Philippians 1:6
Wow! What a way to start off April!
Debt-free. Owning a property outright, which has been provided by the Lord and committed to His purposes. We are freed from the warning of the Proverb writer, “The rich rules over the poor, and the borrower becomes the lender’s slave” (Proverbs 22:7).
There is no absolute prohibition of going into debt in the scriptures. However, there is in-struction regarding remaining in perpetual debt- “Owe nothing to anyone except to love one another; for the one who loves his neighbor has fulfilled the Law” (Romans 13:8). The sense of the original is, “do not keep on owing,” both by failing to pay a debt or by continuously taking on new debt.
But the important part is the follow up- we do absolutely owe one another a debt of love. It is the calling of every follower of Christ to love other believers (John 13:34, 35). In fact, that is how the world will identify us as Jesus’ disciples. We are to “Be devoted to one another in brotherly love; (giving) preference to one another in honor…” (Romans 12:10).
So, in a sense, we will never be out of debt as long as we’re in this world. The obligation- and the joy- of truly loving one another from the heart, fervently, comes with the territory of being a Christian (1 Peter 1:22). May that be a debt we carry gladly. As we lean into the future tasks God has for us, may we be encouraged by one another and the hope we have in the Lord (Romans 15:13; 1 Thessalonians 5:11).