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Romans 5:1-11

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After using Abraham to show that we are justified by faith alone, the Apostle Paul now points out some of the benefits that justification by faith provides, such as peace with God and the certainty of eternal life. Even the tribulations we suffer for Him confirm the promise of future blessings as God helps us endure the trials of the present.

Romans 4: Paul ends chapter 3 with a statement that faith does not negate the authority of God’s moral law. In chapter 4, Paul uses the example of Abraham, the “father” of faith, to demonstrate that even the OT scriptures demonstrate that justification comes through faith and not through the works of the law. He shows that all the promises that Abraham received from God came through faith (Rom. 4:3), long before the law was given to Moses. In fact, the promise that God would make him “heir of the world” (Gen. 12:2-3) was made while Abraham was uncircumcised, showing that he could be the father of faith even to the uncircumcised Gentiles. Abraham therefore was the spiritual father of those who follow his example of faith, whether they be Jew or Gentile.

Romans 5
1 Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ:

“Therefore being justified [to declare righteous] by faith” – Paul used the previous chapter citing Abraham as someone who was justified because he believed God’s promises. If we have followed the example of Abraham and have put our faith in Jesus Christ, the Savior promised by God, then we also have become justified by God.

“we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” – The result of being justified by faith is that now we have peace between God and us, a peace that could only come through Jesus Christ. Before being justified we were under the condemnation and wrath of God because of our sins (John 3:36 “He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him.”). God has given His Son as the only means of being reconciled with Himself (2 Cor. 5:18-19 “And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation; To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.”).

2 By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God.

“By whom also” – Refers to “our Lord Jesus Christ” mentioned in the previous verse. Not only do we have the peace with God mentioned in v. 1, but through Jesus Christ we also have access to much more.

“we have access by faith into this grace [good-will; favor; kindness] wherein we stand” – Instead of being under the wrath of God, we have access to the good-will and favor of God. As Paul has been explaining throughout Romans so far, this favor does not come through our works of obedience to God’s law, but through faith. Faith is the key that unlocks the door to all that God has for us.

“and rejoice in hope [expectation] of the glory of God” – The Greek word translated “hope” is not a looking forward to something that might happen but rather an expectation of something that is certain to happen. We can rejoice in the certainty that God will keep His promise to glorify us. Rom. 8:29-30 “For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren. Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified.” God has glorified us by adopting us as His children, a glory that will be revealed in eternity.

3 And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; 4 And patience, experience; and experience, hope:

“And not only so, but we glory [to boast; to rejoice] in tribulations [pressure] also” – We not only rejoice in the future glory that is coming, but we also rejoice in the midst of the trials and tribulations we must endure here on earth because we know Jesus Christ. We don’t rejoice in the tribulations themselves but in what God is accomplishing in us through what we suffer for Him.

“knowing that tribulation worketh [accomplishes; achieves] patience [endurance; perseverance]” – Tribulations make us stronger and able to endure the trials of life through our faith in God. Our faith and dependence on God grows through each trial we endure.

“And patience, experience [proof]” – The Greek word for “experience” refers to something that has been proven to be of worth. Enduring tribulations develops and proves the kind of person that we are. It demonstrates the character we have as a child of God.

“and experience, hope [expectation]” – The proof that we are a child of God confirms that we will spend eternity in God’s presence and experiencing His blessings forever. That is the reason we can glory in tribulations!

5 And hope maketh not ashamed; because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us.

“And hope maketh not ashamed [to be dishonored or disgraced]” – The hope of our eternal future with God causes us to look past the tribulations we suffer for Christ and realize that we do not have to be embarrassed or hang our heads in disgrace because we know Jesus Christ and that we are suffering for Him. We know that our future with Christ makes it worth all the tribulations we endure now.

“because the love of God is shed abroad in our hearts” – Our hope in Christ helps us realize how much God loves us and we can rejoice in that fact. That is something we do not have to be embarrassed by.

“by the Holy Ghost which is given unto us” – God expresses and reveals His love for us by giving us the Holy Ghost. Luke 11:13 “If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more shall your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?”

6 For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly.

“For when we were yet without strength [weak; feeble; helpless]” – Paul points out God’s demonstration of His love for us by reminding us of the time before our conversion when we were still imprisoned under the power of sin, incapable of pleasing God. This was the time of our lives when we were the most undesirable to God.

“in due time Christ died for the ungodly [to show no respect or reverence to God]” – At a time in human history chosen by God, Jesus Christ died on the cross and paid the price for our redemption. He did not wait for humanity to reform itself and become more worthy of redemption. Instead, Christ came at the perfect time and gave Himself to die for those showed no reverence to Him and were totally incapable of pleasing Him.

7 For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. 8 But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

“For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die” – It is a rare thing for someone to give their life to save the life of another, and when it happens it is typically for a person considered worthy of such a sacrifice, such as a righteous person. Paul’s point is that it is unheard of (humanly speaking) for someone to voluntarily sacrifice their life for a sinful person with little or no virtue.

“But God commendeth [display; exhibit] his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us” – God demonstrated how much He loves us by having His Son die for us while we were unworthy, undesirable sinners. He did not wait for us to become worthy of salvation since we never would/could be able to become worthy. Men may not be willing to die for sinners but Christ gave Himself in order to redeem the ungodly.

9 Much more then, being now justified by his blood, we shall be saved from wrath through him. 10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.

Paul is showing us that salvation is all of God and that we cannot keep ourselves redeemed through our own self effort. If Christ’s blood was enough to justify us (declare us righteous) when we were at our worst, it is enough to preserve our justification and protect us when God judges the world. Christ died to reconcile us to God and that reconciliation will last as long as Christ lives. Rom. 4:25 (speaking of Christ) “Who was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification.”

11 And not only so, but we also joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement.

“And not only so” – Paul has more good news to share with us!

“but we also joy in God” – Instead of being enemies of God and subject to His wrath for our sins, we now can rejoice in our relationship with Him. We can enjoy the blessings and fellowship with God now that we have been reconciled with Him and are His children.

“through our Lord Jesus Christ by whom we have now received the atonement [reconciliation]” – The reason we are reconciled to God is because of Jesus Christ and His sacrifice on the cross for us. God did not merely sweep our sins under the rug, nor would His holiness allow it. There had to be an atonement for our sins and we would have had to spend an eternity in hell to do so. However, Jesus Christ took our place so that we could be reconciled to God.