You, my brothers, were called to be free. But do not use your freedom to indulge the sinful nature; rather, serve one another in love. The entire law is summed up in a single command: "Love your neighbour as yourself."

If you keep on biting and devouring each other, watch out or you will be destroyed by each other.

In John's gospel, John says: "If the Son sets you free you are free indeed." Paul picks up on the theme of liberty again in his letter to the Galatians and calls us to use our liberty well. For him that involves us; refusing to indulge the sinful nature and instead choosing to love others as we love ourselves. This he says is the summary of the law and is a positive alternative to biting and devouring one another. Which of course leads ultimately to death and destruction.

We are called to be free. So let us use our freedom to not be bound by having to respond to hate with hate, to rudeness with rudeness, to pride with pride but instead let us live as those free to love.

Heavenly Father,
We ask that your love would so fill our hearts, that we would be free to love in the face of hurt and bring Christ's goodness to bear upon those in our world.
Amen
Grace and Peace from Marcus