Sermon

September 26, 2001
Sr. Member Fellowship
Romans 5:1-5
Pastor Robert Raasch

CHRISTIANS, WE HAVE REASON TO REJOICE!

1. Rejoice in God's Gifts
2. Rejoice in Our Sufferings

Have you ever had one of those days when someone said, "Good morning!" and you said, or at least thought to yourself, "Good morning? I don't see what's so good about this morning. I didn't sleep well last night. My body aches. The morning news was depressing. I have more work to do than I can ever get done. Maybe it's morning. But I wouldn't call it a good morning. It's more of the same old, same old. Today is not a good day. Today is a bad day!

Sometimes it's easy to fall into that kind of mindset, isn't it? We start focusing on the bad things going on in our lives and it affects our view of everything else. We start to develop a negative attitude. And pretty soon we can't find anything to be happy about in our lives.

Friends, this morning we want to address this problem, a problem which can affect each one of us at one time or another. In our text for today, St. Paul encourages the Christians in Rome, and the Christians in Appleton to take a step back and make an honest evaluation of what we have as Christians. When we do, I think we'll find that what Paul says is true. And that is,

CHRISTIANS, WE HAVE REASON TO REJOICE!

Here Paul points to two things that give us reason to rejoice.

1. We have Reason to Rejoice in God's Gifts
2. We have Reason to Rejoice in Our Sufferings

First, we have reason to rejoice in God's gifts. In the opening verse of our text Paul enumerates a number of the blessings we have a Christians because we have been justified. Paul begins, "Since we have been justified through faith, we have..." and then Paul offers a list of blessings. But before we consider those blessings, let's not overlook the one gift from which they all flow. And that is, our justification. Do you remember what that means, that we have been justified? It means that we have been declared "not guilty" by God. Because Jesus Christ took the guilt of our sin on his shoulders and because he gave us his righteousness as a free gift, God the Father now sees us all as holy, innocent people. We have been acquitted in God's court of law. That's the heart of the gospel, isn't it? Through faith in Jesus Christ, we're all right with God. That's God's greatest gift to us.

But from that one gift, flow all kinds of other blessings. Paul lists some of them here. He says, "Since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." Peace with God. Our justification in Christ, does not necessarily bring peace to our homes or to our nation. But it has brought peace between us and God. If sin is what separates us from God, then Jesus Christ, and the forgiveness he won for us, is what brings us back together with God. No longer are we at odds with God. No longer is God an enemy to be feared. Now, God is our friend. In Christ, there is harmony between us and God. And that's what puts our hearts at peace.

That's the first blessing of our justification. The second blessing? Paul writes, "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 other words, because of what Jesus Christ has done for us, we have access to God and his grace. You might say that Jesus has given us an audience before God's heavenly throne. He has become for us the door to God's heavenly storehouse of grace. Through Jesus Christ, God pours out on us an abundance of his undeserved gifts. He pours out his love, his protection, his forgiveness. In fact, in Christ, we live in a state of grace. As Paul says in Romans, chapter 8, "Nothing in all creation will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus."

Peace, access to God's grace. The third gift of God which gives us reason to rejoice? Paul states it very plainly, "We rejoice in the hope of the glory of God." In other words, because God has declared us "not guilty" for Christ's sake, we have reason to hope that someday we will share in the glory of God. Our bodies will be raised to life eternal. St. Paul speaks of that in Philippians chapter 3. "Our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ, who, by the power that enables him to bring everything under his control, will transform our lowly bodies so that they will be like his glorious body".

Friends, these are some of the priceless treasures that we possess as Christians. Treasures which we need to regularly step back and admire. Granted, you can't see peace with God. You can't touch access to God's grace. But they are just as real, nevertheless. Remember, we live by faith not by sight. Or as 2 Cor 4:18 says, "We fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal."

Christians, we need to keep that perspective, don't we? Especially when it seems like the things are not going so well in our lives. When what we see is trouble, and what we feel is pain, and what we hear weighs heavy on our hearts, then we need to step back and close our eyes and see all the greater gifts God has given us in Christ, the eternal gifts, the gifts that far outweigh our light and momentary troubles. When we do that, when we allow all of God's gifts to come into view, then we realize that as Christ's redeemed people, as God's beloved children, we really do have reason to rejoice. We have reason to rejoice in all the gifts God has given to us.

Now, maybe that's fairly plain to see. God has given us plenty of good things to rejoice about. What is maybe a little harder for us to see is what Paul goes on to say in the second half of our text. Paul says that as Christians we not only have a reason to rejoice in God's gifts, II. We have a Reason to Rejoice in Our Suffering.

Paul writes, 'Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings." And why do we rejoice in our suffering? "Because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope." Just for a minute, let's look at each one of those words, along with the progression that each word makes. First, there's the word "suffering." The Greek word there is "thlipsis". It can mean "trouble" or "distress" or "hardship." It refers to things that weigh us down. Things that put the pressure on us. Maybe it's the loss of a friend or loved one. Or a task that seems overwhelming. Maybe it's a stack of medical bills, a nagging physical ailment, repeated trips to the doctor's office. These are all things that put the pressure on us, things that can weigh us down.

Are those things "bad"? Well, if you mean, are they unpleasant? Are they painful? Sure they are. But just because something is painful doesn't mean it is not beneficial. Sometimes painful experiences can produce good results. Results like, for example, "perseverance." Paul says, "Suffering produces perseverance." The Greek word there is "Hippomonae" It means patience endurance, steadfastness. Literally, it means the ability to bear up under something. If thlipsis is downward pressure on us, then Hippomonae is the ability to hold up under pressure. And that kind of ability, that kind of perseverance is something good.

In fact, God wants to move us even beyond just perseverance. God intends that perseverance ultimately develop "character." "Suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character." What's character? Again, the original language helps us here. The word that Paul uses is "dokima." It refers to something that has been tested and has passed the test. Something that has been proven to be genuine. In Bible times, the word was often applied to testing of gold coins. If the coins met the requirements for quality and weight, they had "dokima." They had proven value. They were genuine. They had character.

Paul says that the same thing can apply to you and me as Christians. God's goal for our lives is that we possess genuine Christian character. And sometimes God produces that character by testing us. Or, as in the case of precious metals, by refining us. Just as fire was sometimes used to burn off the impurities in gold, and thereby make the final product more valuable, so also God sometimes uses trials and tribulations to burn off our impurities, our weaknesses, and make us even stronger, and more valuable in the end.

Maybe you can think of a time in your life when you went through some real trials, you endured some real tests, and yet in spite of those trials, or should I say, because of those trials, you are a better person today. In effect, you were refined by those trials. You were built up by them.

Down through the centuries, believers have recognized the good purpose which God can have suffering serve. For example, after a period of affliction, the writer of Psalm 66 declares, "For you, O God, tested us; you refined us like silver. You brought us into prison and laid burdens on our backs. You let men ride over our heads; we went through fire and water, but you brought us to a place of abundance." The writer to the Hebrews confesses, "No discipline seems pleasant at the time, but painful. Later on, however, it produces a harvest of righteousness and peace for those who have been trained by it." Friends, that's the confidence we can have regarding the trials and tribulations that God allows into our lives. Those trials can become God's way of testing us, exercising us, refining us, and most importantly, giving us the opportunity to look to him for strength, the opportunity to trust in his undying love for us, the opportunity to concentrate on carrying out his will in our lives. You see, when we look to the Lord during our times of hardship, then we can be sure we will truly come out even better in the end.

And how do we know that? How do we know that God is using these hardships to make us better people? How do I know that God isn't just making me suffer for no reason at all? How do we know? Paul says, "Because God has poured out his love in our hearts." Friends, you already know how much God loves you. How he proved that love on the Cross of Calvary. Well, that God has no interest in making you suffer more. His purpose in allowing a hardship to enter our lives, is not to break us down, but rather to build us up. To toughen us, to strengthen us. Scripture says, "The Lord disciplines those he loves, as a father the son he delights in."

Friends, God's love for us is unwavering. Whether he is showering us with spiritual blessings (and he's always doing that) or whether he's allowing hardships to enter our lives, (and sometimes, he's doing that), you can be sure, both are serving his good and gracious purpose. Scripture says, "In all things, God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose." In all things, good and bad, God works for our good. Truly, what more can we ask for? It's a win/win situation. Either God is blessing us with his invisible gifts. Or he's training us through our hardships. And that is why, as his beloved children, you and I, today, tomorrow and for the rest of our lives, have reason to rejoice, in God's good and gracious love for us, in Jesus Christ. Amen.

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