Romans 13:8 (NIV) Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for whoever loves others has fulfilled the law.

A funny thing happened to me on the way to writing this devotional. I did a search on my computer to make sure that I had not already written about the subject above and the computer pulled up a student loan agreement that I had signed years ago. That just reiterated what I already knew, which is that a student debt is a debt that will never be cancelled out until it is paid off. But no matter how much you owe on your student loan, there is a debt that everyone in existence owes that makes our student loans seem like child’s play. That debt is the debt of our sins. It is made up of all the wrong things that we have done that have violated the laws and morals of the God who made us. Student loans may take a while to pay off, but they eventually are paid off. This debt, however, is impossible to ever pay. Thankfully, Jesus stepped up to the plate for us and cancelled that debt by paying for it in His own blood. Like someone said, “I owed a debt I could not pay while Jesus paid a debt He did not owe: yours and mine.” Thankfully, we are free from the debt of sin in our lives when we receive Jesus as our Lord and Savior.

There is a debt, however, that Jesus will not let us off the hook for and that is the debt to love one another. That’s a debt that Jesus expects us to make payments on for the rest of our earthly lives. He cancelled your gigantic debt of sin and then wrote up a promissory note in your name, which promises to pay that debt until it is satisfied. The thing is that it will not be satisfied until we breathe our last breath on this side of eternity. The debt that Jesus did pay off for us is the means by which we can pay on the new debt that we owe. In our own strength, we cannot pay this debt either. It is only through the miracle of Jesus now living in us that we have the moral assets to be able to love one another. The debt to love one another is very high and the rules for repayment are very difficult because they include loving those that are not easy to love. One of the rules of payment says that if you love only those that love you, that will not be credited as payment for this debt (Luke 6:32).

The good news is that by owing this debt for the rest of our lives and paying it with the love of God that has been poured into our hearts (Romans 5:5), we will be living in the most joyful and peaceful way with each other that there is to live. We don’t lose out on anything except the loss of bitterness, strife, stress, anxiety and a whole host of negative things that happen when love is not to be found among us. Thank God for this debt that cannot be cancelled. We are so blessed because of it!

Pastor Joey Vazquez