 Romans chapter five beginning at verse one reading to verse five Paul writes therefore having been justified by faith We have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ through whom also We have access by faith into this grace in which we stand and rejoice in Hope of the glory of God and not only that But we also glory in tribulations knowing that tribulation produces perseverance Perseverance character and character hope Now hope does not disappoint because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us and So Paul is at this point in Romans here in what we call chapter five He is outlining the benefits of being saved the benefits of salvation Now in chapter four those of you who were with us in chapter four We saw that Paul was writing to this church the church in Rome about the doctrine of Justification I mentioned to you that as we looked at that that the term justification is Is really a word that was during the time of Paul used in a judicial sense It had it was in it was in relation to to crimes and penalties and things that related to that And so what he was doing as he was speaking concerning Justification as he was teaching the church how God makes a sinner into a Christian and a Christian righteous So justification is God declaring a sinner and I mentioned this to you to be totally free of the guilt of sin So it's through justification that God completely forgives us of our sin He had said in chapter 3 verse 24 being justified freely by his grace Through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus So when we're justified, I mentioned to you something is removed Well, that would be the penalty of sin that would be judgment But not only that something is received So something is removed and that's the penalty something is received and that's forgiveness So through justification God completely as mentioned a moment ago forgives sin The Old Testament book of Isaiah 43 25. He said it like this God said I even I am he who blots out your transgressions for my own sake and remembers your sins no more Isaiah 55 verse 7 let the wicked forsake their ways and the unrighteous their thoughts Let them turn to the Lord and he will have mercy on them and to our God For he will freely pardon and so Paul has been speaking about that and now he's going to give us insight Into the life we now have in Jesus Christ and so he begins in verse 1 and he says having been justified By faith we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ The immediate result of being justified is reconciliation with God I've shared this with you all share some more in a moment, but We at one time were in opposition. We are his enemies But we have been reconciled these two warring parties have now come to peace with one another So we were at one time at war with God and God was angry at us In Romans chapter 8 we'll get there in about six months in Romans chapter 8 verse 7 It says the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God For does it does not subject itself to the law of God for it is not even able to do so So our thoughts are not his thoughts our ways are not his ways when he says he desires and commands We say no, I don't care and so that's the point. We were in opposition. We are hostile towards him But when we believe the gospel the work that we had with our God came to an end and His message is that which gives us the terms of peace. It's called the gospel and it calls for Unconditional surrender, so when we yielded and repented and sought his mercy God forgave us So we're no longer at war with him. We're in a state of peace with him We're reconciled to him in Acts 10 36 It reads you know the message God sent to the people of Israel Announcing the good news of peace through Jesus Christ who is Lord of all and so when you gave your heart to Christ You are now at peace with God. The war is over. You've surrendered. He is your God You're his servant and now we have peace with him and that results in a present tense sense of assurance in First John 4 17 and 18 love has been perfected among us in this that we may have boldness that word boldness means a confident Assurance that we may have boldness in the day of judgment because as he is as he is righteous So are we in this world? There is no fear in in love perfect love casts out fear Because fear involves torment he who fears has not been made perfect in love When you gave your heart to Christ and the war is over We're at peace with God. We receive peace from God. We no longer have fear of judgment Perfect love casts out fear because fear has torment So this thought that oh, I hope I can be right with God. I hope I can go to heaven And there are some who actually still carry that within them today's society is a bit different than the generation I grew up in the generation I grew up in When I said to somebody when I first got saved I'm going to go to heaven. The immediate response that they gave was you're not that good So there was a time when people actually knew you had to have a certain kind of life So when I said I'm going to heaven and I was a brand-new Christian maybe three weeks old in the Lord And I said I'm going to heaven to me that was like oh It still is it's amazing, but my friends immediately said that we know you you're not that good If there's such a place as hell, it's got a room reserved for you that kind of thing But I didn't I'm not going to heaven based on my righteousness I'm going to heaven based on his and that's what that's what Paul is teaching. He's saying you've been justified It's not by works of righteousness, which we've done It's according to his mercy. He saved us by the washing of regeneration by the renewing of the Holy Spirit It's a work that God did and see that's the point that's being made here And so when John was speaking about it, he said that we can have confident assurance in the day of judgment when you stand before the Lord in other words You can know that he's going to welcome you in because you've gotten right with him He's righteous and he's making us righteous here. And so there's no fear in love because Fear is the opposite of love We have said this recently, but I used to say what's the opposite of Love and people would say hate. No the opposite of love is fear Because perfect love casts out fear Because fear has torment That's what causes people to have such anxiety because every day they grow older They're one more step closer to death. I know that's a bummer to hear on this beautiful Wednesday night But it's true The longer you live the closer you are to die. We know that From the moment we were conceived we began to die. We just weren't aware of it yet And as you grow older you become more and more aware of it every time you get up in the morning And you kind of try and get you know, you're dying and that's a fact So our bodies tell us that even if our mind resists the idea So that's the piece that every person longs for and it only comes from surrender I believe it was Spurgeon who said if any man is not sure that he is in Christ He ought not to be easy One moment until he's sure Dear friend without the fullest confidence as to your saved condition You have no right to be at ease and I pray you may never be so This is a matter too important to be left undecided I hope that you never take your ease and think everything smooth because the fact is it's not You're moving one step closer to judgment and until you commit your heart to christ You'll never have peace. You'll only be seeking for it But you'll never obtain it until it's received by faith through christ And so he's speaking concerning this in verse one. We have peace with god through our lord jesus christ verse two Through whom also we have access by faith Into this grace in which we stand and rejoice in hope of the glory of god And so We now have access by faith that word access is acceptance We have acceptance by faith through jesus christ I am the way the truth in life. No man comes to the father But by me and so we have access by faith To to a relationship with god and entrance into heaven You see before christ people could not have direct access to god because their sin made a separation But when jesus died he tore the veil in the temple and now access Is ours the sin that once separated us from god has been completely wiped away That's why hebrus 416 is so beautiful. Let us therefore come boldly unto the throne of grace that we may obtain mercy And find grace to help in time of need We can with confidence now come before the lord Why because he made it possible for us through jesus. That's what paul's talking about Now notice in verse two how he says the result of standing in grace is rejoicing in hope The word rejoicing Exalting It speaks of a jubilance a great excitement. We're excited Because we know god We're excited Because we have a relationship with the god of the universe And I still remember again the early days. I don't know that that this has ever really left me But I do remember when uh when I first was saved I do remember the joy of salvation I do remember that that after praying with the evangelist mandate by the name of arthur blessed How that There was like a weight rolled off my shoulders. I don't know another way to put it Is it like there was a burden that was now lifted And and my spirit was set free that there was a joy And that's when I came home and that's when I went across the street to speak to some neighbors To tell them I had committed my heart to christ the first people I went to speak to and to witness to I was maybe three hours old in jesus Was some neighbors who lived across the street So I went across the street And I told the mother because The kids that I hung around with weren't home I was supposed to get high with them that day. They had received a kilo from from thailand And I was going to be celebrating christmas two days later, you know from christmas is december 27 and I went in and I told them I said I gave my heart to jesus christ today And uh, the mom I'm the mom knew I was a pothead. She knew that because her son was too All her kids were She may have been but anyway, she I I was going to say something. I won't Then I went home And I walked into the The den and all of you who've heard my testimony know this I I stood at the at the entrance to the den The door my mom dad two sisters watching tv and they stood there mom dad madeline becky I love you praise the lord and uh My sister madeline came I spoke to her about what happened. She gave her heart to christ That night whatever you did for my brother. She said please do for me And so my sister got saved And shortly after a couple years I went into the military came out She led my girlfriend. Well, who wasn't even my girlfriend yet? She led marita christ And uh, the rest is history with that The joy of salvation The joy of salvation It gives you such peace and it gives you such assurance and that's what paul is speaking about here And he's saying that we rejoice it it carries the connotation of actually Actually boasting in our confidence of our future We know we're going to go to heaven not based on anything we've done But because of him and we're going to share in the glory of god when jesus rules and reigns In and john 17 jesus was praying they call it his high priestly prayer in john 17 and And as he was praying he spoke to his father and he said the glory which you gave me I have given them So throughout eternity, we're going to share in joy and love and peace and holiness Now one day when we are glorified We will receive and display the glory of god Here's a scripture you might like philippians 3 verses 20 and 21 actually 2 Our citizenship is in heaven We eagerly await a savior from there the lord jesus christ who by the power that enables him to subject all things to himself Will transform our lowly bodies to be like his glorious body So take a look at your body right now. It's going to be nicer someday No more diets and no more working out and no more wearing black Instead right john in second In second Corinthians 3 18 we all with open face beholding as in a glass the glory of the lord Are changed into the same image from glory To glory even as by the spirit of lord And so he's glorifying us and that causes us joy and one day we're going to see that And that'll be a blessing now as he speaks in that way verse 3 not only that But we also glory in tribulation Knowing that tribulation produces perseverance perseverance character character hope Now hope does not disappoint Because the love of god has been poured out in our hearts by the holy spirit who was given to us We know the future and because our eyes are set on that which is yet to come our future We can glory in the difficulties that we experience as we await that time of being with him So we can glory he says in tribulation now that word tribulations Is a word that can also be translated pressure or distress Obviously i'll say this briefly, but we all know this Just because i'm a christian doesn't mean i'm exempt from suffering I uh, oh i had hope so i really did when i first got saved i said oh it's going to be an everyday happy day And it was for two weeks It was for years then i got married you know so So believers We're not exempt from suffering Now there have been doctrines that have come out within the last several years many of you have heard of them I don't want to go into them, but i will say that they basically have taught that every day is a great day Because every day you get healthier and every day you get wealthier There's a guarantee against every getting sick etc etc etc that doctrine is still going around But the bible doesn't teach that The bible says i can glory in the tribulations i can grow through the afflictions And that's how strength usually comes isn't it? That's how strength of character is formed through the crucible of of affliction That's where your faith is formed when you're facing an opposition. You're standing at a red sea And there's the pharaoh's army behind you and there's a sea in front of you And there's no way to get across it and then the lord opens it and shows you that he is going before you And and though we may not ever stand before and i pray to god i never never input to that challenge, but We may never go through a red sea experience Where the waters have to part Still we know that were we in that place our god is able to make a way of escape We know that and so we can actually rejoice and glory and the things that we go through the distresses and the pressures In psalm 3419 many are the afflictions of the righteous But the lord delivers him out of them all And we learned that so these are used to refine our faith and they form our character Jesus in matthew 10 25 said it is enough for the disciple That he be as his master and the servant as his lord So if they've called the master of the house to be alzebub the prince of flies a devil How much more shall they call them of his household if they called jesus names? Why would i expect that the world wouldn't speak of me in that way too? In john 16 33 jesus said it like this. He said these things i've spoken to you That in me you may have peace in the world you will have tribulation But be of good cheer i have overcome the world So we glory he says we glory in tribulation Because we know that god uses them to refine us And we rejoice because hardships are evidence of faithful living Which is blessed and is rewarded Again in romans 8 18 paul said i consider that the sufferings of this present time Are not worthy to be compared with the glory Which shall be revealed In us I've had people in the past perhaps you've said this who have said When i get to heaven i've got some questions to ask god One No No Because then we shall know even as we are known There are no questions in heaven only answers And so i'm not gonna I'm not going to approach him and say you know back in January of 1958 How come i'm not going to do that? You know how could me did this and that's not there why because we have learned This is really an important lesson to learn that all things do work together for the good of those who love god to those Who are the called according to his purpose that that's a truth It doesn't look like listen if you're going through a bad time right now I don't know your bad time, but i know the god who is the god of the bad time and i know that god is able To not only use that to make you into but to make you into what you have been praying that you would be Because he uses those things sometimes to take from us the things that don't matter And replace them with the things that do Have you been praying god helped me to love somebody? And then you discover that That's very hard to do because he brings somebody into your life That is difficult to love And you have to call him Husband no, I mean Have you discovered that God give us children Come quickly lord jesus But have you discovered have you discovered that the things you go through Are the stepping stones to the place you want to be? Have you discovered that? Because it's true I don't know how he's going to do it, but i've asked him to do something in my life But sometimes he'll do it in a way that I didn't expect I thought it would be a safer or easier journey And it turns out it wasn't But the end is greatly satisfying And so he'll bring us through those things and so we develop a a contented heart a A resigned because we know god is in control even a joyful heart And so perseverance Tribulation produces this And a second it's a rather Secondly perseverance forges character Now character when it uses the word character That speaks of a character that has been tested or proven It speaks of a character that has been revealed under fire Like a joseph in the old testament Who was uh, who was the servant of a man named potifer? And the scripture speaks of him being a very handsome man And potifer's wife made overtures To seduce him come lie with me. She said to him And he said how shall I sin against my master? I can't do such thing and and we know the story of how he ran out of the room and she grabbed hold of his His garment he was wearing and it came off in her hand and she accused him of rape and he was put into prison for many years unjustly He didn't attempt to do that. She lied And uh, he was put away and yet the end of that Was that he became second in command in the greatest nation at that time on the face of the earth, egypt So what didn't appear to be something that would turn out to be good actually Taught him great lessons. It actually forged his character In first peter 1 7 it says the trial of your faith being much more precious than of gold that perishes Though it be tried with fire Might be found into praise and honor and glory at the appearing of jesus christ So he's refining us in producing character in us a proven character character leads to hope To hope in god So over time as you're going through these things you discover that god is faithful And you discover That he keeps his promises So i'm 95 91 15 says he will call on me and i will answer him i will be with him in trouble I will deliver him and honor him And so you go through things god makes a way of escape god purges you of certain things because the fire of a trial has a tendency of purging things from you that are unacceptable You come out refined like gold the image of god is stamped upon your character And as a result of that you have a hope that is deeper knowing that god is able to do those things To not only to deliver you but to develop you He goes on in verse 5 and he says now hope does not disappoint Because the love of god has been poured out in our hearts by the holy spirit who was given to us So hope doesn't disappoint the word hope Again, it means to have a confident expectation or a trust Hope is the result of grace And and hope actually increases over time And he says hope does not disappoint hope does not disgrace hope will not make you ashamed Somebody said a hope not based on the stability of god's promises leads to shame Because the hope was placed in that which could not produce But when your hope is in god and god doesn't disappoint god is able to do abundantly above all we could ask or think now When i was a young person in faith perhaps when we Have been young in our faith I know i said this i i said I i want to know what i believe i want to know what i believe So as a young christian i started buying books um Not many but i bought books here and there And i started reading because i wanted to know Doctrine i wanted to know What is the essential christian faith? What what is doctrine? So over time i began to become more and more confident That i knew what i believed and i think it's very important That's where we're in bible study right now To know what we believe So that we look at the word of god and we can see how paul is writing I do my best to explain what that means and so we we come to a point of knowing what we believe But there's something else When we mature in faith We not only say i know what i believe But what happens is you begin to say i know whom i have believed It's not just information It's a person It's not just information about that person It's a relationship with that person and that's different In second timothy 112 paul said it like this he said for this reason i also suffer these things Nevertheless i'm not ashamed For i know whom i have believed And i'm persuaded that he is able to keep what i have committed to him until that day It's not simply that i know what i believe But i know the one who taught me those things It's not that i just can say i know certain things about You now can say i know him that's that's what we mean when we talk about That that phrase having a personal relationship with christ. That's what we mean by that You know there there have been people over the years I remember again when i was a younger christian People would say oh these these these people are calling themselves jesus freaks these christians You know they they say they have a personal relationship with christ and i still remember Somebody on tv saying yeah, they've got a dating relationship with jesus. They mocked us Because we would use the term of knowing god personally Because it's not just the information that saves you It's the information It's information that is assimilated it's information that's taken in It's the information that's taken in assimilation That produces a transformation So we came to know the lord not just things about him But we came to know him We came to have a relationship with him But that's why that's why when you give your testimony There are times that perhaps if you do Your heart sometimes gets overwhelmed It's just like you start thinking Nobody knows your testimony except you and god we know that There's the open testimony We say can you give your testimony and the lady's saying we're at a men's conference and you come up and you give your open testimony and We sit there and I just go wow Wow man you were wow I don't trust you anymore. No we We hear these things right But you know when you're giving the testimony you're not giving your complete testimony You're only giving the things acceptable to say at that moment to those people. That's what you're doing You're not giving your full testimony You're giving a part of it and you're giving some of it that is acceptable in a mixed group But you've never given your whole testimony Only god and you know what that one is And so when you have that relationship with the lord, then you know My god has loved me and he knows everything About me and he still loves me and that gives you an incredible Incredible hope in god It's established on the grace of god In psalm 71 verse 5 You oh lord are my hope My trust oh lord from my youth So the way that we live Is evidence that our hope and trust Is in god All of us have at one time said oh, I believe in the lord and you lived as if he didn't exist There are those that they refer to some in that way Those who live that way they call them practical atheists Meaning that though they may claim to have a knowledge of god Practically they live as if there is no god And there are quite a number of people especially here in the united states Any place where the gospel has gone out and many people have responded in one form or another But the genuine believer is someone whose hope is resting in god because of relationship With him And so since our hope is in god verse 5, it doesn't disappoint. It doesn't deceive us Why we have experienced the love of god He said hope does not disappoint because the love of god has been poured out in our hearts By the holy spirit who was given to us God's love has been poured out by the spirit Galatians 4 verse 6 says because you are his sons God sent the spirit of his son into your hearts the spirit who calls out abba father That's a word that's really more tender than the simple word father though father is a tender word The word abba is closer to daddy It's a tender word and when the spirit of the lord has entered into our life It changes this sense that there's a distant one who has now become close to me like a daddy is to a child In romans 8 16 the spirit himself testifies with our spirit. We are god's children So hope doesn't disappoint when he says hope does not disappoint. It hope does not produce shame Why while god loves us The shame of disappointment never results from our having hope isaia 12 verse 12 The writer isaia says behold god is my salvation I will trust and and will not be afraid For the lord god is my strength and my song and he has become my salvation And so he wants to develop this with us further when he says in verse 6 For when we were still without strength In due time christ died for the ungodly For scarcely for a righteous man will one die Yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die But god demonstrates his own love toward us In that while we were still sinners christ died for us Much more than having now been justified by his blood We shall be saved from wrath through him For if when we were enemies we were reconciled to god through the death of his son Much more having been reconciled We shall be saved by his life And not only that but we also rejoice in god Through our lord jesus christ through whom we have now received the reconciliation So look at how he's putting this down verse 6 We were still without strength but in due time christ died We were without strength that means we're powerless We were powerless to save ourselves We were powerless to be able to please him in any way When we looked at Ephesians recently in chapter 2 verses 1 through 3 Paul said it like this He said you he made alive who were dead In trespasses and sins in which you once walked according to the course of this world According to the prince of the power of the air The spirit who now works in the sons of disobedience Among whom also we all once conducted ourselves in the lusts of our flesh Fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind and were by nature Children of wrath just as the others Oh, so we were without strength There's not a single thing we could do to save ourselves Nothing We were locked into a room with no door no window no escape We're incapable of saving ourselves. We need to understand that Because sometimes we have residue within us Oh, I I could no you could never save yourself. That's the whole point of salvation Because I was incapable of it. I was locked into sin. I walked in darkness. That was my nature I needed salvation But what did God do verse six? He said in due time in the appointed time He says Christ died for the ungodly Christ died for the wicked In Galatians 4 verse 4 it says when the set time had come God sent his son born of a woman born under the law For scarcely verse 7 For a righteous man will one die yet perhaps for a good man someone would even dare to die So scarcely for a righteous man. What is a righteous man according to the way that they would Consider righteousness during the day of paul A righteous man would be a an openly devout or a very religious man. That's a righteous man a religious person When he speaks of a good man a good man is what we today would simply say that's a good guy So for a righteous man or for a good man now, obviously the world needs more of these So perhaps You might die for him If somebody has a need for an organ and you have that organ I rather doubt that I would do this, but let's pretend for a moment You have what they need Well, perhaps for a righteous man You dare to die The story is told of a A little girl who is in need of a a transfusion she was Going to have an operation And her blood type was so rare They couldn't locate a donor So as they normally do They tested the family And they discovered That her brother had the same rare blood type So they approached the little boy. He was just a little guy and Said to him honey Could you give some of your blood to your sister? And the little boy thought for a moment and then he said, okay, okay And so they took him to the room and they hooked him up and they were taken out A certain amount not not that much but a certain amount But as they were hooking him up he turned and looked at his mom and he says When does it happen? And the mama said when does what happen? And he said to her when do I die? Because he had made up his mind That he'd give all of his blood to his sister You know, isn't that sweet? Thank you. I made that up. No, um I know No, that's an old story But the point is well made No, honey, you're not giving all of your blood. You're not dying Well Scarcely for a righteous or a good person. Maybe you would Maybe you would maybe you would say World needs more of them and And I will one that's the point he's making right now Scarcely for a righteous man will one die even for a good man But god in verse eight demonstrates his own love toward us In that while we were still sinners Christ died for us So god demonstrates his own kind of love We were yet sinners he says the word sinner speaks of someone who's detestable or depraved. That's the word there We were slaves to sin. We were under its power living in guilt He's saying awaiting righteous judgment But god exhibited his own kind of love for us and he revealed that he showed it on the cross In first John 4 9 and 10, this is how god showed his love among us He sent his one and only son into the world that we might live through him This is love Not that we loved god But that he loved us And sent his son as an atoning sacrifice For our sins He goes on in verse nine to say much more than having now been justified by his blood We shall be saved from wrath Through him We've been saved from wrath that is revealed in the final judgment In john 3 36 Jesus said It reads whoever believes in the sun has eternal life But whoever rejects the sun will not see life for god's wrath remains on him In 1st Thessalonians 5 verse 9 god did not appoint us to suffer wrath But to receive salvation to our lord jesus christ So we've been justified by his blood through his sacrifice and then again in verse 10 If when we were enemies we were reconciled to god Through the death of his son much more having been reconciled we shall be saved by his life And not only that But we also rejoice in god through our lord jesus christ through whom we have now received the reconciliation So we'll look at this we were enemies The enemy the word enemy means to be hateful it speaks of being an adversary It speaks of being hostile So paul is selecting certain words and we'll look at them for just a moment as we're going to close in a second But paul is using certain words To magnify The amazing grace of god Look at how he describes People without the lord He speaks of them as being without strength. They're incapable of saving themselves He speaks of them as being ungodly, which is again the word wicked He speaks of them as being sinners, which are depraved. He speaks of them as being enemies Who are his adversaries? We are without strength. We are ungodly We are sinners and we are god's enemies So those who say oh no, I I love god and I you know, I'm a spiritual person That's a that's a pretty popular word. It became popularized a while back now, but That's how many americans describe themselves instead of referring to themselves as as a religious Person like a christian or a jewish or muslim or for whatever whatever. They'll just say i'm spiritual It's that word that kind of uh, just connotes this i believe in another I believe in a god of some sort or some power or some higher power whatever But the bible says that no that We are we have all sinned And we have all fallen short of god's glory That there's none righteous. He says no not one That that we have certain characteristics. This is what describes an unbeliever We're unable to save ourselves that we're incapable of doing that. We we we are ungodly We act as if god doesn't exist and thus we live a wicked life. We we are sinners We're depraved. We we do one thing and and then we get used to it and the shock is is is over And then we'll go even further think of that for a moment in a practical way And I don't want you to go back there too deeply But the first time you did something it probably violated your conscience You knew it was wrong and it may have even caused a bit of a pain in your heart for doing it Whatever it may have been You know you should have done it But you did it And then when you did it You were shocked that you could But the next time it was a little easier And the next time it was even easier And after a while it just became you It became your habit So at one time what shocked you You became callous too later on The first time you were exposed to it it bothered you But later on it became your habit That's what sin does Sin does that you know that and I know that You violate your conscience It becomes a little bit scarred And callousness takes place And and before you know it you have no more shame As a matter of fact you'll collect some people just like you And you'll have a group of people you hang around with You all agree that this is okay And it becomes the okay amongst you And then anybody who says they don't agree Where they're judging you And so what's the word they use today that so they cancel you You just That's what happens we see that the happenings may have happened to you First time I smoked a cigarette I smoked a camel And it tasted like one Unfiltered First time I took you know, I drank whiskey Some of you have never had anything like that bless god But the first time I did I mean took your breath away But if you work at it for a while It becomes your habit It becomes your habit it becomes who you are And when you begin to play with sin It becomes What you're known for And before you know it your friends will refer to you in that way because they know you as that When I first got saved My friend Bill said to me I know you're saved So how can you know I'm saved? You know Because it was like three weeks into it. How do you know I'm saved? Dave you're saved How do you know I'm saved bill? He says you don't cuss anymore Because I had a filthy filthy mouth I used to invent words string together Just to shock people that's the truth. I really did I had a coach in high school who said that I was the filthiest mouth kid he'd ever heard And I lived up to it And when he was around I would string words together just to make that old man blush I was 16 years old 17 he was an old man. He had to be 40 So you live up to that right you live up to the reputation you live up to what people are saying you are And you want to shock them it becomes you And so what happens is you become callous and and conviction You don't even you don't even sense shame anymore. That's what that's what we rely We were enemies of god And god's word said I love you and you say there's no god god says I can save you from what that was our attitude That's why he takes the holy spirit To convict us of sin and righteousness and judgment You see those who argue that man is good by nature um Well god would differ with that Men are powerless men are wicked. He says they're depraved and they're his enemies And if god didn't send his son We all would receive the judgment that we deserve But he says we've been reconciled through the death of jesus christ In john 12 32 and 33 jesus said but I when I'm lifted up from the earth will draw all men to myself And he said this to show the kind of death that he was going to die So by his death he ransomed us He redeemed as he purchased us by his blood So colossians 114 tells us in jesus we have redemption through his blood The forgiveness of sins. So why rejoice in god through jesus? Because through him we've been reconciled to god And through him we have his peace We're saved from his wrath By the gift of his son Somebody said this and I love this the cross Is the only ladder High enough to touch the threshold of heaven That's how we got saved God so loved us He gave us his son I you we who were at war with him Have heard his terms of peace. We have unconditionally surrendered We are righteous by him declaring us to be so imputing to us that which belongs to him Which we don't deserve And he's given us joy unspeakable And a hope and even though we go through affliction and we do It produces in us the qualities and character traits The fruit of god's work That we greatly desire why because as we go through the valley We discover that we can we don't have to fear any evil. Why because he's with us And we can turn around because there are other people who are also walking through that kind of valley And we can say He's with us Follow me as I follow him And we can walk together into the glory that god is prepared for us because of jesus christ