Romans 13:8 Owe no man any thing, but to love one another: for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.
Romans 13 deals with the government and the law. As to the government, it is an institution, in principle, that God has ordained and created. As to law, we are talking about more than the law of man; we are talking about the law of God, the Ten Commandments, for instance. Both are important and God-ordained. There are a couple motives people have in doing what is right, to keep the law. These motives govern their behavior whether it is at home, at church, in town, or at work.
Romans 13:1 says, “Let every soul be subject unto the higher powers, For there is no power but of God: the powers that be are ordained of God.” It goes on to say that when we resist such civil authority we resist the ordinance of God and receive destruction for it.
Romans 13 indicates that these higher powers are the ministers of God. Verses 3and 4 say, “For rulers are not a terror to good works, but to the evil…for he is the minister of God to thee for good.”
Then, verse 5 says something very interesting. It says, “Wherefore ye must needs be subject, not only for wrath, but also for conscience sake.” So, there are a couple motives for which people respond in subjection to authority.
One motive is fear. The Bible says of those in authority that they bear not “the sword in vain.” They are there to help keep order. If I am doing that which is right, I don’t need to fear them. In fact, I might be praised of them.
So, this motive for living in subjection to authority, the higher powers that God has ordained, is fear. Someone may think, “You know, I would love to rob the bank, but I am afraid that if I do I might get arrested or hurt.” Now, this is not a good motive, but it is a motive! If the world were full of people who only refrained from crime by the threat of force, this would be a very dangerous place. And, in fact, that is largely what we have right now.
There is a better motive, namely conscience. “Wherefore ye must needs be subject, not only for wrath, but also for conscience sake.” This motive says, “I’d like to, but I really don’t think I should. I will feel badly if I do the wrong thing.” Now, conscience is a good thing, but once again, it is a little self-centered. “I would, but I might get hurt.” “I would, but I would feel badly about it. My conscience would be pricked.”
There is a third motive that you read of in verse 8. It is not talking about governmental authority here. It is talking about the law of God, but we find a principle as to motive. It says, “Owe no man any thing, but to love one another; for he that loveth another hath fulfilled the law.” The motive is love.
How many laws would we need if we just loved everybody? If I loved my brother as myself, how many of the Ten Commandments would I need in order to keep me in check? There is a great simplicity of life when I just do what is right because I love my brother as myself. Verse 10 says, “Love worketh no ill to his neighbor: therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.” Love is doing what is right. It simplifies everything.
Of these three motives, fear, conscience, and love, which most governs your actions when it comes to your home, your church, your town, and your work? What does it take to govern you, a threat, a bribe, or the love of Christ shining through you? Is it the rule of law or the rule of love that governs you? Rule of law is sadly lacking in our land today. We need more of it. But the more love you have the less governing you will need.