Christ Church, June 6 2004: 8/10am
Romans 5:1-5
Therefore, since we have been justified through
faith.
This is one of the great 'therefores' of Romans. Chapters 5, 8 and
12 all begin with those great 'therefores'. They mark off sections
of Paul's great epistle. There are many other 'therefores' as Paul
argues God's way of salvation; God's answer to sin. This is one of
the major turning-points. Up to now, Paul has first demonstrated
the universal sinfulness and guilt of the whole human race. We
might all, when we come to stand before a holy God, who is also
Judge, expect to hear the verdict: "Guilty". Chapter 3, verse 23 is
one of the key verses of Romans: all have sinned
and fall short of the glory of God. Verse 24 then sets off
on a fresh tack: all are justified freely through his grace. It was
Martin Luther upon whom the truth of 'justification by faith' fell
afresh, and this was the starting point of the great Protestant
Reformation. of the 16th century.
But this great truth is but the launch pad of God's great way of
salvation. Having looked in chapter 4 at the great 'Father of
Faith', Abraham, Paul is now ready to take us forward.. How, having
been justified- that is having been put right with God, having
heard the marvellous verdict of "Not Guilty": Free!- how do we go
on in a world under sin, under the power of the Evil One. In
Galatians 5 verse 1, Paul says:
It is for freedom that Christ has set us free.
Stand firm then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a
yoke of slavery
I think Paul is saying here in Romans 5 and its first five verses
that we have to realise and to have an assurance of the truth of
justification and what it implies. That is why he begins chapter
five as he does:
Therefore, since we have been justified through
faith.
The first great statement that Paul makes is we have peace with God
through our Lord Jesus Christ.
'We have peace'. Not just a passive word, but there's something
powerful and dynamic about God's peace. Because of our sin, we are,
by human nature, God's enemies. Mankind in general, tries to
distance itself from God. Many actually deny God's actual
existence. Others use his name just as an expletive. Many who would
agree there is a 'god', do not believe in the God and Father of our
Lord Jesus Christ, nor in a God who is a Creator. Paul actually
begins verse 8 with if when we were God's
enemies. We were opposed to God. When Jesus told the Parable
of the Prodigal Son, when the younger son says to his father:
"Father, give me my share of the estate"
(Luke 15:12) was in effect saying "Drop dead!". We disliked God's
demands on our lives, and want out of his way. Why do you think
evolution has caught on? It's not science. It's not fact. It's a
theory and it's believed and taken as fact cast in stone, because
we can see ourselves not as in the image of our Creator God, but in
the image of apes!
But Paul says, "no!". Now we have been justified through the
death and resurrection of our Lord Jesus Christ, we are God's
friends. We have peace- peace brought about through and because of
Jesus. Listen to what Paul says in Ephesians.
He came and preached peace to you who were far
away and you who were near (Gentile and Jew) For through him we
both have access to the Father by one Spirit.
And that is Paul's argument here too. He continues from we have
peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have
gained access by faith to this grace in which we now stand.
We have access to God, and as the writer to Hebrews puts it
we may draw near to God with a sincere
heart. (10:22)
Let this all sink in; let us have assurance, not just with
the contempt born of familiarity, but with awe and awe and wonder
and thankful hearts.
-We are justified. Our sin, our guilt is done away. Our sin can
never come back to haunt us unless we let it
-We have peace with God and we have access to Him. Let us recall
that when Jesus died, as Mark tell us: The veil of
the Temple was torn from top to bottom. (15:38). Our sin no
longer separates us from God.
Why? Because of grace. That is our access to God, our
welcome into his presence. G.R.A.C.E. God's Riches At Christ's
Expense.. It's all grace. It's all God's free gift. We can do
nothing to merit it. and nothing to forfeit it. We often feel we
have to do something to continue to merit God's favour. You know a
wise priest once told me that in adopting that attitude I was
actually insulting God's grace and throwing it back in his face.
So: what, then, if I sin? Is there now NO consequence. Can I sin
and still enjoy it all? Can I have my bread buttered on both sides,
having the best of both worlds? Paul faces that hypothetical
question in Romans 6 and says simply 'God
forbid'
Paul now goes on to offer us encouragement and incentive on the
way. When we hear those words "We have peace with
God", the Greek grammar is a subjunctive. It means "Let us
have peace with God". Or perhaps- what fits the overall context
best: "Let us continue to enjoy peace with God". I would suggest
that, by sin we can cease to enjoy peace with God- and isn't that
true?
Has any one of us here, since our conversion, never lost our
peace with God. There's a truth enshrined in those words from
John's first epistle:
if we say we have no sin we deceive ourselves, and
the truth is not in us. But, if we confess our sin, God is faithful
and just to forgive us our sin and cleanse us from all
unrighteousness (1:8-9)
We still have an ongoing fight with sin.- as I've said, we still
live in a world under the power of sin and of the Evil One. And if
we are not continually living under forgiveness as soon as we know
we have sinned, then our enjoyment of peace with God will go. Our
faith will become unreal: we shall become spiritually
schizophrenic.
So Paul encourages us in three ways:
1. He tell us we rejoice in the hope of the glory
of God. (v3)- the of that of which we had fallen short.
God's glory is the summation of all his characteristics raised to
the n-th degree. Do you recall that incident in Exodus after the
people have made the golden calf whilst Moses was up the mountain.
Moses pleads with God for the people and says now
show me your glory (33:18). God tells Moses to go and hide
in the cleft of a rock, then Moses will see, not God's face, but
his glory. And in 34:6 we read he passed before
Moses proclaiming 'The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and
gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and
faithfulness.
And God's glory is our hope- not just wishful thinking. This is a
certainty of faith to encourage us in our struggle with sin on a
day-to-day basis
2. Paul then goes on to say we rejoice in our
sufferings .(v3) Because of the promised glory we can
rejoice. At one level we read this as hardship, suffering and even
persecution, just because we're Christian. We may ask ourselves
just how much we do? But I would suggest we all suffer in our
struggle with sin, in daily temptation and daily doubt. World,
flesh and devil continually try to undermine us.
Paul continues (v4) suffering produces character,
and character hope. In a nutshell it's 'spiritual muscle'.
Are you a fit and lean Christian, or a fat and flabby one? I
don't mean when we stand on the bathroom scales or stand in front
of the mirror! But I suggest there is a kind of parable there..
In January, Margaret and I went to the Grove Leisure
Centre for a free body MOT. When I found out my body fat was 42%
(as a male it should be between 10 and 25) I was mortified: I was
fat and flabby! I resolved to do something about it. After 10 weeks
of graded exercise and sensible diet I not only felt fitter. That
body fat was down to 32%.
If that sounds a bit wacky, lets remember what Paul says in
1 Corinthians 9:27:
Everyone who competes in the games goes through
strict training. They do it to get a crown which will not last, but
we do it to get a crown that will last.
Keep spiritually fit! Don't take sin and temptation lightly. Spend
time on those training exercises: prayer and reading God's Word and
meeting with God's people.
3. Finally Paul says in verse 5
Hope does not disappoint us, because God has
poured out his love in our hearts through his Holy Spirit he has
given us .
Here Paul 'squares the circle'. He began with the fixed point of
the definite, done deed. We HAVE BEEN justified through faith. A
once-for-all act in the past and never to be undone. We WERE
guilty, with a penalty to pay- death, spiritual death. But in
Jesus God has paid the penalty for us.
Now God HAS poured his Spirit into our hearts, and by his
Spirit, his love, his love for us. His love which underpins all our
salvation; a love which is a cast-iron guarantee. In Isaiah 43
verse 4 God says:
you are precious and honoured in my sight and I
love you
Does that amaze and stagger you? It should.
-We have rebelled against God
-We have sinned. Yet God says
"You are precious and honoured in my sight"
"I love you"
You, and I could go round the church and point and say "You" to
each person
-You, I, are precious to God
-You, I, am honoured in God's sight. Yes! That's how he looks on
us: honoured!
-You are, I am loved.
And finally, this was in Bob Gass' Word for Today: I feel it's
something of a spiritual MOT.
Refusing to forgive yourself is like trying to drive a car with the
brakes on; it prevents all forward momentum. Here are some of the
contributing factors:
1) Unrealistic expectations! We all have a set of subconscious
rules about how we should behave. Many come from childhood and no
longer work. For example, how realisitic is it to think you can
work 12-hour days, attend all school functions, maintain a perfect
house, et enough rest and still have time for God and your family?
Listen: 'Let's look at the way we're living and re-order our
lives...'
2) Feeling bad instead of doing good! Listen: 'If
you fail the test, do something about it' (2 Cor 13:5 TM).
If you feel like you've failed as a parent, work to become a
terrific grandparent, or reach out to some needy child or teenager.
There are lots of opportunities around you. Remember,'..those who help others are helped ' (Proverbs 11:25
TM). The roots of happiness grow in the soil of service, so get
busy!
3) Getting things out of persepctive! Instead of telling yourself
what a terrible person you are, remind yourself of the good things
you've done. If you can't think of any, begin making some memories.
If Ebenezer Scrooge could do it, so can you too.
Above all keep these words in mind: 'When
it's sin versus grace, grace wins hands down' (Rom 5:20 TM).
That means however badly you've messed up, God stands ready to give
you a fresh start
Let us enjoy peace with God, the God who by his Holy Spirit pours
out his love into our hearts.