After we were justified by our faith in Jesus Christ, we can enjoy God’s blessings in the past, in our daily life, and in the future.
- Past – have peace with God (v1)
- Man had peace with God in the garden of Eden
- Man sinned, and lost his peace with God – Man afraid and hid from God (Gen 3:10)
- Man became enemy of God (v10)
- God restored the peace by sending His Son to die for our sins
- Jesus saved us from God’s wrath – God’s judgement (v9)
- Righteousness and peace kiss each other (Ps 85:10)
- When we are sinners we are at war with God, when we are declared righteous we are at peace with God
- Present – live in God’s grace – love (v2)
- We are justified by God’s grace (3:24)
- We now have access to God (v2)
- We continue to live in God’s grace (v2)
- God’s grace is shown with His love for us (v5)
- God’s love is poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit (v5)
- The job of Holy Spirit – Teach us all things and remind us of Jesus’s teaching (John 14:26)
- While we were still sinners God demonstrates His own love for us by sending Jesus to die for us (v8)
- Living in God’s grace does not mean we will not experience suffering. In fact Jesus said in this world we will surely face suffering (John 16:33).
- Suffering work for believers, instead of against him.
- Nothing can separate us from the love of God in Christ (8:39)
- Meaning of tribulation – tribulum – separate wheat from chaff
- Instead we should rejoice
- Rejoices in suffering (v3)
- Rejoices in the Lord, the Lord is our rejoice (v11)
- Rejoice in the hope of the glory of God (v2)
- Future – Hope to the glory of God (v2)
- God created men in His image and likeness (Gen 1:26)
- God original plan is to let men rule over God’s creations (Gen 1:26)
- God desires to let men to reveal God’s authority over the earth and creatures
- God desires men to reveal His’s glory
- However men sinned and fall shorts in God’s glory (3:23)
- God sent Jesus to reconciled with us (v10)
- We have been justified by Jesus’s blood (v9)
- God like to conform us to the likeness of Jesus (8:29)
- God uses suffering to mold us into the likeness of Jesus (8:17)
- Because suffering produces perseverance, character and hope (v3)
- God’s will is to bring many children of God into glory (Heb 2:10, 8:30)
- We will rule the earth for God – God plan will be fulfilled
- Like Abraham, against all hope, he believed (4:18). We too have hope while we suffer, because God’s words tell us that He loves us.
- More on glory on Romans Chapter 8