Romans 13:8-13:10

Calvin (5/14/02)

13:8: Some have suggested that this verse was a bit of a taunt to his readers. However, it seems well to take it at face value. The point is that in showing obedience to authority, we are doing no more than what is required by the law of love. "He then who introduces anarchy, violates love." Footnote: Love is our constant debt to others, and thus, we must constantly give them our love as their due. All that God has commanded of us boils down to love: love for Him or love for our fellow man. By this, we can test our obedience, and under this, we are commanded to obey our rulers. Some find cause for complaint that love for God is not mentioned explicitly here. The keeping of the whole law is covered, according to Paul, in our love for our neighbors. This is true, and in it is also our love for God, for it is only our love for God that allows us to properly love our neighbors. Note that Paul's list of commandments in the following verse contains only references to the second table, to those which cover our duty towards man. This fits. This does not, however, provide a case for works salvation.
13:9: Paul is neither inclusive of all the commandments of the second table, nor is he restricting himself to that table. The point he is making is that all of God's law is concerned with the law of love, and as such it ought to have our utmost attention and effort. Again, obedience to authority is covered in this law of love.
13:10: If we truly love our neighbor, there will not be found in us so much as the thought of harming them. As the magistrates are a source of peace and protection to our neighbor, it would be to his harm for us to be disobedient. Again, we must be clear on the fact that our duty to God is not brought to this argument. The first table of the law is not mentioned.

Matthew Henry (5/14/02)

13:8: Do not continue in debt if you have the means to pay. If you owe, do not spend on yourself. It is not yours. (Ps 37:21 - The wicked borrow and don't repay. But the righteous gives graciously.) Many fail to see this sin. Love is a debt, one we will forever owe each person we deal with, and one we must constantly be repaying. In fulfilling the obligation of love, we may not perfectly fulfill the law, but we make great strides in that direction.
13:9: Love for our fellow man covers all that is required by the second table of the Law. (1Jn 4:20 - If one claims to love God yet hates his brother, he lies. If you don't love your brother whom you see, you cannot possibly love God whom you cannot.) How good our Lord to wrap our entire duty in one small word! (1Jn 4:16 - We have come to know God's love for us, and we believe it. God is love, and those who abide in love abide in God, and God abides in them.) Love is God's image upon us. It is the quality of our love for our neighbors that is of concern, not the quantity. The quality of that love is to be the same as the love we have for ourselves. Such a love will care for the neighbor's health, his property, and his reputation. The injunction against adultery is mentioned first, perhaps, because it is so often mistakenly referred to as love, maligning the true nature of love. To tempt another to sin is to show a deep hatred for that person. (Pr 7:15 - I have come out to meet you, having sought your presence earnestly, I have found you. Pr 7:18 - Let us drink our fill of love until morning, delighting ourselves in caresses.) There is the false love shown.
13:10: If we walk in this love, we cannot so much as conceive of an ill deed done to our neighbor. To think upon it is for us as bad as the doing. (Mic 2:1 - Woe to the schemers of iniquity, who contemplate their evil deeds while abed, and perform it when morning comes, as they are empowered to do so.) Love is absolutely opposed to any act that might harm another in any aspect. It will do its utmost to oppose any such action as might occur. It is sinful to do evil to a neighbor. It is equally sinful to withhold the good we might do for them. (Pr 3:27-29 - Do not withhold good from those to whom it is due, when you are able to do it. Don't tell your neighbor to come ask again tomorrow when you know you have the means today. Devise no harm against your neighbor, but let him live securely beside you.) The whole law is written on the heart that knows the law of love.

Adam Clarke (5/15/02)

13:8: To civil authorities, we were told we owe obedience, however to our brothers, our fellow men, all that we owe is love. But the love we have towards them will utterly prevent us from harming them in any way.
13:9: Love will not allow us to take a man's wife, property, or reputation, nor even to consider such an action. The bulk of manuscript evidence does not support the presence of the commandment to not bear false witness, which is why it is generally not in the texts.
13:10: Because one acting from a base of love will treat others as he himself would wish to be treated, love cannot work ill to another. Thus, this love fulfills the law.

Barnes' Notes (5/15/02)

13:8: Having noted the requirements upon us to pay each man his dues, it is a natural progression to move on to this admonition to owe no man anything. This is part of our duty as citizens. It is also part of the law of love. The injunction against debts is, in this place, limited to such debts as would injure another in their repaying. Scripture teaches us to be industrious, which, were we to obey, would eliminate much cause for contracting debts. It also teaches to live an economical and humble life, which would eliminate still more cause for debt. It teaches us to inculcate these views in our families. (Ro 12:11 - Don't lag in diligence, but serve the Lord with a fervent spirit. Php 4:8 - Hold to everything that is pure and true and lovely. These things should occupy your thoughts. Pr 24:30-34 - When I looked upon the lazy one's properties they were broken down, and overrun with weeds. From this, I learned. If we are forever taking our rest, then poverty will steal what we have, and lack will attack us. 1Th 4:11 - Lead a quiet life, attending to your own work, as we commanded you. 2Th 3:10 - We told you when we were with you that those who won't work should neither be allowed to eat. Eph 4:25 - Do away with falsehood, and speak truthfully to your neighbor, for we are all members of one another.) True religion will give us a sober view of the end, and thus turn our desires from such splendors as often lead us into debt. (1Th 5:6 - Don't sleep as others do, but remain alert and sober. 1Th 5:8 - Being of the day, be sober, wearing the breastplate of faith and love, with the hope of salvation for a helmet. 1Pe 1:13 - Gird your minds for action, be sober in spirit, and fix your hope completely on the grace brought to you at Jesus' revelation. 1Pe 4:7 - The end is at hand, so judge soundly with a sober spirit, and be purposeful in prayer. Ti 2:12 - The Spirit instructs us to deny ungodliness and worldly desires. He instructs us to live sensibly and godly in this age. 1Pe 3:3 - Don't focus on external ornamentation. 1Pe 3:5 - Holy women of old, whose hope was in God, adorned themselves in submission to their husbands. 1Ti 2:9 - I say that women should adorn themselves in modest dressing, not with gems and rich materials.) Religion puts an end to those vices which so often drag one into debt, and whatever debts might be would be paid, for the Christian is prompt, and a friend of truth. Love is our permanent debt, which we are ever repaying, yet never can repay in full. Love will not seek the harm of another, and will do what it has the power to do to do him good.
13:9: The whole law, as it applies to our duties towards man, is shown to operate from this base of love. This commendation of love by the law should be our rule of conduct, because salvation is near (Ro 13:11). The list of laws that Paul provides is not complete, but suffices to show that the general requirement of the law is that we act from a love for our fellows. Note that the commandment regarding parental honor is omitted, perhaps to keep the focus on duty to those less closely related. Whether mentioned specifically, or not, each point of the law will be seen to return to this base of loving our neighbor. It all comes down to that. (Lev 19:18 - Take no vengeance, nor bear any grudge against your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD. Mt 19:19 - Honor your parents, and love your neighbor as yourself.) Obedience to this one command would end all fraud, injustice, adultery, murder, and other such evils. This is the same thought as is expressed in the rule requiring that we do to others only as we would have them do to us.
13:10: Since love seeks to do good for others, it cannot but prevent all crime toward them. Imagine the impact, if we all would begin to live by this law! By this law, whole industries would be ended; gambling, lotteries, bars, and purveyors of strong liquors. Love would require such as performed such work to cease. (Hab 2:15 - Woe to those who lead their neighbors to drink, who make them drunk so as to expose their nakedness.) It is because of this inability of a loving person to intend harm that love fulfills the law. It meets all of the law's requirements.

Wycliffe (5/15/02)

13:8: Love fulfills the law. Love is the only debt we are to owe, and it is the only debt we can never fully pay. To be 'in the process of loving' is to be in the position of having fulfilled the law.
13:9: Any commandment one might find in Scripture that directs our actions towards others will be found to be summed up in this one command to love our neighbor.
13:10: The Old Testament implied that love is to direct our actions towards each other. Paul makes this rule explicit. "Love clearly shows the believer's positive commitment and active obedience to God."

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown (5/15/02)

13:8: Love can never be paid off, for it is always due. (Lk 10:29 - Who is my neighbor? Lk 10:36 - Which proved himself a neighbor to the man who was robbed?) The law is but a detailed instruction in the manifesting of love in all circumstances.
13:9: Again, there is little support for the inclusion of the commandment against false witness. Far more likely, it was inserted to complete the supposed intent of Paul, then that it was omitted later. Paul makes clear that he is not attempting to list every commandment that might be covered by this law of love, but that indeed every commandment that one might find is so covered. He does, however, appear to constrain this rule to such laws as cover our duties toward our fellows.
13:10: Since love seeks to delight and please the object of its attentions, it cannot willfully injure that object.

New Thoughts (5/16/02-5/17/02)

All of God's instruction to us comes down to this one matter of love. One word that is to guide every moment and every action. All the learning, all the teaching, all the agonizing of spirit that comes of our struggle with sin, it all comes down to this one matter of love. One aspect of this that seems to get lost on us is that this is not a feeling or emotion we're being commanded to have. It's a guiding principle, an attitude, a purposefulness.

This is precisely why God has spent so much of His word upon explaining just what it means to love. If it were simply the emotion, we'd know how it feels, and we'd be off chasing that emotion with each one we meet. But that's not the point. That's sin twisting the command, and leading us into paths of lust. Lust is an emotion, love is an attitude. Lust seeks to gratify its own feelings, love seeks to satisfy the needs of another.

Wycliffe's commentary tells us that to be 'in the process of loving' is to be in the position of having fulfilled the law. But, how much we have to learn about that process! Loving is hard. It's hard when we're dealing with somebody loveable. It takes time and effort in the best of circumstances. As God's children, we are called to be just as loving when we're dealing with somebody completely unlovable.

We're not called to enjoy them. We're not called to 'accept them as they are.' We're called to a twofold ministry to them. First, we are told to do no evil to them. This part always seems pretty straightforward to us. After all, if worse comes to worst, we can simply avoid them, and thus remove the possibility of harming them, right? In truth, even this may backfire on occasion. If we are so focused on avoidance, there are those who will be hurt by our actions. Such efforts on our part won't go unnoticed by the one we're avoiding.

Yet even were we to do all we could to avoid harming our neighbor, we'd still be working only half of the job. Love is not simply avoiding the harming of another, it's actively seeking out ways to do good to them. It is just as sinful to hold back on doing the good that is in our power to do as it would be to seek their harm. This is the hard part. The "thou shalt nots" never seem to be as difficult as the "thou shalts."

The duties of love, in doing good, are manifold. To do good for a person may require actions that appear hurtful. Parents know this. Children tend to misunderstand it. A loving parent will have to do for the child things the child is not interested in having done. A loving parent will have to punish the child that is doing wrong. To fail at that would be to fail to love the child.

With our families, we're reasonably clear on these duties. With our brothers and sisters in Christ, we're almost as clear. We know it is our duty to seek to bring back the one who is in sin. We know it's our duty to correct false teachings. We know it is our duty to admonish each other to holiness. But when it comes to applying the law of love to the rest of the world, to our co-workers, to our neighbors, to the stranger in line at the grocery store, the whole thing becomes more blurred in our minds.

What about the person behind the counter when we go for coffee, or whatever other items we may be in a bit of a hurry over. Do we love them well? Do we love them well when they're slow in serving? Our society has become a service society, and we expect to be waited on in much the same fashion as we're supposed to be waiting on God. And, oh, how offended we are when that service is lacking! We'll see if that waitress gets a tip from us! How much would this picture change if, when we looked at the one serving us, we saw a reflection of our own service to God? How much would this picture change if, when we were served in less than stellar fashion, we forgave as we wish to be forgiven for our own meager efforts in serving Christ?

What about that co-worker who seems to be a constant thorn in our side? Now it's getting hard. Are we willing to expose ourselves a tad in the workplace, and seek understanding with that one? Are we willing to expend a bit of effort to find out why that person is as they are? Having learned what makes them tick so strangely, are we willing to help? Or are we more concerned with our reputation, with protecting our feelings from any snub or insult that might come our way were we to attempt such a thing? Can we love as Christ loved us? Can we at least try? Can we maybe love ten percent as much as Christ loved us? Even that may be difficult, but if we can get to ten percent, perhaps we can stretch out for twenty.

God, I know I'm writing this to myself perhaps more than anybody. I know I'm Your only audience at this moment, and I may well be Your only audience at any time for this particular train of thought. I know I fall down flat as often as not, when it comes to loving those outside my immediate sphere. I know there remain occasions, all too many of them, when I fall down just as flat in loving my family. Yet, I can thank You. I can thank You that, looking back to the time almost a year and a half ago when I was first studying through this passage, I can see progress. Oh, how I need such encouragements! How I need to see that You are working still, and indeed, I know You are. You are faithful to complete that work You began in me so long ago. Learning how to love is the most difficult lesson You've had to teach me. It remains so.

If I cannot learn that lesson, my Lord, I know that all else that I've been learning from Your word will be as nothing. It is Your word that tells me this is the case, and it doesn't take a whole lot of thought to recognize the truth of that assessment. God, I don't want this to have been in vain. I don't want to find, when we finally meet, that in all I've done, I've failed at the most basic level. Teach me, oh God, to love more fully, more truly, more completely. Teach me, oh God, how to depart from an attitude of annoyance. Teach me, my Father, how to love like You. Help me to take Your instructions to heart, to apply them moment by moment. Remind me, Holy Spirit, that each interaction I have today is an opportunity to either love as You love, or to do harm. Help me to choose to love.

I've been chewing a lot on intentionality of late, on issues of being intentional in worship, intentional in prayer, intentional in living. How interesting, then, to be reminded of this verse in 1 Peter! (1 Pe 4:7 - The end of all things is at hand; therefore, be of sound judgment and sober spirit for the purpose of prayer.) Be of sound judgment: In light of what we're studying, this speaks to me of seeing each situation for what it truly is, an opportunity to display Christ, an opportunity to love. Be of sober spirit: The ages are winding down. We don't have time to be frivolous. The time for clowning around is long gone. Does this mean we need to be dour? No. Again, it's a call to be intentional in living. See the situation for what it is. Recognize the need for the Lord's guidance, and recognize His guidance when it comes. Don't play church. Live God intentionally. Be about the purpose of prayer: Be about praying purposefully. Be intentional in prayer. Don't be tossing off prayers for the sound of your voice. Don't be tossing off prayers because it's the proper time, because it's what everyone else is doing at the moment. Be intentional. Pray from the heart. Pray because you mean it. Otherwise we are doing worse than wasting breath. We are lying even in our thoughts.

More and more, I am seeing that this intentionality applies across all that we do. Work intentionally. Don't just go to work and put in your time. Work as unto the Lord. Give it your best. Play intentionally. Play has its purpose, especially within the family. Be purposeful about it. Use that play time for all its worth. Build relationship with it, build strength to persevere with it. Rejoice in the Lord with it!

We are the people of God. We are a people of purpose. The educational system has been trying for years to convince us that this isn't true. They have been purposeful in claiming we are a people of chance and coincidence. But God has told us otherwise, and frankly, who're you going to believe? As a people of purpose, we ought to be purposeful - full of purpose! We ought to overflow with purpose. Purpose should impact every move we make, and the purpose we have been given is to manifest God's love to mankind.

Today, oh God, let me be intentional in loving those I am around. Each one of them, in each situation, however awkward and painful it may feel. Empower me, Lord, to reach out in Your strength and mercy, to do as I would have done for me.