Romans 5:6-11 – The certainty of our hope

It is so wonderful to experience the peace and grace of God that enable us to rejoice in tribulation and remain fixed in the hope of God’s glory. Will this joy eventually evaporate? Will it ever become a delusion? Paul assures us that it will not because it is firmly established in the love of God. This love of God according to Romans 5:5, “…has been poured out within our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us.” It tells us that God’s love had been and will continue to be poured out within our hearts. It’s a picture of generous extravagance of divine affection. The Holy Spirit given is the indication of this unrestraint love for us.

To show the extent of God’s love for us, Paul went on to elaborate on what Christ had done. At the appropriate time, Christ died for us, all the ungodly ones. Paul asserted that humanly speaking, it is remotely possible for a person to be willing to die for another, whom he knows to be right and just. But no one ever dies for another whom he deems to be unrighteous. But that was precisely what Christ did. He died for the ungodly. He not only obtained our pardon, He died for our sin. In verses 6-10, Paul used four terms to describe our state outside of Christ. Not only were we helpless, but were also ungodly. Not only were we sinners but were also enemies of God. We were helpless, ungodly, sinners and enemies of God when Christ died for us. Therefore, it proves beyond doubt that God’s love for us was not motivated by some wonderful things he saw in us. His love for us is an unmerited gift. 

In verses 9-11, Paul gave us even more ground why we should not waver in our jubilant and triumphant life. Here he argued from the lesser to the greater. He said, “Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him! For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved by His life!” In a nutshell what these two verses say is this: If in His death Christ had saved us, how much more we will be saved now that He is alive. So Paul concluded this section with these words in verse 11: “Not only is this so, but we also boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.” Paul said we are to boast in God. We boast about our confidence in Him because Christ, His Son, had secured for us a triumphant life through His death and resurrection!

In a world of increasing gloom and doom, we Christians have a great hope. We don’t have to go around with a gloomy God-forsaken look because in Christ, our future is bright. We can bring hope to those living in a darkened world. We must share with them our jubilant life that can only be experienced in knowing and trusting Christ. Let’s start spreading the hope!