The way of Love pays all our debts

Debts have been around for a long time. In fact, they are as old as history itself. There’s a certain universality about them, too. Rich people, poor people, people in the middle, all have debts. (And some of those debts are about money!)

A debt is, by definition, an obligation, something one person owes to another. To get a handle on debt as a concept, it’s important to expand one’s sense of it beyond a strictly financial context. While some debts may be monetary, others have to do with commitment of time, with caring, with exclusivity, with respect. There are some debts that last forever. Primary among them is the debt to God—which is a good thing.

The Psalmist exhorts, “Give unto the Lord the glory due unto his name.” Mary Baker Eddy, who discovered Christian Science, wrote, “So dear, so due, to God is obedience, that it reaches high heaven in the common walks of life, and it affords even me a perquisite of joy” (The First Church of Christ, Scientist, and Miscellany, p. 189).

The Hebrew people took their debt to God very seriously. Their view of community rested upon a covenant in which each member of society had a shared obligation to God and reciprocal obligations to others, extending beyond people to animals, plants, and the natural environment.

It’s not surprising, then, that the Bible has many things to say about debt. Like their neighbors, the Hebrews were very harsh in dealing with people who overextended themselves: Debtors or their children could be sold into slavery to redeem—or pay off—the obligation. Elisha saved the family of a widow from such a fate.

Alongside the terrifying spectre of slavery, however, was a highly compassionate custom: Biblical law provided for the so-called sabbatical year. Every seven years, debts were to be forgiven, and slaves held in bondage by debt were to be released. The only catch was the sabbatical tradition applied only to Israelites—and even they may not have applied this law consistently.

Although debt and economic issues were generally focused on individuals, they were always community concerns as well. The covenantal nature of Hebrew community involved mutual responsibility. The orphan and widow received special assistance from neighbors, not so much as an act of charity as an act of community obligation—in other words, because it evidenced how people who live in fellowship with God and with each other ought to behave.

Within families, a go’el, or “redeemer,” would come forward to ransom a relative by paying off his indebtedness. It is in light of that custom that Job, in desperate straits, declared, “I know that my redeemer liveth.”

Perhaps the most famous reference to debt is found in the Lord’s Prayer in the New Testament of the Bible: “Forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors.” Here, the discussion clearly expands beyond fiscal concerns to a broader sense of obligation. What is it that one child of God owes another within a covenant community? Accountability, or owning up to one’s obligations; repentance, when obligation has been incurred as the result of negligence or an outright mistake; and, of course, forgiveness.

Indeed, Christ Jesus related forgiveness of one’s own obligations to the willingness to forgive others. These obligations may seem difficult to meet on our own, but God provides us endless means to do so. Looking to Him, we reflect His infinite love. Mary Baker Eddy commented on this portion of the prayer with this spiritual interpretation: “And Love is reflected in love.”

The covenantal nature of Hebrew society, and Jesus’ emphasis on unconditional love, are hallmarks of the Biblical view of debt. But do they apply today, when societal ground rules are so different? Can an understanding of God’s goodness, extended equally to all His children, together with the consistent expression of love, actually bring release from obligations that may at times seem overpowering? Yes.

“Divine Love always has met and always will meet every human need.” This statement applies to every era of history. It contains a powerful promise for future security; but it also makes an important statement about what has already taken place. Every human need that has ever become evident has been met by divine Love.

But what, actually, is need? Debts sometimes arise as a result of an imbalanced, unreasonable sense of what we think we need. People are constantly prodded to spend on items that promise to satisfy but seem inevitably to overpower and confuse. Even basic needs, like food, can be taken to extremes, either by excessive portions or by an overemphasis on the types of food one chooses to eat.

But the Bible has a great example of how one might view human needs, not from the standpoint of filling up empty space, but of rejoicing in abundance. Consider Jesus’ feeding thousands of people—an event that the Gospels record happening twice—with the equivalent of a couple of bags of groceries. How could such an event be possible? One factor might have been that each individual approached the food not with a sense of depletion but with such a sense of fullness and satisfaction, derived from listening to Jesus’ preaching, that just a crumb or two of bread was plenty.

How might our lives change were we, as individuals or as whole societies, to apply the same principle to our consumption—from buying consumer goods to using natural resources like timber and petroleum? Reasoning out from a place of present spiritual completeness and satisfaction, rather than struggling toward achieving them, we might discover an ability to live with less matter, while at the same time claiming more and more of the spiritual inspiration that truly sets us free. Such reasoning certainly can decrease human debt; at the same time, it must expand our obligations to God.

Key to escaping a burdened, joyless concept of indebtedness is the understanding of God as the giver of life and the source of a goodness that can never be depleted. Claiming God’s infinite goodness is essential to experiencing it. While pride and fear may appear to loosen our hold on it, they can never succeed in extinguishing that goodness. It is always ours, once we are ready to embrace it in humility and with persistence.

Mary Baker Eddy explained: “God gives you His spiritual ideas, and in turn, they give you daily supplies. Never ask for to-morrow: it is enough that divine Love is an ever-present help; and if you wait, never doubting, you will have all you need every moment. What a glorious inheritance is given to us through the understanding of omnipresent Love! More we cannot ask: more we do not want: more we cannot have” (Miscellaneous Writings 1883–1896, p. 307).

My parents prayed with this statement at a time when my father’s business was teetering on the brink of bankruptcy. I remember the night Daddy came home, sat down on the sofa, and said, “I’m done. It’s all over.” Mother and I were preparing to attend the Wednesday evening testimony meeting at our Christian Science church, and we went. I remember how Mother prayed her heart out the entire hour, affirming God’s care and asking Him to help her see the infinite supply of good He provides for each of His children.

When we came home, Daddy met us at the door. “Something amazing has happened,” he said. A friend he had not seen in years stopped by. When he heard of Daddy’s need, he immediately offered an interest-free loan to tide him over. His generosity of spirit mirrored that sense of covenant community that characterized the Hebrews centuries earlier.

This friend lost nothing by his offer. Daddy eventually paid off that loan—and every penny of other indebtedness. Years later, we treasured the memory of that night and what it taught us about God’s limitless Love.

Mrs. Eddy wrote, “The right way wins the right of way, even the way of Truth and Love whereby all our debts are paid, mankind blessed, and God glorified” (Miscellany, p. 232). It helps to remember that glorifying God is our primary purpose, whether times are prosperous or lean. We are always debtors to God, owing Him all our love and praise. We have His love to express in our own lives, and to share with others. He blesses us abundantly. We are always in His care.

Contributing editor Elaine Follis is a Christian Science practitioner in Quincy, Massachusetts, in the United States.

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