peace with God – Moment to Moment (Bible blog)

Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. (Romans 5:1)

A lot of times when we read these longer sentences, the main point can get lost. But let’s not lose sight of Paul’s main point. What is it?

Therefore…we have peace with God.

Let those words sink in.

“I have peace with God.

I used to be his enemy. But now I have been reconciled to him. I have peace with him.”

“So when trials come, it’s not God’s way of punishing me for my mistakes.

“I have peace with him. I stand in his grace.

“And he pours out his love on me daily.”

So don’t get discouraged when trials hit.

Don’t think God is punishing you.

Jesus already took your punishment on the cross.

You have peace with God now.

Let’s hold on to that truth, especially during the hard times.

It’s our hope.

God and his faithful love toward us is our hope.

And ultimately, that hope won’t disappoint us.

A reason to rejoice

I’m currently in the process of translating all my posts on Hebrews into Japanese, so as I read today’s passage, I saw a link between this chapter and Hebrews 10 that I had never seen before.

Paul says,

Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

We have also obtained access through him by faith into this grace in which we stand, and we boast in the hope of the glory of God. (Romans 5:1-2)

The writer of Hebrews says something very similar in chapter ten of his letter.

Therefore, brothers and sisters, since we have boldness to enter the sanctuary through the blood of Jesus— he has inaugurated for us a new and living way through the curtain (that is, through his flesh)— and since we have a great high priest over the house of God, let us draw near with a true heart in full assurance of faith, with our hearts sprinkled clean from an evil conscience and our bodies washed in pure water. (Hebrews 10:19-22)

The idea in both passages are the same. Through Jesus, we now have free access to God. We no longer have to stand in fear of God. Rather, we now have peace with him, standing in his grace.

In the Old Testament days, God manifested his glory in the tabernacle, particularly in a room called the Most Holy Place.

For this reason, only the high priest could come into that room, and he could only come in once a year.

For him, to stand in the presence of God’s glory was an awesome thing, but also a fearsome thing.

The Israelites themselves feared drawing anywhere near to God and his glory (Exodus 20:18-21), and God himself warned against it (Exodus 19:11-12; 20-22).

But through his death, Jesus tore down the barrier between us and God. We no longer need to be fearful as stand in the presence of God’s glory.

Rather, we can stand boldly by grace in his presence and rejoice in that glory.

The question is, do we truly understand the grace on which we stand?

Do we grasp it to the point that we understand the sufferings we go through are not punishments from God? Do we instead have hope in our sufferings?

What is the basis of our hope? The peace we have with God.

When we were still God’s enemies, Christ died for us. He didn’t wait for us to make ourselves good before he died for us. When we were still hostile toward him, he died for us.

And if Jesus did that for us while we are his enemies, how can we now think he has turned against us and is punishing us when we are his friends?

Rather, the same God who loved and saved us when we were his enemies, now pours out his love and mercy on us as his friends.

So whatever trials you may be facing, remember: we are at peace with God. Jesus made that peace possible 2000 years ago on a cross.

Let us now rest in that peace.