Scriptural Love
A Sermon on Romans 13:8-10
Originally preached March 10, 1967
Scripture
8Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law. 9For this, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill, Thou shalt not steal, Thou shalt not bear false witness, Thou shalt not covet; and if there be …
Sermon Description
Vestiges of the Christian call to “love one’s neighbor” can be found throughout Western culture. What has been lost, however, is the Scriptural understanding of love and a strong theological foundation to support the command. Without Scripture and theology, love of neighbor is either reduced to sentimentality or the gospel is denied. The seriousness of the latter is highlighted in this sermon on Romans 13:8–10 titled “Scriptural Love.” Modern teaching claims sinful people are able to fulfill this important command despite the fact that they have not experienced regeneration. Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones examines both Scripture and culture, arguing that a biblical view of self and neighbor is necessary to understand Paul’s words correctly. This also answers one of the fundamental questions Christians ask: what is the Christian relationship to the law? Be warned against the trap of mysticism with its emphasis on mere contemplation of love and also watch out for rigorism with its emphasis on the merely knowing the letter of the law. Rather than falling into mysticism or rigorism, Dr. Lloyd-Jones argues for both the letter and the spirit of the law. Listen closely as he argues for a balanced approach to the law and seeks to challenge contemporary views of love of the neighbor.
Sermon Breakdown
- The apostle Paul is summing up his teachings from Romans 12 in Romans 13:8-10.
- Love is the fulfillment of the law according to verse 10.
- Loving your neighbor as yourself is a quotation from Leviticus that Jesus also taught.
- Loving your neighbor means loving all people, not just fellow Christians. The story of the Good Samaritan illustrates this.
- There are two main views on how to live the Christian life: mysticism (focus on spirituality and experiencing God's love) and rigorism (following rules and commandments). We need both love and law.
- Christians are no longer under the law's condemnation but should still follow the law as an expression of God's will. We follow the law because we are Christians, not to become Christians.
- We must avoid emphasizing only love or only law. Both are necessary. Love fulfills the law.
- Following rules without love is like playing music mechanically without artistry. Preaching correct doctrine without life and power is also inadequate.
- We need both our heads in the clouds and our feet on the ground. Love is the fulfillment of the law, not just the mechanical following of rules.
Sermon Q&A
What Does "Love Thy Neighbor as Thyself" Really Mean According to Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones?
How does Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones interpret the command to "love thy neighbor as thyself"?
According to Lloyd-Jones, the command to "love thy neighbor as thyself" cannot be interpreted as simply loving others without regard to loving God first. He emphasizes that this misinterprets the biblical order. The law puts the first table (love of God) before the second table (love of neighbor). Lloyd-Jones says, "This teaching puts the second before the first. It is to reverse our Lord's own teaching." He argues that true love of neighbor only flows from first loving God and being transformed by Him.
Why does Lloyd-Jones say that natural man cannot love his neighbor?
Lloyd-Jones teaches that the unregenerate person cannot truly love his neighbor as himself because "the man who is unregenerate hasn't the true view of himself." Without spiritual regeneration, a person has both a wrong view of himself and a wrong view of his neighbor. Only when someone is convicted by the law, sees their sinfulness, and receives a new nature in Christ can they begin to properly love others. He states, "There's only one way in which this can be done, and that is that we see ourselves truly first."
How does becoming a Christian change how we view our neighbors according to Lloyd-Jones?
According to Lloyd-Jones, when we become Christians, we begin to see others not according to earthly distinctions but as souls. He states, "We no longer think of people as Jews or gentiles, British or non-British... We think of people as souls, souls in the sight of God." This new perspective allows us to see others as sinners in need of salvation just as we were. We see them "not only as a soul, but you see him as a sinner... one who is exactly as you were."
What is the relationship between the Christian and the law according to Lloyd-Jones?
Lloyd-Jones teaches that Christians are "no longer under the law" in terms of condemnation or as a means of salvation, but the law still serves as "the most perfect expression of the way in which God would have us live." He emphasizes that Christians don't observe commandments to make themselves Christian but because they are Christian. He states, "We observe the commandments because we are Christian." The Christian's relationship to the law is balanced—neither pure mysticism (just focusing on love) nor legalism (just focusing on rules).
How does Lloyd-Jones explain the phrase "love is the fulfilling of the law"?
Lloyd-Jones explains that "love is the fulfilling of the law" means that love enables us to fill the law "right to the brim." He teaches that merely keeping particular injunctions of the law mechanically doesn't fulfill the law's true intent. Rather, he says we "mustn't think of the law as a mere aggregate of rules and regulation." Love goes beyond not harming our neighbor to actually caring for them positively. He uses the illustration of music—mechanical correctness isn't enough; there must be soul and spirit in the performance. Similarly, love gives life to law-keeping.
The Book of Romans
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.