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Tuesday, June ¿ 6 . Rom. 5 : 1 , 2 .
may believe, and thus have faith reckoned to us for righteousness. If we have the kind of faith that Abraham had, i.e., real faith that believes what God says, no mat ter how impossible it may seem of fulfill ment, and above all, if we believe on Him who “raised Jesus our Lord from the dead,” it will be reckoned to us for right eousness. Therefore if anyone wants to know whether he is justified or not, let him ask himself whether he really believes on the God who raispd Jesus our Lord from the dead. The one article of the creed that has saving power in it is that God raised Jesus from the dead (cf. ch. 10:9, 10). Of course, this has to be real faith, "faith from the heart" and not merely an intellectual opinion. The Greek proposition translated “for” twice in v. 25 should be translated “because of." It was because of our trespasses, i.e.; because we had trespassed against God’s law, that Jesus was delivered up to die (cf. Gal. 3 :10, 13; 2 Cor. 5 :21) ; and it was “because of our justification,” i.e., because God had accepted the sacrifice for sin that Jesus made as a full atonement and therefore reckoned us righteous, that Jesus Was raised again from the dead. We look at the cross and see that our sin has been atoned for, and we look at the empty sep ulchre and the risen Christ and know that God has accepted the atonement that Jesus made and that therefore we are now justi fied. The resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead is' the best proven fact of history. The proof is so overwhelming that no one can carefully and candidly consider it and come to any other conclusion than that Jesus did rise. But God’s raising Jesus from the dead is His declaration to the world that He has accepted the atone ment that Jesus offered, the ransom price that Jesus paid (Matt. 20:28) ; and that therefore God has absolutely nothing against anyone 'who believes in the Lord Jesus. Everyone who believes in the Lord Jesus is justified or declared righteous by the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
In the English Revision a change is made in the translation in the second clause of v. 1. Instead of reading, as in our Author ized Version, “We have peace with God,” it reads, “Let us have peace with God.” The American Revisers, however, go back to the translation given in the Authorized Version. The weight of evidence of the earliest manuscripts and early versions is overwhelmingly in favor of the rendering given in the English 'Revision. Both ver sions contain a truth. Jesus Christ has made peace between God and the sinner by His death upon the cross (Col. 1:20), and ih that sense every believer in Christ has “peace with God.” But while that is true there are many who really do believe in Christ, and so beyond a question, are justified and as far as their standing before God is concerned, they .have peace, never theless they do not realize their standing, and so in heart experience they do not have peace. So if we take the translation of the English Revision, it is to this reali zation and enjoyment of their reconciled standing that Paul exhorts believers in this verse. “Since we are justified by faith,” he says, “let us have peace towards God (the Greek preposition translated ‘with’ means rather ‘towards’ than ‘with’) ”, i.e., as we look up toward Him, let us have peace in our hearts, for holy as He is and sinful as we are, He has justified us, reckoned our faith to us for for righteous^ ness. Every believer has “peace with God” as far as his standing is concerned. Happy is the believer who has “peace toward God” in his experience. This peace that we have with God and toward God is “through our Lord Jesus Christ.” There is no peace for anyone, outside of Jesus Christ. There is something else that we have “through our Lord Jesus Christ” besides peace with and peace toward God, i.e., “access (or introduction) into this grace wherein we stand.” Grace to stand comes through our Lord Jesus Christ and is appropriated by faith. Having this peace
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