1 Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. 2 Through him we have also obtained access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we rejoice in hope of the glory of God. 3 Not only that, but we rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that suffering produces endurance, 4 and endurance produces character, and character produces hope, 5 and hope does not put us to shame, because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.

 

6 For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die— 8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Since, therefore, we have now been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved by him from the wrath of God. 10 For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, now that we are reconciled, shall we be saved by his life. 11 More than that, we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.

 

5:1-2: Because Paul used the word “rejoice” three times (5:2, 5:3, 5:11) it’s important to understand its significance. According to Boice, it “means to boast in the sense of jubilation—exuberant rejoicing—to shout about it!” (101) It also carries the idea of being confident.

 

Our feelings of great joy and great happiness (our confident boasting) are not based on some transitory and fleeting experience, but rather, it’s grounded in God’s glory (1:2), God’s love (1:5), and being reconciled to God (5:10-11). Following Paul’s account of justification (3:21-31) and illustration of Abraham being declared righteous by faith alone (4:1-25), Romans 5:1-11 highlights six blessings of being justified by faith in Christ.

 

Our first blessing is “peace with God” (5:1: as a result of being justified by faith). We experienced spiritual anxiety, stress, and angst from the weight of our sins and God’s judgment (Romans 1:18-3:20; cf. Ephesians 2:3: “children of wrath.”)

 

But now, in Christ, we have peace with God (Colossians 1:20; cf. Romans 8:1: no condemnation) because we have been forgiven (Romans 4:7; Ephesians 1:7; Colossians 1:14; 2:13; 3:13; 1 John 2:12). Formerly, we were spiritually broken, but now have been made spiritually whole and complete (peace: shalom).

 

The second blessing is grace. As recipients of God’s grace, His unmerited favor toward us in Christ, we have experienced “saving” grace from our sins (Ephesians 2:8-9) and “sufficient” grace to persevere through hardships (2 Corinthians 12:9).

 

Blessing number three is rejoicing “in hope of the glory of God.” (5:2) Moo explains: “As in 3:23, ‘the glory of God’ is that state of ‘God-like-ness’ which has been lost because of sin, and which will be restored in the last day to every Christian (cf. 8:17, 18, 21, 30).” (302) According to Paul, we should have great joy and happiness because we presently have hope (strong confidence) for an ultimate victory over our sins (future glorified bodies: 1 Corinthians 15:42-58).  

 

5:3-5: Our fourth blessing is rejoicing “in our sufferings.” (5:3) How is it possible to be incredibly happy in our sufferings? The wisdom lies in the purpose of our suffering. Here’s Paul’s formula for suffering: suffering = endurance = character = hope (cf. James 1:2-4). Are you still confused? Perhaps a running analogy can help us.

 

Have you ever dreamed of finishing a marathon? Let’s say that our level of running is “beginner.” But all of us beginners have been assigned a master running coach. In fact, this master running coach, who is the greatest runner and coach ever, wants to train us. So, we register and begin training for a marathon. Now what happens? According to Romans 5:3-5, four things occur:

 

1. Our suffering (body aches, running, mental anguish) produces endurance (persevering through twenty-six miles helps us to push through our hardships: e.g., mile five, ten, fifteen, twenty, etc.).

2. Our endurance produces character (we are faithful, trustworthy runners).

3. Our character produces hope (we have strong confidence) that we will complete the marathon.

4. Our hope is based on having experienced our coach’s love for us.

 

Now, let’s return to Romans 5: in the midst of our suffering, Paul teaches that our hope should be based on the fact that God loves us. We know that God loves us because the Holy Spirit dwells within us. We belong to God—we can cry out to our Father because His Spirit has been poured out into our hearts (cf. Romans 8:15; Galatians 4:6).

 

In short, God never give up on us because His love never fails and never ceases Stott observes: “suffering is the best context for being assured of God’s love….The reason why our hope will never let us down is that God will never let us down. His love will never give us up.” (142)

 

5:6-9: Blessing number five is being saved from God’s wrath. God’s wrath, his righteous judgment against sin, is mentioned throughout Romans (1:18, 2:5, 2:8, 3:5, 4:15). God will judge us because we sinners; under the power/dominion of sin (3:9) from our heads to our toes (3:9-20).

 

Despite the fact that we are “weak” (powerless to save ourselves) “ungodly,” (wicked) “sinners,” (not good; falling short of God’s glory) and “enemies” of God (hostile toward Him: 5:10), “Christ died for us.” (5:8). In our place, Christ became a substitute for us. Jesus became a sin offering (2 Corinthians 5:21); God poured out his wrath upon His Son.

 

On the basis of Jesus’ (blood) sacrifice (Hebrews 9:22), God has credited to believers, the righteousness of His Son. As a result, God declares us righteous. Paul employs a rabbinic interpretation principle called qal wahomer (lighter/minor to heavier/major). In Romans 5:9 he reverses it from major to minor.

 

Moo observes that “if God has already done the most difficult thing—reconcile and justify unworthy sinners—how much more can he be depended on to accomplish the ‘easier’ thing---save from eschatological wrath those who have been brought into such a relationship with him.” (310)  

 

5:10-11: Reconciliation is our sixth and final blessing in Romans 5:1-11. Formerly, we were “alienated from the life of God” (Ephesians 4:18; cf. 2:12; Colossians 1:21), but God has “through Christ reconciled us to Himself.” (2 Corinthians 5:18). We were once “enemies” (5:10), but have now become Jesus’ friends (Luke 12:4; John 15:14-15).

 

Paul ends with the idea of rejoicing again (cf. 5:2, 5:3). Because we have been reconciled to God, Christians should feel a great joy and happiness. We now have a new relationship to confidently boast about—we have been reconciled to God through Jesus and placed into the body of Christ by the Spirit (1 Corinthians 12:13).      

 

1. Romans 5:1-11 identifies several blessings. How can they serve as a motivation for you to share your faith with a family member or friend?

 

2. Do you believe there’s a connection between grace and peace and the other blessings? Explain.

 

3. Why do you think Paul exhorted us to rejoice (5:2; 5:3-5; 5:11) in this passage?

 

4. Which blessing(s) have you experienced on a consistent or regular basis (weekly)? How can we move from knowing and believing biblical truth (e.g., blessings) to experiencing them?

 

5. Which blessing(s) would you like to experience on a more regular basis? Which steps do you need to take in order to accomplish this objective?

 

6. Select 2-3 blessings to focus on (reflect, mediate, pray). What makes these blessings significant for you? Explain.