Romans chapter 5 is where we are this morning.
Last week we did verse 1 and we're going to read verse 1 through verse 5.
! Romans chapter 5, verse 1 says,
! Therefore,
since we have been justified by faith,
we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Through Him we have also obtained access by faith
into this grace in which we stand.
And we rejoice in hope of the glory of God.
More than that, we rejoice in our sufferings,
knowing that suffering produces endurance,
and endurance produces character,
and character produces hope,
and hope does not put us to shame,
because God's love has been poured into our hearts
through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us.
Let's pray together.
Father, we know it is a privilege
and a great opportunity to meet together
with our brothers and sisters,
with your saints.
Lord, we know that you have called us all here for a purpose,
for a reason.
We know that your word does not return void.
So God, as we read your word,
and as your word is preached,
I pray, God, that your word would not return void.
That hardened hearts would be softened.
That soft hearts would be more receptive
and more obedient to what you have told us
and taught us.
That those in here that don't even know you
would come to know you
because they have heard from you this morning.
That you have called them to yourself this morning.
I pray, God, that the words that are spoken
would be your words.
That you would be exalted on high.
That people would leave here
not feeling good,
not having this emotional experience,
but being one mind, one spirit,
praising you as we leave this place,
desiring to exalt you alone.
Thank you for this opportunity and this time.
I pray that you are pleased and you are honored.
In Jesus' name, amen.
Assurance is a word that isn't used
as much as it is practiced or worked towards.
For example, college students.
You guys go to college to get a degree
so that you're assured a good, well-paying job.
Parents raise kids a certain way
to assure that their children
turn out to be good, obedient, and polite students,
employees, and citizens.
Some parents bring their children
or take their children to church
to assure that their kids
will grow up and become Christians.
Some of you may have been those kids.
People live a healthy life
in order that they can be assured
to live a long time.
The truth is that all of that
is circumstantial at best.
When we really think about it,
there's not a lot of things
that we can be assured of.
The old saying,
there are only two certainties in life,
death and taxes,
carries with it a little more weight
because it's almost true.
But, if you are a Christian,
if you are a child of God,
then there are several things
that you can be assured of.
Because as Romans 4, 21 says,
we can be fully convinced
that God is able to do
what He promised.
As Abraham was fully convinced
that God was able to do
what He had promised.
Our text this morning
is about assurance.
Now, not assurance of salvation,
like you're doubting your salvation,
although that comes into play,
but more about our salvation
being secured forever in Christ.
Assurance that we have
in and from justification by faith.
In fact, Romans 5 and Romans 8
are about this very topic of assurance.
The assurance we have in Christ
and the things that we are assured of
because of Christ.
So, as a quick review of Romans
up to this point,
chapter 1 is all about
the Gentiles being sinners.
Us, non-Jewish people being sinners
without hope and guilty
even though we don't have the law.
Chapter 2 is about the Jewish people
being guilty because they do have the law.
They are held accountable to that law.
Chapter 3 is all about us,
everyone guilty.
All of us, sinners,
cursed, deserving of death.
Chapter 4,
justification by faith to any
for all who are made right before God.
And chapter 5,
assurance of being justified by faith.
So, this is where we settle.
This is where we begin
our study on assurance.
So, because we have been justified,
because Christ has died,
we've been justified by faith,
we have five things from our text
that we can be assured of.
One of them was our topic last week.
We talked about peace.
Peace with God.
We can be assured
that we stand at peace with God.
No longer enemies.
No longer at war with God
because of Christ.
This morning, we have four more.
We are assured access to God.
We are assured a future glory.
We are assured that suffering will come.
And we are assured that God loves His children.
So, our first point this morning.
We are assured access to God.
This is verse 2.
It says,
Through Him, being Christ, being Jesus,
Thanks, Nick.
We have also obtained access by faith
into this grace in which we stand.
So, not only do we have peace with God,
verse 1,
but we are also given access to God
through Jesus Christ.
Access can also be translated introduction.
Now, if I want a face-to-face
with the Queen of England,
those of you who don't know,
I was born in England,
so let's say I'm considering citizenship there.
And I want to do as much research as I can
and I want to meet the Queen
and talk to her
and see what she has to say
about me being a citizen.
There would be a long process
for me to have to go through
for me to be able to even have
a face-to-face with her.
On top of the process,
I'd have to learn proper etiquette.
Where to stand,
where to bow,
how to touch her,
all these things.
And then when the meeting time happens,
when I get to face-to-face,
of course,
I would be escorted
to the Queen of England
and introduced by one of her trusted counsel.
I would need someone
to intercede for me
and then I can be introduced.
The same is true for us with God.
Of course,
on a totally different level.
Because of Jesus Christ,
we have been given access to God
and been introduced by Jesus
to the Creator of the universe.
Now, this introduction
isn't because God didn't know us.
It's because we couldn't
have access any other way.
Like the peace we have been given with God,
we needed to have peace with God
because we were enemies at war with Him.
Being sinful creatures
has thwarted any thought
that you or I could have fellowship with Him.
But Christ has given us that access.
In verse 2,
verse 1 says,
we have peace with God
through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Through Him,
we have also obtained access by faith
into this grace
in which we stand.
Another way to say this verse
is through Him,
we have been put
in this gracious relationship with God.
This gracious relationship.
A relationship founded on grace.
Where grace abounds.
Grace gives us peace with God.
Grace gives us access to God.
Because of grace,
we are no longer under the law.
Because of grace,
we have a Heavenly Father.
Grace gives us hope
of our future glory.
Grace secures an inheritance.
Grace empowers us
to live fearless and victorious.
Because of grace,
we can glorify God
with all of our lives.
Because of grace,
we can be image bearers of God
as we were created to be.
Because of grace,
we have been made alive.
And because of grace,
we can rejoice in the valley
and on the mountaintop.
We stand in this grace.
It is the umbrella
that covers us
from a storm
that will not end.
And we rejoice in the storm
because grace upon grace
is given through Jesus Christ.
We have been given access to God
through Jesus Christ.
And if we could stand with Him
in His presence,
as if we could stand in His presence.
In the Old Testament,
throughout the Jewish traditions,
access was given to one person.
No one but the high priest
one time a year.
The way that Paul is describing
our access
throws the Jewish teaching
out of the window.
There's something better
because of Christ.
God is no longer
a far-off object of worship.
He's no longer this God
that we cannot touch or see.
He is our friend,
our Father,
and our Lord.
And now we can just walk
into the presence of God.
Turn to Hebrews chapter 4.
I want you to see this.
If we can walk
into the presence of God,
if that's the case,
then our prayer lives
should be good.
We should have fellowship with God
like we do with our spouse.
Like we do with our teammates.
Or like we do with our brothers
or sisters of fraternity or sororities.
Or our bunkmates.
We should have that fellowship
with Him because
we have been given access
to Him through Christ.
In Hebrews chapter 4,
starting in verse 14,
says,
Since then we have
a great high priest
who has passed
through the heavens,
Jesus,
the Son of God.
Let us hold fast
our confession.
For we do not have
a high priest
who is unable to sympathize
with our weaknesses,
but one who in every respect
has been tempted as we are,
yet without sin.
So because of Christ,
the writer of Hebrews
is setting us up
for verse 16,
Let us then with confidence
draw near to the throne of grace
that we may receive mercy
and find grace to help
in time of need.
So,
after reading that
and knowing that we have access
because of Christ
to God,
what's wrong with your prayer life?
What's wrong with my prayer life?
Why don't we pray
with this kind of confidence?
We have been assured
of this kind of access.
Let us go boldly before God
with reverence
and proclaim grace
boldly to those around us.
So not only are we assured access
before God,
but our second point
is we are assured
a future glory.
This is the second part
of verse 2 of chapter 5.
It says,
By faith into this grace
in which we stand
and we rejoice
in hope
of the glory of God.
And we rejoice
in hope
of the glory of God.
That is,
that we have hope
of the moment
when we will be glorified
as God is glorified.
The word rejoice
isn't just to be joyful
or sing
or anything like that.
It can be translated
as boast.
So another way
to say it is,
is we are joyfully confident.
So if we were to
say this text again,
we are joyfully confident
in the hope
of the glory of God.
We have been assured
that we will share
in the glory of God.
We will be made perfect.
We will be made sinless.
Without suffering.
Without pain.
Here is why
this is a big deal.
In Romans chapter 3,
verse 23 says,
For all have sinned
and fall short
of the glory of God.
In other words,
we have been made unable
to achieve
to the glory of God.
We are unable
without Christ.
And now because of Christ,
we are promised
that we will share
in God's glory.
See, Jesus Christ
has given us peace.
We have peace with God.
He's given us access to God
and He's assured us
that we will share
in His glory.
It's truly
a one-sided relationship.
God has done all the work.
It is no wonder
we have hope
or are supposed
to have hope
in what's to come.
Because He's done
everything up to this point.
John Stott
defines Christian hope
as this.
He says,
a Christian hope
is a joyful
and confident expectation
which rests
on the promise
of God.
A joyful
and confident expectation
which rests
on the promise
of God.
God has done it.
So if we have
this hope then,
if we have this hope
of future glory
of what's going
to happen,
how does that
change your life
or my life?
How do we live
differently because of that?
See,
if you're truly born again,
if you are a Christian,
then you will have
a desire
to please God,
to do what
will bring most
pleasure to Him.
So a follow-up question
is,
do you have
that desire?
Do you have
the desire
to please God?
If you do,
then whatever it takes
to please Him,
you're going to do.
You will obey His Word.
You will do
as He says.
Hebrews 4.12
says,
God's Word
is living
and active,
sharper
than a two-edged sword,
piercing
to the division
of soul
and of spirit,
of joints
and of marrow,
and discerning
the thoughts
and intentions
of the heart.
If that's what
the Word of God
does,
then just listening
to it
isn't an option.
Just hearing it
isn't an option.
If we know
that we have been
assured
of future glory,
how does it
change our life?
It frees us
to be bold.
It frees us
to proclaim
Jesus Christ.
It frees us
to live
for the Gospel
and sometimes
to die
for the Gospel.
It's why Paul
says in Philippians,
for to me,
to live is Christ
and to die
is gain.
To live
isn't just
happiness
or pleasure.
It is Christ
because what He
has done
because He
is far better
far better
than this world
and because of
what we have
been assured
of in Christ
which is
future glory.
And to die
isn't tragedy.
It isn't the end
but gain
because of what
Christ has been
assured,
what we have
been assured
in Christ,
what He has
assured for us.
So not only
are we assured
access to God
because of Christ
and not only
are we assured
future glory,
but guys
were also
assured
that suffering
will occur.
Verse 3 and 4.
Verse 3 and 4
says,
I'm going to read
verse 2,
Through Him
we have also
obtained access
by faith
into this grace
in which we stand
and we rejoice
in the hope
of the glory
of God.
Verse 3,
More than that,
we rejoice
in our sufferings
knowing that
suffering produces
endurance
and endurance
produces character
and character
produces hope.
Anyone who
preaches to you
and says
that if you
know Jesus,
that if you
come down here
and you pray a prayer
and you know Jesus,
if you accept Jesus,
you will have a happy,
fulfilling,
best life now.
They are lying to you
and being unbiblical.
In fact,
the Bible
promises suffering
instead of happiness.
Your life
will be fulfilling,
but it might not be
with the BMW
or the vacation home.
And that's okay
because Christ
is far better.
We can be assured
that as a Christian,
we will suffer.
Let's step back
for a minute.
What Paul has done
is he's looked out
towards the horizon.
He's looked out
and he tells us
what he sees.
He sees peace
with God.
Children of God
are going to have peace
with God.
He sees
access with God.
They now have
access with God.
He sees
the future glory,
the future perfection
that is going
to occur
someday.
He sees
all these things
that are going
to happen
for us.
He sees
in the future.
And as his eyes
come back,
as his eyes
kind of come back
to where he is,
he sees
suffering.
He sees
hardship.
He sees
hate towards
Christians.
He sees
hate towards
Christ.
He sees
all the things
that he himself
has experienced
and he himself
has actually
been a leader
of.
And he sees
it and he knows
that he must
reassure the
Christian to stand
firm.
Reassure the
Christian to be
bold and keep
a lookout at the
horizon of what's
to come.
I remember
vividly when I was
a kid,
I'd been riding
my bike for a
few years.
And in
Chicago,
we had,
even the
neighborhoods had
the hard square
curbs so you
couldn't just ride
your bike in it.
You either had to
jump it or go to
where a sidewalk
came, you know,
where it's nice and
smooth.
I remember I'm
riding my bike
down the road
and I'm wanting
to get onto the
sidewalk so I'm
waiting for that
moment where I can
because I can't
get up on the
curb yet.
And I'm staring
at the corner.
I'm staring at
this curb going,
I don't want to
hit that.
I don't want to
hit that.
I actually want
to go there.
And I don't
want to hit that.
I don't want to
hit that.
And what do I
do?
I hit it.
I slam into it
and fly off my
bike.
It's vivid to me
because I do
that driving as
well.
I don't hit
curves, but there's
things like in the
road and I'll say,
I don't want to
hit that.
I don't want to
hit that.
And I'll end up
hitting it because
I'm staring at it
instead of staring
down the road.
You guys know
what I'm talking
about, don't you?
You've all
experienced that.
So, lesson
here, don't
fall, don't be
ahead of me, I
guess.
Don't be in the
road when I'm
driving because I'll
stare at you and
hit you.
It's the same way
though for us as
Christians.
If we look out and
say, oh, this
looks really hard.
We're going to
suffer.
What are we going
to do?
We're going to be
defeated in that
suffering.
We're not going to
rejoice in that
suffering.
We're not going to
be happy about it.
We're not going to
treasure it.
As we'll see in a
moment, the
suffering leads to
good things in our
lives.
We're going to be
defeated by it.
We're going to hit
that curb and fly
off our bike.
See, as we look
and see through the
lens of the Word of
God, we see that
suffering is in our
DNA as a Christian.
It's going to
happen.
But we should be
focusing on the
horizon.
And that's what
Paul is trying to
do for us in
this text.
The first part of
verse 3 is
fascinating to me
because he says,
so, end of verse
2 says, rejoice in
hope of the glory of
God.
Rejoice in what's
going to happen.
And then verse 3
says, more than
that, we rejoice in
our suffering.
More than rejoicing in
what's going to
happen.
More than rejoicing in
God perfecting us.
rejoice in our
suffering.
The same word is in
verse 2.
Rejoice.
So be joyfully
confident in your
suffering.
2 Timothy 3,
verse 12 says,
it says, indeed,
all who desire to
live a godly life in
Christ Jesus will be
persecuted.
All who desire to
live a godly life in
Christ will be
persecuted.
To rejoice in
suffering is not a
new idea for Paul.
This isn't something
that he just made up.
Jesus taught this
very idea in the
Sermon on the
Mount in Matthew
chapter 5.
In chapter 5,
verse 10, he
says, blessed are
those who are
persecuted for
righteousness sake,
for theirs is the
kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are you
when others revile
you and persecute
you and utter all
kinds of evil
against you falsely
on my account.
Rejoice and be
glad, for your
reward is great in
heaven.
For so they
persecuted the
prophets who were
for you.
He repeats it
twice.
Blessed are those
who persecute you
for righteousness
sake.
Blessed are you
when others
revile you and
persecute you.
There's importance
here.
There's weight
here to what
Jesus is saying.
And now Paul is
repeating the very
same thing.
Now this
suffering in
Romans isn't
necessarily pain,
although some
people may suffer
pain.
It could be.
The word refers
to olives or
grapes being in
the press.
Being squeezed
for all its
juices.
That's the picture
here of this
word.
So instead of
just pain and
sorrow, it's
more of being
under pressure
from tribulation
and from
persecution.
And then Paul
tells us why we
need to rejoice
in our suffering.
Why we need
to be happy,
to be joyful,
to be joyfully
confident.
Because suffering
produces endurance.
endurance.
Spiritual
fortitude.
Stick-to-itiveness.
Like a marathon
runner.
So like in
Hebrews 12,
1, let us run
with endurance
the race that
is set before
us.
When you need
to build strength
or endurance
in your body,
you exercise,
you practice,
you do specific
exercises for
specific goals.
If our goal
is to live a
life that is
pleasing to
God, then
suffering helps
in that goal.
Because suffering
produces endurance.
A fruit of the
suffering is
endurance.
Now, a question
arose for me in
my studies about
this topic.
It says in
verse 3,
More than that,
we rejoice in
our sufferings,
knowing that
suffering produces
endurance.
My question
was, does it
matter if I
rejoice in my
suffering or
after my
suffering?
Is this
preposition
important?
In.
Is it
important?
Yes.
It was a
quick answer.
It didn't take
me very long
to find the
answer.
Yes, it is
important.
Paul uses the
preposition in,
so it's in
our suffering.
So hindsight
may be easier
to rejoice in,
but the call
here is for
us to rejoice
in it while
going through
it.
And it
doesn't mean
this stoic
determination
to get
through this
rough patch
or to make
the best out
of a bad
situation.
It doesn't
mean that.
It means to
know that what
is occurring
is for my
good and
God's glory.
And if your
goal is to
live a life
that is
pleasing to
Him,
then you're
going to be
okay with
that.
You're going
to rejoice
in that
suffering.
It brings
God glory
when we do
this.
It pleases
Him.
But not
only does
suffering
produce
endurance,
but endurance
produces
character and
character
produces
hope.
Straight from
the text,
verse 4.
And endurance
produces
character and
character produces
hope.
So the fruit
of endurance
is character.
Character here
is a person
tested by
trial and
proven.
Tested and
proven.
So parents and
young people who
want to be
parents someday,
if you want
kids of
character,
lead them to
Christ and
let them go
wherever He
calls them.
For suffering
will come and
character will
be formed.
for us,
so in those
moments of
hopelessness and
defeat, in
those moments
of sorrow and
hardship, we
endure and are
found proven by
the trials to be
men and women
of character.
And character
produces hope.
It is the
experience of
coming out of a
time of testing
that produces
hope,
which, of
course, is
opposite of the
Disney movies,
is opposite of
what a lot of
us think or
have been taught.
See, because we
say we hope to
get out of the
situation, or
we hope to
win the lottery,
or we hope to
not get caught.
But true godly
hope is formed
in the testing
and hardship.
A quote from
one of the
commentaries I
read this week
says,
Our confidence
in God's
ability and
willingness to
bring us through
difficult times
leads to an
ever brighter
hope for that
which lies
beyond.
Hope is not
superficial optimism,
but the
confident assurance
of that which
will surely
come to pass.
This hope
comes through
suffering.
And because
hope comes
through suffering,
we can be
assured we
will suffer.
it's not a
topic we like
to talk about.
It's not a
topic we like
to celebrate,
but it's
biblical.
And if it's
biblical, then
it's going to
be taught here,
and we're
going to touch
on the
subject.
But here's
the good
news.
It's not
only are we
assured access
to God,
which is
great news.
Not only do
we have future
glory awaiting
us,
not only
are we
assured to
suffer,
but we're
assured that
God loves
His children.
Though we
may suffer
in it,
through it,
God loves
His children.
Verse 5
says,
And hope
does not put
us to shame
because God's
love has
been poured
into our
hearts through
the Holy
Spirit who
has been
given to
us.
Hope does
not put us
to shame.
It never
disappoints.
It does
not let
the believer
down.
So what
God says
will occur,
it will
happen,
and we
can rest
in our
hope of
it.
We are
quick to
speak of
God loving
His children
with reference
to Jesus
Christ on
the cross.
His death.
And a lot
of times it
ends there.
Jesus loves
sinners.
He died
for sinners.
And it
ends there.
But it's
just not
that.
It's also
not
an
intellectual
understanding
of God's
love.
Well,
I know
that God
loves me.
It's not
that.
It's also
an inner,
as John
Piper would
say,
down to the
bones,
feeling a
subjective
certainty that
God does
love us.
To the point
that Paul is
trying to make
clear in this
text is by
saying God's
love has been
poured into
our hearts
through the
Holy Spirit
has been
given to
us,
is that we
can be
certain,
is that we
can be
assured,
down to
our bones
with every
fiber of
our being,
that God
loves us.
We may not
understand it,
we may not
be able to
comprehend all
of it,
but we know
without a doubt
that God
loves us.
If you were a
child of God,
God loves you.
we can be
certain of it.
And it says
that love has
been poured
into our
hearts.
It's like an
extravagant
overflow,
an abundance
of love.
It doesn't say
that God
shares His
love,
He pours it
into our
hearts.
So as we
suffer,
as we
trudge
through life's
lowness,
we know that
God loves
us.
We are
assured of
it.
So when
doubts creep
in,
when the
enemy
attacks,
we have
assurance of
God's love
for us.
As I said
before,
we may not
understand it,
but we
know it.
God
loves His
children.
As we
look out on
the horizon,
we can be
assured of
a few
things.
As we
look out
far out
to the
horizon,
we can
be assured
that we
have access
to the
Creator.
so we
can pray
to Him.
We
can
fellowship
and we
can
approach
the
throne
with
boldness
because
of
Christ.
We
have
assurance
of our
future
glory.
And we
can hope
with joyful
assurance
because it
will happen.
We too
can be
fully
convinced
that God
is able
to do
what He
has
promised.
chapter 4
verse 21.
We have
assurance
that
suffering
will
occur.
It
isn't a
question
of
will
it.
It's
when
will
it.
We
will
suffer.
But
suffering
produces
endurance.
And
endurance
produces
character.
And
character
produces
hope.
Hope
that will
not
disappoint.
And we
have
assurance
that
God
loves
His
children.
We
have
proof
that
He
does
by
the
Holy
Spirit.
God
loves
us
when
He
created
us.
Loves
us
as He
calls
us.
Loves
us
as He
saves
us.
And
as He
glorifies
us in
the end.
If
God
loves
us,
let us
love
others
with the
same
certainty
and
fervor
as
our
Lord
Jesus
Christ.
2
Corinthians
5
14
says,
For
the
love
of
Christ
controls
!
Another
version
compels
us.
For
the
love
of
Christ
controls
or
compels
us.
Let's
pray
that
all
of
us,
member
or
not,
visitor
or
regular,
new
believer
or
old
believer,
be
controlled
by the
love
of
Christ
who
suffer
for
us
that
we
can
have
life.
Life
abundantly
And
life
assuredly!