Justification is received by faith.

“Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Romans 5:1)

                The Bible says that we are justified by faith (Rom. 5:1).  This word means that we have been justified.  Justification can be received only by faith.  We cannot be justified by anything else.  For example, we cannot be justified by good works, love, or keeping the law.  Justification is not human merit.  Justification is wholly justification by God.  Faith is a gift of God's grace.  Faith is a free gift that God gives us.  Why does God justify us by faith alone?  The reason is to keep us from boasting.  Look at Ephesians 2:8-9: “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.”  Faith is the gift of God's grace and we cannot boast because it is not the result of our works.  Look at Romans 3:26-30: “for the demonstration, I say, of His righteousness at the present time, so that He would be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus.  Where then is boasting?  It is excluded By what kind of law? Of works?  No, but by a law of faith.  For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from works of the Law.  Or is God the God of Jews only? Is He not the God of Gentiles also? Yes, of Gentiles also, since indeed God who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through faith is one.”  Both Jew and Gentile are justified through faith alone.  And there is only one God who can justify.  If we are justified by faith alone, then, is there no need for the law?  No.  We need the law.  Rather, it establishes the law firmly.  Although the law has nothing to do with our salvation, it does do with those of us who have been saved by believing in Jesus by the grace of God.  In other words, we, who have been justified by faith alone, keep the law, so we must establish the law (v. 31).

                We are justified by faith alone.  Since we have been saved only through faith, the gift of God's grace, we should give thanks to God and praise and worship Him.  We should not boast about ourselves (acts, etc.).  We must faithfully love and obey the law (such as the Ten Commandments).  We must obey Jesus' twofold commandment (love God & love our neighbor) (this is evidence of regeneration).

                In Romans 5:1, the conjunction “Therefore” appears.  This conjunction connects what the Apostle Paul already said before Romans 5:1 and what he wants to say from Romans 5:1.  Then, there are several claims (or theories) as to where this “Therefore” refers to what Paul said before Romans 5:1.  For example, some say that it starts from Romans 4:15.  Some say that it starts from the whole of chapter 4.  And there are theories that it connects from Romans 3:21 or 1:18.  I'm not sure which argument is correct.  Then, how far back does this “Therefore” (5:1) refer to what Paul was saying?  It links right up to Romans 5:11.  Also, in Romans 5:1, “we” refers to the Apostle Paul and the saints of the Roman church.  If applied, it refers to you and me who believe in Jesus.  The Bible says that we are justified by faith (v. 1).  The word ‘justified’ here means that God declares that we are righteous even though we are sinners, and He regards us as such and treats us as such.  The God who justifies sinners does not do so without any basis.  Since God is righteous and holy, neither can He justify us without any basis nor can He do so.  Then, on what basis does God justify such sinners like us?  He does not justify us on the basis of “faith.”  In other words, God does not justify the sinners by seeing that we have faith.  Faith is just a way/method/mean of receiving what God gives us.  Only “through our Lord Jesus Christ” (v. 1), that is, on the basis of Jesus Christ, God justifies the sinners.  In other words, God justifies sinners on the basis of what Jesus Christ did.  He justifies sinners on the basis of the atoning death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

                What is “faith” in Romans 5:1?  Here, the “faith” that the Apostle Paul speaks to the Roman church refers to the same faith as Abraham’s in Romans 4.  Look at Romans 4:3 – “What does the Scripture say?  ‘Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.’”  By “the Scripture” here is the reference to the story of Abraham in Genesis 15.  Look at Genesis 15:5-6: “And He took him outside and said, ‘Now look toward the heavens, and count the stars, if you are able to count them.’  And He said to him, ‘So shall your descendants be.’  Then he believed in the LORD; and He reckoned it to him as righteousness.”  When Abraham's faith became weak and he was childless, he said to God, “the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus” (v. 2).  Then God took Abraham outside and said (promised), “Now look toward the heavens, and count the stars,  …  So shall your descendants be” (v. 5).  God did not say to Abraham that He would fulfill this promise through “Eliezer” (v. 2).  But He did say that He would fulfill this promise through “one who will come forth from your own body” (v. 4).  Abraham, who received this promise, believed God (Rom. 4:3).  He believed that God would do it.  So God justified Abraham (v. 3).  But starting from Romans 4:16, we can see another act of faith by Abraham.  Abraham was called by God at the age of 75.  It is found in Genesis chapter 12.  Genesis 15:5-6 is the word of God's promise to Abraham when Abraham was 85 years old, almost ten years after he entered the land of Canaan.  According to Romans 4:16 and below, Abraham was 99 years old and Sarah was 89 years old.  In Genesis 12, Abraham was 75 years old, and in Romans 4:16 he was 99 years old, so it was about 24 years later.  Since Abraham in Genesis 15 was 85 years old, Abraham in Romans 4:16 was 14 years later.  Still, Abraham had no child.  God did not give him a child.  When Abraham was 99 years old (Rom. 4:16ff.) he looked himself to be childless and he was too old to have child.  So was Sarah.  Look at Romans 4:19 – “… he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead--since he was about a hundred years old--and that Sarah's womb was also dead.”  Since Abraham was 99 years old and his wife Sarah was 89 years old, Abraham knew that his body and Sarah’s body were good as dead when it came to childbirth.  But Abraham believed (v. 18) that word of God, “So shall your offspring be” (v. 18, quoted from Gen. 15:5), and especially, “one who will come forth from your own body, he shall be your heir” (Gen. 15:4).  In Romans 4:16 and below, the word “the promise” appears 3 times (Rom.4:16, 20, 21) and “it is written” (v. 17), “which has been spoken” (v.18).  Looking at this, Abraham believed the promise of God, the word of God.  In other words, Abraham's faith was faith in God's covenant.  God's word to Abraham, the promise was against hope (v. 18).  Most of the promises God has made to us in the Bible are what we cannot hope for.  It is something that we cannot understand.  Abraham had no child until he was 99 years old.  So could he believe the promise that God made to him to become the father of many nations? (v. 18)  Could he understand?  Could he accept that?  But God promised to make Abraham the father of all nations.  But Abraham hoped in the midst of hopeless.  Look at Romans 4:17 – “As it is written: ‘I have made you a father of many nations.’  He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed--the God who gives life to the dead and calls things that are not as though they were.”  The God who raised Abraham as the father of many nations is the God who gives life to the dead and calls things that are not as though they were.  Abraham's faith here was believing that God is a God who raises the dead (v. 17), even though he knew that he was a hundred years old and that his body was as good as dead and that Sarah's womb was also dead (v. 19).  Abraham's faith was faith in God who calls the things that are not as though they were (v. 17).  Although he had no child, he believed God who would make him the father of many nations (v. 18).  He believed in Creator God who created something out of nothing.  Look at Romans 4:19-20: “Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead--since he was about a hundred years old--and that Sarah's womb was also dead.  Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God.”  Abraham's faith was not weakened, but rather he was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God (v. 20).  Look at Romans 4:21 – “being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised.”  Abraham was convinced of the Almighty God who would surely fulfill His promise.  Look at Romans 4:22 – “This is why ‘it was credited to him as righteousness.’”

                We must also believe in God and the word of God's promise with the same faith as Abraham.  Look at Romans 4:23-25: “The words "it was credited to him" were written not for him alone, but also for us, to whom God will credit righteousness--for us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead.  He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.”  The Bible is written about Abraham's faith for us.  Our faith is faith in God who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead (v. 24).  Our faith is the faith that Jesus was delivered for our sins (v. 25).  We believe that we are all sinners.  We believe that God gave His only begotten Son, Jesus, on the cross for our original sin, past sins, present sins, and future sins.  Because Jesus died on the cross, all our sins were solved.  “Blood” is life.  Since the life of Jesus died on the cross, all our sins have already been solved with the blood (life) of Jesus Christ, which can solve all our sins no matter how big or heavy.  However, we are still not free from the problem of sin.  Often times we are not comfortable with sin.  Maybe the reason is because we are still not completely convinced of our freedom from sin.  Our faith is that we believe that Jesus rose from the dead for our justification (v. 25).  The resurrection of Jesus is for our justification (Ref.: 5:1).  Therefore, we who believe in the resurrection of Jesus believe that He rose from the grave on the third day for the purpose of justifying us.  Do you really believe this??

                When we think back on the Word we received on Sunday about two weeks ago, we think, 'Can we really keep our faith?'  When the Japanese ruled Korea, they told the Koreans to bow down to shrine.  Many people bowed down to the shrine.  However, there were some who were martyred without bowing down.  But there were few such people.  There are about total 80 people in our church.  But I heard a sermon questing if at least 10 people can keep their faith in Jesus when tribulation and persecution come in the future.  If I think about it, maybe even 10 people cannot do so.  Even when I look back at myself, will I ever be able to be martyred?  Do we believe?  Do we really have the same faith as Abraham?  What kind of faith do we really have?  Is the work of our faith being shown right now?  Do we believe that because Jesus Christ died on the cross, all our sins were solved, and we became children of God and became heirs with Jesus Christ?  Do we really believe against all hope like Abraham?  Do we really believe that God is a God who raises the dead and calls things that ae not as though they were?  Even though Abraham knew that his wife was too old to give birth to him, his faith did not weaken.  Rather, he became strong in his faith and gave glory to God.  Like Abraham, are we giving glory to God?  Are we confident that God will be able to fulfill His promises?  Look at 2 Corinthians 13:5 – “Test yourselves to see if you are in the faith; examine yourselves!  Or do you not recognize this about yourselves that Jesus Christ is in you--unless indeed you fail the test?”  We must examine and affirm ourselves before the tribulation comes.  We need to examine our own faith whether we have faith that tribulation is okay, persecution is okay.  So we have to confirm ourselves.  I hope and pray that we will all prepare well, keep our faith in the midst of tribulation and persecution, finish this race of faith, and receive the crown of victory when we stand before the Lord.