Commentaries:
Everybody will be judged by or against the same law. God is impartial in His judgments; He uses the same standard for everyone. Just in case one wonders what law Paul means, verse 21 identifies it.
John W. Ritenbaugh
The Covenants, Grace, and Law (Part Sixteen)
The conscience should reflect an inner belief of what is right and wrong. If those values are based on God's truth (Jeremiah 31:33; Hebrews 10:15-16), sinful activity will cause us to feel guilty and motivate us to repent. Conversely, when a person who lacks Christian values commits sin, there is often no guilt associated with it nor any desire for repentance. In both of these instances, the conscience “bears witness” to the genuine values of the sinner (Judges 21:25; Psalm 51:3, 13, 17; II Samuel 24:10-25; Job 42:6).
Martin G. Collins
Is Your Conscience a Good Guide?
Suneidesis, translated as “conscience” and used 32 times in the New Testament, was introduced to the biblical lexicon by Paul. The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia defines it as, “An inner witness that testifies on the rightness or wrongness of one's actions or motives and, on the basis of them, pronounces judgment concerning the worth of the person.” Put simply, it is a person's internal moral sense.
While Paul does not provide a formal definition, what he writes in Romans 2:14-15 comes close:
For when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do what the law requires, they are a law to themselves, even though they do not have the law. They show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness, and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even excuse them. (English Standard Version)
Conscience can be seen as a gift of God that provides human beings with the capacity for accurate self-examination, particularly when used in the light of God's truth as illustrated by I Corinthians 4:4. We should realize that it is, not a dictator of our beliefs, but a response that reflects our current values (Romans 9:1; II Corinthians 1:12; 4:2; 5:11).
Martin G. Collins
Is Your Conscience a Good Guide?
It is helpful to understand that God provides two distinct callings for every person on earth. The first is quite general, and everybody rejects it regardless of how religious he might be. Solomon writes in Proverbs 8:1-4:
Does not wisdom cry out, and understanding lift up her voice? She takes her stand on the top of the high hill, beside the way, where the paths meet. She cries out by the gates, at the entry of the city, at the entrance of the doors: "To you, O men, I call, and my voice is to the sons of men."
Here, the wisdom of God, personified as a woman, claims that the knowledge of God is readily available to mankind. Proverbs 1:20-26 affirms this:
Wisdom calls aloud outside; she raises her voice in the open squares. She cries out in the chief concourses, at the openings of the gates in the city she speaks her words: "How long, you simple ones, will you love simplicity? For scorners delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge. Turn at my rebuke: surely I will pour out my spirit on you; I will make my words known to you. Because I have called and you refused, I have stretched out my hand and no one regarded, because you disdained all my counsel and would have none of my rebuke, I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your terror comes."
Again, God's wisdom is personified, and her testimony is that no one paid attention. All of mankind "disdained all my counsel, and would have none of my rebuke." With this in mind, recall what Paul writes in Romans 1:18-20:
For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because what may be known of God is manifest in them, for God has shown it to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and [divine nature], so that they are without excuse.
In other words, no man can stand before God and claim that he turned away from Him because God never provided any understanding of, not only His existence, but also many details of His power and works among men. How is this possible? Apart from the reality of creation, one reason is the ready availability of the Bible. Into how many languages and dialects have men translated it? Nearly everyone on earth can read or hear it in his own tongue!
Romans 2:14-15 presents yet another claim of God that blocks mankind's excuses:
. . . for when the Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do the things in the law, these, although not having the law, are a law to themselves, who show the work of the law written in their hearts, their conscience also bearing witness, and between themselves their thought accusing, or else excusing them. . . .
Deep within everyone, regardless of race or location, is a God-given awareness, a consciousness, not only of His existence, but even of some of the basics of what He requires, things written in God's biblical law. Despite all of this evidence, we universally reject Him. So thorough is mankind's rejection of God that, when He came as a man, we killed Him!
John W. Ritenbaugh
The Christian Fight (Part Six)
Mankind, even before an individual's calling and conversion, is equipped with some basic knowledge and guidance regarding right and wrong. But most conclusive of all is Romans 1:18-20, where God confirms that all humanity, including the unconverted, are to some degree “without excuse.” Thus, He warns that, despite His being out of sight, we must be aware that, though merciful, He is watching and exercising His authority.
Theologian Cornelius Van Til perceptively observed:
There is not a place in all the universe where man can go and say, “This is my private realm.” No button he can press and say, “Here I step outside God's jurisdiction.” There is not a square inch in God's creation over which Christ is not Sovereign, that He cannot say, “This is mine.”
John W. Ritenbaugh
Leadership and Covenants (Part Four)
People "who do not have the law" cannot do things in relation to God. In fact, they do not consider certain things in relation to God at all.
Nevertheless, every nation on earth supports the keeping of certain laws of God because they know by experience, by history, that they are good for their societies. No government on earth openly supports the murder of their own because they know from history that, if they did, the whole society would be torn apart. For instance, they do not want people to murder because it is not good for the nation.
John W. Ritenbaugh
The Covenants, Grace, and Law (Part Twenty-Two)
Even before Isaac Newton wrote down his observations about gravity, people had a pretty good working knowledge of the principle. It was widely understood that when an apple fell from a tree, it would hit the earth. Children learned at an early age not to throw rocks straight up—what goes up, must come down. The average peasant did not need Newton's proofs to verify these things; he had enough experience on his own to vouch for this natural law. The effect was easily observable.
The law of gravity exists entirely apart from human legislation. Isaac Newton did not create it, but merely wrote it down. It is a fact of everyday life and cannot simply be ignored. It is always in operation. A man may choose to pretend it does not exist, but he does so at tremendous risk to himself and others.
Gravity is but one of the many natural laws—those phenomena, not of human origin or governance, that have been proven to always occur whenever certain conditions exist. These cause-and-effect principles govern much of our lives. We may not be aware of the specifics—or willfully choose to ignore them—but, like gravity, they operate continuously. These are not laws we can vote on. We either comply, or we suffer the consequences.
The rest of God's laws are no different. They are not of human origin, and thus are beyond human regulation. They are always in force. They were not created by Moses but were merely recorded by him. And, like gravity, a man may choose to pretend they do not exist, but he will still reap the consequences for transgressing them.
One of these very broad natural laws is stated as follows: "For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life [through] Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 6:23). We normally consider "death" just to mean "the cessation of life," yet that definition is too narrow for this verse, where death is contrasted with eternal life. Eternal life is more than just life without end; an endless life would be torment without relief unless it also had with it the proper quality. Eternal life is living the way God lives. It is knowing or experiencing God (John 17:3), which will always produce the best and the most. It is not necessarily synonymous with material success, but instead consists of things that money cannot buy: security of mind, peace among relationships, joy without regard to physical circumstance, etc.
Death, then, while it would include the cessation of life, also means not living the way God lives. It means having a quality of life that is not eternal, whether in duration or in excellence. We can see that sin produces death by three means: 1) Sin brings on the penalty of eternal death, which can only be atoned for by Christ's sacrifice; 2) sin will always diminish the excellence and quality of life, whether it is immediately recognized or not; and, 3) some sins hasten physical death.
A few examples demonstrate this powerfully:
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The article, "The Empty Cradle Will Rock: How abortion is costing the Democrats voters—literally" (Wall Street Journal), details the "Roe Effect." This postulates that since children tend to absorb the values, political views, and lifestyle of their parents, abortionists are actually damaging their cause through its very practice. They are destroying the individuals in the next generation who would be most likely to support abortion. Abortion not only results in the death of an innocent, but also in a greatly diminished quality of life as the mother copes with guilt, depression, and even an increased risk of breast cancer.
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As Pam Stenzel discusses in her sobering presentation "Sex Has a Price Tag," some of the most common sexually transmitted diseases may not be fatal but instead render the recipient unable to have children. Incidentally, a large number of these STDs can be contracted even when so-called "safe sex" is practiced. In this example also, the individuals in one generation who practice a sinful lifestyle have a decreased chance of producing another generation. Yet, even if neither pregnancy nor infection occurs, there is still an emotional price to pay. Sex outside of the bonds of marriage will always result in a diminished quality of life.
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Likewise, the homosexual lifestyle is aptly named the "culture of death." It is more concerned with self-gratification than with having a stable, secure family life as God intends. In addition, this lifestyle is essentially synonymous with AIDS and other debilitating diseases. From 1981 through 1999, there were 751,965 cumulative reported cases of AIDS in the U.S. At least 56 percent of the AIDS diagnoses occurred in homosexual or bisexual men. In other words, two percent of the population had at least 56 percent of those reported AIDS diagnoses (see "A Pharmacist's View on Gay Marriage"). As well, the average life expectancy for homosexuals is 20-30 years less than for heterosexuals, not only because of the high rate of disease, but also because of the extremely high rates of suicide, substance abuse, and "domestic violence."
Natural laws, whether they govern falling apples or human relationships, can be seen as harsh or restrictive, especially if one is on the wrong side of them (Romans 8:7). Or they can be seen as benevolent guides to help us live the way God Himself lives—both with excellence and longevity. The apostle Paul considered God's laws to be holy, just, and good (Romans 7:12) because they instruct us in the best way to live—the way that will not just produce length of days but also true fulfillment. We can either take God's Word for it, or we can observe the consequences of the choices of others. Or we can do what is natural for mankind and personally re-prove each of these laws the hard way.
Jesus Christ was once asked what should be done in order to have eternal life. His answer? "If you want to enter into life [eternal life—godly life], keep the commandments" (Matthew 19:16-17).
David C. Grabbe
Natural Law
Unconverted people can, completely apart from contact with the true God, discover much that harmonizes with God's purpose or godliness in general. The problem is that because they lack God's Holy Spirit, the truth they find is not as meaningful as it could be.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Thanksgiving or Self-Indulgence?
Similar to the fact of God's existence, in that it needs to be expanded upon and more precisely understood, is the truth that God has given mankind the basic elements of right and wrong to enable humanity to govern itself for the purposes of communal living.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Ecclesiastes and Christian Living (Part Four): Other Gifts
Other Forerunner Commentary entries containing Romans 2:14:
Job 32:8
Proverbs 1:20-26
Proverbs 1:20-30
Proverbs 8:1-4
Ezekiel 9:4
Amos 1:3-15
Amos 2:1-3
Romans 1:18-20
Romans 2:13
Romans 2:14-15
Romans 2:14-15
Galatians 3:10