Scriptural text: Romans 5:1-11
Lesson Context: Our text today makes an important argument about why follower of Jesus both build their lives based on trust in God’s promises yet still experience hardship. Those suffering might wonder whether the new era of
God’s mercy had dawned or not. In the past, prophets had revealed certain hardships to be God’s judgment on sin (examples: Numbers 14:20-23; Jeremiah 21:4-14). Is a Christian’s suffering also God’s judgment?
l. Effects of Justification (Romans 5:1-5): A. Peace with God (v. 1). “Therefore being justified by faith,, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” To this point in the Book of Romans, Paul has convinced us all that the only way of salvation is to be justified by grace through faith. Now he will tell us what the practical benefits of this are, explaining that it is more than an interesting idea.
Justified by faith speaks of a legal decree. Romans 1: 18-3:20 found us guilty before the court of God’s law, God’s glory, and our conscience. Then Paul explained how because of what Jesus did, the righteousness of God is given to all who believe. The guilty sentence is transformed into a sentence of justified, and justified by faith.
Peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: This is the first benefit. Because the price is paid in full by the work of Jesus on the cross, God’s justice towards us is eternally satisfied.
B. Standing in Grace (v. 2). 2a. “By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand.” Into this grace in which we stand: This is the second benefit-we have a standing in grace-in God’s unmerited favor. This grace is given through Jesus and gained by faith.
Grace (God’s undeserved favor towards us) is not only the way salvation comes to us, it is also a description of our present standing before God. It is also the beginning principle of the Christian life, it is also the continuing principle of the Christian life. Standing in grace means that:
*I don’t have to prove I am worthy of God’s love.
*God is my friend.
*The door of access is permanently open to Him.
*I am free from the “score sheet”-the account is settled in Jesus.
*I spend more time praising God and less time hating myself. 2b. And rejoice in hope of the glory of God. This is the logical conclusion to such peace and such a standing of grace. When we relate to God on the principle of works, any rejoicing is presumptuous and any imagined glory goes to us, not God.
Rejoice is the word normally translated boast. It means triumphant, rejoicing confidence (Morris) Hope never implied uncertainty for Paul. J. B. Philipps translates hope as happy certainty.
ll. Effects of the Cross (Romans 5:6-11):
A. Reconciled to God (vv. 6-10).
6. “For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.” ”When we were still without strength”: Paul describes the greatness of God’s love. It is love given to the undeserving, to those without strength, to the un- godly, to sinners. This emphasizes the fact that the reasons for God’s love are found in Him, not in us.
In due time Christ died for the ungodly: God sent the Son at the right time, at the due time. It may have seemed late to some but Jesus work was done at the perfect time in God’s plan: when the fullness of the time had come, God sent forth His Son (Galatians 4:4)
7. “For scarcely for a righteous man will die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die.” God’s love is a love beyond even the best love among humans. A good man might die a noble martyrdom for the “right kind” of person-such as a righteous man or a good man. But Jesus died for those who were neither righteous nor good.
8. “But God commended his love towards us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” God demonstrates His own love: How does the death of the Son demonstrate the love of the Father? Be- cause it was harder for the Father to send His only Son, and because God (the Father) was in Christ, rec- onciling the world to Himself (2 Corinthians 5:19).
References: International Sunday School Lessons KJV 2023-2024, David Guzik, Blue Letter Bible Commentary