By Rick Arnold
Romans 5:1–11 (ESV)
1Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we havepeace with Godthrough our Lord Jesus Christ.2Through him we have also obtainedaccessby faith into this grace in which we stand, and werejoice in hopeof the glory of God.3Not only that, but werejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance (patience),4and endurance produces character (experience), and character produces hope,5and hope does not put us to shame, becauseGod’s lovehas been poured into our hearts through theHoly Spiritwho has been given to us.
6For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.7For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die—8but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.9Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we besaved by him from the wrath of God.10For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life.11More than that, we alsorejoice in Godthrough our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now receivedreconciliation.
Jesus who wasEmanuel, God with us, was fully God and fully man. This is one of the great mysteries of the gospel. As God he was sinless and able to be the perfect sacrifice for sins. As man he was able torepresentour fallen race and reconcile us back to God the Father. Jesus death on the cross was payment for our sins. He lived the life we should have lived and he died the death we should have died. After three days he rose from death and ascended to the Father where he waits to return at the appointed time to judge the world in righteousness. All that is required of us is to repent and believe the good news, or gospel, about the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. The moment we turn to God inrepentanceand believe the Bible says we are justified. That means that though we have sinned we are declared not guilty. We exchange our sins for Christ’s righteousness. We can think of it as “just-as-if-i’d-never sinned”. Romans 5:1-11 tells of the great blessings that we receive once we are justified by faith in Christ. Let’s look at a few…
1. Objective peace= the war is over
According to the Bible fallen mankind is at war with God. We are God’s enemies prior to our justification by faith in Christ and his work on the cross. God desires to make peace with whoever will receive the terms of his agreement. All he asks is that we repent and believe the gospel. True repentance is not about you making yourself perfect or mustering up enough will power to overcome your habits. It’s about total surrender. It’s about getting totally honest and coming out into the light of truth knowing full well your status as God’s enemy will be fully exposed. It takes courage to step out into the light despite the sting of pride that tries to hold you back.
We come to the light with all our baggage and say here I am Lord. You are all right and I am all wrong. I raise the white flag of surrender. I don’t want to fight you anymore and I believe that your peace treaty is valid because of the shed blood of Jesus Christ. Once you repent and turn towards God the peace treaty is activated and the war is over you have peace with God. This peace is not based on how you feel. It is objective, that is, outside of yourself. It is based on God and his covenant faithfulness. This objective peace does lead to a subjective peace however and the Christian finds rest in the sweet peace of God.
2. Subjective peace= your soul comes into harmony with its nature and you feel peace
The process:We all have a conscience because we were created in God’s image. This is what makes us different from animals. We know right from wrong. When you go against your conscience it is painful. You were not designed to act that way. If you persist in sin you can actually damage your conscience so that it no longer works. The Bible calls this a seared conscience and that is a scary place to be because you are basically given over to sin and there is likely no return. But most of us do not have a seared conscience instead we try to drown out its voice through various means. Getting drunk, using drugs, distracting yourself with the affairs of this world, legalistic religion, etc. are often attempts to silence the voice of our conscience.
In Romans 7we see Paul talking about this. He wants to do certain things. He agrees that they are good, but he can’t find the strength to do them. He ends the section with the exclamation.. “Oh wretched man that I am, who shall deliver me.” You see, you must come to the end of yourself and finally realize that if someone else doesn’t deliver you, then you will not be delivered. This is where God wants us. He wants us to come to the end of ourselves so that we will surrender and admit our need for a savior. It is very hard for proud sinners to admit that they need help from the outside. But inevitably this is what one must do. We must humble ourselves. We must be willing to come into the light and be exposed.
Every sinner is hiding behind some shadowy lie. That is because it is painful to come into the light of truth and see ourselves as guilty sinners. Jesus said that he was the light of the world but people would not come to the light lest they be exposed. He said they hate the light because their deeds are evil (see John 3).
But when we have faith he enables us by his grace to come into the light. The pain and shame of exposure are quickly swept away by his saving love. We see in the light not only our sin but Christ’s saving work on the cross. The Holy Spirit lets this truth flood our hearts with light. It’s no longer the light of exposure but the warm sunshine of God’s acceptance shining upon us.
It is this acceptance with God that brings peace. This is what we have been searching for all along. What we could not find in the bottle, in the love affair, in legalistic religion, we discover in the peace that comes from being justified by faith in Jesus Christ.
“There is no peace,” says the LORD, “for the wicked.” (Isaiah 48:22)
And the effect of righteousness will be peace, and the result of righteousness, quietness and trust forever. My people will abide in a peaceful habitation, in secure dwellings, and in quiet resting places. (Isaiah 32:17–18)
1. We were separated:Through the fall we are not only guilty but separated from God. Our access was cut off. God gave the Old Testament law as a temporary means of limited access but he that is least in the Kingdom of God now has greater access than any in the Old Testament.
2. We now have access:Our justification gives us access to God’s presence and the grace that flows out of our fellowship with him.
Access:The Greek word literally means “introduction” which acknowledges our unfitness to enter, and our need for someone to bring us in (Stott 139). A true story is told of a young boy who sat crying outside Buckingham Palace after a palace guard refused to let him talk to the Queen. Twenty-year-old Prince Charles, observing the scene, approached the boy, took him by the hand, and said, “Come on, son. If you want to talk to the Queen, come with me.” So, too, we can talk to the King continually when we take the hand of the Son (Courson 912).
Grace:God is our ultimate source and everything we need for life and godliness flows out of our relationship with him. Through this access we become partakers of the divine nature. We are like branches grafted on to the vine. The same life and power that raised Christ from the dead flows to us. Christ becomes our ever-present, all-sufficient help in time of need.
3. We stand in his presence:Notice it says that we not only have access to this grace but we also stand in this grace. Standing connotes two things:
– Our access is ongoing, 24/7, unlimited
– The fact that we are standing speaks of the absence of shame. We do not cower in fear but stand and boldly approach the throne of grace (Hebrews 4:16). Got not only removes the guilt of our sin, but the shame as well!
4. Practical aspects:How to enter his presence
– By faith we cultivate a continuous awareness of his presence
– Worship, prayer, scripture, obeying his will, fellowship with believers, etc.
1. Living hope:Having been justified there is a living hope that springs up within the heart of the Christian. It is not like worldly hope that has room for doubt (i.e. I hope the weather is nice today) It is not wishful thinking, but rather it is “something that is certain but not yet (fully) realized” (MacArthur 1656).
2. Glory of God:Here the hope spoken of is concerning the glory of God. That is, the final consummation of the end of the age when Christ returns in power and great glory (Mark 13:26; Titus 2:13). At that time God’s glory will cover the earth like the waters cover the sea (Habakkuk 2:14). Where God was before seen only dimly (1 Corinthians 13:12) he will now be revealed in all his majesty. And what’s more, when we see him as he is we shall become like him (1 John 3:2). Christ will share his glory with his people and we shall be transformed in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye (1 Corinthians 15:52). “Creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God (Romans 8:21 ESV).
3. Excited pilgrims:The presence of this living hope gives the believer great joy. We are excited about the coming kingdom of God. As such we live in the present as pilgrims. We do not settle down in this life but are on a spiritual journey to that great city who’s builder and maker is God (Hebrew 11:10). We are pilgrims passing through. Our hearts are in heaven.
4. In the world but not of the world:Despite the fact that we are pilgrims, we must still engage the world for the cause of Christ. Jesus said that we are to be in the world but not of the world (John 17:15). So despite the tremendous blessings of peace, access to God, and the hope of heaven, we are not without troubles. In order to engage a fallen, sinful world we will inevitable face trials and tribulation, but the great thing is that as a Christian even trials are turned for our good and can be a cause for rejoicing (Romans 8:28). We see this in the next verse…
1. What rejoicing in suffering does not mean:
–Stoicism:I will let nothing affect me. I am the man. I will show no emotion 🙂 We do not have to be fake. We do not have to hide our emotions. In Christ we can be real. Read the Psalms, read Job, study Christ’s life and you will see genuine sorrow. We can sorrow and still not sin. Don’t be a shallow, fake Christian.
–Masochism: We are not to delight in pain. We are not gluttons for punishment. Nor are we are seeking to punish ourselves for our sins or find some kind of twisted pleasure in that.
2. The way of the cross:No rather we rejoice in what the way of suffering produces. As Christ’s disciples we are to follow his example and take up our cross. We must die, not to pay for our sins, but rather we die to the desires of the flesh. We die to our own selfish ambitions that the will of Christ may rule in our hearts. And we know that his will alone brings true happiness, joy and contentment. As Jesus said it is when we lose our lives that we truly find them (Matthew 10:39).
3. The refining process:We see in our text the process that turns our trials for good and gives us reason to rejoice in suffering. The text says that, “suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope” ( Romans 5:3-4 ESV). Let’s look at this process in more detail:
Endurance (patience):Endurance is also translated patience. The idea is patient endurance. The word suffering means “crushings” and is the same word used in the process of squeezing olives to extract their oil. Trials and tribulations put pressure on us and squeeze us. You often do not know what’s in your heart until you are squeezed by the pressures of life. Trials have a way of revealing what is in our true character. Jesus reveals these flaws because he loves us and wants to conform us to his own image. He understands and is our compassionate high priest as he was tempted in every way like us and yet without sin (Hebrews 4:15). Jesus experienced tremendous pressure in the Garden of Gethsemane. Interestingly, Gethsemane means the place of the oil press. Jesus who knew no sin was asked to become sin for us. He was asked to experience the rejection of the Father and bear our wrath. This went against everything in Jesus’ holy nature. He was under so much pressure that he actually sweat drops of blood. But when Christ was squeezed what came out? He submitted, yielded, died to his own desire and said, “not my will but yours be done” (Luke 22:42 ESV). What comes out of us when we are squeezed? Do we run from the will of God? Do we seethe anger and bitterness? Or do we like Christ rejoice in the will of God? When we yield to God he enables us to patiently endure through the suffering to the other side where victory awaits! This process of not panicking during suffering produces godly, proven character in the life of the Christian…
Character (Proven character based on experience):When we learn to forsake our own ambitions and wait upon the Lord we develop patient endurance and this in turns leads to proven character based on experience. The word translated character or experience (KJV) refers to the quality of a person who has been tested and proven (Stott 142). It also carries with it the idea of experience. As we learn to surrender and wait upon God in patient endurance, we experience God’s faithfulness. This experience increases our faith. We trust God more because he never fails us. So really it is God’s character who is tested and proven not ours initially. However as we grow in faith, this does produce godly character in us.
Hope:There is a settled assurance that comes into the life of the mature Christian. We can look back over past trials and say, God was faithful then and he will surely bring me through this trial as well. And so we rejoice in the great hope that is in Christ. We rejoice that our ultimate deliverance will come at Christ’s return and rejoice now that though “many are the afflictions of the righteous, … the lord delivers him out of them all” (Psalm 34:19 ESV).
1. Regeneration:Every believer who is justified is given the gift of the indwelling Holy Spirit (John 14:16-17). As a result of the Spirit’s presence we are born again (John 3:3) and are new creations in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17). We also have a new heart that is motivated by love (Ezekiel 11:19; Hebrews 8:10). We are justified by faith not works, but having been given a new heart as a result of justification, we do good works for the love of God. We want to do God’s will. We delight to please the Father. Though we are still not perfect our deepest desire is to be holy as he is holy and in our new heart we find the strength to grow in obedience.
2. God’s love poured out:We love God because he first loved us. When the Spirit comes in he pours the love of God in our hearts. This love is first God’s love for us not our love for him. The Spirit brings the revelation of the love and acceptance of the Father and he bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God (see Romans 8). This overwhelming, unconditional love is truly the answer to what we have been searching for and it sets us free to love God in return and others as well. True obedience is ultimately about one thing: love.
1. Wrath a reality:The wrath of God is not a popular subject in today’s world, but it is a reality. God must punish all sin because he is good, righteous, and holy. He desires everyone to be saved and has given us this season of grace whereby we may repent, have faith, and be saved by his free gift. It is of the utmost importance that we heed this call, that we give attention to the condition of our souls and the souls of those around us. We must work while there is still light for the night comes when no one will work (John 9:4).
2. The wages of sin:The wages of sin is eternal death (Romans 6:23). I do not say this lightly or condescendingly or in any way except with the utmost concern for your safety and well being. It is appointed once for man to die and after that the judgment (Hebrews 9:27). We must all give an account before the throne of God (Romans 14:12). We have a choice. We can stand before God in our own righteousness or we can stand before God in the righteousness of Christ. You must decide. God says that our attempts at righteousness are like filthy rags in his site (Isaiah 64:6). Compared to his standard of perfection we fall far short of his glory (Romans 3:23; Matthew 5:48). But God, “for our sake… made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that we might become the righteousness of God” (2 Corinthians 5:21 ESV). Our justification assures us that we can escape the wrath that is sure to come (Revelation 6:16-17).
1. The most important thing:So far we have seen that as a result of our justification we have peace, we rejoice in the hope of heaven, we rejoice in the present despite suffering, we rejoice in the fact that we can escape the wrath to come, but now Paul tells us there is something greater than all that…. We rejoice in God. As we mature as Christians, we come to realize that simple is good. We want to boil things down to what is most important, and in the end it all comes down to knowing God. The most important thing is not what I get out of being a Christian, no, the most important thing is knowing God, loving God, worshiping God, looking at God with eyes full of wonder.
2. Eyes full of wonder:For all eternity we will look upon the Lord, to behold his beauty, his majesty, his awesome power, his burning holiness, his unquenchable love and we will forever be amazed. Some imagine they will be bored in heaven, but all I can say is that apparently they have never met the God I serve. Do you ever grow tired of looking at a beautiful sunset? You know, one of those where the sun is just over the horizon like a great, glowing orange ball and beautiful colors fill the sky? No matter how bad your day, no matter what is on your mind, you will pause at least for a second and say wow, that is pretty. You feel the awe of its beauty. God created that sunset and it is the minutest shadow of what its like to look at God. You can never grow tired of seeing him. He is so wondrous, words will fail to express the splendor of one glimpse of his glory. What’s more there is no end to making discoveries about him. For all eternity we will learn of our Lord, but never exhaust the revelation of who he is! “One thing have I asked of the LORD, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to inquire in his temple” (Psalm 27:4 ESV).
Finally we can sum up all these blessings of justification in one word, reconciliation. We who were once estranged enemies of God have found our way home, and have been reconciled, restored in relationship, with our heavenly Father. He delights that you are home. He rejoices over you with singing (Zephaniah 3:17). Welcome home pilgrim, the journey has been long, the road hard, but now you are with me. Enter into the joy of Lord! (Matthew 25:21)
Bibliography
- Courson, Jon. Jon Courson’s Application Commentary. Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson, 2003.
- MacArthur, John. The MacArthur Study Bible: English Standard Version. Wheaton, Ill: Crossway Bibles, 2010. Print.
- Moo, Douglas J. Romans. The NIV Application Commentary. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 2000. Logos Link
- Stott, John R. W. The Message of Romans: God’s Good News for the World. The Bible Speaks Today. Leicester, England; Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2001.
- The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. Wheaton: Standard Bible Society, 2001.
- Willmington, H. L. The Outline Bible. Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 1999. Logos Link
