JUSTIFIED THROUGH FAITH
Romans 5:1-5
Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ. Romans 5:1
The word Justification is a legal term which means to make right, to clear or to acquit. In relation to our text, it means to acquit in God’s court. It is the act by which God moves a willing sinner from a state of sin to a state of grace. It refers to being declared righteous by God. Justification comes by faith through Christ. It is not of self, neither of our works but by believing in the finished work of Christ on the cross. Imagine in a courtroom with a defendant who is guilty of all charges levelled against him, in the cause of the verdict the Judge drops all charges and declares him innocent, Now, that is Justification, God declaring believers innocent.
How do we respond to an undeserving just verdict? Our response is to have faith in God, to believe without doubt that we have His righteousness and are no longer held bound by sin and its desires. Justification does not excuse our sin, rather, Christ has taken the penalty for us and we have been discharged. When God acquits, who can condemn? Today, let us appear boldly before God’s throne of grace, for we have been justified freely by His Grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.
Prayer
Lord, let the finished work of Christ become my reality. Amen.
One Year Bible Reading
DAY 339 Daniel 5-6; 1 John 4
BENEFITS OF JUSTIFICATION
Romans 5:1-6
Through whom also we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand, and rejoice in hope of the glory of God. Romans 5:2.
In our previous lesson, we learnt about Justification. Justification comes with benefits. Our scripture today, reveals to us that having been justified through faith we now have peace with God. This peace is not some placid feeling, neither is it necessarily the peace of God, but peace with God. Sin brought us at odds with God, where he regretted his creation. Having a right standing with God, the striving between ourselves and God is finished, we are now reconciled with Him. Another benefit of Justification is access which refers to the right to enter, the privilege of approaching God without fear or hesitation. Through our Lord Jesus Christ, we have gained access to enter the sphere of God’s grace, where we now stand. Grace which depicts God’s undeserved favour towards us.
Apostle Paul was able to declare that he could glory in tribulations because God’s grace was sufficient for him even in times of weakness and troubles. Glory to God, for we now have access to God because of Jesus. He is our means of entrance into the presence of the Monarch. This should bring joy to our hearts. Let us enjoy the peace with God that we have obtained through our Lord Jesus Christ. Finally, we have an overflow of the love of God shed in our hearts. Have you believed in Jeuse for your justification? Are the benefits of justification real in your life?
PRAYER
Thank you Father for granting me access to Your throne. Help me to continually seek Your face.
One Year Bible Reading
DAY 340 Daniel 7-8; 1 John 5
DIVINE LOVE
Romans 5:6-10
But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Romans 5:8
Have you ever loved someone to the extent of offering your life for the person? The love God has for His children is beyond anything we can imagine. God’s kind of love is called “agape love”, self-giving and self-sacrificing love. Human love is limited, selfish and self-seeking. Divine love is sacred, selfless and sacrificial. It flows like an artesian spring from the very being of God. For God’s love towards us commends itself in that Christ died for us while we were still lost, drowning in sin and helpless, it didn’t wait for us, but came to meet us and has gone before us.
To understand the depth of God’s love is to recall the death of Christ on the cross. Nowhere in history is there a revelation of such as we find in the cross. The ultimate foundation of our Christian hope lies in the unwavering love of God. God didn’t just declare His love for us, but He went further to prove it. No other love has ever been more costly to its giver and less deserving to its recipient. He paid the supreme price so that we might receive the greatest love. What is your response to this gift from God?
Prayer
Dear lord, thank you for Your perfect love that chases after me continually, help me to embrace it and walk in the fullness. Amen
One Year Bible Reading
DAY 341 Daniel 9-10; 2 John
DEAD TO SIN
Romans 6:1-5
Certainly not! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it? Romans 6:2
A dead man is lifeless, cannot move or respond to his environment. To be dead to sin means that sin does not have dominion over us, rather we live above sin. Just as a dead person who cannot respond to his environment, we no longer give in to the desires of the flesh. Those who have died to sin cannot continue in it. 2 Corinthians 5:17 states “Therefore if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation.” This depicts putting off the old man and embracing the new man. Dying to sin involves cutting off the acts of sin, the vicious habits and their triggers. Are there some habits you need to cut off? Though there is none without sin, yet Glory to God, who has given us victory over sin.
As believers, when Christ died, we died too. We died to the world and its lusts. As He resurrected in glory, so are we resurrected to newness of life by His resurrection. We must understand this vital truth and see ourselves in the light of Jesus’ death, burial, and resurrection. The Christian life is marked by a continuous battle against sin, but this shouldn’t make us weak, rather it should point us to the victory that is available in Christ Jesus. We are in an era of grace, but grace is not a license to sin. To the contrary Grace enables and empowers believers to live a righteous life. We ought to yield to the power of the Holy Spirit to continually live a righteous life.
Prayer
Precious Father, cause me to actively reckon that I am dead to sin and alive to You in righteousness. Amen.
One Year Bible Reading
DAY 342 Daniel 11-12; 3 John
INSTRUMENTS OF RIGHTEOUSNESS
Romans 6:10-16
And do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness to sin, but present yourselves to God as being alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. Romans 6:13
What precedes being dead to sin is a newness of life which is found in Christ. To be alive in Christ is to have the affection and heart that chases after God. We are encouraged not to present our members as instruments of unrighteousness, but we should use them as instruments of righteousness. The term “members” refers to the totality of our being. Every part of ourselves should be offered to God as an instrument for Him to use. The definition of members can also extend to other aspects of our lives such as our actions, character, thoughts and attitudes towards things and people. To “present oneself” involves a deliberate choice and devotion. “An instrument” is a tool used for a specific purpose, and righteousness depicts having a right standing with God.
Presenting our members as instruments of righteousness is therefore dedicating ourselves to God, and making deliberate choices that align with His will. It means conforming our thoughts and motives to reflect God’s ways. It entails yielding ourselves to the service of God rather than living to satisfy our desires. Our hands were not made to carry out evil schemes, our feet were not designed to take us away from God’s will. Our tongues are not for lying or cursing, they were made to praise God and edify others. How do you intend to use your members to glorify God?
Prayer
Heavenly Father, grant me Your grace to present my members as instruments for Your glory. Amen.
One Year Bible Reading
DAY 343 Hosea 1-4; Jude
VICTORY OVER SIN
Romans 7:16-25
O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord! ... Romans 7:24-25
Someone once said, “The Christian life is the impossible life.” Indeed, it is, but from the perspective of the flesh. Paul here was describing the catch-22 situation of anyone who tries to live the Christian life through the human will or power. The chapter reads like a devious plot whose endgame is frustration. The desire was present. The will was present. The guilt was present. But the power was absent. Most people think that discipline and resolutions will help them in the battle with sin. But they are looking at it the wrong way. The acts of sin are products of humanity’s sin nature. People usually point to the sin and struggles of others while doing the most to hide their shortcomings. All must humbly admit that we are all broken and we all need fixing. Our efforts, religious duties, discipline, etc., cannot help us in this matter.
No one can defeat the urges of sin without the input of the cross. You may succeed for a while, but alas, you are bound to failure. Jesus is the “WHO” that can deliver you from sin’s entrapment. The solution is here, “Thank God! The answer is in Jesus Christ our Lord (Rom. 7:25 NLT). Jesus is the only One who can empower you to desire and do righteousness by the working of His Spirit (Phil. 2:13). In Christ, you have exchanged the sin nature for His righteousness. Go express this victory!
Prayer
Thank you, Jesus, for been the answer. I am empowered to will and to do righteousness because You are working in me. I have the victory over sin. Amen.
One Year Bible Reading
DAY 344 Hosea 5-8; Revelation 1
NO CONDEMNATION
Romans 8:1-5
There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. Romans 8:1
The sin of Adam brought ruin to all humanity, hence the need for salvation. Apostle Paul explains in today’s text that those who have believed in Christ are now positioned in Him. Where there was once condemnation, there is now justification. Many times, the devil tries to display our past evil deeds before us, causing us to feel guilty, which is an absolute lie. Anyone whom God declares righteous, no one can condemn him. The condemnation from which we have been delivered is beyond judicial acquittal. John 3:17 tells us that Jesus came, not to condemn us, but to give us life.
In John Chapter 8, a woman who was caught in the act of adultery was brought to Jesus, He had the right to declare her guilty, but that wasn’t His purpose of coming, rather He asked after her accusers and discharged her. He went further to encourage her to flee from sin. The way to freedom is in Christ Jesus. As believers when we go back to sin, we expose ourselves to being bound by it. As we follow Christ, He becomes our advocate and mediator. In Christ there is no condemnation but freedom.
Prayer
Father, for redeeming me from sin and guilt. Help me to walk in the freedom which I have received in Christ Jesus. Amen.
One Year Bible Reading
DAY 345 Hosea 9-11; Revelation 2
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