Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with
WEEK 16
LIVING A LITTLE HEAVEN ON EARTH
ROMANS 5:1-11
Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom also we have obtained our introduction by faith into this grace in which we stand; and we exult in hope of the glory of God. And not only this, but we also exult in our tribulations, knowing that tribulation brings about perseverance; and perseverance, proven character; and proven character, hope; and hope does not disappoint, because the love of God has been poured out within our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us.
For while we were still helpless, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will hardly die for a righteous man; though perhaps for the good man someone would dare even to die. But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us. Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him. For if while we were enemies we were reconciled to God through the death of His Son, much more, having been reconciled, we shall be saved by His life. And not only this, but we also exult in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received the reconciliation.
FATHER, we are both emboldened and humbled
when we consider how we have been justified by faith. We have been introduced into Your matchless grace;
we have been given a strong and secure standing before You. And now we have every reason to rejoice
in the hope of one day receiving unimaginable glory
that we do not deserve, as joint heirs with Christ,
to whom all glory rightfully belongs. We thank You for pouring into our hearts divine love
through the Holy Spirit. How amazing it is that when we were helpless and ungodly,
Christ shed His blood for us, not only saving us from Your just wrath
but also reconciling us to Yourself
as lost sons and daughters!
You chose us, called us, and redeemed us, O God,
and You have accepted us in the Beloved1— Your only begotten Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, beloved by You with an eternal love that transcends
every power, every force, every creature, and every measure
of both time and eternity. That love is the ultimate reason for our redemption. We therefore owe Christ our most heartfelt love,
highest honor, and deepest reverence.
And yet we confess with shame that our love for Him is
too feeble, too fickle, too faithless to honor Him as He deserves. We are too easily distracted, too easily discouraged,
and too easily disturbed by the trials, temptations, and trivialities
of daily life in this fallen world.
We are neither as poor in spirit nor as pure in heart2 as we ought to be. Forgive us for our arrogance
and deeply-engrained self-love, and purge all such sins from our hearts.
One day we will love Christ perfectly. One day we will serve Him more faithfully. One day we will worship Him in true singleness of heart. One day we will know Him as we ourselves are known by Him. Now we see in a mirror dimly,
but then we will see Him face-to-face,3
and in so seeing Him, we shall be transformed— fully glorified, and instantly made to reflect His likeness4
with that consummate perfection
only Your grace can accomplish for us.
In the meantime, with all that our feeble hearts can muster,
we worship the Lord Jesus; we seek to live in a way that continually expresses
our thankfulness to Him; we seek to know Him better and serve Him
ever more faithfully. We ask You to make Him known through
our words and our deeds to the needy souls around us.
We have found in Christ all our happiness and hope. Grant us by grace the singleness of heart to keep
our minds fixed on Him, our lives surrendered to Him, our words devoted to His honor, and our hands committed to His work.
May the power of Your Spirit increase in us
so that we might be more faithful witnesses for Christ
in this hostile world— demonstrating the depth of His love, following the model of His self-sacrifice,
walking in the footsteps of His example, conforming to the pattern of His self-sacrifice, reflecting the qualities of His character, bearing the marks of His sufferings, trusting in the efficacy of His death, living in the power of His resurrection, and declaring the trustworthiness of His truth
as He Himself would proclaim it.
To know Christ is truly a foretaste of heaven's glory. May we have a hunger to experience that heaven on earth
in all its fullness, until we enter the great heaven of heavens
and worship and serve our Lord and Savior
with true perfection!
Forgive us, Father, for our daily failures and sins. Help us to pursue Your righteousness more diligently each day
in all that we do. We pray these things in Jesus' name. Amen.
1. Ephesians 1:6 2. Matthew 5:1-11 3. 1 Corinthians 13:12 4. 1 John 3:2