Relationships with God
23-02-2020
Series: Sermons General Scripture: Romans 5
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Romans 5:1-11 – Peace with God
Pre-Reading:
Sometimes it is not easy to be a Christian.
To live in a manner worthy of the gospel to which we have been called.
To turn the other cheek when we really want revenge.
To follow God’s will rather than bow to popular worldly opinion.
As Christians we often have to do or say things that will at least get us mocked or laughed at.
As Paul said in Romans 7 – “I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate.”
In the first 300 years of the church there was no visible advantage to being a Christian at all.
If someone called themselves a Christian you knew they were a true believer.
Because being a Christian could only result in persecution and often death.
That is where the fish became a symbol of Christianity.
Explain. (Draw Ichthus with my toe in the sand)
§ I – Iesous - Jesus
§ CH – Christos - Christ
§ Th – Theou - God “Jesus Christ, Son of God – Saviour!”
§ H – Hyios - Son
§ S – soter - Saviour.
It was a confession of faith – but in secret.
Things changed dramatically when the Roman Emperor Constantine became a Christian and in 313 he issued the Edict of Milan which decreed tolerance for Christianity in the Roman Empire.
Suddenly being a Christian became popular and carried many social and political advantages.
From about 30 – 40 years ago being a church goer was socially an advantage. And politically!
I remember when I left school in ‘76 some of the job applications I looked at said that a reference from the church I attended would be an advantage.
Today it has changed again.
Being a Christian can and often does make you unpopular.
Especially if you are an outspoken Christian.
1. So let me ask you a question – “What advantage is there to being a Christian?”
Certainly from an earthly perspective there doesn’t seem to be any advantage.
In this morning’s passage we are going to look at the biggest advantage, the biggest positive – the biggest plus to being a Christian. o It is also the basis of every other advantage we have as Christians.
Spoiler alert – the big advantage we have is we have peace with God.
Reading
Romans 5:1-11
Sermon
“Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
The most precious thing in all creation – peace with God!
To understand this we really need to do a very quick sweep of the first four chapters of Paul’s letter to the Romans.
i. Paul states right in the beginning that he is writing about the gospel. The good news! 1:16 – “I am not ashamed of the gospel …”
ii. And that the gospel is all about a righteousness that is by faith. To be right with God we need to be completely righteous. And in the gospel a righteousness from God - of God – is revealed.
iii. He then goes on for about two chapters to explain that none of us – neither Jew nor Gentile – has any righteousness of our own. 3:10 - “None is righteous no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks God.” And the well-known 3:23 - “For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.”
iv. And then in that wonderful verse 21 of chapter 3 – he says “But now a righteousness of God, apart from the law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness of God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe.” That’s it – the gospel!! We don’t have to be good enough to be right with God!! We need faith in Jesus Christ.
v. And then in Romans 4 Paul uses the example of Abraham. Even Abraham – the friend of God, the man of faith, the father of the Jewish nation could not be justified by his own works but he could be declared righteous through faith.
The whole of Romans is about justification.
“Justification” is a legal term in which we are declared righteous by God.
Not ‘innocent’ but forgiven – the penalty for our sin has been paid in full.
We are justified in the sight of God!!
“Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Now here the preacher has a bit of a problem. How do I describe what the peace of God is like?
The Bible tells us that it is beyond description.
In Philippians chapter 4 Paul says – “The peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.”
You cannot explain peace with God – you have to experience peace with God.
This passage also goes a long way to help us understand how Paul can say in Philippians 4 “Rejoice in the Lord always; I say it again – rejoice!”
Let’s begin by saying that there is a big difference between the peace of the world and peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
In Isaiah chapter 9 Jesus is called “The Prince of Peace.”
And yet in Matthew chapter 10 Jesus says – “Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword!”
How do we reconcile those two statements?
As “The Prince of Peace” Jesus brings us peace with God – as we just read.
But the gospel message will divide people. Those who believe and those who don’t believe.
Peace with man is wonderful; but it is always temporary, and it is always unreliable, and it is always comes at a price – a compromise.
We can take that on a global scale and a private – more intimate scale.
On a global scale – the First World War was called the ‘War to end all Wars!’
It has been said that since the end of WW1 there has not been any significant time that there was not some war on the go somewhere in the world.
With man’s selfish, self-centred nature conflict is inevitable.
But even on a more personal scale – given enough time together any group of people will clash.
There will even be times in a marriage, – a good marriage with two people loving each other deeply – there will be times where peace goes out the window.
A good marriage will be filled with compromise – hopefully from both sides.
But peace with God is different!
Peace with God is based on faith in Christ.
Our peace with God was earned by Jesus Christ; it is based on Jesus Christ and does not depend on us at all.
It is one of the fruits of the Spirit. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.
That peace is peace with God.
And because it depends on the work of Christ – it is absolutely dependable.
In this passage Paul shows us where we stood before we had peace with God. Before ‘we gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand.’ (Vs. 2)
He tells us three times where we were.
Listen carefully:
1. Verse 6 – “You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly.”
2. Verse 8 – “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
3. Verse 10 – “For if, when we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son.”
This paints a shocking picture of our situation before we believed in and trusted Jesus Christ.
We were powerless – we were sinners – and we were even God’s enemies.
We could do nothing about our sin – we were saturated in sin – and we did not even know that we were enemies of God.
Paul already said this in 3:10 – “There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God.”
We were living our lives not even knowing that we were enemies of God – that we were sinners, and that we could do nothing about it even if we knew.
We were on our way to face the wrath of God.
But now we are justified – now we have peace with God – now we stand in grace.
How did this happen if we were powerless?
Verse 6 – “Christ died for the ungodly!” Verse 8 – “Christ died for us!” Verse 10 – “We were reconciled to God through the death of his Son – Jesus Christ.”
“And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.”
There is great joy in knowing the Lord God while still in this life on earth.
But we rejoice so much more because we have the sure hope of enjoying his glory forever when he brings us into his glorious dwelling place.
Earlier in the letter (in 1:18) the apostle spoke of the wrath of God being poured out on sin – because we have been justified through faith we do not tremble at the thought of the outpouring of his wrath but rather we rejoice as we wait for the outpouring of his glory.
We have peace with God bec
Romans 5:1-11 – Peace with God
Pre-Reading:
Sometimes it is not easy to be a Christian.
To live in a manner worthy of the gospel to which we have been called.
To turn the other cheek when we really want revenge.
To follow God’s will rather than bow to popular worldly opinion.
As Christians we often have to do or say things that will at least get us mocked or laughed at.
As Paul said in Romans 7 – “I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate.”
In the first 300 years of the church there was no visible advantage to being a Christian at all.
If someone called themselves a Christian you knew they were a true believer.
Because being a Christian could only result in persecution and often death.
That is where the fish became a symbol of Christianity.
Explain. (Draw Ichthus with my toe in the sand)
§ I – Iesous - Jesus
§ CH – Christos - Christ
§ Th – Theou - God “Jesus Christ, Son of God – Saviour!”
§ H – Hyios - Son
§ S – soter - Saviour.
It was a confession of faith – but in secret.
Things changed dramatically when the Roman Emperor Constantine became a Christian and in 313 he issued the Edict of Milan which decreed tolerance for Christianity in the Roman Empire.
Suddenly being a Christian became popular and carried many social and political advantages.
From about 30 – 40 years ago being a church goer was socially an advantage. And politically!
I remember when I left school in ‘76 some of the job applications I looked at said that a reference from the church I attended would be an advantage.
Today it has changed again.
Being a Christian can and often does make you unpopular.
Especially if you are an outspoken Christian.
1. So let me ask you a question – “What advantage is there to being a Christian?”
Certainly from an earthly perspective there doesn’t seem to be any advantage.
In this morning’s passage we are going to look at the biggest advantage, the biggest positive – the biggest plus to being a Christian. o It is also the basis of every other advantage we have as Christians.
Spoiler alert – the big advantage we have is we have peace with God.
Reading
Romans 5:1-11
Sermon
“Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
The most precious thing in all creation – peace with God!
To understand this we really need to do a very quick sweep of the first four chapters of Paul’s letter to the Romans.
i. Paul states right in the beginning that he is writing about the gospel. The good news! 1:16 – “I am not ashamed of the gospel …”
ii. And that the gospel is all about a righteousness that is by faith. To be right with God we need to be completely righteous. And in the gospel a righteousness from God - of God – is revealed.
iii. He then goes on for about two chapters to explain that none of us – neither Jew nor Gentile – has any righteousness of our own. 3:10 - “None is righteous no, not one; no one understands; no one seeks God.” And the well-known 3:23 - “For all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God.”
iv. And then in that wonderful verse 21 of chapter 3 – he says “But now a righteousness of God, apart from the law, has been made known, to which the Law and the Prophets testify. This righteousness of God comes through faith in Jesus Christ to all who believe.” That’s it – the gospel!! We don’t have to be good enough to be right with God!! We need faith in Jesus Christ.
v. And then in Romans 4 Paul uses the example of Abraham. Even Abraham – the friend of God, the man of faith, the father of the Jewish nation could not be justified by his own works but he could be declared righteous through faith.
The whole of Romans is about justification.
“Justification” is a legal term in which we are declared righteous by God.
Not ‘innocent’ but forgiven – the penalty for our sin has been paid in full.
We are justified in the sight of God!!
“Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Now here the preacher has a bit of a problem. How do I describe what the peace of God is like?
The Bible tells us that it is beyond description.
In Philippians chapter 4 Paul says – “The peace of God, which transcends all understanding, will guard your hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.”
You cannot explain peace with God – you have to experience peace with God.
This passage also goes a long way to help us understand how Paul can say in Philippians 4 “Rejoice in the Lord always; I say it again – rejoice!”
Let’s begin by saying that there is a big difference between the peace of the world and peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
In Isaiah chapter 9 Jesus is called “The Prince of Peace.”
And yet in Matthew chapter 10 Jesus says – “Do not suppose that I have come to bring peace to the earth. I did not come to bring peace but a sword!”
How do we reconcile those two statements?
As “The Prince of Peace” Jesus brings us peace with God – as we just read.
But the gospel message will divide people. Those who believe and those who don’t believe.
Peace with man is wonderful; but it is always temporary, and it is always unreliable, and it is always comes at a price – a compromise.
We can take that on a global scale and a private – more intimate scale.
On a global scale – the First World War was called the ‘War to end all Wars!’
It has been said that since the end of WW1 there has not been any significant time that there was not some war on the go somewhere in the world.
With man’s selfish, self-centred nature conflict is inevitable.
But even on a more personal scale – given enough time together any group of people will clash.
There will even be times in a marriage, – a good marriage with two people loving each other deeply – there will be times where peace goes out the window.
A good marriage will be filled with compromise – hopefully from both sides.
But peace with God is different!
Peace with God is based on faith in Christ.
Our peace with God was earned by Jesus Christ; it is based on Jesus Christ and does not depend on us at all.
It is one of the fruits of the Spirit. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control.
That peace is peace with God.
And because it depends on the work of Christ – it is absolutely dependable.
In this passage Paul shows us where we stood before we had peace with God. Before ‘we gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand.’ (Vs. 2)
He tells us three times where we were.
Listen carefully:
1. Verse 6 – “You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly.”
2. Verse 8 – “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”
3. Verse 10 – “For if, when we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son.”
This paints a shocking picture of our situation before we believed in and trusted Jesus Christ.
We were powerless – we were sinners – and we were even God’s enemies.
We could do nothing about our sin – we were saturated in sin – and we did not even know that we were enemies of God.
Paul already said this in 3:10 – “There is no one righteous, not even one; there is no one who understands, no one who seeks God.”
We were living our lives not even knowing that we were enemies of God – that we were sinners, and that we could do nothing about it even if we knew.
We were on our way to face the wrath of God.
But now we are justified – now we have peace with God – now we stand in grace.
How did this happen if we were powerless?
Verse 6 – “Christ died for the ungodly!” Verse 8 – “Christ died for us!” Verse 10 – “We were reconciled to God through the death of his Son – Jesus Christ.”
“And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.”
There is great joy in knowing the Lord God while still in this life on earth.
But we rejoice so much more because we have the sure hope of enjoying his glory forever when he brings us into his glorious dwelling place.
Earlier in the letter (in 1:18) the apostle spoke of the wrath of God being poured out on sin – because we have been justified through faith we do not tremble at the thought of the outpouring of his wrath but rather we rejoice as we wait for the outpouring of his glory.
We have peace with God because of Jesus Christ – we have been justified through faith in him. We have gained access by faith into the grace in which we now stand and live. And we rejoice in the coming outpouring of his glory which we will share for all eternity.
We have all fallen short of the glory of God – but now through Jesus we have become partakers of his glory.
Romans 8:17 – “Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.”
But then as he always seems to do Paul takes it so much further. Probably further than we would like him to.
“Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings.”
At the beginning I said that this passage goes a long way in helping us to understand other passages like Philippians 4:4 – “Rejoice in the Lord always – I say it again, rejoice!”
How can we possibly rejoice when things go badly and sadly wrong?
And it goes a long way to help us to understand the answer to questions like “Where was God when that happened?”
From an earthly perspective it seems that if there is an Almighty – All-knowing – Sovereign God then surely his job is to make our lives easier and better?
The truth is that the Bible does not teach that at all.
The Bible teaches us that he will be with us through it all.
And that he will use even the trails and difficulties to conform us into the image of his Son. (As he promises in Romans 8:29)
And Paul says that we glorify in our sufferings because the Lord has a plan even for them.
He uses our difficulties to grow our spiritual perseverance.
That perseverance results in our Christian character growing.
And that growth produces even more hope in the glory of God.
Steward Olyott says “What an amazing thing the Christian experience is! The buffetings of this world stir up our hope of, and our longing for, heaven! The more the world turns it back on us the more we are certain that God loves us.”
How does that work?
Well when we go through these sufferings we learn more and more to turn to the Lord and to trust him.
We lean on him – we hand over to him more and more.
And the Lord either removes the cause of the sufferings or he gives us the strength to continue through them.
But we learn to turn to him and to trust him.
A few years ago Denise and I were going through a very difficult time.
Illustration of how drawing near to God in prayer and in the word can bring about peace in the darkest hours.
Now that we have been justified we have peace with God.
I said in the beginning peace with God is the most precious thing there is in all creation.
Do you have it?
Questions to consider
- “Therefore since we have been justified by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” How would you describe ‘peace with God’?
- Is it something that comes and goes or is it constant and reliable?
- Do we always feel it?
- Does our peace with God depend on our current situation?
- Consider verse 2. Discuss who were you and what were you before you obtained access by faith into the grace in which you now stand. Did you understand that then? Did you have any idea that you needed a Saviour? Than you needed peace with God?
- Now that you have peace with God through faith in Jesus Christ – what does that mean in your day to day life.
- Consider verse 3 and 4. Discuss how suffering can be a blessing. (Perhaps a look at Romans 8:28 and 29 would help. To the lord God our holiness (being conformed into the image of Jesus Christ) is far more important than our happiness.)
ause of Jesus Christ – we have been justified through faith in him. We have gained access by faith into the grace in which we now stand and live. And we rejoice in the coming outpouring of his glory which we will share for all eternity.
We have all fallen short of the glory of God – but now through Jesus we have become partakers of his glory.
Romans 8:17 – “Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.”
But then as he always seems to do Paul takes it so much further. Probably further than we would like him to.
“Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings.”
At the beginning I said that this passage goes a long way in helping us to understand other passages like Philippians 4:4 – “Rejoice in the Lord always – I say it again, rejoice!”
How can we possibly rejoice when things go badly and sadly wrong?
And it goes a long way to help us to understand the answer to questions like “Where was God when that happened?”
From an earthly perspective it seems that if there is an Almighty – All-knowing – Sovereign God then surely his job is to make our lives easier and better?
The truth is that the Bible does not teach that at all.
The Bible teaches us that he will be with us through it all.
And that he will use even the trails and difficulties to conform us into the image of his Son. (As he promises in Romans 8:29)
And Paul says that we glorify in our sufferings because the Lord has a plan even for them.
He uses our difficulties to grow our spiritual perseverance.
That perseverance results in our Christian character growing.
And that growth produces even more hope in the glory of God.
Steward Olyott says “What an amazing thing the Christian experience is! The buffetings of this world stir up our hope of, and our longing for, heaven! The more the world turns it back on us the more we are certain that God loves us.”
How does that work?
Well when we go through these sufferings we learn more and more to turn to the Lord and to trust him.
We lean on him – we hand over to him more and more.
And the Lord either removes the cause of the sufferings or he gives us the strength to continue through them.
But we learn to turn to him and to trust him.
A few years ago Denise and I were going through a very difficult time.
Illustration of how drawing near to God in prayer and in the word can bring about peace in the darkest hours.
Now that we have been justified we have peace with God.
I said in the beginning peace with God is the most precious thing there is in all creation.
Do you have it?
Questions to consider
- “Therefore since we have been justified by faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” How would you describe ‘peace with God’?
- I – Is it something that comes and goes or is it constant and reliable?
- II – Do we always feel it?
- III – Does our peace with God depend on our current situation?
- Consider verse 2. Discuss who were you and what were you before you obtained access by faith into the grace in which you now stand. Did you understand that then? Did you have any idea that you needed a Saviour? Than you needed peace with God?
- Now that you have peace with God through faith in Jesus Christ – what does that mean in your day to day life.
- Consider verse 3 and 4. Discuss how suffering can be a blessing. (Perhaps a look at Romans 8:28 and 29 would help. To the lord God our holiness (being conformed into the image of Jesus Christ) is far more important than our happiness.)