Romans 5:1-11
“Into The Courts Of Heaven”
Vs. 1-2 Rejoicing in the hope of glory
Vs. 3-5 Rejoicing in present sufferings
Vs. 6-11 Rejoicing in God
Intro
If a reader of this great letter stopped in the 4th chapter he would know of his need to be saved and he would know of the means of his salvation but he wouldn’t know of the blessed benefits of it. Paul has two purposes in the first 11 verses speaking of the blessings of our salvation:
- To say how wonderful it is to be a Christian
- To speak of our endless blessings
In doing this in the first 11 verses of chapter 5 Paul uses the word for “rejoice” three times which serves as the outline:
Vs. 1-2 Rejoicing in the hope of glory
Vs. 3-5 Rejoicing in present sufferings
Vs. 6-11 Rejoicing in God
On Jan 24, 1972 after 28 years of hiding in the jungles of Guam, local farmers discovered Yokoi, a Japanese sergeant who was unaware that World War II had ended. He was still fighting a war on a 200-square-mile island that had again become a U.S. possession. Yokoi was left behind by the retreating Japanese forces, went into hiding and for the next three decades waited for the return of the Japanese with his next orders. Finally in 1972, he was discharged and sent home to Japan, where he became a national hero, married and returned to Guam for his honeymoon.
What does this story have to do with Romans 5 and us today? Well there are far too many Christians today living in the jungles of their former life fighting battles with God when they should have embraced him as Savior. Yokoi could have enjoyed life, experienced peace, started a family but instead he stayed put not realizing that his country was no longer at war. Saints, the war is over, we have peace with God, the treaty has been signed in His blood.
Vs. 1-2 Rejoicing in the hope of glory:
Vs. 1-2 There are five ways based upon these verses we can tell that we are rejoicing in the hope of glory.
First, we lose our fear of God: By that I don’t mean our worship or reverence but rather our fear and doubt of His love. We will begin not to see him as our judge or as a principal that has announced that he needs to see us after school but as our loving Father.
Second, we lose our fear of death: When we come into the understanding of the unmerited love of God towards us, death no longer has a sting in fact we strangely look forward to as we don’t see it as the ending of all the things but rather the beginning of everything! We’re not afraid of what lies beyond this life as we anticipate the glory of being in the presence of the One who loved us so that He laid down His life to ensure that those who trust on Him will be where He is.
Third, we have a peace with God: “Peace with God” doesn’t mean “tranquility of mind” it means a “cessation of hostility”. It is not the peace of God it is peace with God. It isn’t that we have first ceased being hostile towards God, it is that He has ceased to be righteously hostile towards us. This peace brings us instantly into His presence no matter what the circumstance or how little we deserve it. The Bible doesn’t say we have peace with the devil, the world, the flesh or sin. Life is still a battle for the Christian but it is no longer a battle against God it’s a battle against our former life.
Fourth, we have access to the King: The access isn’t just into a standing of grace, but into the very courts of heaven. The Jew was kept from God by the veil in the Holy of Holies and gentiles were kept out of the temple area under punishment of death. But Jesus’ work on the cross has torn the veil from top to bottom and destroyed the barrier keeping gentiles from access to God. “The idea is that of introduction to the presence of a king”. This is more than an audience with one’s king; it is into the chamber with our best friend the King with all assurances that he considers us so.
Our “access” and “standing” are such that they cannot be revoked. “We are not brought to God for the purpose of an interview, but to remain with him; to be in his household; to behold his face, and walk in the light of his countenance.” At the hospital on Monday as my Grandson Nathaniel was born my little granddaughter Hannah was asked what her brother’s name was and she didn’t hesitate, “His name is Prince!” That would make them children of the King, oh how right she is!! The basis of this friendship isn’t predicated upon us being holy and working so hard that the King has no choice but to regard us as His friends. We are not in His courts because we have been loyal subjects! He has pulled us vagabonds off the streets of the world where we lived in rebellion to His rule and chose to live in the squalor that our flesh was convinced was riches. And even as the King’s friends we are a motley crew of ill-mannered misfits who far too often take for granted our King’s loving kindness toward us. The king is the One who has lavished His love upon us ill-respective of our consistent miss-behavior. His unmerited favor washes over us every moment of the day. How do we thank Him? Far too much of the time by bragging to our fellow misfits that the reason for His love and favor towards us is because of some small penance of work that we have done to manipulate Him to do what He was already going to do!
Fifth, we have hope of the glory of God: “Peace with God” dealt with our past no longer holding our sins against us. And “Access to God” takes care of our present as we can come into His throne of grace any time we would like. Ah but ,“Hope with God” takes care of our future as one day we shall not only behold His glory we shall share His glory. It is not our glory or glory that is manifested by our works; no, it is undeserved glory that has clothed because of His grace. (Rom. 8:17) Everyone who has put their faith in Jesus and none in themselves has come to a place of complete assurance, continual acceptance and confident anticipation.
Vs. 3-5 Rejoicing in present sufferings:
Vs. 3-4 Paul anticipates the fact that such a claim wouldn’t match the personal experience due to persecution, so he says, “I know we have many tribulations now but we glory in those also.” The word “tribulation” does not refer to minor inconveniences, but to real hardships. It comes from a word that describes the crushing of olives under heavy rocks to extract the oil. Such hardships were not unfamiliar to Paul as he had lived a life full of tribulation. Paul had discovered that such “stresses” produce “endurance”. Then Paul says, “Perseverance produced character; and character, hope”. Our declaration of value apart from works doesn’t mean that we will no longer experience the trials of living in this world. In fact, remember that Jesus promised His disciples in John 16:33, “In this life you will have tribulation,” the promise is that “we can be of good cheer because Jesus has overcome the world.” These trials work for us not against us and no amount of stress can separate us from the love of God they will only cause us to draw closer to his love. Trials only build our godly character of patience, which proves our character and leads us to hope.
Vs. 5 There is often a mindset in Christians who see their self worth and value based upon work that such “stresses” are either “undeserving” or “a direct result of our failure” but Paul offers a different view, they are to strengthen our “Hope”. Stresses cause us to reevaluate the motive behind our works and to abandon everything except resting in the “Love of God” which He has already poured out towards and continues to pour out towards us. God’s love isn’t given to us in a trickle, it is poured out in our hearts. This love is ours by the Holy Spirit who was given to us. As such the lack of awareness of God’s love can be credited to a failure to be constantly filled with the Holy Spirit and to walk in the Spirit.
For 7 wonderful years I lived in the beautiful Monterey Peninsula. The symbol for the area is the 250 year-old Lone Cypress found on the 17 mile drive. This tree has been painted, sculpted and as I can attest made into jewelry. The secret to its admired beauty is the wind that constantly blows as it produces an outward beauty as well as an inward strength. The root system of the Cypress goes deeper than any other tree in the state even deeper than the mighty redwood. Dear ones if we want to be reflecting the beauty of the Lord He will need to sink our roots down deep and the winds of tribulation are certain to do just that. God puts us in fixes to fix us!
Vs. 6-11 Rejoicing in God:
Vs. 6-11 The greatness of God’s love is seen in his giving to the undeserving, those without strength, the ungodly, sinners. God’s grace displayed in Jesus is so strong that it not only changes our status from sinner to saint it changes our state as we cannot stay acting like a sinner we must begin to act as a saint! Paul declares three spiritual blessings that assure us that we cannot be lost.
Vs. 6-8 God’s love within: There are many times that the “due time” seems to be way over due! But God’s timing is always perfect as Jesus died at the due time when we recognized that we were sinners who needed a Savior. We may have to wait for hope to be fulfilled but our waiting isn’t absent from His presence, it’s saturated in the presence of His love. He reminds us that since He has acted towards us in love while we were still practicing sin, how much more confident can we be that He will continue to act towards us in love while we are now called His beloved children?
Spurgeon said, “You will say”:
“Oh, I am one of the worst in the world.” But Christ died for the worst in the world.
“Oh, I have no power to be better.” But Christ died for those that were without strength.
“Oh, my case condemns itself.” But Christ died for those that legally are condemned.
“Oh, my case is hopeless.” But Christ died for the hopeless. He is the hope of the hopeless. He is the Savior not of those partly lost, but of the wholly lost.
Vs. 9-10 Salvation from future wrath: Since God chose to save us while we were against Him we can again be confident that He will continue to save us while we are His children. Yes there is “wrath to come,” but we who have received the covering of His Son’s blood shall escape this wrath. And since His death accomplished so much for us we can expect that His life will also accomplish great things on our behalf as we are told that now Jesus sits at the right hand of the Father ever living to make intercession on our behalf defending us against the accuser of the brethren. The one who died for us has become the executor of His will as we are assured of every spiritual blessing in heavenly places and are accounted as His inheritance!
Vs. 11 Reconciliation with God: The word “reconciliation” means to be brought back into fellowship with God as Jesus has become the “peace child”, to place us back into His family. If God does this much for His enemies, how much more will He do for His friends! This reconciliation isn’t only helpful when we die; it touches our life right now.
Romans
“The Righteousness of God Revealed”
Vs. 12-14 Adam he’s our man, if he can’t do it nobody can
Vs. 15-17 Heartaches and ruined lives are why Jesus died on Calvary
Vs. 18-21 Life through Jesus Christ
Intro
In Ray Stedman’s book “Authentic Christianity” he describes one of the marks of an “Authentic Christian” as “Unquenchable Optimism.” Which describes the reality that the believer in Christ always has reasons for rejoicing. I remember hearing one of my Christian friends tell me something that illustrated that truth when he declared to a non-Christian that: “If this is the absolute best day of your life it’s a real bummer as it is only going to get worse from here on out.” Then he said, “But as a follower of Jesus I can have the absolute worst day of my life and I can rejoice because it is only going to get better from here on out!” To understand this section all we need to do is take a look at Paul’s repeated use of three phrases:
One: It is used 11 times in this section and Paul uses it as the basis of our identification either in Adam or in Jesus.
Reign: Paul uses this word 5 times as Paul saw these two men Adam and Jesus as Kings that reigned over a kingdom.
Much more: Paul uses this phrase as a comparison of what we gained in Christ versus what we lost in Adam. Jesus not only undid all the damage during Adam’s reign He did much more by making us children of God. In Adam we lost our kingdom. In Jesus we are kings!
Vs. 12-14 Adam he’s our man, if he can’t do it nobody can:
Vs. 12 It may befuddle the atheist but according to Jesus (Mat. 19:4-6), and Paul (here in Rom 5:12), they regarded Adam and Eve as real people and their fall as a lasting effect to the present day. You can’t take away Genesis 3 without taking away principles that lay the foundation for our salvation. Adam was more than the first man as his name in Hebrew means “humanity.” Death entered the world and spread to all men as God promised Adam that, “in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die” (Gen. 2:17). Every death and grave is a silent reminder of the spread and reign of sin. Paul draws the first two of four consequences of Adam’s sin in verse 12:
Vs. 12a Because of Adam’s failure, sin entered the world: (Universality of sin)
G.K. Chesterton said, “Whatever else may be said of mankind, this one thing is clear: He is not what he is capable of being.” Theologically speaking we call this “original sin”. That’s not fair you cry, but the reality is that Adam was our champion; he was the best we have ever had. He in a perfect world where he experienced the best of what God had to offer without a hint of failure. We could let loose the cheer, “Adam, Adam he’s our man, if he can’t do it nobody can!” Yet even though he was undefeated, on his home court in the Garden of Eden he got whipped. Now if you think you could do better try going one day without sin, without one bad thought, one unkind word or one bad attitude. Then when you throw in not just the sins of commission but the sins of omission where you didn’t do wrong you just didn’t do right, then old great, great, great grandpa Adam doesn’t look so bad. Even more amazing is that such sin is not a learned behavior it isn’t based upon a lack of education or poor environment. In 1926 the Governor of Minnesota commissioned the Minnesota Crime Commission to do a study on the causes of delinquency that was published in the Journal of the American Institute of Criminal Law and Criminology in May 1927. Its findings were: “Every baby starts life as a little savage. He is completely selfish and self-centered. He wants what he wants when he wants it: his bottle, his mother’s attention, his playmate’s toys, his uncle’s watch, or whatever. Deny him these and he seethes with rage and aggressiveness which would be murderous were he not so helpless. He’s dirty; he has no morals, no knowledge, no developed skills. This means that all children, not just certain children but all children, are born delinquent. If permitted to continue in their self-centered world of infancy, given free reign to their impulsive actions to satisfy each want, every child would grow up a criminal, a thief, a killer, a rapist.” David wrote in Psa. 51:5, “Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin my mother conceived me”. Now I love my grandchildren but the truth is we never have to teach them to be bad, they got that from Adam passed on to Grandpa and then on to their parents.
Vs. 12b Because of Adam’s failure death entered the world: (Universality of death).
People may think Adam and original sin is a load of baloney, but every funeral, every grave marker makes them a liar. The moment a baby is born and they start to live they have kicked into action an eternal clock that no one knows but their creator that will one day stop ticking and they will die. We are born to die and it is the story of the human race, as Paul puts it in verse 17 “death reigned”, then in verse 21 he says that “sin reigned”. Paul will tell us in Romans 6:23 that the wages of sin is death and that death is not only physical but spiritual and eternal death as well. The reason for all of this is Adam, that’s why it says the wages of “sin” not the wages of “sins” plural.
Adam is the common father of every person on the earth and we were born with his genetic makeup. By nature because of Adam’s sin we were subject to death even before we have made a choice to exercise what we are by nature. Sin and death have been royal tyrants who have dictated their wills upon all of humanity with only one exception, Jesus.
Vs. 13-14 Next Paul anticipates a question with regard to the “Law” and says that we were made sinners by nature because of Adam, as sin and death were in the world before the Law was ever given. In the garden of Eden Adam did far more than disobey a little command he made a decision to call himself an independent creature, the captain of his own ship and deny the God who he had enjoyed and walked with everyday. In so doing he enthroned himself as god. The “Law” revealed what we are by nature. We will soon enough be seen by choice! “Death reigned” even over those who had not sinned in the exact way Adam did, showing that the principle of sin was at work in every human.
Vs. 15-17 Heartaches and ruined lives are why Jesus died on Calvary:
Vs. 15 This verse starts the comparison and contrasts of Adam and Jesus. The clearest contrast is that Adam sinned once and brought death to all, Jesus died once and brought life to all. As a result of Adam’s offense, many died, as a result of the free gift of Jesus, the grace of God which abounded many lived. This world is not the land of the living, it’s the land of the dying. Yet as certain as this is Paul says that the reign of life through Jesus is much more certain. Imagine that “The believer’s reign in life through Jesus” is more certain than death or taxes! Paul draws the third of four consequences of Adam’s sin in verses 16-17:
Vs. 16-17 Because of Adam’s failure, condemnation entered the world: Because of Adam’s foolishness enumerable souls have died and the carnage of ruined lives litter human history. In that old song called “Something about that name,” there is a stanza that goes “I will serve thee because I love thee, You have given life to me, I was nothing until you found me, You have given life to me, Heartaches, broken pieces, ruined lives are why You died on Calvary, Your touch was what I longed for, You have given life to me.” Oh dear ones Adam’s failure would be insurmountable if not for the fact that “Heartaches, broken pieces and ruined lives are why Jesus died on Calvary”. Adam polluted. Jesus purifies! Adam washed out. Jesus washes us clean!
Vs. 18-21 Life through Jesus Christ:
Vs. 18 Between Adam and Jesus all of humanity is identified: We are born identified with Adam but we can be born again into identification with Jesus. We initially didn’t choose Adam but the moment we sinned we identified ourselves with him and the moment we chose Jesus we identified ourselves with Him.
Vs. 19 Both Adam and Jesus communicate the effect of their work to their “followers” as Adam’s work makes us sinners Jesus’ work makes us saints. Satan could not complain to God that it was not fair that another Man represent us by acting on our behalf because it was our representative in Adam that placed us in the state we are in.
Paul draws the final of four consequences of Adam’s sin in verse 19:
Vs. 19 Because of Adam’s failure sin continually enters the world: Adam’s failure would be tragic if he was lost. It would be a tragedy if his generation would be lost. Oh but his failure has affected every single person after him with no escape, no option, and no hope found in man’s ingenuity or creativity. Oh listen to me where sin did abound, grace did much more abound. Sin reigned in death but grace and life reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord! Jesus didn’t come against death with a crusade or a march, He came with compassion. He didn’t mobilize the multitudes or strategize and compartmentalize. No He came to lay down His life that we may have life! In Jesus I have found everything I was looking for and many things I didn’t know ever existed. Because of Him I’ve stopped striving to prove I’m worthy of His love. I was a worker. Now I’m a worshipper which causes me to worship in my work.
Vs. 20a Not only does the law not justify us it doesn’t even make us sinners – Adam did that. The purpose of the law is so that man’s sin is more visible by contrasting it with God’s holy standard. In the jewelry industry to grade diamonds every gemologist needs to have a “proof set” of stones by which they can grade diamonds. They are without flaw and in various color grades (D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K etc) so that a person can lay the prospective stone next to that which is the standard. That’s what God’s perfect law does as it exposes our “flaws”, reveals how “off color” we are making our sin abound.
Vs. 20b-21 Ah but where “sin abounded under the law, then grace abounded much more under Jesus.” The phrase “abounded much more” means “super-abounded” as God makes His grace super-abound over abounding sin! Is it not amazing that “where sin abounded” it was not God’s anger or judgment that abounded much more. No, it is God’s love and grace that abounded much more. Some folks have a misconception of “abounding grace” as they will say in response to their casual attitude towards sin, “Hey I’m under grace”. But according to Paul’s letter in Tit. 2:11-12 abounding grace teaches us: “to deny ungodliness and worldly lusts and instead that we should live soberly, righteously, and Godly in the present age.”
A person who doesn’t “deny ungodliness and worldly lusts” or practice “living soberly, righteously and godly in this present age” is demonstrating not that they are under grace but that they aren’t under grace!!! The legalist’s fear is that the reign of grace will provide wicked hearts with a license to sin, but Scripture doesn’t share that fear. Grace does not accommodate sin, it doesn’t wink at unrighteousness, it confronts it with the atonement of the cross and the victory won at the open tomb. “Grace is no friend to sin; it is its sworn enemy.” Let us refuse to be content with a Christian existence that cannot be fully summed up as, “He reigned in life through Jesus Christ!” Yes over sin, over satan, over the world system, over difficulties, adverse surroundings and circumstances.