Title: Peace with God
Commentary on Romans 26
peace with God
Romans 5:1 - 2
Introduction: Paul is referring to the results of the believers gaining righteousness by faith. One is to enjoy peace with God, and the other is to rejoice in hope of the glory of God. The privilege of those who have attained righteousness is peace with God. And the life of a person who has attained righteousness is to hope for and rejoice in the glory of God.
If we do not have peace with God after we believe in Jesus, we will be gripped with fear and condemnation, just as we are serving God under the law. Even after we believe in Jesus Christ, if we do not live a life that hopes and rejoices in the glory of God, there is no way to escape from the lusts and covetousness of the flesh of the past in our lives entangled in the world.
1. We who have obtained righteousness by faith
The word “peace” means peace, peace, and peace. In many cases, these words are interpreted as saying that we have enjoyed reconciliation. If we have obtained righteousness by faith, it means that we have been reconciled to God the Bear.
(I) We, who have obtained righteousness through faith, have been reconciled to God. We were not at peace with God until we obtained righteousness from God. Instead of reconciliation, they disobeyed God as enemies, and they distanced themselves from God. We have been reconciled by being justified by faith through God's grace. For reconciliation with God, the wall of enemies with God must first be broken down. Not to mention the wall of the enemy, it refers to our sins. There is no reconciliation unless this wall of sin is broken down. This kind of reconciliation was made possible because Jesus became the propitiation sacrifice that broke down this wall on the cross (Ephesians 2:14-18).
Peace with God must open a new and cheap way to approach God. This road was opened by Jesus on the cross. The middle of the veil of the sanctuary was torn with Jesus' final cry, "It is finished" on the cross. The way in the midst of that torn veil is a new and living way that has been opened for peace with God. There is no other way but to win. It says, “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).
Peace with God is possible only when we put on the clothes of Christ's righteousness. He took off the clothes that the prodigal son was wearing and put on new clothes that his father had prepared. This new garment is the garment of righteousness through Jesus Christ. If you do not wear this garment, there will be no way to escape the wrath, let alone peace, when you come before God. “Now that we have been justified by his blood, much more shall we be saved from wrath through him” (Romans 5:9). Therefore, we have peace with God because we have been justified by faith.
(2) Those who have attained peace with God must enter into a life of peace with God. How do those who have attained righteousness through faith enjoy peace with God? In other words, the life of a person who enjoys peace with God is revealed. A life of peace with God is first expressed through worship of God. Worship is a personal encounter with God. God, who is the Spirit, accomplishes the teaching of peace through our worship (John 4:23,24). Then, peace with God is revealed through prayer. Prayer is a request of wish to God, a sign of peace with God. Sincere supplication always reveals God's merciful hand and answer (Psalm 145:18,19).
Next, the saints who enter into a life of peace with God enter a new life to glorify God. The Bible clearly speaks about the life of those who have achieved reconciliation with God. “It was bought with a price, therefore glorify God in your body” (1 Corinthians 6:20). “Therefore, whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God” (1 Corinthians 10:31).
2. We who entered grace by faith
We who have entered into grace through faith hope for the glory of God and rejoice. To stand by faith refers to our spiritual place where we stand now. This position reveals that it is the seat of grace. The seat of God's grace is not in any other place, but in this place where we now stand by faith. The words faith and grace are interconnected, although they have different meanings. God's grace is the starting point of faith. Without faith, there is no other way to enter into the grace of God.
(1) Therefore, to have entered into grace means to have been saved through faith. The gate of grace is the gate of salvation, and this gate enters only through faith. Those who have entered into the grace of God through faith have already obtained eternal life. Those who have the authority of children of God. They are the heirs of the kingdom of God.
(2) Not everyone can enter into grace through faith. Faith or grace is not something that a person can obtain by his own strength or ability. This is a gift from God. Gifts are not for everyone. It says, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith, and this not from yourselves, it is the gift of God” (Ephesians 2:8; John 4:10; Acts 2:38).
Faith is not something everyone can possess (2 Thessalonians 3:2). He said that there are those who are destined to give eternal life (Acts 13:48; Ephesians 1:4). God gives the Holy Spirit to those to whom God's grace is given, so that they may believe in Jesus Christ, justify Him, and enjoy peace with God (1 Corinthians 12:3; Romans 8:9).
(3) And it is said that those who have entered into this grace rejoice in hope of the glory of God. To hope for the glory of God refers to the desire to participate in the glory of God. Christians who have obtained righteousness through faith and have entered into the grace of God are enjoying indescribable joy with the hope of sharing in the glory of God. This glory is the glory of heirs of God, and it is said that they are co-heirs with Christ (Romans 8:17,18).
We cannot yet get a clear answer on how we will enjoy the hope that will appear to us in the future, but we know that it will be like that when the Lord appears in the future (John 3:2,3). It is clear that the lifestyle of a person who has such a hope is. He said it was a happy life. The Christian life is not about rejoicing in reality. They are people who rejoice in hope of the glory that will be revealed. Christians can have this hope and rejoice even in the midst of suffering. The Bible tells us to rejoice as we share in the sufferings of Christ. Why should we rejoice in sharing in suffering? Because there is a sure promise of God that we can share with Christ in the glory of God.
Conclusion: Being justified before God is very important because it is entering the grace of God through faith. Those who have attained righteousness are those who have already been reconciled to God. Because Jesus paid the full price for reconciliation. Now that we are people who enjoy peace, we must glorify God by living a life of peace, and we must enter into a life of hope that hopes for and rejoices in the glory of God.