Commentary on Romans 13:8-14

The apocalyptic Paul shows up clearly in these verses. That is, we see evidence that Paul expected Jesus to return soon, perhaps in his own lifetime, to gather up all things in heaven and on earth to return to God the creator so that God may be all in all, everything to everyone (1 Corinthians 15:28). 

In his early letters, Paul deals with both expectations and questions about the return of Christ. For example, in 1 Thessalonians, Paul addresses the concerns the early believers in Thessalonica had for their loved ones who died in the Lord (in the faith) before Christ returned. Will those loved ones be lost forever? No, Paul reassures them. Those who die in the faith before Christ returns will be raised up first at the sound of the trumpet (1 Thessalonians 4:16).

The hinge verse in this passage is verse 11: “Besides this, you know what time it is, how it is now the moment for you to wake from sleep. For salvation is nearer to us now than when we became believers.”

Preceding verse 11, verses 8–10 are a summary of the Ten Commandments that both begins and ends with the call to love one another, for this is the fulfillment of the law. Following verse 11 is the admonition to lay aside every form of living that does not honor God, that does not honor the law of love. To put on the Lord Jesus Christ is to live as close to the heart of God as is earthly possible.

Again, verse 11 reads, “You know what time it is.” Now is the time to get your spiritual affairs in order and get into right relationship with God by putting on Christ, putting on love, such that it becomes your very being.

Echoes of Galatians, an earlier letter from Paul, can be heard in these verses. In Galatians, Paul confirms that in the law of love, there is freedom from the law of Moses. But freedom from the law of Moses is not freedom to do whatever one wants, no matter the cost to anyone else. Freedom from the law of Moses is freedom from evaluating every action throughout the day, freedom from a focus on the details of life, freedom from the myopic vision of every jot and tittle of rule of life. The freedom found in the law of love is precisely to see the other, to care for the other, to love the neighbor rather than being obsessed with one’s own maintenance of the rules.  Fulfill the law of love, and believers have fulfilled the law of Moses.

Put on the law of love; put on Christ

In the event we are not clear about what the law of love looks like, even after the gifts for ministry and the disposition of love as described by Jesus in the Sermon on the Mount and alluded to in Romans 12, Paul spells out for us what is singularly inappropriate with regard to the law of love as we prepare for the return of Christ: Avoid reveling, which is excessive partying and wild behavior; avoid drunkenness, debauchery, and licentiousness, which may be taken as reckless indulgence in immoral behavior; avoid quarreling and jealousy. As to these behaviors, “you did not so learn Christ!” we hear in a later letter (Ephesians 4:20 Revised Standard Version). 

Wake up! The day is near. Lay aside the life and works of darkness, and put on the armor of light; put on Christ. Ephesians 6:11–17 will describe the armor of God: the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, the shoes that will enable believers to go and proclaim the gospel of peace, the shield of faith, the helmet of salvation, the sword of the Spirit which is the word of God. Put on truth, righteousness (God’s justice), go-shoes to proclaim the gospel, faith, the protection of salvation, and take up the word of God. This is what it means to put on Christ.

Preaching angles

What does this mean for our preaching ministry?

1. There is a zeal found in youth, a zeal found in early believers, a zeal in the training of the young athlete and intellectual curiosity of those who have discovered learning. Such zeal tends to fade with age, maturity, and experience. Many find they cannot keep up the drive, the intense focus, the long days and training sessions, the hard charging of the early endeavor. In Romans 12:10, Paul exhorts us not to lag in zeal, which is evidence enough that our tendency is to lose drive, especially if an expected outcome does not manifest in our timeline. 

What is the antidote to lagging in zeal? Put on Christ. Put on the things of love. We do not need to run at the pace of a 28-year-old champion marathoner, or study with the lack of sleep of a young scholar, or have the sustaining power of the one who could work the fields for 14 hours instead of 10. Put on Christ. Put on the law of love.  Live in truth, deal with the neighbor with the righteousness of God, love the other even when the feeling is not there because love is a behavior even more than a feeling.

1. Live as though in the light, no matter the stages of day, twilight, dark, or dawn. Live as though the lights are on. Putting on Christ, putting on the whole armor of God is not just for when we leave the house. Putting on the law of love is not public behavior and attitude alone. Wear Christ at home, in familial relationship, in prayer life, in the quiet and small personal choices that impact the world at large, such as where we give our money, from whom we purchase goods, the privacy of the voting booth. 
2. Contrast cultural, political, or self-interested concepts of freedom with gospel freedom. Gospel freedom considers the well-being of the other, knowing one’s own security in the love and mercy of God.