Into This Grace in Which we Stand

Romans 5:1-2 ESV

“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.” 

To be justified is to be made righteous, to be approved by God, to conform to a proper standard, to be made upright, to be cleared of all charges (punishment) against us related to our sins. But this is not just a one-time thing and then we are good to go, but this continues throughout our Christian lives when we obey faith, and we walk according to the Spirit and not according to the flesh, and when we walk in the light as he is in the light and the blood of Jesus cleanses us from all sin (1 Jn 1:5-9; Rom 8:1-17).

And we are justified by faith. So, what does this faith look like? Well, first of all it comes from God. Jesus is the author and the perfecter of our faith, and by God’s grace he gifts us with such faith, which is not of ourselves. For we can’t even come to faith in Jesus Christ unless God the Father first draws us to Christ and he persuades us to die with him to sin and to live to him and to his righteousness, by his power and in his strength. For it is not just those who are positionally righteous who are righteous but it is those who practice righteousness (Eph 2:8-10; Heb 12:1-2; Jn 6:44; 1 Pet 2:24; 1 Jn 3:4-10).

And this faith must be continuous throughout our Christian lives until the very end or we don’t have eternal life with God. And since this faith comes from God and not from ourselves, and it means to be persuaded by God, this faith is going to align itself with God’s holiness and righteousness and with his divine character and will for our lives. Thus by faith we will submit to Christ as Lord, and we will forsake our sins and follow him in obedience (Col 1:21-23; Lu 9:23-26; Rom 6:1-23; Rom 8:1-17; Eph 4:17-24; Tit 2:11-14).

The peace that we now have with God means that we are no longer living as enemies against him. Now we have been reconciled to God. We have been united with him, brought together with him, brought back to God by the blood of Jesus shed for us on that cross so that we might now honor God with our bodies (with our lives). So we no longer live as enemies of the cross of Christ, but we live in unity with God and with his will and purpose for our lives, resolved to leave our lives of sin behind us to follow him in obedience (1 Pet 2:24; 2 Co 5:15, 21; 1 Co 6:19-20; Rom 12:1-2; 1 Jn 2:3-6).

Through Jesus we have also gained access by faith into this grace in which we stand. And what is God’s grace to us? It is his favor. It is something we do nothing to earn or to deserve. It is gifted to us by God along with our faith, both of which are of God and not of ourselves. For, again, we can’t come to faith unless God draws us to Christ and he gifts us with the faith to believe, which we must put into action in our lives by his grace and in his strength and power. But his grace is not just a “get out of jail free card.”

God’s grace delivers us from our slavery to sin and it empowers us to live godly and holy lives free from the control of sin and in the strength of God’s Spirit. And it teaches us to say “NO!” to ungodliness and fleshly lusts and to live self-controlled, upright, and godly lives while we wait for our Lord’s soon return. For Jesus Christ gave himself for us to redeem us from all lawlessness and to purify for himself a people for his own possession who are zealous for good works (Tit 2:11-14; cf. Eph 2:10; Php 2:12-13).

And we rejoice in the hope and the glory of God, which is not a one-time decision to believe in Jesus followed by us still walking according to the flesh but while claiming for ourselves God’s grace and forgiveness of our sins and the promise of heaven as our eternal destiny when we die. Our hope and the glory of God is our freedom from our slavery to sin and the empowerment of God’s Spirit to walk by faith in his righteousness and holiness for his glory, which then ends in eternal life with God when Jesus returns for his bride.

[Rom 8:24; Rom 13:11; 1 Co 1:18; 1 Co 15:1-2; 2 Tim 1:8-9; Heb 9:28; 1 Pet 1:5; Jn 8:31-32; Jn 15:1-12; Rom 11:17-24; 1 Co 15:2; Col 1:21-23; 2 Tim 2:10-13; Heb 3:6, 14-15; 2 Pet 1:5-11; 1 Jn 2:24-25; Rom 6:1-23]

I Will Wait for You (Psalm 130)

By Jordan Kauflin, Keith Getty, Matt Merker, & Stuart Townend

Out of the depths I cry to You

In darkest places I will call

Incline Your ear to me anew

And hear my cry for mercy, Lord

Were You to count my sinful ways

How could I come before Your throne

Yet full forgiveness meets my gaze

I stand redeemed by grace alone

I will wait for You

I will wait for You

On Your word, I will rely

I will wait for You

Surely wait for You

Till my soul is satisfied

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=21A7GLtGgDs

Caution: This link may contain ads