Gospel Benefits: Romans 5:1-5 (Sermon)
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WELCOME / TODAY
Good morning, church. We are continuing our series in Romans. The apostle Paul has been writing to the church in Rome. Some people were religious and others were not. Some recipients had Jewish heritage, and others did not. The cultural distance between the two groups was like the distance between the Earth and the Moon: massive. Paul, being Jewish, understood what was going on. Have you felt a divide like that? Paul knew that Jesus was (and is) the only one who could span the gap. That was true in Paul’s day and in our day. We are rejoining his conversation in a passage that kickstarts a catalogue of powerful gospel benefits for everyone to heartily affirm and celebrate in good times and bad.
TEXT
I am going to have L.T. read for us. If you are able, would you please stand with me in honor of God’s Word?
Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. (Romans 5:1–5, ESV)
PRAYER
The Word of the Lord. Thanks be to God. Let’s pray. Heavenly Father, thank you for your Word, it is light and life for us. Help us comprehend what you are saying by the power of the Holy Spirit. Conform us more and more into the people you want us to be. Amaze us with the implications of our justification, astound us with your peace, strengthen us with your grace, overwhelm us with hope, and fill us with your love. We pray this in Jesus’s name, amen. You may be seated.
STRUCTURE & MAIN IDEA
As we begin, this passage breaks down into three sections with a summary statement and two comments. The point was centered on the cross 2000 years ago. The message offered a bright hope for the future and confidence in the present. Let’s dig in.
SECTION 1: VERSE 1
Romans Chapter 1, starting at verse 1.
“Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:1, ESV).
The argument up to this point in Romans has been that, regardless of your religious backstory, if you have faith in Jesus, you are justified before God the Father. Consequently, it doesn’t matter if you have followed any of God’s laws. He sees you through a filter of his Son’s righteousness. On Judgment, when all
Internet history,
Dark thoughts,
And skeletons come out of the closet, God will look on those who believe in his only Son, and he will see them as right, blameless, innocent, and pure.
Is this laughable? Does it feel blasphemous or ludicrous? If we are being honest with ourselves, it is hard to swallow such a grand thought. It doesn’t seem fair, and in a sense, it isn’t. How could God let the guilty go free? Someone has to pay. And someone did: Jesus. He paid the price on our heads with his blood. The Father declares you and me free from sin by grace through faith in his Son. Jesus, the Son of God, is the King of kings and Lord of lords, the sovereign one who volunteered to exchange his perfection for our sin. Right now, he is at the right hand of God the Father on his throne in heaven, waiting, watching, and praying. But he is coming again to judge the living and the dead. And on that day, he will be worshiped by people from every tongue, tribe, and nation. He is the Jewish Messiah, prophesied from the Fall of Adam and Eve to crush our enemy: the Devil, and he will. He is the Godman: fully God and fully man, able to save anyone who believes. Do you believe?
PEACE
If you do, this first section in Romans 5:1–5 tells us that you have peace with God. Christ’s work on the cross quelled the Father’s anger. Do you want to have peace with him? We live in an anxious world. And through faith we can be right with God forever. We can sleep at night without fear. No ghoulish nightmare has to keep us awake. The worst thing a criminal could ever do is cause a temporary inconvenience. By faith, you never need to tremble again at God’s judgment, wrath, anger, or punishment. All worries can melt because we have been justified by faith. But there is more to treasure here. Paul has not gotten to the bottom of the gold mine of blessings available to all who dig down deep and believe his words.
SECOND SECTION: A COMMENT ON THE SAVIOR
Look at verse 2. This second part of these verses comments on the benefits of the Savior that go beyond peace and justification.
“Through him [Jesus] we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God” (Romans 5:2, ESV).
Notice how, through Jesus’s work, Paul wrote that we have access. But access to what? [To grace.] What grace? I believe Paul was referencing the blessing of justification once again, as well as our position. Justification gives us peace and opens up a remarkable way. We can stand before God unashamed. This posture, coupled with what Paul has already said, calls to mind a picture of me as a kid just tall enough to open drawers I have never opened before. I am awestruck by what I find: treasures and miracles: a penny with an Indian head, a large magnifying glass, mysterious tools, powerful magnets, and marbles of various sizes. I picture, if this were a movie, a light shining from the drawer and a symphony building up tension for the unfolding plot. This is the feeling I get from these five verses. Paul allows us to pull open a new drawer of delight to see what our hearts long for, but we didn’t know existed. Remember, Jesus, by his death and resurrection, justified us. We are declared right. He gave us peace. And not only that, we have access to front row seats in God’s heavenly court.
STAND
We stand righteous right now before God. And we will continue with that legal reality throughout eternity. That can be confusing, can’t it? We know we are not perfect. We have evil thoughts. We can be selfish, self-centered, arrogant, lustful, conceited, vain, rude, mean, harsh, manipulative, controlling, and ungrateful. We have said things that are not good. We have done things we regret. We have erred in thoughts, words, and deeds. Not only that, but we have neglected to do the good we should. We come up short of the glory of God again and again and again (Romans 3:23). However, when God combs through our biography and puts our lives under his microscope of inspection. Our lives flash before us. This verse tells us that we can stand up straight, put our shoulders back, and keep our heads up! Bold, courageous, and strong; a state that would be foreign to a rebel, traitor, and lawbreaker. How can it be? It goes back to what we are standing on. Paul wrote to another church, “Now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preached to you, which you received, in which you stand” (1 Corinthians 15:1, ESV). The Apostle Peter told his readers to stand firm in the true grace of God (1 Peter 5:12). We live in a world where our proverbial footing is uneven and we desperately need encouragement.
GRACE
Jesus used the image of construction in his Sermon on the Mount. All the foundations that are not built on Christ are like building a house on the dunes without doing any homework. Such block work crumbles if it is not rooted in Christ’s work. The reason we can stand is because of what we are standing on. We stand on God’s grace. That grace is founded in the past, realized in the present, and looks to what’s ahead. That, my friends, is excellent news for us. We have access to this grace in which we stand.
ACCESS
Consider the difficulty of accessing it another way. I watched the first Mission Impossible movie with one of my sons the other day. Tom Cruise and his sidekicks worked hard to break into CIA headquarters. They wanted to steal a computer file. To do that, they had to fake a fire, crawl through the ductwork, make a person sick, and lower Tom Cruise down from the ceiling. He hung upside down to acquire it. He could not drop a bead of sweat on the floor because the room had a sensor for weight, temperature, and sound. Any disturbance, and the alarm would go off. They were successful in minutes, much like the recent heist in Paris. Was that more impossible than what Jesus did for all who believe? No. If you wanted to gain this access to stand in God’s grace, and have this peace, and justification apart from him, how hard would you have to work? How many people would you have to pay? How long would it take? Friends, it would be IMPOSSIBLE. You or I couldn’t do it. There is no time, effort, or price other than the divine perfect one’s life to cover the sin. We can’t undo what has been done. We carried out a worldwide rebellion against God, which we still participate in, knowing it is wrong. The justice and holiness of God require punishment. But the good news is that Jesus shed his blood so we would not have to. I think most of us are here because we believe it. Do you? Are you standing firm on this historical reality? Or, do you have some third-rate, DIY, makeshift cement slab that, as soon as winter comes and the wind blows, your house will sink and the walls will crack?
BRAGING
Paul went on to say that not only can we stand on Christ’s work, but we can also rejoice because of it. Pastor Joe brought to my attention that the word for rejoice in the ESV is the same word for brag and boast. One commentator used the word exult. I like that. I know we are not supposed to be proud or arrogant, but God says it is good and right to boast in the Lord. So, what did Paul mean here that we rejoice in the hope of glory, or boast in the hope of glory, or exult in the hope of glory?
EFFORT
Last weekend, Michigan played Michigan State. How many of you are Michigan fans? Raise your hands. How many of you are State fans? Raise your hands. How many are neither? Raise your hands. If your team won, you rejoice, exult, and celebrate. That is normal and good. It is not a sin. You whoop and holler, and that is good. But what did you do to affect the outcome? Nothing, unless you played, coached, or were in the mafia. You are celebrating your team’s victory. If your team does well, you are proud of their athleticism, prowess, and smarts. And that is appropriate. In the same way, God will be the victor at the end of time. And looking to that day, it is natural for us to rejoice. We can celebrate God’s mercy and grace. He deserves the praise from beginning to end. Our hope is in the glory of God. Another word for glory is praise. Paul was writing that one of the outcomes of our justification is a hope in God’s rightful future praise. He will get it. One day, he will receive praise from everyone, even those who deny his existence and hate him. The Bible says that every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father (Philippians 2:11). A celebration is coming. Do you want to be at that party? Consider yourself invited, church. To be on the winning side of history, you have to believe. For those who don’t, there will be hell to pay forever away from God’s presence (Revelation 21:8). Do you believe? If you do, exult in the future hope of the glory of God. If you don’t, now is your chance. Believe in the Lord Jesus Christ and be saved.
HOLIDAY
What is your favorite celebration? I know people love Halloween, others Thanksgiving, some Christmas, St. Patrick’s Day, Easter, or the Fourth of July. But I got to tell you, nothing compares to the day when God gets the glory he deserves. Think about that. There will be feasting unlike any potluck we put on. There will be dancing. I know we Baptists have been known for outlawing dancing. There will be dancing in heaven. It will be wholesome and fun. There will be shouting and singing. There are so many things in life that bring enjoyment. I delight in the stars, sunrise, and sunset. I like soccer and learning. Exercise, spicy food, trying new things, and travel make me happy. I love spending time with family, listening to music, and reading. I bet you have your own list. If we find joy, delight, happiness, and pleasure in this broken world, ponder the exponential euphoria in store for us who believe. Don’t think the beauty and bliss of this life is more than heaven. It is a shadow of what’s to come. The inverse is also a reason to rejoice. On that day of glory, there will be an end to injustice. Evil will be no more. All the cold cases will be solved, all the judges who let the repeat offender off will get retribution, and all the wickedness will be exposed and prosecuted to the full extent of God’s law. There will be no more sadness. There will be no more sickness. Cancer will be banished. Evie’s leukemia will be healed. It will be a party to end all parties. When it seems like everyone is tired, we can enjoy heavenly rest, secure in God forever. Think about that and revel in a God who is good and gives this good to his people. Paul was pointing to the hope of a future day when God will receive his proper praise. There is pure and innocent joy coming without any shame.
JOY PT 2
Paul then commented on this, rejoicing in the hope of the present. Look at verse 3:
Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, and hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. (Romans 5:3–5, ESV)
These verses mean there is not only joy in the future hope, but also an exultation in our personal suffering. What? Who does that? James, Jesus’s half-brother, said something like Paul: “Count it all joy, brothers, when you experience trials of various kinds” (James 1:2). Why?
EXERCISE
I have run two marathons. And each begins with building up endurance. When I hadn’t run for a while, I hit my first six miles, and my knees hurt. I was done. I rested and iced my knees with a cold bath. But over time, I was able to increase my distance. Eventually, I was able to run 7, 8, 9, 10, and up to 26.2 miles. I loved it. I embraced the pain because of the reward in the end. I had to look beyond the immediate feelings and reality. In the same way, we can exult in our sufferings knowing that they produce endurance, but Paul didn’t stop there. Endurance was not the goal. Paul continued to write that endurance produced what? [Character]. We want to be a community of virtue. We want to be people of integrity, humility, charity, bravery, and wisdom. But that too was not the reason to exult. The reason for joy or boasting in suffering was because of the character that produced hope. How did this suffering lead to hope? Suffering leads to endurance, which leads to virtue, which becomes hope because it demonstrates that the Holy Spirit is at work.
COMMENTATOR
Dr. Schreiner wrote in his commentary,
“Why does tested character spark hope? Because moral transformation constitutes evidence that one has really been changed by God. Thus it assures believers that the hope of future glory is not an illusion” (Schreiner 256, ECNT).
SHAME
Paul wrote to the church in Galatia,
“The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law” (Galatians 5:22–23, ESV).
So, if you are wondering where the Holy Spirit is these days, look around. Look at the character of those sitting next to you? Do you see love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control? Do you see them in the midst of trial, pain, and suffering? Do they respond with an uncanny joy, enduring birthed out of character wrought by the Spirit? Such a blessing results in hope that we are witnesses to God at work and he is not finished. All of this is flowing from the storehouse of our justification: peace, hope, grace, access, shameless celebration, and the love of God.
WHY?
Why? Why does this happen? Well, what did Paul say? God poured out through the Holy Spirit into our hearts. We are watching in real time God at work. I went to Infusco this week, and you could watch how the coffee beans were roasted. In an honest community, we can witness God at work behind the scenes. Paul wrote to the church in Philippi, “And I am sure of this, that he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ” (Philippians 1:6, ESV). We get to see God at work through character development in the Body of followers of Jesus. In our staff meeting, we begin on Mondays, pointing out what we call God sightings. I have called them evidence of grace. We do that to encourage one another. God has not abandoned us. He is at work among us. We opened the service with a prayer, a video of a Nigerian praying for his country. If you recall, he prayed for the salvation of Boko Haram. They are responsible for the slaughtering of some 7000 Christians this year so far? How could he pray that? I believe it was because the Holy Spirit had been poured out into his heart, enabling him to love his enemy. We because God first loved us.
DIAMONDS
There is something about suffering that helps me grow as a Christian. Character under pressure can demonstrate God’s presence. Out of the hardness and harsh reality can come something beautiful. Consider the development of a diamond: Carbon is buried 100-150 miles below the earth, heated to 2200 degrees Fahrenheit, and then subjected to 725,000 pounds per square inch. https://www.pbsnc.org/blogs/science/how-to-make-your-own-diamonds/#:~:text=First%2C%20it’ s%20important%20to%20know,to%20turn%20them%20into%20graphite. Out of that laboratory of life comes one of the most precious stones on the planet. In the same way, fire, pressure, and trial births in God’s people’s character, and from that character comes hope because of what? We see God’s Holy Spirit and are reminded of God’s steadfast love. God has not abandoned us down a mine shaft. He is fashioning us through the trials of life. He is chiseling out the rough edges so that we can better reflect his beautiful Son. God loves us that much.
APPLICATION: BELIEVERS
So what is the takeaway? We have a hope for the future and a hope for today. If you find yourself in a trial, difficulty, or suffering, consider what Jesus has done for you and what that means for your present and future. You have HOPE! We can be the happiest people on the planet. God is at work in our midst, shaping us through life’s difficulties to better reflect him and tell his good news.
APPLICATION: UNBELIEVERS
If you don’t believe or haven’t believed, you can today. You can join us, standing firm in your new faith and exulting in God. You can have access to this grace and God’s character being made available in you by the power and help of the Holy Spirit. Do you not believe it? God is calling you to turn from sin and believe.
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