THE LETTER OF PAUL TO THE ROMANS
Results of Being Made Right with God
(Rom. 5:1-6:23)
Part One
Theme: The Righteousness of God (1:16-17)
The Need for God's Righteousness (1:18-3:20)
God’s Provision of Righteousness (3:21-8:39)
(1) Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ (2) through whom we have introduction by grace into this faith in which we stand, and we exult in hope of the glory of God.
In the previous section Paul has laid out his gospel and has shown that it is not a new innovation but rather the way God has always used to bring people into a right relationship with Him, even the OT saints who lived under the Law. Now he turns his attention to showing us the results of having been made right with Him.
Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have _______________ with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
By "peace" Paul (nor the rest of the NT writers) does not mean a feeling. By "peace" he means the state of our relationship with God. No matter what the outward circumstances may seem to indicate, we are in a favorable, blessed relationship with God. Many times the feeling of peace follows upon coming into this right relationship with God; however, that is not always the case. Satan continually tries to destroy the peace which comes about through being made right with God. Distinguish between God's attitude towards you AND your attitude towards yourself, Satan's attitude towards you, other people's attitude towards you.
To understand more fully the peace God gives us, we need to realize that the peace Jesus gives us is linked to His resurrection. On the night of His resurrection Jesus 3x confers upon His disciples peace (John 20:19-26). Although "peace" (shalom) was the customary Jewish greeting ("hello"), it means more than just hello here. Because of Jesus' resurrection we have peace. Jesus' resurrection gives us a preview of our resurrection. Because we are identified with Him (one with Him), we shall rise from the dead just as He rose from the dead. The troubles you and I experience are not the period at the end of the sentence of our lives. The resurrection is. All this is to say that when it is all said and done, we shall rise from the dead. In other words, it really is going to be OK, it is really going to work out in the end. That should give us a real sense of peace in the here and now.
According to Paul we have to be introduced into this grace which saves us. In other words, we cannot just go up and take this grace by ourselves. Someone has to introduce us into this grace. Who introduces us (5:2)?
The idea of introduction is strange to most of us who live ordinary lives; however, if you functioned within the realm of presidents, queens, kings, etc. you would understand the way this works. You just cannot enter into the presence of the Queen of England. She has ministers and advisers whom she trusts. If you desire to have an audience with her, you must know somebody who has an "in" with her. Only they can get you an audience with her. In the same way, you must have somebody on the "in" with God, if you are going to be in His presence. The only person who can make that introduction for you is Jesus. That is why Jesus says, "I am THE way . . ." (John 14:6). (The early church took this so seriously that it called itself the Way long before it called itself Christianity.)
"And we exult in _________ of the glory of God." Although right now we do receive benefits of being right with God, we need to realize that we are only experiencing a taste of those benefits. The greater part of what we are going to receive will come only later when Christ returns. Think for a moment though about how wonderful at times it is to be a Christian. Since this is only a taste, try to imagine now how much more wonderful it will be when Christ returns.
(3) And not only this but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance, (4) and perseverance, proven character, and proven character, hope; (5) and hope does not disappoint because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.
This passage immediately informs us that we are not yet receiving the full benefits of being right with God because suffering is not one of the benefits God has for us. Suffering though does not mean that we are not right with God. Sometimes we suffer because we sin; however, we live in world characterized by suffering. God has taken suffering and changed it so that now it has a positive effects upon believers.
Christianity has to deal with the problem of suffering. It is such an important part of existence that Buddhism was created in large measure to explain why we suffer and how to get rid of suffering. The Christian is faced with the argument, "If God is so loving, why does He allow certain things to happen?" For example, 18th-century Europe was devastated emotionally and spiritually by the earthquake which ravaged Lisbon, Portugal. This earthquake and the feeble Christian response to it led to skepticism throughout Europe. Paul provides us with the Christian response.
(Just one final note. Paul is dealing here with suffering that concerns the person who is living out of his right relationship with God. He is not speaking about the discipline that you and I receive whenever we sin. Look to 1 Cor. 3:10-17 for such a discussion.)
When Paul says that we exult in our tribulations, does he mean that we should want to suffer? What does he mean?
Christianity does not turn us into masochists. It turns us into real men of God. Our real joy comes about because we now understand the purpose of God allowing us to suffer.
Note though that a radical difference exists between the way the OT deals with suffering and the way the NT does. When you read Job, you are surprised that James compliments him for being a patient man. Patient? He moans and groans and gripes for ~35 chapters. When David suffers persecution, he asks God to wipe off His enemies from the face of the earth. How though do Paul and Silas respond to suffering? They sing praises. When the early Christians were scourged for their faith, they praised God for being counted worthy to suffer for the sake of Jesus. What changed the attitude towards suffering in the Bible? The fact that God not only suffered but that His sufferings led to resurrection. If God suffered, who are we not to suffer (2 Thess. 1:5, 6)? Moreover, if we respond positively to suffering, we will experience resurrectiton spiritually right now.
Tribulation has behind it the idea of stress or affliction. It puts pressure upon the man. Whereas we normally don't like pressure in a spiritual way, we don't mind it in a physical way. The weight lifter subjects his body to pressure from heavy weights. As he persevers under the weights, his muscles get stronger and stronger. The more pressure, the stronger the body. The word persevers literally means "to remain under." God knows that the only way you can develop your spiritual body is by applying pressure to it. Since we don't voluntarily apply pressure to our spiritual bodies, God has to apply it.
The greatest Christian study on suffering was conducted by C. S. Lewis in the last century. He said that he was not sure that God wanted us to be happy. Instead what God desires is that we grow up! Too often we view the world as our nursery filled with toys for our enjoyment. God injects pain into the nursery to get us out of that mindset so that we can grow, mature, and love. The child does not love; it is the mature adult who is capable of loving and of being loved.
Next, Paul says that perseverance brings about "proven character." The idea behind this is "the test." You take a certain object and run tests on it to determine if it is fit or if it needs to be junked. The Christian will respond rightly to pressure (tribulation) and then will pass the test, that is, "be approved."
Finally, this proven character leads to hope. There is a radical difference between the seasoned Christian and the new Christian. Many times the new Christian throws his hands up in despair whenever something goes wrong. The seasoned Christian though who has gone through many trying situations not only persevers but also has hope, has confidence that things are going to turn out OK. Many of the most radiant Christians are not those who have had an easy life but are those who have suffered horribly and who have clung to God during those dark times.
Before we go any further, we need to note that Paul here is not talking necessarily about suffering as the result of sin. Although all suffering can be traced back to the Fall in the Garden of Eden, some suffering is due to specific sin in our lives. When we sin, God disciplines us out of love. Paul deals with this issue in other passages (e.g. 1 Cor. 3). Here he is talking about the suffering which attacks the Christian who is living out of his positive, right relationship with Christ.
The word "hope" always refers to the future. The Holy Spirit is the One who makes our blessed future real. He will radically transform the universe to be a suitable dwelling place for God and His children. He will raise us from the dead in order to transform our bodies to be like Christ's body. He will finish changing us internally so that spiritually we will be like Christ.
The fact that the Holy Spirit came to live in us the moment we became right with God proves that our future is going to be wonderful. His presence in us right now is the downpayment of the future payments God has for us. Whenever you make a downpayment, you are not making the final payment. What you are doing is you are guaranteeing that future and final payments are forthcoming. In the same way God's putting the Holy Spirit in us guarantees that future and final payments are forthcoming. It's not a matter of "if," only of "when."
It is so hard at times for us to think that things are really OK between us and God. Some many factors fight against our peace: our overly sensitive consciences, Satan, "friends," etc. The kind of love God has for us and the way He demonstrated it should convince us though that God does love us and that we are in a positive relationship with Him.
According to verse 6 when did Christ die for us?
In verse 7 what kind of person will most people NOT die for? (Add the prefix self- to understand what Paul means here.) What kind of person will some be willing to die for?
What kind of person does Christ die for (5:8)? According to Paul what motivates Christ to die for this kind of person?
Paul's logic is this: if Christ died for us when we were His enemies, we should have complete confidence in the future because we are now His friends, that is, reconciled to Him. In other words, our future judgment is going to be positive because of what He did for us while we were even His enemies.
(1) General Statement Explaining Why Man Needs God’s Righteousness (1:18a)
(2) The Gentile Need for God’s Righteousness (1:18-32)
(3) The Jewish Need for God’s Righteousness (2:1-3:20)
The Method of God Making Us Right with Himself (3:21-31)
OT Evidence that God Makes Us Right With Him By Faith (4:1-25)
Results of Being Made Right with God (5:1-6:23)
(1) A New Relationship with God (5:1-2)
(2) A New Understanding of Suffering (5:3-5)
(3) A New Assurance in Judgment (5:6-11)
(4) A New Humanity (5:12-21)
(5) A New Life (6:1-23)
Experiencing God’s Righteousness Daily (7:1-8:39)
(1) The Way Not to Experience God’s Righteousness (7:1-25)
(2) The Way to Experience God’s Righteousness (8:1-39)