Love and Duty

I was part of a conversation a few days ago with a pastor. He was discussing the possibility that some of us don't see a difference between duty and love.

Are there things that we do only out of duty and call love? Are duty and love tied together at time?

Duty speaks of obligation. There are things that I do out of obligation; I do them only because I have said that I would or because I have a responsibility to do them. It's not the same as actions taken out of love. Of course, there are times when I act out of obligation toward someone whom I love. I have an obligation to make sure my children do their homework, and because I love them, I want them to succeed in life, so I try to motivate them to do their homework out of love for them. Those two motivations could be separated, however.

What would it feel like to be loved out of duty? I don't think it would feel like love at all.

Love is grace. Duty is not.