Romans Chapter 5

Righteousness is provided through Faith in Christ.
Justification is by Faith: Rom (Romans 5:1)
Paul explains that through faith in Jesus we have been justified.  Justified means declare righteousness and have peace with God (5:1).   It is a gracious act of God which brings joy of hope of what is to come in eternity.  This hope gives new meaning to our present life and allows us to rejoice in our suffering. Justification happens instantly when a person believes in Christ.  It is more than an initial blessing but carries with it every other blessing in the Christian life. There is a link between chapter 4 and chapter 5. “Therefore” bridges between  past justification and present blessings. Justification is a means to an end. We owe our salvation to the saving work of Jesus Christ. He came to live a perfect life, died in our place bearing our condemnation and has risen from the dead to justify us (1 Peter 3:18).  In the Old Testament we see the fore-shadows of Christ becoming  our substitute.  God had to kill an animal to clothe Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden (Genesis 3:21). God provided a ram for Isaac (Genesis 22:13). It was a temporary substitute. The scapegoat indirectly points to Christ who became our substitute to set us free (Leviticus 16:22). Isaiah 53:5, 6 is a reference to Christ who died for our sins.  “He was wounded for our transgressions and he was bruised for our iniquities”. The high priest of Israel said "It is expedient that Jesus would die for the nation and not that the whole nation should perish” (John 11:50, 51). Christ died to redeem us from the curse of the law having become a curse for us (Galatians 3:13). Christ gave Himself as a ransom for all (1 Timothy 2:6).  Christ has become our substitute. Song writer wrote “Bearing shame and suffering is rude, in my place condemned He stood, sealed my pardon with His blood, Hallelujah! What a Savior”. 
 
The Blessings of Justification: (Romans 5:2)
Having been justified by faith, we have peace with God.  This is not the peace of God but the peace with God. It was initiated by God. Sinners are at enmity with God (5:10).  Carnal mind is hostile to God (8:7).  We are at war with God until we are reconciled to him (James 4:4; Isaiah 48:22). We have been justified and have peace with God through Lord Jesus Christ. He suffered for our sins and brought peace between God and us (Isiah 53:5). He is our peace (Ephesians 2:14).  Christ took away our enmity with God and preached peace to us (Ephesians 2:17). When we believe in Christ we enter into salvation rest (Matthew 11:28).  Christ is the mediator between God and men (1 Timothy 2:5). We enjoy the peace of God when we live in obedience to Him (Matthew 11:29; Philippians 4:7). Being justified we have access by faith into this grace (5:2).  In ancient times kings could forgive rebels but they did not have the right to come to him. Kings were inaccessible. Christ has not only taken away our enmity with God but has made it possible to enter into His presence (Ephesians 2:18).  Being justified by faith we have a standing in grace (5:2). How can a sinner stand in the presence of a holy God? This is an age-old problem. Nobody can stand under God’s scrutiny. But there is forgiveness with God because of Christ (Psalms 130:3-4; Micah 7:18-19). Praise God our standing is in Christ Jesus. 

Being justified by faith we rejoice in the hope of glory of God (Romans 5:3-4). 
For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (3:23). Glory is the perfect standard of God which Christ revealed (John 1:14; Hebrews 1:3). Being justified we rejoice in the hope that one day we will be like Jesus (8:18, 29; 1 John 3:2, 3). We rejoice in that hope now in the midst of sufferings (8:17). God can use our suffering and pain to transform us.  Being justified, we rejoice in our sufferings (5:3).  Christians can rejoice in suffering because they have a living hope. They know that this suffering leads to glory (8:17). “The sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us (2 Corinthians 4:17).  We know that suffering produces endurance or steadfastness.  Endurance produces character and which produces a confident hope in God's eternal care. Thus we know that we are the children of God.  This living hope encourages us to live in the hope of the glory yet to be revealed in us. Why does God allow suffering?  God created the world perfectly. When Adam  sinned, death and suffering became inevitable part of human life (5:12). The only solution to our present suffering is Jesus Christ. When we believe in Christ, our future is secured in Christ. We may not know what the future holds, but we know who holds the future. When God is on our side, even the most difficult things in life begin to work for our good (Romans 8:28).  God promised that he will not allow us to be tempted beyond what we can endure (1 Corinthians 10:13). Because of Christ, our future is secure and God has given his Spirit to guarantee this hope. God uses sufferings to  strengthen and develop our character. 

We have the hope that will not disappoint us (Romans 5:5-11)
The hope we have is in the glory of God. Why does this hope not fail? “Because God has given us His Holy Spirit in our hearts to fill us with His love” (5:5).  At the moment of salvation we received the gift of the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:9). Christ dwells in our hearts by the Holy Spirit (Colossians 1:27). Being justified by faith, Christ’s righteousness has become our righteousness.  God's love for us is demonstrated by Christ who died for the ungodly. It is an undeserving love (Romans 5:6-8).  He made us love those who are unlovable. “When we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly”.  Jesus gave his life for those who are not worthy of his love. Being justified by His blood we shall be saved from the wrath of God (5:9).  By nature we are the children of wrath and deserve God’s judgment (John 3:36). The blessing of justification is that we are free from the coming judgment (1 Thessalonians 5:9). Being justified by faith we shall be saved by His life (5:10).  It is the death of Christ which saved us but it is the life of Christ which sustains our salvation. Christ ever lives to make intercession for us (Hebrews 7:25). Jesus said “Because I live, you shall live also” (John 14:19). So being justified we are reconciled to God through our Lord Jesus Christ (5:11). We do not fear the wrath of God anymore because we are in Christ. Now we rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ. 

Adam and Christ contrasted: (Romans 5:12-18) 
Paul has shown how Christ's death brings peace with God through reconciliation.  Also he explains how Christ restores what was lost when Adam sinned. Every human being is represented by the actions of either Adam or Jesus.   We are all born in Adam but God has graciously provided a plan through Christ to bring us to himself. Thus far we have seen two important doctrines, condemnation and justification. Now Paul compares and contrasts between Adam and Christ, condemnation and justification, disobedience and obedience, law and grace, sin and righteousness, death and life. Adam was a type of Christ (5:14).  A type is an Old Testament prefigure of something in the New Testament. Sin entered the world by the disobedient act of Adam and death through sin ( Genesis 3).  We are all born in Adam.  Adam’s sin is imputed to the human race (5:12). The Bible says that all have sinned and came short of the glory of God (3:23).  We sin because we have a sinful nature.  We all deserve condemnation on the basis of who we are (Jeremiah 17:9). Adam’s sin has a mortal effect on the human race. Sin and death always go together (Romans 6:23). Sin was here before the law was given (Genesis 6:5). Death is proof of that.  People between the period of Adam and Moses died in their imputed sin nature of Adam. Death is the judicial consequence of Adam’s sin (5:18). Adam brought death to many but Christ brings forgiveness to many through grace. Christ restores what was lost when Adam sinned. The obedience of Christ brought grace to those who believe in him. By Christ's one act of obedience,  many will be made righteous (5:18-19). 

Adam and Christ Compared: (Romans 5:19-21)
There is condemnation in the first Adam but justification in the last Adam. God created us to rule over His creation but we lost our significance because of the disobedience of Adam. Consequently death became the destiny of the human race. But by Christ’s obedience many will be made righteous (5:19).  The law was given to show how corrupt and sinful we are.  Because of Christ's faithful obedience on our behalf we have become heirs of eternal life through Him. Where sin increased, grace abounded all the more. Grace did not set aside the law but rather satisfies it. God’s grace is greater than all our sin. Once where death reigned, now eternal life reigns in Jesus Christ. We are saved by grace (2 Timothy 1:9).  As sin reigned in death, grace also reigns through righteousness leading to eternal life in Jesus Christ.  Eternal life is the endless duration of the quality of life we taste, admire and enjoy the grace of God (Ephesians 1:6). Because of Christ's faithful obedience on our behalf, we have become heirs of eternal life through him. The believers have this confidence because of the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross.  This is the strongest possible reversal of the damage that came into the world through Adam. Christ’s death brings us peace with God through reconciliation.