“Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” (Romans 5:1)
At the outset of his letter Paul shows us that we are sinners by nature and we live in rebellion against God. Our sin is that we are in conflict with God and our fellow human beings. We argue, create conflict, destroy relationships and are often unaware of the damage we do. Even when our intentions are good, things go wrong. How can we fix this? Paul has explained that if we believe in Jesus Christ, our debt is cleared and our relationship with God is restored. His sacrifice is our righteousness. That is how we can have peace with God. In Chapter 5 Paul begins to expand on what this peace means for our lives.
When we think of ‘peace’, we tend to think of it as the opposite of ‘war’. But peace is so much more: it is harmony, healing, recovery, health, and thriving instead of suffering. Peace means being where God your Creator intended you to be. You become a whole person who resembles God’s Son Jesus, with whom you will inherit God’s kingdom. That is what our time on earth is—preparation. In this life we are learning what it means to follow Jesus, to walk the path, to obey Him. We are learning to endure regardless of the cost, to trust Him in disastrous times; to be so certain that God will protect us and in the end, take us home to be with Him. It is a precious letter, Romans. It isn’t always easy, but if you read the entire letter a few times, you will become familiar with its treasures.