Romans 5:9-11 "The Glory of Justification"

Introduction

There is no Christmas without the gospel.

The coming of Christ into the world is set in the covenant context of redemption. The Believer’s confidence in hope is rooted in the grace initiated gospel of Jesus Christ.

This is the well-spring of the Believer’s joy. As a Christian this should be the ultimate basis of our joy in the world.

I know there are many other things in the world that we may be joyful over but they are all secondary at best. All of the secondary things should be contextualized under the ultimate joy that we have in Christ.

Simply because the joy of life experiences and encounters in the world ebb and flow and they are never consistent. There is an inconsistency to the things of the world and at time we can even become disappointed and devastated over our life experiences.

The things of earth can so easily loose their shine and their sparkle in life.

But here in our text this morning we will see that God’s work in Christ has produced for us in abundance. And as we will see that abundance points us to the source of our ultimate joy. Look first at the abundance of our salvation in verses 9-10:

I. The Abundance of Our Salvation (9-10).

In verse 9 Paul connects his argument back to the context. Remember what we have seen in Romans 5 (9).

It has been a running declaration on the glory of God. Paul has been describing what actually constitutes our being justified by faith alone before God.

Of course this is due to Christ shedding His blood in payment for our sin. Remember that this is the whole idea behind “propitiation” in Romans 3:25.

So if Christ has done that for us and in our place once and for all time then the implications are astounding. How much more shall we be saved by Christ from God’s wrath.

The logical conclusion is that if God has declared us righteous, Christian by Christ and His work on our behalf then to a greater degree we saved from God’s wrath.

This is the case because God will not deny the royal righteousness of His own Son that has been imputed to us.

Christ is the basis of our being declared righteous and once that is done we are no longer children of wrath (Eph. 2:3). So our salvation is a salvation from wrath.

But not only are we saved from something, we are saved for something as we see in verse 10.

Saved us for Relationship (10).

The gospel has changed the dynamic. It has moved us from enemy status into being reconciled to God.

Reconciled to God is our new status Christian and to a greater degree we are saved by Christ life. What is Paul talking about?

He is talking about Christ triumph over sin and death in His resurrection from the dead. But that’s not all that the life of Christ entails here. He is seated at the place of prominence at the right hand of the Father where He makes intercession for us as our great High Priest.

And one day He will return in all His glory and the dead will be raised incorruptible into a glorified status for all eternity. And we will be with the Lord forever.

How can Paul say that with absolute confidence that to a greater degree we shall be saved by His life? How does he know?

Have you ever watched a football game and seen a player running for a touchdown only to fumble the football on the 1 yard line?

It happens to football players in football games but it is impossible to happen to Christ in fulfilling the covenant of redemption of reconciling us to Christ. Hope in Christ doesn’t translate into fumbling on the 1 yard line.

Who has power to thwart Christ in fulfilling God’s covenant plan. God spoke to the prophet Jeremiah in Jeremiah 33:20-22 about His covenant with His people: 20 “Thus says the LORD: If you can break my covenant with the day and my covenant with the night, so that day and night will not come at their appointed time, 21 then also my covenant with David my servant may be broken, so that he shall not have a son to reign on his throne, and my covenant with the Levitical priests my ministers. 22 As the host of heaven cannot be numbered and the sands of the sea cannot be measured, so I will multiply the offspring of David my servant, and the Levitical priests who minister to me.”

God’s covenant is as sure as daylight and dark. This may be why Jeremiah says in Lamentations 3:22-24: “22 The steadfast love of the LORD never ceases; his mercies never come to an end; 23 they are new every morning; great is your faithfulness. 24 “The LORD is my portion,” says my soul, “therefore I will hope in him.”

Jeremiah lamented over the Southern Kingdom. They were morally and politically bankrupt and God was bringing about His judgement on the Nation by raising up the Babylonians. And it was in the in the covenant fidelity of God where Jeremiah found His hope.

Christian we are saved to a greater degree from wrath and saved to a greater degree for reconciliation in relationship to God. But the abundance doesn’t stop there. Look back at verse 11:

II. The Abundance of Our Joy (11).

And to a greater degree we rejoice. Paul has already talked about our rejoicing in the hope of the glory of God in 5:2. And then again in 5:3 he mentions rejoicing in our sufferings because of what they produce in our sanctification.

But here in verse 11 he says more than that or to a greater degree.

Beyond the joy of our hope in God’s glory and beyond our joy in suffering in our sanctification, to a greater degree we rejoice in the reconciliation that we currently have at this moment.

Notice “through whom we have now recieved reconciliation”. It is not just something that will happen in the sweet by and by but it is our current status and reality when it comes to reconciliation.

I was listening to a political commentator a few days ago referencing how one politician threw another politician under the bus as he described an act of betrayal.

Christian, God has never done that to His covenant people. If we are under the bus He is right there under the bus with us.

In the storms of this fallen world and as the waters rise and and when it seems like the waves crash and break hard upon us. He is the Ark that secures us and sustains us in the hear and the now.

When you see now way through and this world system seems to have you cornered against the sea, He is the God who parts the water and brings you safely to the other side.

We are not alone and we have been reconciled to Him and our sin has been paid for in full. Psalm 30:5:  For his anger is but for a moment, and his favor is for a lifetime. Weeping may tarry for the night, but joy comes with the morning.

The Psalmist Goes on down in verses 11-12: 11 You have turned for me my mourning into dancing; you have loosed my sackcloth and clothed me with gladness, 12 that my glory may sing your praise and not be silent. O LORD my God, I will give thanks to you forever!

Conclusion

Christian I have seen Him in action in the storm and I will declare to you our God is awesome in the midst of the storm. The storms are no match for Him they have no choice but to obey.

Many of you have seen the waves and you have felt tossed and turned in every direction only to see the Eternal God set you upon dry land once again.

And yet our sin so easily entangles us. But He does not cast us away Christian. If He can calm the sea and command the storm then through Christ I think He can handle us in the sweetness of His covenant grace.

Confess your sin in full and complete certainty that Christ is enough. Rest in Him.

Unbeliever: Believe the gospel! Let’s pray.