Romans 5:1-11
Q.1. What accompanies our justification before God? Does this mean that all our troubles are over? What blessing flows to believers through trials? – (Rom.5:1-5)
Paul summed up his proposition from the previous chapter. Rule keeping and good works never deliver peace. There is always an uncertainty about whether we have done enough. God’s peace is granted on the basis of imputed righteousness, through faith in God’s one and only appointed Saviour. It is our faith in Christ that justifies us before a holy God. This brings us peace with God, and hope of glory in the future – 1 … we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 2 through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God (Rom.5:1-2). However, our justification brings us into conflict with Satan (as Job found), and this guarantees us tribulation. These trials are inevitable, as God leads us through a process of sanctification, in which He helps us to become what He has already declared us to be in Christ (Rom.5:3). Nevertheless, though no chastening is fun at the time, it does produce the fruit of righteousness, and confidence in God’s plan and provision (Rom.5:3-4 c.f. Heb.12:11). These trials reassure us of the presence of the indwelling Holy Spirit, Who in turn increases our hope – and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us (Rom.5:5). We must also recognize that just as we are justified by faith, we are also made perfect by grace. Faith introduces us to a new means of pleasing God and grants us confident assurance that we will share in the glory of God. Works could never give us that confidence, so cannot fill us with exultant joy.
Q.2. What does the timing of Christ’s death tell us about God, and about our sins? How is Christ’s blood a ‘game-changer’? How are we saved by the life of Christ? – (Rom.5:6-11)
The Bible reveals that it was always God’s plan to save us through the Lamb, slain from the beginning of the world (c.f. Rev.13:8). When Paul wrote to the Romans, Christ’s death for sinners was an accomplished fact – God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us (Rom.5:8 c.f. Rom.5:6). Paul underscored the truth that God extended His love to us in our sinful state. This is a foundational truth that helps us when we go through the long journey that involves our battle with the old nature. This battle we will not win this side of glory. The argument that Paul presented was that if God accepted us in our rebellious state as sinners, He surely will not reject us, when we sin as His adopted sons. The lifeblood of Christ is a game-changer, because it shields us from God’s wrath – Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him (Rom.5:9). This means that we need not fear God’s future retribution, because if He saved us at our worst as sinners, He is hardly going to reject His children because of their continuing failures – 10 For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. 11 And not only this, but we also exult in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation (Rom.5:10-11). We can experience peace even in our imperfection because we have been reconciled to a holy God and declared to be righteous in His sight. Having been justified by the blood of the Son of God, we are thereby saved from God’s wrath. However, we would not have great confidence, if we had been saved by a dead man. Paul reminded us that our assurance is in His endless life. Since He arose, we have a basis to believe that we too will rise and live forever. Moreover, the action of Christ assures us that we are reconciled to our holy God and His wrath has been turned to acceptance. To know this is vitally important, because the fear of punishment tends to drive us to cover our private sins and pretend that we are better than we are. Our acceptance provides us with a love motivation to please our God, since He has already accepted us. Â