The grace of God seen in this verse shines at its brightest, as far as this epistle goes, and we who believe are meant to enjoy all to the full. Never is this possible, never is it understood, until we are convinced by divine teaching that all our blessing is in Christ and His redemption. Justified by faith on Him and His work, we have peace with God. This strengthens us to judge ourselves and abhor our sins far more deeply than when, first convinced of our guilt, we cried to God and cast our souls on the sacrifice of Christ. No soul has solid peace with God until he believes on Him that raised up from the dead Jesus our Lord, who was delivered for our offences and was raised up for our justification.
Faith is reckoned to the believer now for righteousness, not merely in the way as to Abraham of old, but far more blessedly. Abraham believed in hope of what God would do; the Christian believes what God has done for him in Christ. Abraham confided in promise; we, under the gospel, have the accomplishment. The work of God’s grace for the remission of our sins and purging our consciences is once and forever done; it cannot be annulled, nor can it be added to. In receiving Him who died for us and rose again, we receive the reconciliation. We know that the love of God was toward us, when we were yet sinners. Then it was that Christ died for us, not when we had a little strength and became godly, for when we were still without strength, in due time Christ died for ungodly persons.
Such is the unerring Word of God. What glad tidings for men! How wicked to despise His message! How blessed to believe! Sin wronged His love and His truth, and Christ vindicated both. He suffered once for sins that He might bring us to God, and faith receives this on God’s Word to the salvation of the soul. By Christ also “we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God” (Rom. 5:22By whom also we have access by faith into this grace wherein we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. (Romans 5:2)).
Boast in Tribulation
Nor is this all. We rejoice or boast in tribulations also. This is the promise to the Christian, instead of the earthly prosperity pledged to the Jew for faithfulness. But grace turns tribulations to the Christian’s present good, by breaking his will and teaching him what the God is that has found him and that he has found. Tribulation works out patience, and patience, experience, and experience, hope, and hope does not make ashamed, because the love of God is then better known, being shed abroad in our hearts by the Holy Spirit that is given to us. His love which was spent on us at great cost to Christ and to Himself, when we were unlovable to any but God, certainly cannot be less when we have repentance toward Him and faith toward our Lord Jesus Christ. His love is the assurance to our faith that being now justified by Christ’s blood, we shall be saved from wrath through the Saviour. “If, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved [in virtue of] His life” (Rom. 5:1010For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life. (Romans 5:10)).
Joy in God
There is even more than this most comforting assurance as to the future. “And not only so, but we also joy [or boast, the same word as in verses 2-3] in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received the atonement [or, rather, reconciliation, referring to verse 11].” It is not now the love of God, but the God of love, and He is our boast, in no way our dread as before. We can glory in Him, not merely in what He has given us in Christ or will give us in a coming day, for as we have now received the reconciliation, His perfect love casts out fear, and we know what He is to us in Christ; yea, the very sorrows of the way lead us to know His love better, as well as His Word, which is thus verified to us not only in our Saviour but in every day’s experience, for the Holy Spirit does not fail here below while Christ is on high.
Life Eternal
Indeed, this is life eternal, that the Christian should know the Father, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom He sent. And he knows Him to be love as well as light, Christ’s Father and our Father, Christ’s God and our God. Receiving Christ, we have renounced the hidden things of dishonesty, not walking in craftiness nor handling the Word of God deceitfully. From such crooked ways there was no real deliverance apart from Christ, but now that the Son of God has come, the Deliverer from the coming wrath, He has also given us an understanding that we may know Him that is true, and we are in Him that is true, even in His Son Jesus Christ. We love, because He first loved us, and every one that loves is born of God and knows God. He that loves not knows not God, for God is love. And it was manifested toward us in this, that God sent His only-begotten Son that we might live through Him, yea more, that He might die for us, a propitiation for our sins.
But it is impossible so to know God and His love without boasting in Him. The heart is cleared of its idols; the living and true God is served. But there is much more than this, for the heart is led up, by the truth of Christ and the love of God displayed toward us in His work, from the blessing to the Blesser, who sets us in perfect and unchanging favor. His very chastening is the effect and proof of His love to His children, as we read in Hebrews 12. Hence we boast in God, even now in this world, as the fruit of the “reconciliation.” So in order to make it known, our Lord taught us in the parable that the father deemed it well to make merry and rejoice because the lost prodigal was found; not the sinner only to be saved, but to know the God who saved him. Can we but glory in Himself then? We are thereby made true worshippers and worship Him in spirit and truth. Thus do we joy in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we now received the reconciliation.
From Bible Treasury