the Third Week after Easter
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Daily Devotionals
Day by Day Devotional - Year 4 of 5
Romans 13:1-14
To be subject to authorities is to be subject to God who has established them, unless what is required of us is in obvious contradiction to the will of the Lord (cf. Acts 4:19; Acts 5:29). The Christian, who benefits from the security and the public services maintained by the State, must conduct himself as a good citizen, pay his taxes conscientiously (v. 7), respect laws and regulations: police, customs, etc. . . .
"Owe no man anything" (v. 8) is an exhortation to be borne in mind today when credit has become a way of life! One debt alone must bind us: love, a debt impossible to discharge for it is the response to the love – infinite love – of God for us. Moreover this word love sums up all the instruction in this chapter: love for the Lord (1 Peter 2:13), for our brethren, for all men.
A necessary incentive to keep us faithful and to revive our hearts is that "the morning cometh" (Isaiah 21:12). As long as the moral darkness of this world lasts, the believer is invited to put on "the armour of light" (v. 12; Ephesians 6:13 . . .). Yes, to put on the Lord Jesus Christ Himself (v. 14), that is to say, to show Him forth visibly as one does a spotless garment. Let us awake dear friends, it is not the time to be slack. The Lord is coming!
