The Love Law

Romans 13:10 says, “Love worketh no ill to his neighbor: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.”

When my brother and I were boys, we had a dog named Lady. She had a litter of pups. We kept one of the litter, a male, that we named Blackie. She had another litter. Again, we kept one and named it Brownie! Blackie and Brownie tangled with a porcupine and came home full of quills. Dad pulled the quills out and all seemed well. As time went on, we noticed that Blackie kept chewing on Brownie’s neck. We punished him for it, but he kept doing it. He continued until a patch of hair was gone. Finally, we found in the middle of the bald spot, the end of a quill that Dad had missed. After it was removed, there was no more chewing. Can dogs love one another? 

A greater question is can we love one another? Paul said earlier in Romans 13, “…he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.” He then lists some of the 10 Commandments and concludes with, “Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.” Jesus said in John 13:34 & 35, “A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another; as I have loved you, that ye also love one another. By this shall all men know that ye are my disciples, if ye have love one to another.”

The thing that stops us from loving others is self-love. If you want to know about the law, ask a lawyer. A lawyer asked Jesus a question one day thinking he could stump Jesus (Matthew 22:35-39). “Master, which is the great commandment in the law? Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself.” 

Much can be said, and often is, about self-love. We don’t need to be encouraged in this area. Self-love comes automatically. Paul said in Ephesians 5:29, “For no man ever yet hated his own flesh; but nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as the Lord the church:”

Jesus answered this question about self-love in John 12: 23-28. He compares His death to a kernel of wheat that is planted in the ground and dies and rots, only to bring forth new life. Verse 25 states, “He that loveth his life shall lose it; and he that hateth his life in this world shall keep it unto life eternal.” In verse 27, (which is often misunderstood), we see how Jesus dealt with self-love. “Now is my soul troubled” points to the fact that He is human. The death He is about to face will be painful. Self-love would do all possible to avoid the pain ahead. Jesus then asks the question, “what shall I say?” The next phrase should be in the form of a question; “Father, save me from this hour?” He did not explain all about the kernel of wheat dying, and calling His disciples to be willing to lose their life, and then cry out to the Father “Save me from this hour!” He is essentially saying to the disciples, “Should I ask the Father to save me from this hour?” His answer is no. “I came for this hour to save the world.” His final statement is, “Father, glorify thy name.” That would be through the crucifixion. He basically said, “Father let me die.”

When Jesus died, the law was fulfilled. The law was death for sin (Genesis 2:17). Ezekiel restated it in Ezekiel 18:20, “The soul that sinneth it shall die.” Jesus died in our place. He becomes our Savior if we call upon Him. In a very similar manner, we are called to lay down our life for our neighbor. It works every time. It is called the love law.