I. Justified by the Father
II. Redeemed by the Son
III. Sanctified by the Spirit

The group of Christians who made up the church in Rome contained both Jews and Gentiles. But although they may have had different nationalities and different backgrounds, they did have two things in common. Paul reminds them that they, too, had a universal affliction (Ro 3:23), “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.” But the good news is that they, too, had been given the antidote (Ro 3:24), “[All] are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus.” Paul spends another chapter (Romans 4) explaining this act of justification in which God declares us “not guilty” because of Christ. Now in the words before us this morning from Romans 5 he’s ready to present the blessings that come with this declaration, illustrating how all three members of the Trinity work together as a team.

Listen to the difference it makes, being declared “not guilty” by God the Father (v 1), “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” One of the Trinitarian blessings in our life is “peace” – the peace of God that surpasses all human understanding. Now we no longer have to run and hide from God, like Adam and Eve did. They were afraid of God and afraid of what he would do to them because they had sinned. You and I have no reason to hide, no reason to be afraid. We have peace with God, the same peace that came to Adam and Eve when they heard the promise of a Savior and received that promise through faith. That peace is ours also because God the Father has justified us.

Take note that justification is something God did to us. He declared us righteous. He issued that life-saving decree, rescuing us from the eternal death row. It was all his doing. Just as a defendant cannot proclaim himself “not guilty” in a courtroom, so also there’s no way we could issue this proclamation to save ourselves. It had to come from God. He’s the one who justified us “through faith.” Our part in all of this? Just believing that the shackles of sin have been unlocked, that we have been set free from sin, death, and the devil’s power. The theologian Franz Pieper describes faith this way, “Faith is the instrument, or receptive organ . . . , for apprehending the forgiveness of sins offered in the Gospel.” Think of it this way: Faith is cashing the check that God writes out for us. It’s simply believing that what God says is true, that we are justified!

Our declaration of innocence was possible only because of the second member of the Trinity’s arrival into this world. In another example of Trinitarian teamwork, God the Father sent his Son, Jesus Christ, to redeem us – to buy us back from the devil.

When sin entered into this world, mankind switched camps. Created as children of God, sin branded us as children of the devil. But Jesus brought us home and reintroduced us to our heavenly Father (vv 1,2), “We have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand.” In the subdivision where our house is located, there’s a community pool. But you need a pool card to open the gate in order to have “access” to the pool. Think of Jesus as our spiritual “pool card.” Through him we are able once again to have access to our Father in heaven, to stand in his grace. No other “card” will do, because “salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved” (Ac 4:12).

The price Jesus paid for us was a steep one – his very own blood! But think of where we’d be if the ransom price had not been met. We’d still be lost in sin, children of the devil, with nothing but this life to live for. We’d still fear death, because death would only mean the beginning of an eternity in hell. With no hope of heaven, we’d sink deeper and deeper into depression. The only joy we’d have would be hollow and empty. Without a Savior, there would be no redemption. And with no redemption, there’d be no peace.

But Jesus did pay the price of our redemption. Listen to how Martin Luther describes it in his Explanation to the Second Article: “He has redeemed me, a lost and condemned creature, purchased and won me from all sins, from death, and from the power of the devil, not with gold or silver but with his holy, precious blood and with his innocent suffering and death.” And the blessing in it for us? “All this he did that I should be his own, and live under him in his kingdom, and serve him in everlasting righteousness, innocence, and blessedness, just as he has risen from death and lives and rules eternally.” Jesus bought us back from the devil and brought us back to our Father in heaven! Our redemption is further evidence that, because of Jesus, Trinitarian blessings abound in our lives!

But even as justified, redeemed children of God, we still live in a world of sin. We still have problems. We still suffer. And yet we don’t lose hope, because God the Holy Spirit has sanctified us – he’s set us apart for the kingdom of heaven. With his guidance, we’ll continue to be blessed here on earth until we reach our final destination. We’ll continue to benefit from the teamwork of the Trinity!

Because the Holy Spirit has worked saving faith in our hearts to believe that we are justified and redeemed, we now have in our possession an eternal hope (v 2), “And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.” The word “rejoice” actually means “boast.” We can boast in the hope of someday living in the presence of God’s glory. We can say, “Look at what great things my God has done for me!” As we live in a world of people who so often want to boast in themselves and their own accomplishments, Paul encourages us to do just the opposite. When it comes to our salvation, there’s no reason to promote ourselves – we had nothing to do with it! Boast in the Lord! When so many are afraid to speak out about God and what he has done for us, we cannot be silent. We can’t help but speak of the hope that we have, hope that is ours because of the Holy Spirit working in our hearts.

It’s that hope that allows us to keep boasting in the Lord, even in the midst of earthly woes (vv 3,4), “Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.” Yes, as Christians we can boast in our sufferings. “Sufferings” can also be translated “pressures.” We often feel the pressures of living in an imperfect world. We suffer for our faith. So how can we still rejoice?

These pressures produce “perseverance.” They drive us back to God and his Word, causing us to dig in as we seek a solid foundation. Suffering reminds us of how much we need God. It teaches us how to persevere, knowing that God is always with us, always by our side. It’s been said that while the last straw may break the camel’s back, all the rest are meant to strengthen him. God keeps the last straw away from us, but the rest he uses to strengthen us, to teach us how to persevere.

When our perseverance is built up, our “character” increases as well. This word was used to describe the testing of metals and coins for weight and quality. These metals were tested by fire to see if they were genuine. The fires of this life are used to test us as well, to see how well, with God’s help, we can stand up to what the world throws at us. And when we come out of the furnace as tried and tested children of God, then we’re able to look to the future with “hope” – the hope of life eternal!

The hope we have as Christians is a sure and lasting hope (v 5), “And hope does not disappoint us.” Why not? “. . . because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.” Trinitarian blessings abound in our lives because “God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit.” The fact that we have faith, that we have the Holy Spirit working in our hearts, is proof of God’s love. I’m reminded of what Paul says in 2 Corinthians 1:22, “[God] put his Spirit in our hearts as a deposit, guaranteeing what is to come.” When you put a deposit down on a house or a car, you’re stating that you’re going to be back for what you’re buying. When God put the Holy Spirit into our hearts, he was assuring us that his promise was good, that he would come back for us. That’s a deposit you can take to the bank!

Knowing that through the Holy Spirit God’s love has been “poured out . . . into our hearts,” you and I have a totally different outlook on life than the rest of the world. When things don’t go our way, instead of despair we can still exhibit a calm confidence. When unexpected calamities disrupt our lives and we’re tempted to panic and think, “What am I going to do now?” we can instead have the confidence of Paul and believe that in all things God is working for the good of those who love him. And when the day of our death draws near, we can rest assured that we have no baggage of our own to dispose of – it was all taken care of at the cross. Now for us death is no longer the end but just the beginning. This is our new attitude, our new confidence – all because the Holy Spirit has sanctified us and set us apart for heaven! Through the eyes of faith we can see the teamwork of the Trinity at work. And because of that, Trinitarian blessings abound in our lives!

It’s all a matter of how you look at things. One of our neighbors had a garage sale over the weekend. Garage sales are fascinating events. They serve as proof that “one man’s junk is another man’s treasure.” To one person, a certain item might be ready for the dumpster. To another, it’s seen as a cherished collectible. Life can be that way. We can look at it with clouded glasses and pessimistically lament our lot in life, or we can look at things through the rose-colored eyes of faith and see the blessings that have been given to us by our triune God – justification, redemption, and sanctification! With the hope of heaven in our future, how can we not live life with a smile on our faces? And when it comes to that smile, remember who put it there!

Praise God, from whom all blessings flow;
Praise him, all creature here below;
Praise him above, ye heav’nly host;
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost! (CW 334)

Amen

– Rev. Jonathan Rockhoff