Transcript
Romans chapter 5. In Romans we are still in the section on justification. This morning we were in sanctification [see https://bteministries.org/bsa/gal05v01-06c/]. Sanctification is a result of justification. But in Romans we are studying the detailed account.
Romans chapter 5 verses 1 through 6. Therefore after having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: (verse 2) through whom also we have had access by faith into this grace wherein we now have been standing, and we boast – The word rejoice is not the normal word for rejoice, it is the word for boasting. We boast in the hope of the glory of God. (verse 3) And not only this, but we boast in tribulation (or affliction) also: knowing that tribulation (or affliction) is working out endurance. Patience in the King James text makes reference to circumstances and it is the word to remain under. So here it is talking about endurance. Affliction works out endurance; (verse 4) and endurance, proof; (very fascinating word) and proof works out hope: (verse 5) and the hope is not making ashamed; because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. We will stop there at verse 5.
Romans chapter 4 we began the study with the principles of justification. Here we are studying the privileges of justification. There are five of them in the first five verses.
We spoke last week on the first one in verse 1: We have peace with God. We have peace with God because in Romans chapter 8 verse 7 it tells us that the natural mind is enmity or is hostile against God. We are naturally in rebellion to God. But through Jesus Christ we now have peace with God. We are no longer fighting against Him because justification means that through Christ Jesus He has made us right with God. We are lined up with Him and we are right with God. Therefore we have peace with God.
Remember the word peace means to be united, to be at one with. We are no longer fighting against God in our spirit, in our soul. We are now at peace with Him. And that is positional and it never changes.
But we do not always experience the peace of God. We saw from Philippians chapter 4 that the solution to the differences between believers, Paul says, Be satisfied with the Lord. Let your moderation be known to all people. Be not anxious. And let your requests be made known to God. And he says the outcome will be, And the peace of God which passes all understanding shall keep (or guard) your hearts and minds through Christ Jesus. We do not always experience the peace of God, but we always have peace with Him. I am not always one and united with Him in the focus of my attention in all of my circumstances. But positionally I am always at peace with God. Christ put me there. But the Lord wants me to experience the peace of God, to be at one with Him experientially in every situation, and this happens through Christ.
Ephesians chapter 2 verse 14 tells us, For He is our peace. So peace is a person. It has the definite article with it in the Greek text. He is our peace, who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of partition between the Jews and the Gentiles. So making everybody one is called making peace. That is what peace means: oneness, unity. So it is through Christ that I experience the peace of God.
But secondly in verse 2, it tells us that we have access also. Through whom, (that is, Jesus Christ) also we have had access by faith into this grace. Notice the perfect tense verbs: we have had access; we have been standing. Once I receive Christ I am in a position, not only to be at peace with God but also to have access to God. I have easier access to God than I do the president of the United States, maybe even the mayor of Santa Maria.
In Ephesians chapter 2 verse 18 Paul says, For through Him (that is Christ) we both have access by one Spirit unto the Father. Because God has given me His Spirit I now have free access to the Father. I do not have to check in with anybody. There are no guards at the door. No machines are going to check me for weapons or bombs. I have free access to God. The means by which I have this access is by faith. If God tells me I have it, I believe Him. Take advantage of it. By faith I have access into this grace. Grace means favor. It is the basis upon which we are saved. We are saved by grace through faith. God’s favor upon us, which means He takes nothing into consideration other than our need. Some people call it unmerited favor. And even though that is true, that is not God’s attitude. He does not say, “Here, you do not deserve it, but here let me do this for you.” Kind of like, “Sorry.” But God says, “You need for Me to do this for you. Your life has been ruined by sin. I will take care of the penalty. I will take care the punishment problem. I will send My Spirit to live inside of you. I will take care of all the damage that sin has done, because My Spirit will live within you and function into grace.” I have free access to grace twenty-four hours a day.
In Hebrews chapter 4 verses 14 through 16 the writer of Hebrews tells us that Jesus Christ has now passed through the heavens. That is very important because heaven is pictured as a tabernacle area, like the temple area. Passed through the heavens and He is now in the holy of holies interceding for us. In fact the Bible says He is our Mercy Seat also. He is every piece of furniture inside the tabernacle representing us. But Hebrews chapter 4 verses 14 through 16 says, Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that has passed through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession. Literally, let us grip our profession, hold onto it. For we do not have a high priest which cannot be touched with the feeling of our infirmities; but was in all points tempted like as we, yet without sin. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace, that we might obtain mercy, and find grace to help in time of need. Come with confidence, it says. Come with boldness to find grace at the time of need. That is what God says. God says, “Come. You have free access to the throne at any time. You need My grace? You need My favor? Just come.” That is His ministry to us. That is his gift to us. That is the benefit and the privilege that we have because the Lord justified us by His death on the cross.
This grace in which we have been standing, (Romans 5:2), again the perfect tense. It is a condition. We always are in a condition of access to grace. And we are always standing in that grace.
The third thing in verse 2, and we boast. The word boast, remember I told you that the Greek word does not mean rejoice like the normal word for rejoice. At the end of verse 2, Wherein we stand and we boast in the hope of the glory of God. We boast, two things. To boast in the Greek (kauchaomai) it does not mean to be arrogant, it means to be confident. When I boast in what Christ has done for me I am telling people it is a done deal. Well, how do you know? I did not talk myself into it, it is just confidence. We boast. And the first thing we boast about is, We boast in the hope of the glory of God. The word hope in Greek does not mean a wish. It means to have expectation. I expect one day to be in God’s glory in His presence. I do not hope I will be someday as a wish. I expect to be there. That is my hope in life. When we turn on the news and hear about all the terrible things that are happening in our world, when we look at our own life and say physically or circumstantially our own life is falling apart, I still have my hope. This is not home. This is not where it is about. One day I will stand in the glory of God.
But secondly, verse 3 tells me, not only do we hope in the glory of God, but not only this, But we boast in tribulations or afflictions. This is the Greek word (thlipsis) and it has to do with stress and pressure of the mind. In case you have not noticed that is what life is all about. Whatever difficult times we go through, the difficult circumstances themselves do not produce anything. It is the stress that is produced that goes on inside our minds. It is the stress that we feel in life. They in and of themselves do not do anything to us. It is the stress that is produced. The Bible calls these times of tribulation or affliction.
In fact Paul, in Acts chapter 14, when he went back through the first cities that he evangelized in, he told them that it is necessary that through much (thlipsis) that you enter into the kingdom of heaven. So what God does, and I think of this every time I brush my teeth – it has nothing to with my teeth. It has do with the toothpaste. You squeeze it to cause pressure to get toothpaste come out. What God does is put us in circumstances that puts the pressure on us to come to Christ. Where are we going to go? We go from outside to inside to inside. And then it is, “Oh, finally.” I am at one. I am at peace. I experience the peace of Christ. I am already at peace with Him, why not take advantage of that? That is why it is taken care for us, so that we can experience the peace of Christ.
But we boast about our afflictions. Do you ever hear many Christians boast about their afflictions? Other people come up, “Boy, you are going through hard times, I thought you were a Christian.” Oh yeah. Well, we have a purpose for the difficulties we go through. I can tell you with confidence – God is working things out in my life and He is changing me and He is bringing me closer to Him because of it. Nonbelievers do not see difficult times as producing that kind of development. We boast in our afflictions. And you are saying, “Do we? We do, huh?”
But notice what it says, Knowing. So again it is based on knowing something. We do not just have confidence in them because the Bible says this is what were supposed to do. It is because of knowing something.
The same thing that James says in James chapter 1 verses 2 through 6. He says, My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various temptations or trials. Joy, count it all joy? The word count means that the leading thought of your mind; and the word joy in Greek means satisfaction. We have lots of thoughts going on when we are in difficult times. He says, “Let the leading thought of your mind that directs all your thought traffic, let it be with all satisfaction.”
Knowing that the trying of your faith works patience, that is the endurance:(hupomenō). So it is not a mind game. Though I experience many thoughts in my mind in the very situations in life that I am in, James says let the leading thought in your mind the satisfaction because God put you in those circumstances in order to produce endurance, a remaining under. In case you have not noticed, we have a tendency to run. “God get me out of this!” And God is saying, “I got you into it.” Well if I move, that will help. And if you move to get out of your circumstances, God has some more waiting for you down the line. Because if we get out of this one, He has more for us to get in to experience the same result. It never ends. Knowing that the testing of your faith is working endurance. But let endurance have its complete work (do not quit) that you may be perfect and entire, wanting nothing. So, stick it out. Trust the Lord and you will learn how to remain under your circumstances on His strength.
And then it says, I always have to slip this in there, James chapter 1 verse 5, If any of you lacks wisdom, let him ask of God. How many times have you heard somebody pick up the message right there? “If anybody lacks wisdom just ask God, He will give you wisdom.” Be careful what you ask for, in context. Because verse 4 said, Let endurance have its complete work, that you may be perfect and entire, not lacking in any one area. Is anyone lacking wisdom let him ask of God. Wisdom is knowing the Lord in difficult situations. It is not something that mystically comes down and He gives us wisdom for all the situations.
“Hey! where did you get that great wisdom? You have the wisdom of Solomon!”
“It is just something that came on me while I was sitting out in the car and prayed for it. Ask me whatever you want, I have the wisdom of Solomon.”
It is not something that mystically comes down on us. You have to consider and remember that wisdom in the Bible represents someone who can see and understand and know life in a deeper dimension.
Life is not what you see. Life is not what you feel. It is what is going on in the spirit realm around us. To be able to understand and know God’s ways, and know His plan, and know that He is going to put us in difficult times for us to learn to trust Him and to experience Him. The more I experience them in the difficult situations the more I am able to impart that wisdom to other people. That is wisdom. Wisdom comes from experience. And so we experience the things in life over years and it takes years.
My mentor used to tell us that a person should not pastor a church unless he is at least fifty years old. But I thought, what does he know? You know, I am in my mid-twenties. These older people do not know what they are talking about. You know, through raising a family, and through all the hardships of life, he is able then to impart wisdom because he has experienced Christ for a few years. Imparting Bible School knowledge to people is not ministry, even though God might minister some things about it. Because ministry is not just about a book and words, it is about life, and the reality of Christ in life.
So afflictions and tribulations – back to Romans 5 verse 3 – is working out endurance, and endurance is working out proof. Notice our literal translation. Some translations have proven character. The King James says, “It works out experience.” All those things are true but the word itself means proof.
And this is the thing that I love about the teaching of Scripture. Because not only here but also in I Peter chapter 1 verses 5 to 7 it says, We who are being kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. Wherein you greatly rejoice – we are being kept for salvation, we rejoice over that. Even though now for a season, if necessary, you are in heaviness through various trials: that the trying (or testing) of your faith, be much more precious than gold that perishes, though it be tried with fire, might be found unto the praise and honor and glory at the appearing of Jesus Christ. The word trying, the trying of your faith, is the word proving. Not only does God prove His presence and person to us in our situations, but it is proof for everybody.
God proves Himself by putting His people in some of the hardest difficulties a person can ever be in. And I have said it before, I will say it again, most of the situations are beyond the human ability to handle it, because it is designed for God. I mean if I can handle it with God’s help, you know, “Praise God, I won the lottery, He gave me all these numbers.” But it is beyond me. I can boast and say, “Wow, the Lord is really taking me through hurricane, ha, ha.” The deeper the storm the deeper the relationship. If it is a difficult storm we go through, we experience Him in a deeper way.
That is why Paul can say, “Well, I am not going to pray for deliverance anymore. Lord, bring it on!” My paraphrase. Bring on the difficulties because the more difficult they are, knowing that You planned them, the deeper I am going to experience Christ when I trust Him in them. You know, at the beginning we get our toes wet it and it is kind of like, “Ew, Lord, deliver me.” Yeah, wait till He throws you in the deep end and He is your life support.
Proof. Endurance produces proof and proof produces hope. When God proves Himself to me that indeed I belong to Him because He puts me in difficult circumstances knowing that it is not going to blow me out of the water. It cannot because I have Christ.
Do you remember the Parable of the Sower? One of the pieces of soil received the word of God in and amongst weeds and thorn. Another type received the seed in the shallow ground, it did not have much depth to it and underneath the dirt was a rock surface. So it was really of stone but it looked like it was dirt, earth. For that person when they receive the word of God they are receiving the seed into this thin layer of soil.
I was always fascinated as a gardener as I would put grass seed down on people’s yards for the winter, I come back the next week, nothing. But in the gutter of the street, like grass this high from the seeds that fell in the gutter. And it just had a little bit of dirt in it. That is all it takes. But it does not last. That is the point of the parable.
The person who is shallow, the person who receives the word with joy and excitement, When trials come, Jesus said, they leave, they quit. What was proven? They did not belong to the Lord. Not because they could not make it, it is because Jesus did not keep them. And so what looks good quickly on the outside of someone’s Christian faith – you look at it and say, “Gee it has taken me years to grow. Look at that person, they have just known the Lord for six months and look at all this outward stuff that is going on!” And then a week later you hear, “Oh, they are not even with the Lord anymore. They quit.” What happened? They were so on fire for the Lord! Yeah, they burned up, I guess. I do not know.
But it produces hope (verse 4). You see I have a hope looking forward to going to be with Christ because I see Him working in my life and I experience Him. I experience His keeping power, Him keeping me and sustaining me. Whether I freak out or not He does it anyway. That gives me hope. It boosts my expectancy because He proves to me that I belong to Christ.
Verse 5, And hope maketh not ashamed. We can be ashamed in our difficulties when people say, “I thought you were supposed to be a Christian. God is supposed to do all this stuff for you. Hey, He is preparing me, He is changing me. I am experiencing more of Him so I can enjoy more of Him later. No need to be ashamed.
Because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts. Did you catch that? Love is not from us, it is poured out in our hearts and look who it is from. And by the way that is the fourth benefit and blessing. The love of God has been poured out in our hearts, and fifthly, through the Holy Spirit Who has been given to us. Wow. We have peace with God. We have continual access to His throne twenty-four hours a day, in the grace that we are already standing in.
And we boast with confidence in hope, and we boast with confidence in all the difficulties and trials and tribulations that we find ourselves in because God is proving Himself to us and God is proving us to others. “He has to belong to Christ. It is crazy to go through all that for nothing.” Who would want to go through that? The only life that we have, why would we want to sacrifice it to go through difficult times to experience Christ just to pass on from this life and find out there s nothing to it? What a waste of time.
But no matter how many times I doubt in my human the things of the Bible because it is just words on a page; no matter how many times I doubt in my human, I can count more times that He has proven himself to me in Spirit. Through the Holy Spirit that He has given to me. The privileges of being justified, they are all ours. And you do not have to work for it, you already have it.
Continue on next week to learn more. Let’s close with prayer.
