The Blessedness of the Justified

Romans 5:1–2 NKJV

1 Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, 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.

At this point in the letter, Paul has already expressed the need for justification. Both Jews and Gentiles alike have fallen short of the glory of God for which purpose we were created to be the perfect image of. But instead of manifesting the glory of God we chose to suppress the truth of God which is written on our hearts. Instead of giving thanks and glory to God we chose to thank ourselves and glorify ourselves - worship the creation instead of the creator. If we seen to be religious, then we become judgemental of others and proud in ourselves thinking that we will escape the judgement of God. But all must face the Judgement of God and all have sinned.

So it’s clear that all need redemption. All need to be justified. And the apostle has told us that this justification is available and has expressed the way to this justification. It is not through works of righteousness in keeping the Law. Justification is by faith. Just simple faith that God is, that He is able and willing to fulfil His word to us that all who will come, repent of their sins, accept the sacrifice of Jesus on the Cross as payment for their sins and put the faith and trust in Him as their Lord and Saviour will be justified. Redeemed, reconciled to God and saved from the wrath to come.

Now at the beginning of Rom 5 Paul begins to tell us of the fruit of blessedness of being justified.

I believe it easy to lose sight of the blessedness of being justified.

David said

Blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven, whose sin is covered. Blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not Impute Iniquity Ps 32:1-2

But sometime we don’t feel blessed, sometime we lose our joy. Sometimes we look for joy in the wrong places

In this we have a spiritual battle because Satan does not want you to be joyful in the Lord because when we are joyful about our salvation we begin to tell others about it.

In ps 51 david says

Psalm 51:12–13 NKJV

12 Restore to me the joy of Your salvation, And uphold me by Your generous Spirit. 13 Then I will teach transgressors Your ways, And sinners shall be converted to You.

How do we fight for joy? We remind ourselves of our blessed state in the Lord. Paul does this through 6 affirmations of which the first three are in the first 2 verse of Rom 5. So this morning we will look at the first three.

Affirmation 1

1. We Have Peace With God

We all have a longing for peace. It has been one of our primary pursuits since the fall of mankind. We want world peace, peace in our families, peace at work, at school. But all peace is superficial if we don’t have peace with God. When we lost peace with God we lost peace with one another so in order restore peace we must be reconciled with God.

Romans 5:1 NKJV

1 Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,

This is one of the greatest benifits of justification. Those who God justified he also befriends. It is our unrighteousness which prevents us from being reconciled to God so once we are justified we can be reconciled. In fact is is the primary purpose of justification to be reconciled to God.

2 Corinthians 5:17–21 NKJV

17 Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new. 18 Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, 19 that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. 20 Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God. 21 For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.

To be reconciled to God mean to be restored and received into favour. In other words to have peace with God.

when we realise the great benefit of our justification we can rest in this peace. Because to have peace with God is to have a peace which is beyond all other conflict. Peace which passes all understanding.

2. We Stand in This Grace

What Grace? The grace of being reconciled to God. We have access to this grace through our Lord Jesus Christ. And It’s in this grace that we stand.

What does it mean to stand? There are several ideas tied up in this word stand.

We stand firm against the attacks of Satan.

Ephesians 6:11 NKJV

11 Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil.

The goal in spiritual warfare is to stand firm and that which we stand in is this grace that I have been justified by the blood of Christ and I have peace with God the righteous Judge.

When Satan comes to tempt us we can stand firm in our relationship with God through Christ Jesus. But if we fall we must no this Satan doesn’t just tempt us to sin and then leave us. The reason he wants us to sin is so that he can accuse us to make us guilty. But we can stand firm in this grace I have peace with God, I am justified, I am reconciled with God.

We can stand in confidence that nothing can separate us for the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Romans 8:38–39 NKJV

38 For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, 39 nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.

To stand in this grace also means that we will stand in this Grace when we stand before the Judge of the world. Those who have been justified by faith in Jesus Christ will be able to stand before the Judge of the world in the grace that they have peace with that Judge and have be reconciled to Him.

The third affirmation is

3. We Have Hope in the Glory of God

This hope is not one of uncertainty. It’s not a hope like I hope it doesn’t rain tomorrow.

We have a miniature Schnauzer named Walter and anytime any had food he is there in earnest hope that you will grace him with a morsel. I don’t ever grant him that grace but I believe that someone or ones in our house must in order for him to have such great hope. But his hope, at least for me, is uncertain, in fact it’s improbable. But he hope that we have in the glory of God is more like an earnest expectation of something that we know will happen. I hope for the sun to rise tomorrow. We know it’s coming because it has never ceased to rise. But our hope of the glory of God is even more certain than that because death could prevent us getting to a certain day or the world could end but not even death or the end or the world can prevent the glory of God being fully revealed.

So that we don’t wait anxiously in hope but we rejoice in hope as a reality which has not yet been revealed but is certain to be.

Why do we hope for the glory of God? doesn’t God already have glory?

This particular glory in which we await is the glory of God in the perfecting of the children of God. God the Father will glorify himself and Christ and the Holy Spirit by revealing His glory in us his children. By restoring in us the glory that was lost in the garden when Adam and Eve first sinned, the glory that we all fall short of because we all sin.

Romans 8:16–25 NKJV

16 The Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, 17 and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ, if indeed we suffer with Him, that we may also be glorified together. 18 For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us. 19 For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. 20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of Him who subjected it in hope; 21 because the creation itself also will be delivered from the bondage of corruption into the glorious liberty of the children of God. 22 For we know that the whole creation groans and labors with birth pangs together until now. 23 Not only that, but we also who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, even we ourselves groan within ourselves, eagerly waiting for the adoption, the redemption of our body. 24 For we were saved in this hope, but hope that is seen is not hope; for why does one still hope for what he sees? 25 But if we hope for what we do not see, we eagerly wait for it with perseverance.

So be encouraged this morning. If you have lost the joy of your salvation pray that God restores it and consider these great blessings of our justification

that we have peace with God

that we can stand firm in this grace

that we can rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.

Perhaps you don’t have this hope this morning. Maybe you haven’t put you faith and trust in Jesus for your salvation. Would you like to receive these blessings this morning? you only have to come to Christ repent, accept the sacrifice that Jesus made for you on the cross and put your faith and trust in Him as your Lord and Saviour.