The Old Testament has been called “The Twice-Told Tale.” There are two accounts of creation, two reviews of the offerings, two books concerning the law, two remembrances of the history of the kings, to (not two) name a few. Even much of OT poetry is marked by a parallelism that twice repeats an equivalent thought. The concept of receiving “two or three witnesses” is consistently carried out in the OT canon, and the Jewish reader was commanded to receive that witness! So, it is a revelation to enter through the gates of the New Testament and discover four presentations of the Lord Jesus Christ in the Gospels. Like four rivers from Eden to water the whole earth or four winds to blow upon every corner of the heavens, a fourfold presentation offers a comprehensive and encompassing revelation. This wider description invites us not just to obey but to delight, yea, saturate our minds in the expansive teaching we have received. The apostle Paul capitalizes on this concept of giving four aspects of a subject in many of his epistles. In this series of articles, the various writers will draw your attention to uses of this convention in Paul’s church epistles. With great interest we notice that he often employs this strategy when we stand on the threshold of the most famous verses to flow from his pen. Let’s move to Romans 5 to consider an example.
The Romans epistle leads us along the stepping stones of the gospel of God and its manifold demands on our lives. We move doctrinally from condemnation to justification to sanctification to glorification to consecration. It is fitting that as he draws to the close of this great epistle, Paul recognizes 26 individual believers, all transformed (as we have been) by the great power of God. But Romans 5 focuses on justification. Chapter 4 has given a historical argument that God is right to justify and, indeed, continues to justify on the basis of faith. Having established this legal authority, Paul can now present the riches of justification. Chapter 5 begins with four incredible aspects concerning the results of justification. Some have suggested the pithy but paltry definition that justification is “just as if I had never sinned.” But to dive into these four rivers, which flow from the mountain of justification, is to grasp that I have entered into something that far exceeds the blessedness of innocence.
Aspect #1: Peace with God
Justification means “we have peace with God.” The gospel divides men by truth, and yet it is “the gospel of peace” because it unites with God (Rom 10:15). In 5:10, Paul looks at our past and considers the goodness of God to sinners marked by enmity: “For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son, much more, being reconciled, we shall be saved by his life.”1 The gospel points us to a future filled with peace: “For the kingdom of God is not a matter of eating and drinking but of righteousness and peace and joy in the Holy Spirit” (14:17 ESV). And it is this same justification that commends us to His peace presently: “Now the God of peace be with you all. Amen” (15:33). Yet this blessed peace is only the beginning of Paul’s presentation.
Aspect #2: Access by Faith
Justification not only calms the terror of facing a holy God but emphasizes the closeness we enjoy with God. This second aspect means that we delight in His presence. This is because in the Lord Jesus Christ “we have access by faith.” Distance can be confused for the cessation of hostility, but closeness reveals the reality of a relationship. Catesby Paget penned the hymn, “So near, so very near to God, I cannot nearer be. For in the person of His Son, I am as near as He.” The reality of our peace is experienced as we are welcomed into His courts. Queen Vashti anxiously waited for the scepter of Ahasuerus to welcome her into his presence, unsure of her acceptability. How often, as we drive to work, take a walk, sit at the dinner table, fall to our knees, or rise in public, we enter His presence without a hint of doubt or terror, because we have “access by faith.”
Aspect #3: Rejoicing in Hope
The third aspect of Paul’s exposition of justification only builds further upon the preceding points. The peace we enjoy and the presence we pursue call us on to our grand future. Thus, we are meant to live each day “rejoicing in the hope of the glory of God.” Truly, our sinful nature attempts to mock the truth of the peace we possess. Equally, our feeble, failing human frames are too often distracted from the enjoyment of our access to His presence. Yet, we have cause for rejoicing because we are not moving away from God but toward Him. In that future day of redemption, all that is old and weak will be cast aside for the glory He has prepared.
Aspect #4: Glory in Tribulation
This cascading revelation in Paul’s writing causes our hearts to burn for heaven’s brightness, so how startling that the fourth aspect calls upon us not only to find joy in heaven’s glory, but conversely to rejoice in earth’s tribulations. The thought at first seems counterproductive, but all of Scripture points to God’s work superseding human suffering. And is not Christ the ultimate example, “who for the joy that was set before him endured the cross, despising the shame” (Heb 12:2)? The God who has wrought great gain from that grief will surely work out triumph from our meager trials. It is no mistake that here, amidst our trials, we learn of the love of God for the first time (in this epistle). That “God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit” (Rom 5:5 ESV) is an undeniable reason to glory in tribulation. And if I must enter into tribulation to gain the patience, experience and hope that will allow me to truly appreciate His love, then how valuable and rewarding is that tribulation!
The presentation of these four great aspects of justification prepares us for the famous words that follow: “For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly” (v6). Were you to drive past the Pennsauken Gospel Hall, you would see these words emblazoned on a large open Bible sign before a local highway. Millions have moved past those words for decades, seemingly uncaring of the great salvation extended to them. Yet, how much deeper should my appreciation be for the blessings of justification that are not just possibilities but present spiritual possessions.
1 Bible quotations in this article are from the KJV unless otherwise noted.
