SERMON STRUCTURE: Don’t That Make You Glad?

Romans 5:1-11

CIT (Central Idea of the Text): We rejoice in the hope of God, in our suffering, and in our reconciliation with God. (16 words)

SERMON FOCUS: While we rejoice in the hope of God, and in our reconciliation with God, we may also learn to rejoice in the suffering that inevitably comes when we invest our lives in the redemption of other people.

MO: Doctrinal

SO: Rejoice in opportunities to share in the sufferings of other people for the cause of Christ!

TITLE: Don’t That Make You Glad?

Then … the completed sermon should be evaluated in terms of how well it adheres to the CIT and SF, and accomplishes its SO.

INVOCATION

OUTLINE OF Romans 5:1-11

1. Peace and Joy (5:1-2)

“¹Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ,

²through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.”

2. Rejoicing in Suffering (5:3-5)

“³Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance,

⁴perseverance, character; character, hope.

⁵And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.”

3. God’s Demonstration of His Love for Us (5:6-8).

“⁶You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly.

⁷Very rarely will anyone die for a righteous man, though for a good man someone might dare to die.

⁸But God demonstrates [“acts out”] his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

4. Saved From God’s Wrath through Christ (5:9-11).

“⁹Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him!

¹⁰For 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!

¹¹Not only is this so, but we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.”

SERMON DEVELOPMENT

Don’t That Make You Glad?

Romans 5:1-11

Introduction

1. This is our third week in the book of Romans.

1. And I can imagine that a few of you may be groaning inwardly — and that’s OK! I can understand that feeling!

2. But there’s hope here.

   1. In the first place, the worst is behind us.

      1. Two weeks ago (If By One Man…., 10 February), we considered the last part of chapter 5 in a message that was difficult to write, and I suspect even more difficult to understand. Thank you for hanging with me through that one!

      2. Last week (By Faith Alone!, 17 February), things were a little more straightforward and not quite so jumbled up. I hope that message was a little easier than the first one.

      3. And this week we are going to center on one single but perplexing question: what does Paul mean when he says we should “rejoice” in our suffering?

3. But perhaps the best news is that this is our last week in Romans — at least this part of Romans, and at least for now.

2. Romans is good solid theology — a book of sometimes difficult theological concepts, but also a book of very practical advice on living the Christian life.

3. And perhaps my favorite chapter in all the Bible is Romans 8.

1. It begins by declaring “Therefore there is no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus….” (8:1)

2. And the middle part of the chapter tells us “For [we] did not receive a spirit of fear that makes [us] a slave again to fear, but [we] received the Spirit of sonship. And by him we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’ The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children.” (8;15,16).

3. And the chapter ends with that marvelous declaration that there is nothing in all creation that can separate us from the love of Christ Jesus. (8:39).

4. So with that hope in our heart, let us turn to our Scripture for today.

Scripture

1. Our Scripture this morning comes from Romans 5:1-11. I am reading today from The New International Version, rather than from the New Revised Standard, which we usually use.

[Read here Romans 5:1-11 from the New International Version.]

2. I choose the NIV for this passage because it uses the word “rejoice,” rather than the word “boast” (as does the NRSV) or the word “exult” (as does the NASB).

1. Every translation is an attempt to interpret the original languages (in this case Greek, of course).

2. No existing translation is perfect or ideal — nor is it likely that any human agency will ever be able to produce a perfect translation, because

   1. Our understanding of the meaning of the original words is continually changing, and

   2. The English language itself continually changes.

3. In general, the best translations are produced by committees of scholars, each working from his or her own area of expertise, while relying on each other for review and correction and reinforcement.

3. In this passage, Paul writes that we have peace with God, and that we rejoice in the hope of God, in our suffering, and in our reconciliation with God.

Exposition

1. In this passage of Scripture, Paul gives three reasons for rejoicing:

1. “we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God” (5:2),

2. “we also rejoice in our sufferings” (5:3), and

3. “we also rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.” (5:11).

2. Now the first and last of these reasons for rejoicing are pretty self-evident.

1. We rejoice “in the hope of the glory of God.” (5:2).

   1. We rejoice that we shall one day see God face to face! Now don’t that make you glad?

   2. We rejoice that we shall one day join with our loved ones in Christ and with the blessed company of all of God’s faithful people through the ages. Don’t that make you glad?

2. And we “rejoice in God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have now received reconciliation.” (5:11).

   1. We rejoice that God has given us his Holy Spirit to live within us as our counselor, advocate, and guide. Don’t that make you glad?

   2. We rejoice that the Holy Spirit “…²⁶helps us in our weakness. We do not know what we ought to pray for, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groans that words cannot express. ²⁷And he who searches our hearts knows the mind of the Spirit, because the Spirit intercedes for the saints [us!] in accordance with God’s will.” (Romans 8:26,27). Now don’t that make you glad?

3. But the second kind of “suffering” is definitely harder to understand.

1. Paul says, “³ …we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance, ⁴perseverance, character; character, hope. ⁵And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us.”

2. So for Paul the reason or objective of our suffering is that it ultimately develops in us the potential for a deeper relationship with God.

4. Now at this point we need to ask, to what kind of “suffering” does Paul refer here?

1. One kind of “suffering” is the suffering we bring upon ourselves by unwise choices and bad habits.

   1. And to be sure, all of us have a few of those.

   2. Very few of us take proper care of ourselves:

      1. We don’t get enough rest or enough sleep.

      2. We don’t eat what we should, and we eat some things that we would do better to avoid.

      3. We don’t get enough exercise (though I know one young lady in the congregation who walks two miles a day!).

      4. Sometimes we are not sufficiently careful about our finances and find ourselves too much in debt.

   3. But I don’t think these are the kind of things Paul has in mind in these verses.

2. Another kind of suffering sometimes arises from circumstances that are seemingly beyond our control.

   1. Some of them are the victims of natural disasters, like Hurricane Katrina.

   2. Other innocent persons suffer from the results of human cruelty and violence.

3. Now it is undoubtedly true that patience and hope in the face of overwhelming tragedy beyond our control does in a sense build perseverance, and perseverance builds character.

4. But it is often difficult for us to appreciate how mindless, seemingly needless, suffering does much to advance our relationship with God.

5. And even if seemingly needless suffering does somehow bolster up our character, there hardly seems to be any joy in it.

6. Somehow that kind of suffering is a little like going to the dentist!

   1. I don’t think I know anyone who really enjoys going to the dentist! I certainly don’t!

   2. The only time I enjoy in that experience is walking out of the office knowing that I don’t have to come back for a while!

7. So what is Paul getting at here?

5. There are no answers for these particular questions in this chapter of Romans.

1. But maybe we can get at some answers from a few other verses.

2. And maybe one place to start is with a verse or two from the 8th chapter of Romans — in particular, 8:16-18:

“¹⁶The Spirit testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. ¹⁷Now if we are children, then we are heirs — heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory. ¹⁸For I consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us.”

3. Or consider these words that Paul wrote to Timothy (2 Timothy 1:8,9):

“⁸So do not be ashamed to testify about our Lord, or be ashamed of me his prisoner. But join with me in suffering for the Gospel, by the power of God, ⁹who has saved us and called us to a holy life — not because of anything we have done but because of his own purpose and grace.”

4. And perhaps one more: Paul writes to the Philippians (3:7-11), saying,

“⁷But whatever was to my profit, I now consider loss for the sake of Christ. ⁸What is more, I consider everything a loss compared to the surpassing greatness of knowing Christ Jesus as my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them rubbish, that I may gain Christ and be found in him, not having a righteousness of my own that comes from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ — the righteousness that comes from God and is by faith. ¹⁰ I want to know Christ and the power of his resurrection and the fellowship of sharing in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, ¹¹and so, somehow, to attain to the resurrection from the dead.”

6. The kind of suffering that Paul has in mind is the humility that comes from serving others in the name of Christ.

1. It is a humility that tries to see other people through God’s eyes .

2. It is a humility and a love for others that “always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres.”(1 Corinthians 13:7).

3. It is the humility and self-giving love of Jesus, especially as he tells us to turn the other cheek and to walk the second mile. (Matthew 5:38-42).

4. It is the suffering that inevitably comes when we invest our lives in the redemption of other people.

5. It is the self-sacrifice and suffering of Mother Theresa and countless others like her.

6. She said, “I have found the paradox that if I love until it hurts, then there is no more hurt, but only more love.”¹

7. Dietrich Bonhőffer (1906-1945) was German preacher and theologian who was imprisoned in various concentration camps because of his opposition to the Nazi government of Adolf Hitler. He was ultimately executed by the Nazis, just days before the Flossenburg concentration camp where he was being kept was liberated by Allied forces. Eyewitnesses to his death recalled the remarkable ending to this man’s life:

On Sunday, 08 April 1945, Bonhőffer held a service of worship and preached on the text “with his stripes we are healed” (Isaiah 53:5). One prisoner later reflected, “He found just the right words to express the spirit of imprisonment, the thoughts and the resolution it brought us.” When Bonhőffer’s concluding prayer was barely finished, two civilians entered the room and said, “Prisoner Bohhőffer, come with us.” The prisoners knew the language — Bonhőffer was headed for the gallows. As the prisoners exchanged farewells with their friend, Bonhőhoffer asked Payne Best, an English officer, to send special greetings to the bishop of Chichester, if he ever achieved freedom. Regarding his imminent death at the hands of Nazis, Bonhőffer told Best, “This is the end — but for me, it is the beginning of life.”

On Monday, 09 April 1945, Bonhőffer was executed. The camp doctor saw Bonhőffer, before taking off his prison garb, kneeling on the floor praying fervently to God. At the place of execution, Bonhőffer again said a short prayer and climbed the steps to the gallows, brave and composed. The camp doctor reflected that in his fifty years as a doctor he had hardly ever seen a man die so serenely.

In Bonhőffer’s life, death was faced with bravery and confidence. Perhaps you and I could not do it so well, but it is hopeful to know that he could. [Isaiah 53:5; John 14:1`-7; Romans 6:5-11; 2 Corinthians 5:1; Philippians 1:21; 2 Timothy 2:8-13, 4:6-8; Hebrews 3:6, 6:11.]²

7. Yet another dimension of personal suffering for the cause of Christ is the discipline that God imposes on us for our own spiritual growth. This discipline can be seen very briefly in two passages:

1. John 15:1-2 warns us that we can be expected to be pruned like a tree or vine:

“¹I am the true vine, and my Father is the vinegrower. ²He removes every branch in me that bears no fruit. Every branch that bears fruit he prunes to make it bear more fruit.”

So it appears that we are going to get “cut” no matter what!

2. And Hebrews 12:5-11 speaks of the discipline we receive as God’s children:

“⁵And have you forgotten the exhortation that addresses you as children —

My child, do not regard lightly the discipline of the Lord,

Or lose heart when you are punished by him,

⁶For the Lord disciplines those whom he loves,

and chastises every child whom he accepts. [quoting Job 5:17 and Proverbs 3:11-12]

“⁷Endure trials for the sake of discipline. God is treating you as children, for what child is there whom a parent does not discipline? ⁸If you do not have that discipline which all children share, then you are illegitimate and not his children. ⁹Moreover, we had human parents to discipline us, and we respected them. Should we not be even more willing to be subject to the Father of spirits and live? ¹⁰For they disciplined us for a short time as seemed best to them, but he disciplines us for our good in order that we may share in his holiness. ¹¹Now discipline always seems painful rather than pleasant at the time, but later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been trained by it.”

Reflections and Conclusions

1. The Christian faith is in many ways disrespected around the world today, certainly to a degree that I have never witnessed in my lifetime.

1. And I can’t help thinking that this disrespect arises from the arrogance and smugness with which some Christians present themselves today.

2. What has happened to the meekness and humility of Christ?

3. What has happened to putting our own lives in order before we tackle the shortcomings of others?

2. Our Scripture this morning reminds us that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Don’t that make you glad?

3. But our Scripture also reminds us that the real way to experience the joy and peace of God is to invest our lives in the redemption of those around us by entering into the sufferings of Christ for us.

4. While we rejoice in the hope of God, and in our reconciliation with God, we may also learn to rejoice in the suffering that inevitably comes when we invest our lives in the redemption of other people.

5. Let us therefore learn to rejoice in opportunities to share in the sufferings of other people for the cause of Christ!

6. Now don’t that also make you glad?