More Benefits of Justification (Romans 5:6-11)

Paul is obviously enjoying writing about Christian beliefs and he is eager for his readers to understand as much as possible about them. He has already said a lot about the doctrine of justification and here he proceeds to say more. In the verses we are going to consider, three items can be observed. First, who needs to be justified? Second, who provided justification, and how? Third, some benefits of God’s provision of justification.

Who needs to be justified (v. 6)?

The answer to this question we already know, and that is every one. But why do they need justification? Paul answers this question in two terms that he uses to describe every one – each of us is weak and each of us is ungodly.

In saying that we are weak, Paul is referring to our spiritual strength. He means that we are weak totally, that we don’t even have 1% of spiritual strength by nature. One of the saddest sights we can see is of a person who is totally paralysed, who does not have any physical strength. In the physical realm, the vast majority of people have some degree of energy, but Paul says here that in the spiritual realm no one has any power to do anything. We have not the power to serve God and we have not the power to deliver ourselves from the penalty that our sins have brought upon us.

What does Paul mean when he says that we are ungodly? He means that we are unlike God, despite the fact that we were made in the image of God. We are unlike him in all the areas of our persons in which we should be like him. In our minds, in our affections, in our choices and in our behaviour we do not resemble God. The reason for that is our sinfulness.

Justification is the necessity we must have if we are going to begin becoming godly, or like God. There is no other method. The only type of individual who will have the strength and the desire to be like God is the one who has received justification from God.

Second, who provided justification, and how (vv. 7-8)?

The answer to this question has already been mentioned – God. But we can ask another question, Why did he provide it? Paul gives us the answer in verse 8 when he says that God shows his love for us. We are not told why God chose to love us, apart from the fact that he does everything for his own glory. So his loving us is connected to the display of his glory, his best, his wonder, his status. It would have been inappropriate in a sense for God not to have loved sinners, because if he had not he would not have done what brought him the greatest glory. This is not to say that he would not have been glorified if he had not loved them. Yet the Bible does stress that his greatest glory is seen in the plan of salvation.

Much has been said about the love of God. Here are three brief comments. First, it is a love of compassion shown towards the helpless, the weak. Second, it is a gracious love shown towards the rebellious, the ungodly, who did not deserve this divine attitude towards them. Third, it is an overflowing love because it will give incredible blessings to those who experience its benefits, and we will think about them shortly.

How did God provide justification? Paul here focuses on the death of Jesus, that he died as a substitute for sinners on the cross. His death is a marvel because it is impossible to conceive of a righteous person dying for an unrighteous person. In fact, it is hard to imagine a righteous person being willing to die on behalf of a good person, although sometimes this has happened, for example when a spouse will die on behalf of the partner, or when someone will give his life to rescue a person in danger.

Paul stresses the substitutionary aspect of the death of Jesus, that he died in the place of sinners and paid the penalty that their sins deserved. This is remarkable and Paul highlights the wonder by calling Jesus by the title Christ, which is the Greek rendering of Messiah. The Messiah was the promised hero of the Old Testament who would come and provide deliverance for sinners and obtain universal power. Truly he would be a great person, one deserving of high honour. But Paul says that the one who deserved such high honour went to the cross in order to deliver sinners from the penalty of their sins.

Some benefits of God’s provision of justification (vv. 9-11)

In this set of verses Paul mentions four blessings that come to those who have been justified. The first is that they are saved from the wrath of God. The wrath of God is an ever-present reality for those who are not in a state of justification. Paul’s words here are a reminder that there are only two classes of people in the world – there are those who have been justified and there are those who are under the wrath of God.

Moreover, the wrath of God here has present and future aspects. It is usual for us to think about it in its future aspect when it will be revealed on the Day of Judgement as God through Jesus will judge the world and sentence them to a lost eternity. Obviously, the certainty of that future event should cause us to think seriously about our own destiny and flee from the wrath that is to come.

Yet there is also a sense in which God’s wrath is revealed in the present against those who practice sin. He reveals his wrath in a variety of ways through his providence, whether it be through natural disasters or wars. One of the ways in which God shows his wrath is by abandoning sinners to their own choices and letting them live a life of increasing sinfulness. Such don’t realise what is happening as they proceed to enjoy what they think is life. To be in such a situation is very solemn.

The good news for the justified is that because they have received this status from God they can never experience his wrath. It is the case that they can be affected by the circumstances brought about by God’s wrath on society, such as a war, but for them it is not an expression that God is angry with them. Instead it becomes a means of sanctification for them. And although they will have made many mistakes in life, they will not experience his wrath on the Day of Judgement.

The second blessing that they enjoy is the opposite of that of wrath. They have become reconciled with God and they and he are no longer enemies opposed to one another. Before they believed in Jesus, those who have been justified were in a state of hostility – they were hostile to God and he was against them. Now they have been brought into a state of peace in which they can know the fulfilment of his promises to them. Although he has conquered them, he did so with the weapons of love and has brought them into a kingdom in which he will continue to express his love for them in a wide variety of ways.

Reconciliation is a beautiful experience as all those who have been estranged and then reconciled will testify. We can imagine a situation in which a wealthy father and a son were estranged from one another because of the son’s rebellion. When reconciliation occurred, there was great joy. Indeed we know that is how Jesus described things in his parable about the prodigal son. In that story, there was the kiss of reconciliation, and it was followed by the father continuing to give good things to his erstwhile son. Jesus there is picturing what happens when a sinner turns to him in faith and receives, as Paul puts it in Ephesians 1:3, every spiritual blessing.

Connected to this is a third blessing which Paul here connects to the life that Jesus now has as the risen, exalted Lord. He who died for us now lives for us in the fullness of his life. This blessing is connected to what is called union with Christ. The Bible uses several illustrations to depict it. I once heard a preacher say that the illustration of a head and a body indicates a living union, that the illustration of a bridegroom and a bride indicates a loving union, and that the illustration of a cornerstone and building indicates a lasting union.

To them we can add that the illustration of a vine and branches indicates a fruitful union, that the illustration of a teacher and disciples indicates a learning union, and that the illustration of a shepherd and a sheep indicates a leading or guiding union. The point is that we are united to the risen Saviour if we believe in him, and this union means that wherever I am he is also there in his fullness, out of which I can locate my resources for daily living.

It is not surprising that Paul can then mention the fourth blessing, which is joy in the Father. Paul phrases this joy as involving Jesus, we rejoice through our Lord Jesus Christ. This is a reminder, a good and glad reminder, that we always need Jesus in and we always have Jesus for our spiritual experiences. So as we focus on reconciliation we must remember what it meant for God the Father and for Jesus in order for it to be realised.

We can also deduce that one way to retain joy is to study the doctrine of justification as often as possible. Sometimes we study something merely to get to know what it is about, and once we have discovered what it involves we might never think about it again. But that is not how we should study the doctrine of justification. Instead we look at it repeatedly, and as we do we discover reasons to be joyful no matter what our mind is focussed on. Here are some examples:

•  The sins of my pre-conversion life embarrass me when I think about them – God has dealt with them through justification.
• The failures of my Christian life concern me – I am not saved because my sanctification is perfect but because my justification through Jesus is perfect.
• Fear of the future and potential spiritual unfaithfulness disturb me – I am promised a place in heaven because of what Jesus did for me and not on what I do for Jesus.