This short passage can be conveniently dealt with under four snappy headings: (1) Pay up, (2) Wake up, (3) Dress up and (4) Shape up.

(1) Pay up. Let no debt remain outstanding, except the continuing debt to love one another, for he who loves his fellow-man has fulfilled the law. v8.

(a) Debts to clear.

Christians should promptly pay off all debts for services rendered or goods provided. Billions of pounds are owed the British Government in unpaid taxes with the result that honest people suffer either through higher taxes or poorer services.

It is dreadful when small and struggling businesses are kept waiting for money owed them. It puts up their costs, messes up their cash flow and may end in ruin.

(b) The debt we can never clear.

Christians are under an obligation to love their fellow-men.

• Love does no harm to our neighbour. Consequently we are prohibited from:
  • Committing adultery with its attendant betrayal, hurt and disruption.

  • Committing murder. We should avoid gossiping someone's reputation away and murdering that person's good name - as Absalom did for his father David.

  • Committing theft because it costs us all in higher insurance premiums or higher prices. Shop lifting does not harm the supermarket but the poor, old-age pensioner who has to pay an extra 5% on her groceries.

  • Being covetous because it produces ill will toward your neighbour. It sours relationships.

  Paul has a word here for his Jewish Christian critics. If men and women love their neighbour they fulfil God's law.

• Love helps those in need. There will always be those in need. That is why the obligation to love our neighbour is ongoing throughout our lives. If our neighbour is:
  • Shut in, we can visit, take her CDs of the church services, do her shopping.

  • Lonely, we can befriend him and share our family life with him.

  • Sick, we can provide transport to the doctors or the hospital, do some housework.

  • Poor or handicapped we can provide financial support for charities bringing relief to such.

(2) Wake up. The hour has come for you to wake up from your slumber, because your salvation is nearer now than when you first believed. v11.

(a) We shouldn't be half asleep.

We've all been in bed and experienced that delightful condition half way between sleep and consciousness. Many of us aim to prolong it intending, if possible, to go back to sleep.

There are plenty of Christians who are only half awake to their responsibilities. They are glad of the church fellowship and benefit from what others do for them but need to wake up to their obligations. The alarm is ringing and it is time to rouse up and go to work.

(b) We shouldn't be day dreamers.

Every school teacher knows to keep a sharp eye out for day dreamers. They are easy to spot. Their eyes glaze over, they have that far away look and maybe a smile plays about their lips. The switched off pupils are not concentrating. It is a disastrous condition. When told to start work up goes the day dreamer's hand followed by the inevitable question: "Mr Reed, what have I got to do?" Wailing and gnashing of teeth!!

When I was a boy Brockley Cricket Club occasionally had trouble fielding 11 players. Very often a village lad not much interested in the game would be recruited to make the number up. He would spend his time in the field happily day dreaming about tea, a pint in the pub, dalliance with his girl friend, the purchase of a motor bike and the like. When the ball came careering through the air in his direction, if he was lucky he would miss it altogether and if he was unlucky it would hit him in the throat. Whatever the outcome, the day dreaming fielder would drop the catch to the chagrin of our opening bowler, local blacksmith, Len Pawsey who was known to drop to his knees and offer a prayer to heaven for better support.

Church congregations have several who day dream through the sermon. I wonder what they are thinking about. One thing is certain they would be mortally offended if picked on by the preacher as I picked on those in my classroom who failed to concentrate. I would ask the classroom dreamer a series of quick fire questions based on what I had just said. Woe betide them if they could not answer correctly. Perhaps, we preachers are too soft on our congregations.

There are a few individuals who go through life in a dream. They have no sense of reality. Indeed, they confuse their dreams with reality. I have nephew like that. He confuses the intention of finding work with actually, really finding a job and doing it.

It is a pity if Christians who should seek first the kingdom of God have their minds on 'other things'. Jesus deals with the danger of this in his Parable of the Sower. Some seed fell among thorns and the growing crop was smothered by fast growing weeds. Jesus likened this situation to professing Christians whose spiritual life is choked by life's worries, riches and pleasures. Lk8v14.

Christians shouldn't waste their time day dreaming about succeeding at work, falling in love, their next holiday, the future of their children, the next episode of, 'Neighbours' and so on. Paul says, "Wake up!" and focus on your contribution to Christ's church. If we are half asleep or day dreaming and fail to respond to the alarm call then Solomon's words will be true of us: How long will you lie there, you sluggard? When will you get up from your sleep? A little sleep, a little slumber, a little folding of the hands to rest - and poverty will come on you like a bandit and scarcity like a vagrant. Pr6v9to11.

(c) When we really need to be awake.

There are particular times we especially need to be alert and with it:

• When there is an important job to be done. We would all expect: our dentist to be wide awake when drilling a tooth, our pharmacist to concentrate when making up our prescription, the electrician wiring our house to keep his mind on the job and the surgeon giving us a new hip not to be groggy from a hangover.

  Christians have important work to do as servants of King Jesus. Are we alert? Are we with it? Are we up for it? Yes, yes, yes you answer. Well, what about private prayer. This is crucial work and yet by the time we are finished we can often be half asleep or, indeed, altogether asleep!

• When danger threatens. Soldiers on patrol in Afghanistan are wide awake. Bomb disposal experts don't go to sleep on the job! A helicopter pilot coming into land maintains full concentration.

  Christians are in danger. The apostle Peter warns that Satan goes about like a roaring lion seeking whom he may devour. I prefer to picture the Devil as a predatory sparrow hawk that swoops without warning upon the unsuspecting song bird. The hawk is a silent killer. In my experience Satan strikes like that. Trouble flares up out of nowhere. One moment all is well in the church and the next there is total disarray.

  Jesus told his disciples in the Garden of Gethsemane: "Watch and pray so that you will not fall into temptation. The spirit is willing but the body is weak. Mk14v38.

  It doesn't take much to throw a Christian off course.

• As the day of reckoning approaches. I used to issue a grand wake up call to my pupils as the date of their G.C.S.E. exam approached. "Only six weeks left," I would say, "you should be doing 2 hours revision a week." I wanted them all to be ready. Some were never ready!

  If you have a driving test, an interview for a job or a marriage ceremony - you need to be ready!

  Every Christian needs to be ready as the Day of Judgment draws ever closer - our salvation is nearer now than when we first believed. We don't want to be like the 7 foolish virgins of Jesus' parable. Jesus concluded this parable with the words: "Therefore keep watch, because you do not know the day or the hour." See Mt25v1to13.

(d) Our time is short. The night is nearly over; the day is almost here. v12.

People will work with urgency when they know they have only a short period of time to finish a project. I always made writing school reports a priority because they were due in on a fixed date. The gangs doing repairs to the rails of the London Underground get on with it post-haste because there is a limited window of opportunity for such work. The contractors who built the arenas for the London Olympics didn't hang about but finished on time to avoid the bad, world-wide publicity of being late.

Christians only have a short time to complete their service for Christ. None of us know quite how short! The end is nearer now than when we first believed. Our last week in Christian service might be this week!

Jesus said: "As long as it is day, we must do the work of him who sent me. Night is coming, when no one can work." Jn9v4. The Master's public ministry lasted only 3 years - what a lot he packed into this short space of time! We need to something of his focus and urgency.

One day Satan decided to test the wits of three of his favourite demons. He asked them to suggest their most effective temptation. The first demon said, "I tell humans there is no God."

Satan was not impressed. He said, "That rarely works. All those humans have to do is look up or look around them to remain convinced there is a God."

The second demon said, "Well I tell those horrible humans that there is no hell."

"Oh dear," said Satan, "they nearly all believe that anyway."

The last demon, a crafty little beggar, said, "I just tell them, 'There's plenty of time, plenty of time.'"

"Ah!" replied Satan, "Good one!"

(3) Dress up. So let us put aside the deeds of darkness and put on the armour of light. v12b.

In some jobs a man's working clothes will be a good deal shabbier than his leisure wear. But others have to dress up for work. This is true of an MP, barrister, doctor and even a school teacher. You don't actually see a soldier going into battle looking scruffy. Certainly in the time of Paul there would be a big difference in the attire of a legionnaire on leave and one on active service. On leave the legionnaire might wear an old, threadbare, shabby, stained robe. On duty he would wear the full regalia of a Roman soldier. His armour would be shining bright; his breastplate, helmet and shield would be polished till it gleamed.

Christian soldiers are on active service. Consequently they should have thrown off the grubby old clothes of darkness: self-indulgence, selfishness, sloth, ignorance, carelessness, quarrelsomeness, faithlessness and presumption. We should put on the whole armour of God mentioned in Eph6v10to19: the belt of truth, the sure-footed sandals, the breastplate of righteousness, the helmet of salvation, the shield of faith and sword of the Spirit. See exposition on Eph6v10to24.

We can keep our armour bright using the polishing cloth of prayer. We must keep our shield up - looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of faith. We can keep our sword sharp through constant use.

(4) Shape up.

Verse 14 reinforces verse 13. Let us behave decently, as in the daytime (v13) - rather clothe yourself with the Lord Jesus Christ (v14). Not in orgies and drunkenness, not in sexual immorality and debauchery, not in dissention and jealousy (v13) - and do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature (v14).

We need to satisfy 2 conditions to keep in good physical shape:

• Some things are best avoided: alcohol, cigarettes and a diet of junk food. Serious sportsmen and women watch their diet.

• Regular, vigorous and disciplined exercise must be taken. If anything the second condition is more important than the first. James Herriott in his book, 'All Things Bright and Beautiful,' describes how many Yorkshire hill farmers of the 1930's and 40's enjoyed eating great slabs of cold pork fat. It did them no harm because they burned it off in hard labour.

(a) Paul advises on what to avoid to keep in good spiritual shape.

Our diet should not include:

• Revelry and drunkenness or drunken revelry. This is common in our town centres on Friday and Saturday nights among late night drinkers, travelling England football supporters, young unattached English holiday makers in Spanish resorts and in some posh university clubs that specialise in throwing food, urinating in beer mugs and smashing the furniture. The British are remarkably tolerant of this behaviour.

• Promiscuity and shamelessness or shameless promiscuity. This includes casual sex, the one night stand, sex without commitment and responsibility.

• Quarrelling and jealousy or jealous quarrelling. This is a major cause of trouble in churches. It is associated with strife, ill-humoured outbursts, in fighting, turbulent, ill natured church meetings, division, factionalism and the spirit of hatred. It is no more conducive to spiritual fitness than sexual immorality.

The sad thing is that all the above were evident in the church at Corinth. Little wonder Paul described them as infants in Christ.

If we indulge in any of the three kinds of behaviour described we shall be seriously out of shape as Christians and not fit for purpose as soldiers of Christ. So Paul urges us: Do not think about how to gratify the desires of the sinful nature.

(b) Paul describes the exercises to get us in good spiritual shape.

He summarises these by writing: Behave decently - clothe yourself with the Lord Jesus.

We need to practice becoming more and more like Jesus. We do this by:

• Immersing ourselves in the gospels to discover what Jesus is like. His life is gloriously open to all.

• Meditating on his life - thinking carefully about the gospel accounts of him.

• Praying to him for his wisdom, grace and power.

• Obeying his teaching just as any apprentice would obey the master craftsman. We must build on the rock and not upon the sand.

• Following his example. The trainee electrician will learn how to wire a house by watching how the skilled tradesman does it and copying him. We should be copies of the Master.

If we want to be spiritually fit like Jesus there are four essential qualities we need to cultivate. They are:

• Humility. Jesus could say, "Come unto me all you who are weary and heavy laden. Learn of me. I am meek and lowly of heart. My yoke is easy and my burden is light."

• Generosity. When Jesus sailed across Lake Galilee to have a quiet time with his disciples, Matthew records: The crowds followed him on foot from the towns. When Jesus landed and saw a large crowd, he had compassion on them and healed their sick. Mt14v14.

• A servant mentality. After Jesus had washed his disciple's feet in the upper room prior to his betrayal and arrest he said, "If I your Lord and Master wash your feet you should wash the feet of one another."

• A willingness to speak the truth without fear or favour as Jesus did when he denounced the religious establishment as a brood of vipers.

Disciplined living is indispensible for keeping spiritually fit and active. Our usefulness will be greatly impaired otherwise.