Perhaps it is due in part to the great freedoms we enjoy, but we often feel as though we do not owe anyone anything. It may not be the case that we owe a financial debt to another, or still owe an I-O-U to a neighbor, but as Christians, we all share a certain amount of responsibility to all with whom we come in contact. In obeying the gospel, we recognize our responsibility to God (Rom. 6:16-18), but we also find that we owe something to our fellow man. Because of the grace we have received to be forgiven of our sins through Jesus’ sacrifice, we are indebted to sharing His love and His saving gospel with all men.
As Christians, we owe the love of God to one another. Paul writes in Romans 13:8, “Owe no one anything except to love one another, for he who loves another has fulfilled the law” (NKJV). Paul goes on to explain that love fulfills the law of Moses since “love does no harm to a neighbor” (Rom. 13:10). If love is not looking to harm a neighbor, then love must be seeking something greater. Love looks for that which is better for the other person – even at the expense of self. This type of sacrificial love is the reason we can even know love. John writes by inspiration of the Holy Spirit, “By this we know love, because He laid down His life for us. And we also ought to lay down our lives for the brethren” (1 Jn. 3:16). By the love of Jesus to sacrifice Himself for us, we have received the grace of God to be freed from our sins. If we know this love, we ought to share this love.
Alongside our debt of love to all men, we as Christians also have the responsibility to share the gospel with all men. Paul knew just how lost he had been before coming to know the truth of the gospel (cf. 1 Tim. 1:15-16). Now having obeyed the gospel of Christ and having been saved from his sins, Paul realized the great need to share that saving message of hope with others – “I am a debtor both to Greeks and to barbarians, both to wise and to unwise. So, as much as is in me, I am ready to preach the gospel to you who are in Rome also” (Rom. 1:14-15). This responsibility was not left to Paul alone, but it is a shared responsibility of all Christians (Matt. 28:19-20; Mk. 16:15-16). May we all find the great responsibility as did Paul to carry God’s saving message to all men – “woe is me if I do not preach the gospel” (1 Cor. 9:16)!
Thinking of debts and responsibilities can at times drag us down or leave us feeling burdened and overwhelmed. John assures us in 1 John 5:2 that our responsibilities toward God and our fellow man “are not burdensome.” While we owe God’s love and gospel to all men, may we never forget what a great privilege and blessing it is that God has trusted us to show others His great love and to tell them about what He has done to make salvation possible for us all.
By Preston McElyea