Articles
Hallelujah! What a Savior
Romans 5:6-11 - These 6 verses are verses that are quite well known to many and are so powerful, we are going to examine them in depth in this arti-cle. Starting out with the context, where it is talking about how we celebrate in our tribu-lations which brings about perseverance, which brings about proven character, which brings about hope. A hope that doesn’t dis-appoint because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit who was given to us. We have a hope that doesn’t disappoint and love of God poured out into our hearts. This love and hope was brought about by what our God did for us and notice the state in which we were in, in these verses. V6 tells us that while we were still helpless, at the right time, Christ died for the ungodly. We all have felt helpless in a variety of scenarios and it’s a terrible feeling to have. To have the desire to make a change but having no ability within yourself to do so. Here though, it wasn’t just a feeling that could be had, it was reality. We all were helpless and there was nothing that we could do to change the state we placed ourselves in. That state being an ungodly one as said at the end of v6. We were ungodly and help-less, and at the right time Christ died for us. It wasn’t an accident that Jesus came to earth when He did. It was as planned out as planned out can be. He came and died for the ungodly. God became flesh and died for those in the very opposing nature of Himself. The Perfect died for the imperfect. The Sinless for the sinful. He did this by His own choice, as in John 10:15-18 clearly shows us.
What an amazing and breathtaking thing Jesus did for us, one that will take eternity to fully appreciate and understand. In v7 of this same chapter, we see that a person would hardly die for a righteous person, though perhaps for a good person someone would dare to die. We know there are many terrible stories of a wicked person coming into a place, seeking to do evil and a person jumps in the way to defend others and loses their own life in the process. That’s a heroic act and one seen quite little, even though it may appear on the news. There are some cases where someone would die for a good person. Jesus, however, did not die for good people. He died for sinners like you and me. V8 tells us that God demonstrates His own love towards us that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. Christ died for us while we were still living in opposition to His very nature. We were against Him; we were enemies as v10 will say. We weren’t righteous or good people, we were helpless, sinful ene-mies of God. And yet, Jesus died for us all. There are some cases a man may die for a good person, but to die for people that stood with the very thing you stand against, that just doesn’t happen, let alone to the scale and importance of what Christ did.
Not only has God demonstrated His love towards us, but v9 tells us that we have been justified by His blood and saved from the wrath of God through Christ! He didn’t just show His love in dying for us, but His blood that was shed as He was dying, justifies us through Him and we are saved from what we earned, the wrath of God. Je-sus is the only One who could save us from the wrath of God which we earned. As stated above, v10 tells us that while we were ene-mies, God reconciled us to Himself through the death of His Son and
it didn’t stop there. We weren’t just reconciled to God, but we will be saved by His life! In keeping the rest of the book in mind, we must have faithful obedience to be saved, but the only reason we can be saved is because of the actions of God!
Notice the use of the word were (as it is in the NASB) in v6, 7, and 10. We were helpless, we were sinners, we were enemies. This is where I found myself and where you found yourself. But God, He changed that state we put ourselves in. He helped the helpless, He leads the ungodly to godliness. The sinless God showed His love to the sinful in dying for them. He brought His enemies close to Him through the death of His Son. How humbling the thought. To think that Jesus had to endure what He did because of the choices I made, that you made. To think that I mean that much to Jesus, that you mean that much to Jesus. That even though we chose what we did, He chose us. As v11 continues from v10, that we aren’t just reconciled to God and saved by Christ’s life, but we also celebrate or exult in God through Christ. Do we celebrate, do we dwell on what God has done for us? I’ve heard it said in public prayers, the request of God’s aid to help us to remember His Son’s sacrifice not just when we are taking the Lord Supper. Should we remember it during the Lord Supper? Absolutely and nothing else should be in our minds at the time, at least that’s what we must strive for (if a thought or distraction arises, we get it out of our heads and get back to thinking of our Lord). But every day is a day to celebrate, to remember that Jesus Christ came to this earth to die for Me and through Him and Him alone, we able to spend eternity with our God. To leave us with one last thought to think about, think of the 3rd and 4th verse from the hymn “Hallelujah, What a Savior.” “Guilty, vile, and helpless we; Spotless Lamb of God was He; “Full atonement!” can it be? Hallelujah! What a Savior! Lifted up was He to die; “It is finished!” was His cry; Now in Heav’n exalted high. Hallelujah! What a Savior!
