to a new generation through them! (This week's prayers relate to this story in Connecting You.)
