What is the meaning of Romans 13:10? Love does no wrong • When Paul writes, “Love does no wrong,” he is stating that genuine, Spirit-born love actively resists any impulse to harm another person (1 Corinthians 13:4-7; Galatians 5:22-23). • Wrong can be overt—violence, theft, slander—or subtle, such as envy or selfish indifference (Romans 12:17; Philippians 2:3-4). • Because the moral law mirrors God’s holy character, love and wrongdoing cannot coexist (1 John 4:8; Psalm 145:17). To its neighbor • “Neighbor” includes every person God sets before us, not only friends or those who think like we do (Luke 10:36-37; Matthew 5:43-45). • Practically, this reaches into family life, church relationships, workplaces, and even encounters with strangers (Galatians 6:10; Romans 12:18). • By refusing to wrong any neighbor, we display the impartial kindness of Christ (James 2:1-9). Therefore • Paul’s “Therefore” ties conclusion to premise: if love never harms, it automatically satisfies what the law requires (Matthew 22:40). • The gospel frees believers from law-keeping as a means of gaining righteousness, yet love keeps us from law-breaking as a fruit of righteousness already received (Romans 8:3-4; Titus 2:14). • The moral commands were always aiming at a life marked by love; when love is present, the aim is met (1 Timothy 1:5). Love is the fulfillment of the law • The two great commands—“Love the Lord your God” (Deuteronomy 6:5) and “Love your neighbor as yourself” (Leviticus 19:18)—summarize the whole law (Matthew 22:37-40). • Every prohibition (murder, adultery, coveting, etc.) is kept when love governs the heart (Romans 13:8-9; Galatians 5:14). • Fulfillment does not abolish the law’s moral standard; it completes it by empowering believers to live it out through the indwelling Holy Spirit (Jeremiah 31:33; Romans 5:5). Summary Romans 13:10 teaches that authentic, Christ-centered love never injures another person, and in doing so it meets every moral demand God has revealed. We are called to let that love guide every thought, word, and deed, confident that when love rules, the law is already fulfilled. |
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