Love in the Nick of Time
Romans 5:6-11 6 You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly. 7 Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. 8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us. 9 Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God's wrath through him! 10 For if, when we were God's enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life! 11 Not only is this so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.
Intro: A teenager received his driver’s permit and asked his dad about using the family car. His father sat him down and said, “I’ll make a deal with you. You bring your grades up from a C to a B average, study your Bible more, get your hair cut, and we’ll talk about the car.” After a couple weeks went by, the dad said, “Son, I’m real proud of you. You brought your grades up, you’ve been studying your Bible more and you’re going to youth group. But, I’m disappointed that you haven’t gotten your hair cut.”
-The son paused for a moment, and then said, “You know, Dad, I’ve noticed in my study of the Bible that Samson had long hair, John the Baptist had long hair, Moses had long hair, and I wouldn’t doubt that Jesus’ hair was long.” To which his father replied, “You’re right son. Did you also notice that they all walked everywhere they went?” [Brian Bill SC]
-Well, it is good to know that God loves us no matter how long or short our hair is. In fact, as we can see in the Bible reading, God loved us before there was anything lovely about us. And at just the right time Christ died for us so that we could receive His life and be able to have a future with Him.
-Once again, Paul’s aim is to make it very plain to the believers in Rome that they are all saved by grace through faith. No Christian can boast of being more qualified for heaven than any other Christian – regardless of their Jewishness or lack thereof. This is one thing both the Jews and Gentiles of the church in Rome had in common – none of them deserved God’s grace! All of them had been enemies of God and deserved death. This reminder was needed to keep both sides from demanding their own way, especially on the supposed basis that they were closer to God than the other group. So as we look at this amazing love God has for us all, I hope that it brings a level of humility and grace that will help us as we interact and do life with other believers who may not see things the way we do. Let’s look at a few highlights from Romans 5 that will help us with this understanding.
1. God’s timing is perfect (6)
6 You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly.
-Someone said, “God is never late, but He sure misses a lot of good opportunities to be early.” Christians have a lot to say about God’s timing, as He works in our lives. However, for those who do not know God yet, they may be struggling with His existence more than His timing. But God didn’t wait for us to start believing in Him before He decided to send Jesus to die for us. No, He had it planned out long ago – even before the world was made. So what made God decide to send Jesus at the time He did?
-Well, He could have sent Him anytime, but chose the perfect time. The word used for the “right” time indicates a strategic time. The world was a dark, needy place. People were hurting and tormented and needed help and healing. Israel was under Roman domination. This was viewed as a negative by most Jews, but God would use what the Romans brought as a means to spread the good news about Jesus. The Romans developed a system of roads that made travel achievable – which helped with the spread of the gospel. There was also a universal language used for trade (Greek) which made the communication of the gospel possible. Also, there was a high expectancy among the Jews for a Messiah to come and save them from the Romans. Well, Jesus didn’t do that, but He did provide the way for them to be saved from their sins.
-So as we face hard times and wonder why God doesn’t act on our behalf sooner, rather than later, remember that He is always on time! God is very strategic. He is purposeful in where He leads us and who He brings into our lives. He knows what we need and He knows what others need from us. God’s timing and His plan is perfect! We may not always think so at the time, but rest assured, He is doing what is best for those who put their trust in Him. And He is actively seeking those who do not know Him yet! Trust Him, don’t fight Him! His timing is perfect!
2. God’s love is unprecedented (7-10)
A. It is totally undeserved (7-8) (weak, ungodly, sinners, enemies)
7 Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might possibly dare to die. 8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
-You might wonder what the difference is between someone who is righteous and someone who is good. The word usage seems to indicate that a good man refers to someone who is especially good – the kind of person you would do just about anything for. Paul says that it is almost unheard of that someone would give their life for a righteous person, but concedes that a few might willingly die for a really good person. In contrast, God demonstrated how much He loves us by sending His Son to a sin sick world that was filled with people who were weak, and ungodly, and sinners, and outright enemies of God! Back in Romans 3 Paul said that nobody was righteous and that all have sinned and fall short of God’s glory. Yet, He offers us the hope of glory! Not because we deserve it, but because He loves us!
B. It makes us righteous (9a) (justified)
9 Since we have now been justified by his blood,
-A man died and was transported to the pearly gates. He was met by an angel who said, “All you have to do is perform one task correctly and you’ll be granted entrance into heaven. It’s really pretty easy. All you have to do is spell ‘love.’”
-The man sighed in relief and quickly answered: “L-O-V-E.” The angel then asked the man if he could watch the gate for a few minutes because he had a couple errands to run. The man immediately agreed. As he awaited the angel’s return, he saw another man walk up the pearly gates. He recognized him as someone he couldn’t stand when he was alive. In fact, he had incredible conflict with him for many years. Seeing who was manning the gates, the man became noticeably anxious. The gatekeeper said, “Don’t worry, all you have to do is perform one task correctly and you’ll get in.” The man breathed a sigh of relief and said, “What do I have to do?” To which his enemy said, “Spell ‘chrysanthemum.’”
-Aren’t you glad that there’s no human gatekeeper to God’s kingdom? Flawed people cannot judge whether someone makes it or not. The task that needs to be performed has already been completed by Christ. It’s through His blood that we have entrance. We are justified by Jesus through faith, and we’re saved from wrath because we’ve been declared righteous. [Brian Bill, SC]
-God’s love is so potent, so powerful, that it changes us! Jesus died so we could be made right with God. Hebrews 9:22 says “…the law requires that nearly everything be cleansed with blood, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.” Jesus died, His blood was shed, sin was atoned for, and we were made right with God when we put our faith in Him! This is all possible because of His great love for us!
C. It saves us from His wrath (9b)
…how much more shall we be saved from God's wrath through him!
-The phrase “how much more” is an argument from the greater to the less. If the greater thing is true, then the lesser thing is of necessity also true. If God has done the harder thing, then surely He will do the easier task. Look closely at verse 9: “Since we have now…how much more shall we be…” And verse 10: “For if when we were…how much more…” Even verse 11 employs something similar: “Not only…we also.”
God has already done the greater more difficult work of justifying us- making us as righteous as His own Son. Since God has already accomplished the greater task, it is no problem at all to save us from His wrath.
-Since God did the more difficult task of justifying weak, wayward and wicked sinners, then to rescue us from wrath is relatively effortless. We could say it this way: If God has already done the difficult, can we not trust Him to do the comparatively simple thing of completing the task? If your faith is in Jesus, you don’t have to fear death or hell or punishment. Jesus paid it for you!
D. It reconciles us to Him (10)
10 For if, when we were God's enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son, how much more, having been reconciled, shall we be saved through his life!
-Reconcile means to exchange- God exchanges enmity for friendship, all because of His love for us! This is really a restatement of v.9, making sure the Romans don’t miss the fact that we are saved from eternal punishment and separation from God because of Jesus! Not because of being Jewish or having superior knowledge! God’s love reconciles us to Himself. We were at odds with Him, but now by faith we are friends with God! He knows our status! He sees every update of our lives! He knows all about us and He loves us enough to make us righteous and to establish a relationship of love and trust when we come to Him in faith.
-God’s timing is perfect, God’s love is unprecedented, and finally…
3. God’s work in us calls for praise! (11)
11 Not only is this so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.
-Not only do we get to skip hell, but we get to come close to God! We get to do life with Him forever – and that is worth rejoicing over!
-Rejoice means to boast or to praise – and that is directed to God Himself! “God, You sure do good work! You are so amazing!!! What a friend You are! There is nobody like You!” It is okay to brag on God! He deserves it. He has earned it. All praise and glory belong to Him – they are rightfully His!
-We are going to close our time today with communion. Communion gives us a vivid reminder of God’s amazing love for us. His body was beaten, bruised and bleeding, but He didn’t stop until the work of saving us was complete. His blood (His life) was given so we could be forgiven. That is love!
-Before we take communion, if you have not made a decision to trust Jesus to forgive you and ask Him to lead your life, I sure hope you will do so today. He loves you just as you are, but He wants you close to Him, drawing from His life so you can really live. If you need to do that, you can talk to Him right where you are sitting and ask Him to forgive you and be your leader. But don’t keep it to yourself. You need to identify with and begin to associate with other believers who can help you grow in your faith. Don’t try to do it alone.
-Maybe today as we take communion, eating matzah bread and drinking grape juice, you will ask God to forgive you, (justify you, reconcile you to Him). If you do, please let me know so I can be praying for you and offer you some guidance. God loved us so much that He sent Jesus to die for us – at just the right time – love in the nick of time!
-Communion & Close
