JUSTIFICATION BY FAITH
Its benefits
Romans chapter 5: 1 to 11
Justification by faith brings a number of benefits to the believer. They are blessings, which arise through the Lord Jesus Christ, because He is the mediator between God and men, and all the gifts of God are channelled through him.
The benefits mentioned here are:
1. Peace with God - verse 1
The enmity between God and rebel humanity ceases for the believer, because all its causes were removed. By a miracle of God's grace, He ceased to be an enemy to be your friend.
2. Access to the grace of God - verse 2 a
It is an indescribable position, having access "in the Beloved" (Ephesians 1: 6), i.e. he is now as close and dear to God as His own beloved Son is. Using the figure of King in antiquity, the Father extends the gold Sceptre to the believer and welcomes him to His presence as a son, and not a stranger, and there he is placed firmly in a permanent and perfect manner, just as Christ is.
3. Exultation in the hope of the glory that God will manifest - verse 2 b
The believer waits with great joy the moment when, not only he will see the splendour of God, but also he himself will take part in the manifestation of glory (John 17:22, Colossians 3: 4). Here on Earth we cannot fully understand the meaning of this hope, but the believer will marvel at it for all eternity.
4. Contentment in suffering - verses 3 to 5
Not so much for the discomfort it causes, for he will be saddened while they last (Hebrews 12:11), but because of the results they produce: perseverance, and the experience that teaches him to wait; the Holy Spirit which was given to him when he believed and fills h9im with the love of God, with which he knows that he will not be disappointed in his hope. The scope of this love is demonstrated by the fact that Christ died for us, unjust sinners. That joy can coexist with affliction is one of the wonderful paradoxes of Christian faith. The opposite of joy is the sin, not suffering. Perseverance is firmness. We could never develop perseverance, if we did not have tribulations to suffer and problems to solve in our lives. Perseverance strengthens the character. When God sees the believer bearing his affliction, and relying on His power to accomplish His purposes through him, He gives His approval. Moreover, the knowledge of having divine approval because of his perseverance fills the believer of hope. He knows that God is working in his life, developing his character. This gives him the confidence that, having begun a good work in him, God will complete it until the end (Philippians 1:6).
5. Salvation from all evil - verses 6 to 10
Salvation involves the exemption of eternal condemnation, the purification of character through obedience to God, and the deliverance from the presence of sin when in God’s dwelling in the heavens. The wrath of God will manifest itself on rebellious humanity (the great tribulation and the last judgement): but the believer, when still in the situation of enemy, was reconciled to God by His grace through faith in the redeeming death of His Son; once reconciled, he is saved by His life (He defends us from all evil). The believer has a hope that does not disappoint him. If he were waiting for something and then discover that it did not come, his hope would be motive for shame. However, he will never be disappointed, since the love of God, or rather, his love for God, fills his heart in response to God's love for him. Verses 6 to 20 list some of the great proofs of the love of God for the believer. The Holy Spirit was given on the moment he believed, flooding his heart with these expressions of eternal love of God. Consequently, the believer feels in his heart that God loves him. It is not a simple vague and mystical feeling that "Someone up there" cares for humanity. It is much more, being a deep conviction that God really loves him personally as an individual. Therefore, he has absolute certainty that he will be conducted in safety to the home in heaven.
6. Pride in God, through Lord Jesus Christ - verse 11 a
The believer exults in God for his Lord Jesus Christ, through whom he receives reconciliation. He not only rejoices in the gifts he receives from God, but he glories in the Donor himself. God is the reason for all his joy, and he is saddened when he forgets Him. This is the work of the Lord Jesus Christ, through Whom all this joy comes to us.
7. Reconciliation with God - verse 11b
The establishment of harmony between God and the believer through the sacrificial work of the Saviour. The entrance of sin brought expulsion, alienation and enmity between man and God. When taking sin that caused alienation upon Himself, the Lord Jesus restored those who believe in him to a state of harmony with God. We should note, in passing, that God does not need to be reconciled. It was man who needed it, because he was at enmity with God.
From verses 6 to 20, we see an increasing progress. Having revealed His love for the sinner who believes, when he was still His ungodly enemy, God will surely also save him from His wrath now that he belongs to Him. It is the fifth benefit mentioned above, that of salvation from the condemnation for sin. Because of justification made, the believer is eternally secure in Christ. In developing this theme, we found five "much more":
- The "much more" of the deliverance from wrath (v. 9). The atoning death of Christ removed the cause of hostility between the believer and God, i.e. his sins. By faith in Christ, he was reconciled to God by His death.
- The "much more" of salvation for His life after the resurrection (v. 10). The Lord Jesus "He is also able to save to the uttermost those who come to God through Him, since He always lives to make intercession for them" (Hebrews 7:25). When dying on the cross, the man Jesus was in weakness, but after rising from the dead in glory, having received all the power and authority from God, He is Almighty. The cost of reconciliation having been so high, the Lord Jesus will never abandon the believer and in life will save the believer from the power of sin.
- The "much more" of the grace of God and of the gift of grace (v. 15).
- The "much more" of the kingdom of the believer in life by Jesus Christ (v. 17).
- The "much more" of the grace of God ("abounded" in our translation), which still abounded much more than the sin of man (v. 20).
We have above comments on the first two, and the next study, on the scope of justification, will cover the remaining three.
R David Jones
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1 Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
Rom 5:2 through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
3 And not only that, but we also glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance;
4 and perseverance, character; and character, hope.
5 Now hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.
6 For when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.
7 For scarcely for a righteous man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die.
8 But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
9 Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him.
10 For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life.
11 And not only that, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation.
Romans chapter 5, verses 1 to 11