Trusting in The Lord

 

Verse Study in  Romans 5: 1-4 


Having laid the foundation of salvation through faith without works in Chapter 4 Paul gives us some "fruit" that comes with the free gift of salvation. Here in the first 4 verses of chapter 5 we have laid out for us some of the greatest blessings of being in Christ Jesus.

(VS.1) Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ: (See also Rom. 4: 5,9,24-25,30 Rom. 1:17, Rom. 3:22, 26-30, Rom. 10:8-10, Gal. 3:2-7) (VS.2) By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. (VS.3) And not only so, but we glory in tribulations also: knowing that tribulation worketh patience; (VS.4) And patience, experience; and experience, hope:


Being justified by faith in Jesus Christ goes further that just our salvation. It opens to us the benefits that God desires to give to His children. Paul gives a list of the benefits that come with the justification that we receive through faith and the blood atonement . They are:


1. Peace with God.
To know God in a faithful relationship is to know peace. To know that we can stand before God in Judgment and not be condemned is to have a peace of mind that cannot easily be explained. To know that when God looks on us and our lives what he sees is His Son and the life that He lived is way beyond simple and basic understanding, but it gives unfathomable peace. To have this peace means that we can face anything that this life can throw at us and not have to fear. Jesus addressed this to His disciples when He told them "And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell" (Matthew 10:28). Man may be able to inflict harm, pain and death to the body but a Christian who will actively seek the will of God and seek to be the best Christian he or she can possibly be will be able to tap into this reservoir of peace. This knowledge not only gives peace about physical harm and eternity but it also gives us peace of mind on a daily basis concerning the cares and stresses of this life that so weight is down. Sickness, injury, care of loved ones, concern over our jobs and even the trivial things that add to the burden are eased when we "take it to the Lord in prayer" and turn it over to Him.


Jesus said Take my yoke upon you, and learn of me; for I am meek and lowly in heart: and ye shall find rest unto your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light. Matthew 11:29-30 Peter tells us to: "Humble yourselves therefore under the mighty hand of God, that he may exalt you in due time: Casting all your care upon him; for he careth for you." 1 Peter 5:6-7


2. Access into this grace.
The access into this grace that Paul speaks of in verse 2 is an access to several benefits. It is not limited to the act of salvation. Grace is not just salvation. Grace is also unmerited favor in the things of our daily lives. It means access to the Father through our mediator Jesus Christ. (1Tim. 2:5) It means that we may approach unto God through prayer and in its truest sense, actually come into His presence through Jesus our Lord. (Heb. 4:16, Eph.2:6, Eph.2:13) Access means that since we are now one with Christ (Gal.3:28, 1Cor. 12:12) we partake of His experience and life. We are crucified with Him (Gal.2:20), buried with Him (Rom. 6:4) and raised with Him (Eph. 2:6). Being one with Christ means that the promises that went to Him also go to us. The inheritance is ours (Col. 1:12, Col. 3:24, 1Pet. 1:4).
"Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself; that where I am, there ye may be also." John 14:1-3


3. The ability to rejoice in hope.
No matter how bad it gets, we who are saved and trust in the power of our risen Savior know that the trouble and trials of this life are only temporary. We have the hope, which is sure to us, that if this body is destroyed and given to the flame we will receive a new body fashioned like unto Christ's (Philippians 3:21). We have the promise that God will one day wipe away all tears and there will be no more death, sorrow nor pain (Isaiah 25:8, Rev. 21:4). The hope of a Christian in this present life is that what ever He will not keep us from, He will surely keep us through. We have the hope that one day, in a glorified body, we will be in His wonderful presence through out eternity, time without end, rejoicing in our Saviour. True cause for rejoicing!


4. The ability to glory in tribulations which lead to three more benefits that we receive by being justified. They are
a. patience
b. experience
c. hope
The result of going through tribulations in this life is patience, experience, and hope. These results are dependent upon a person trusting in the Lord to see him or her through their trouble. Many have been the children of God who could not see past the present moment and have despaired of hope, only to be delivered at the last moment by the unseen hand of God. Many have been the children of God who the doctors have given up on only to discover that God did not. In no other area can we learn the parable of the mustard seed better (Matt.13:31, Lk. 13:19). The small mustard seed in the bible is just that, a tiny insignificant little seed (faith). If that mustard seed is left in a container and never planted, it will always be a tiny insignificant little round speck of a seed that will never amount to anything. However if a person will take and plant that seed in fertile soil and will then cultivate, fertilize and water that seed (faith exercised and applied), it will sprout and grow into a large and significant plant "the greatest of all herbs". Faith is like that mustard seed, if it is never tried (planted) it never grows. There is no greater thing that can test a persons faith than the trials and tribulations that we will face in our daily lives (experience). When things get so dark that we can't see to find our way and God takes us by the hand and leads us to safety, we have gained experience and have learned to wait on the Lord (patience). We so often want immediate results that we fail to see God's sure steady hand at work to deliver us. We pray for deliverance and when it is not immediately forthcoming we decide that God is not going to hear us or give a favorable answer to our prayer. We are impatient and are looking for our will to be done and not the Lord's. Wait on the LORD: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart: wait, I say, on the LORD. Psalm 27:14


These troubles and trials, which are our testing times, when turned over to the Lord in faith, will yield the desired results. They will teach us that God "will never leave thee, nor forsake thee." (Heb.13:5) The lessons learned and the experience gained lead to the "hope" or "expectation". We have learned to trust God through experience therefore we learn to expect that He will answer again and again and our faith grows accordingly.

Bible Study presented by Dwight Rhodes

 

 

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