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The Knowledge – no 5

Reading: Romans 4:13 – 5:11

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We’ve been teaching about some of the big words we use as Christians (sometimes rather loosely) and unpacking the truth behind them.

The book of Romans takes us on an exciting journey.

We’ve looked at the seriousness of mankind’s sin and the fact that this inevitably leads to God being angry with us (if he wasn’t he’s be a pretty weak God!)
Last time we considered the truth of justification and finished with the simplest of all summaries that when I’m justified God sees me just-as-if I’d never sinned.

But that left us with a question – if being justified is the only way to be at peace with God how do I get from where I am now into that place?

Today (and this is so appropriate for a renewal service) we’re looking at the answer to that question – we arrive there by faith – it really is as simple as that.

When we pray for each other later my heart’s desire is that the blessing of God will just flow into your life in vast quantities! And how will that happen? By faith! By an uncomplicated opening of my innermost being to God and saying ‘thank you Lord! – I’ll receive whatever you have for me”

so my text for tonight is <ppt>

Rom 5:1 Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,

Now you can tell that, because it begins with the word ‘therefore’ this verse is half way through a story that Paul is telling – so let’s start in 4:13

A wise teacher will always choose the best examples he or she can come up with to illustrate a point or a principle – and that is what Paul is doing here. He wants a good example of someone who was justified by God but who didn’t rely on the law to get there – and that example is Abraham

Abraham <ppt>

God made a wonderful promise to Abraham – that he would be the father of a great nation. In fact Abraham had a nightmarish experience with God at this time where they went through the traditional covenant-making ceremony with him on one side and God on the other (Genesis 15). From then on Abraham was bound to God and (incredibly) God was bound to Abraham to keep his side of the bargain of being the father of a great nation.

Now in order for God to enter into this kind of agreement, Abraham must have been counted as righteous in God’s sight – he must have been justified – so how could that have come about?

First of all we discover about one way it didn’t come about

Consider this time-line: Abraham, Promise, Moses, Law – Jesus (not to scale!) <ppt – explain points on the time line>

Rom 4:13-14 It was not through law that Abraham and his offspring received the promise that he would be heir of the world,

Surely (from our time line) we can see this is obvious because the law hadn’t been given when Abraham received God’s promise to him!

So how did it come? V16 tells us

Rom 4:16 Therefore, the promise comes by faith,

so that it may be by grace

and may be guaranteed to all Abraham’s offspring –

not only to those who are of the law (the Jews) but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham (the non-Jews including us today). He is the father (the progenitor, the ancestor) of us all.

So to be at peace with God requires two things:

On our side it’s faith <ppt>

we just say ‘Thank you God I’ll have that!’

I’ll start living my life using the assumption that I’ve got it all!
I’ll receive it just by saying ‘yes’ to your offer!

That’s faith

On God’s side it’s grace <ppt>

God’s totally over-the-top generosity

“you want justification? – you have it!”
“you want peace with me? – it’s there for the receiving – just take it!”
“you want joy in the holy Spirit? – just have it! It’s there for the receiving!”

that’s … grace!

What did Abraham’s faith look like?

Paul gives us a couple of key characteristics of faith

It was reasonable (i.e. it was based on reason) (v18)

Cynics sometimes speak of faith as ‘a leap in the dark’ – the sort of thing a rational person would never do in their right mind

Bertrand Russell once called faith ‘a conviction which cannot be shaken by contrary evidence’

However Abraham’s faith was based on something. It was reasonable – God didn’t expect him to turn his mind off in the process of living by faith.

And the thing that Abraham based his faith on was God’s promise to him and that was something he could rationalise and understand

It was reasoned faith

It was full of hope (it was not based on foresight) v19

If I have faith that something is going to happen and I can already see it coming, then my faith is bolstered by my vision.

For example, If I am a business man with plans to grow my business, I may trust God to grow my business by (say) 10% this year. Recession or no recession, I can see my way clear to picking up the additional contracts and staffing the additional work. It’s a risk, it’s a step of faith and I trust God for it.

I can then start strategising for it. Still walking by faith but seeing faith’s vision develop week on week as I plan for it step by step.

Abraham’s faith was of a different order.

He had absolutely no idea how God was going to deliver on his promise!
God promised him that he would be the father of a great nation but he was nearing 100 years old, his wife was 90, and we all know that 90 year olds don’t fall pregnant! – So where is he going to get his family from?
(If you know the story you’ll know that Abraham tried to short-circuit God’s answer and for a while it looked as if the whole nation project would fail – and that’s a warning to all of us!)

But he still believed – that’s faith of a different order – that’s faith that does not rely on seeing it’s goal in the distance or strategising for it in the present

Romans 4:19-20 Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead– since he was about a hundred years old– and that Sarah’s womb was also dead.

20 Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God,

So justification – being righteous in God’s reckoning – was not earned by Abraham as we might earn our wages, it was credited to him by God because faith was his life-principle.

And it wasn’t just for him, it’s for us too!

Rom 4:23-24 The words “it was credited to him” were written not for him alone,

24 but also for us, to whom God will credit righteousness — for us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead.

The same righteousness and peace with God will be credited to us as we live by faith!

So when we have our time of ministry in a few minutes, receive from God by faith! – You may not yet be able to see the reality of God’s blessing (that’s where Abraham was) but the promise is real and solid.

God is faithful – He will not let you down.

Now you understand tonight’s text! <ppt>

Rom 5:1 Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,

Something has changed here that has slipped under our radar -Paul has changed his pronouns

In the first part of the book it’s all ‘I’

“I thank God for you”
“I long to see you”
“I am not ashamed of the gospel”

Now he’s using the plural “we”

“we have been justified through faith”

Paul is saying “What I’m saying now is for all of us – not just ‘them’”

If we have been justified, like Abraham,
If we live with faith in God as our guiding principle of life (like Abraham)

then we are at peace with God

What difference does it make?

the consequences of justification

What re the results for us?

We are at peace with God (v1)

The search for peace is a universal one.

It may be peace in the middle east, peace in a warring community, peace in a family or just peace with myself.

We long for peace

Paul assures us that when we are justified by God we have it – it is a present possession.

It’s like the catch that wins the test match in cricket –
there’s a tense and nervous moment as the ball flies through the air – will he catch it or won’t he – the test match series rests on this crucial 1.5 seconds.
Yes! He has it! – He’s caught it! He’s got it safe in his hands!”

we have peace with God – we’ve caught it – it’s safely in our hands – we have grasped hold of it!

We revel in God’s grace (v2)

Rom 5:2 through [Christ] we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand.

The word behind ‘gained access’ has the idea of being introduced into a society or an group where you wouldn’t naturally have been admitted.

You can’t just blag your way into the royal family (although many people have tried!) you need to be introduced.

But if I am introduced by Prince Charles say – just imagine the (unlikely!) scenario.

“Mother, this is Ian – we met at a function and we’ve been facebooking each other – I’d really like you to meet him”

the Queen says “Ian – lovely to meet you – pull up a chair and sit down – Geeves, any chance of some coffee? (you OK with coffee?) – Now Charles tells me you like reading maths in bed – I don’t believe it -what on earth is so fascinating about numbers – you must tell me …”

and so the conversation progresses – and within a few minutes all nerves are swept away – I have access, I’m accepted and I’m in the arena of royalty”

That’s the message behind the verb here – we’ve been introduced into God’s grace and we are allowed – indeed expected – to enjoy it, to revel in it and to treat it as our normal place of being.

We rejoice in our future

Rom 5:2 through [Christ] we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand and we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God

Abraham didn’t see the end-game of his faith (he lived in hope) and neither may we.

I have no idea what heaven will be like, I just know it will be unimaginably more joy-filled and more beautiful than anything I’ve experienced on this earth!
That’s my hope – that’s what I’m resting on!
That’s what is coming your way!

So far Paul has shown the consequences of Justification in the past (forgiveness), the present (in God’s grace) and the future (heaven is ready and waiting)

It all sounds wonderful until we see his fourth (and our last) consequence

we rejoice in our sufferings (v3-8)

The sufferings Paul has in mind here are not the ordinary hassles of life (trial and tribulations, disappointments, frustrations, aches and pains, fears and failures etc)

He uses the word qlhipsis (thlipsis) which was almost a technical term for suffering which we confront as a direct result of being Christ-followers. Persecution.

Jesus warned his disciples “In this world you will have tribulation” because you follow me.
Paul warned his converts in Acts that they “must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God”

Let’s never forget that suffering is the road to glory. Jesus Christ only reached glory through intense suffering – and when we suffer we become identified more intensely with Jesus himself.

God even uses suffering to work yet more of his grace in our lives

Rom 5:3-5 … we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance;

4 perseverance, character; and character, hope.

5 And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.

When we pray for each other you may be rejoicing in God’s grace or praying about suffering or something in between. Whatever you pray about just open yourself to God’s spirit as best you can and let him do the rest

Pray >>>

Faith