"IN GOOD TIMES AND BAD WE EXALT IN THE CONFIDENCE WE HAVE IN GOD’S GLORY."

Singing: (Psalms and Hymns are from the "Book of Praise" Anglo Genevan Psalter)
Psalm 66:4,5
Psalm 119:27,29
Psalm 27:6
Hymn 27:1,4
Hymn 56:1,2,3,4

Beloved Congregation of our Lord Jesus Christ!

We spend a lot of our time and energy thinking about, puzzling about, talking about, praying about the difficulties we face day by day. Whether the problem relates to strained marriage, or contrary children, or legal proceedings against us, or friction with the boss, or false teaching in the bond of churches – the problems are persistently on our minds, and are there as a burden. It’s with these difficulties on our minds that we come to church, and as we set ourselves to hearing the Word of God this morning these problems remain on our minds, threaten even to take from us our concentration.

Now we read in our text that the apostle Paul and the Christians of Rome rejoiced "in hope of the glory of God." Though the text may be a bit dark to us, this much is crystal clear: Paul is not expressing a problem here. In fact, the way Paul writes this text leads us to conclude that Paul hasn’t got a problem in the world. The man’s rejoicing, the man’s exalting, the man’s glorying in the sure confidence he has of partaking in God’s glory. Not trouble in the church, not strife in the home, not tension at work dominate Paul’s mind, but he’s focused on the glory of God that’s set aside for him and exalts at the treasure laid up for him. And from that perspective of "rejoicing in hope of the glory of God" the apostle –of all things!- dares to say in vs 3 that he glories in tribulation! And we say: we’d give anything to exchange our problems for Paul’s pleasure….

Why is it, beloved, that Paul’s perspective is so different than ours? It is, congregation, because Paul worked with the material that we heard last week from God’s Word. He knows: if God is happy with him, if God accounts his faith as righteousness, then Yes, Paul can rejoice in hope of the glory of God. And we, my brothers and sisters, can too – even in the midst of the trials and troubles that characterise this broken life.

In the midst of our trials I proclaim to you today the Word of our God. I summarise the sermon with this theme:

1. The words of our text describe the second ‘fruit’ of all that Paul has written in the first 4 chapters of his letter to the Romans. Notice how he starts chap 5: "Therefore," he says, "having been justified by faith." Those words capture in a nutshell the material to which we could listen last week: God has given His Son to pay for the sins of His own, and the result is that those persons-for-whom-Christ-died are accepted by God to be His children, are righteous before Him, blessed, His; God is happy with these persons. This is the gospel of free grace that God sets before sinners, and, since God is God, there is only one proper way to respond to this word of free grace, namely, by accepting it, embracing it for truth and fact, and so entrusting oneself to this God. Such a response is faith. It’s the material we heard last week.

In chap 5, now, Paul draws out two very practical and down-to-earth consequences of this gospel. The first of these consequences is recorded in the second half of vs 1 and the first half of vs 2: "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." The second of these consequences is our text: we "rejoice in hope of the glory of God". Yet the two are not two separate consequences, the one unconnected to the other; rather, the first forms the basis for the second. It is because we now have peace with God that we also "rejoice in hope of the glory of God." That is why, in our first point this morning, I first need to show you the gospel causing Paul’s rejoicing. In this first point, then, I need to explain vs 1 and the first part of vs 2.

"We have peace with God," writes Paul to the saints of Rome. The term ‘peace’ prompts us to think of an absence of war, an absence of strife and friction. The ‘peace’ of which the apostle speaks, though, is the peace described in the Old Testament. That is: it’s not in first instance an absence of war or strife between people; the term ‘peace’ describes the relation between a sinner and God. Remember that after the fall into sin the Lord sent Adam and Eve out of Paradise; there was hostility between God and man so that men could not be in His presence. But when the Lord established His covenant with Israel at Mt Sinai and gave His instructions about the sacrifices in the tabernacle, He made plain to His people that they were welcome into His presence again. That is: instead of being consumed by His anger, these sinners-in-Israel could freely come before God with their sacrifices and their prayers, and God would accept them. So Aaron the high-priest had to lay God’s blessing on the people, and did so with these words: "The Lord lift up His countenance upon you, and give you peace" (Num 6:26). Sins were forgiven, there was no anger from God any more upon the people; instead there was blessing, peace, reconciliation. In the words of last Sunday: God was happy with His people, and His happiness with His own was demonstrated by His care for them – peace.

Now Paul has written in Romans 3 & 4 about the fulfilment of these Old Testament sacrifices in the work of Jesus Christ. The result of Christ’s work is that we "have been justified by faith." Well now, if that’s the case, a consequence follows. The consequence is: "we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ." That is: there is nothing left of the anger of God on our sins, there is no reason why God would withhold His blessings; instead, there is an open and warm relation between God and those justified by Jesus’ blood. God’s face shines upon His own, He is happy with them, and displays that happiness by blessings – peace.

And notice: when Paul speaks here about "peace with God" he does not speak of a wish or of future condition. He speaks of a present reality. It’s his emphasis: given the work that Christ has accomplished –it’s described in chaps 3 & 4- we in fact today "have" peace with God.

Just how real this peace is between the justified sinner and God is drawn out by the material of vs 2. For Paul adds that through Christ "we also have access by faith into this grace in which we stand." The point here is that through Christ’s atoning sacrifice we have free access into God’s presence; God’s people can freely come, without hindrance, into the holy chambers of God Most High and for Jesus’ sake freely speak to the God Who gave His Son to atone for our sins. Here is the restoration of the damage done by the fall into sin; whereas Adam and Eve were exiled from God’s presence, we for Jesus’ sake are welcome into God’s presence!

Nor is it so that we may come into God’s presence only from time to time. For the apostle adds that "we stand" in this grace, ie, in the presence of God. And with the words "we stand" the apostle again describes a present and ongoing reality. The work of Christ for us on the cross has not gained us an occasional entrance into the palace of the King; no, His work has made the courts of the Lord a home for us. Always may we be in the presence of the God of gods and King of kings. Truly, this is peace with God, is a warm, yes, a glowing relation! It is as Paul wrote at the end of Rom 8: nothing can separate us from the love of God in Jesus Christ our Lord (vss 38f).

But if "we have peace with God", yes, so much so that "we have access" into His gracious presence all the time, then, beloved, we see before us –is it not?- "the glory of God." For is the glory of God not this that He –God Most High, three times Holy!- that He Himself opens the way for creatures, sinners, to live in His presence?? Is it not of this marvellous act of God’s grace that the angels forever sing, and is it not this marvellous act of God that moves the church of all ages to burst into song?? The glory of God: it’s the fact that He in grace embraces the wretches who once rejected Him!

This wonderful glory of God: this it is that prompts Paul to "rejoice", to "exalt". That sinners can actually "have peace with God", can have such peace that sinners may freely come into God’s presence, yes, may live in God’s presence: beloved, with such a gospel it’s no wonder that Paul is beside himself with joy! In truth, such a gospel, this wonderful glory of God cannot, cannot leave anybody cold! Such glory: invariably it touches the emotions of those who have this peace; it cannot but touch their emotions! That’s why in our text Paul uses the second person plural pronoun: "we rejoice". His own emotions bubble over with joy on account of God’s glory, and he’s sure the emotions of the brethren at Rome to whom he writes bubble over also on account of this same glorious gospel, and so Paul puts into words what the redeemed invariably experience: "we rejoice", "we exalt", "we boast". In the face of such a glorious gospel, surely, it’s the only fitting response: "rejoice", "exalt", "glory" in God’s boundless mercy.

Now, at this point I need to introduce a little problem in relation to the translation. Paul uses in our text the Greek word for ‘hope’, and so it’s translated for us as ‘hope’. The problem is that we hear in the word "hope" a measure of doubt, of uncertainty – as in: ‘we hope tomorrow the weather will be nice.’ But the term ‘hope’ in the days of Paul did not have that nuance of doubt, of uncertainty. In the days of Paul the term ‘hope’ conveyed the notion of full confidence. When Paul says in our text, then, that he "rejoices in hope of the glory of God" he tells us that his exalting is rooted in the unwavering confidence he has about the glory of God. It’s the same notion as is captured in the words "we have peace with God" – here is no doubt but rather a present and glorious reality. It’s the same notion as is captured also in the words of vs 2a: "we have access by faith into this grace in which we stand." We stand in this grace, we don’t hope one day to stand in it. Let no one, then, hear Paul to say in our text that he is a bit uncertain about that glory of God, uncertain about whether the gospel of God’s grace is really true or really true for Paul. No, with the word ‘hope’ the apostle expresses the confidence that must follow every word God has spoken. If God has spoken about accounting one’s faith to him as righteousness, if God says that He is happy with all who believe in Him, then the Christian can be fully confident that he shall one day see in full what today he doesn’t yet see but does believe. And that’s what Paul does: he knows what glorious deeds this God has done for him, knows the blessed results as they are already (he has "peace with God") and that’s why he rejoices, exalts is joyfully confident that the full richness of God’s glory are his today – and tomorrow he’ll see it with the naked eye.

Paul, then, rejoices in the full confidence that belongs to the glorious grace of God in Jesus Christ. And he’s sure that the saints of Rome exalt also; such a gospel –Paul knows it- cannot leave cold the person with whom God is happy. So then: here is every reason for us also to rejoice in hope of the glory of God, to exalt – because God is happy with us.

Last week I asked you whether God indeed was happy with you? I can rephrase that question today within the categories of our chapter, like this: do you have peace with God, that is, do you stand in the presence of God? Where the answer to that question is ‘Yes, I have peace with God, I stand in the presence of God’, there certainly is place for rejoicing. In fact, then one cannot but rejoice! That’s the punch of the text: because we’ve been justified by faith, and have peace with God and stand in His courts, we definitely rejoice, exalt in hope of the glory of God. This gospel cannot leave us cold.

Now, there is a trend today which says that every true Christian in fact does rejoice always. In fact, if you’re not rejoicing in God’s gifts you’re missing something, and so not the Christian you should be. The problem with this thought is that your certainty of faith and happiness in God is then rooted in your feelings. As in: my sense of rejoicing confirms that I have peace with God, that God is happy with me. And the flip side is: my sense of being sad and downhearted surely can only mean that I don’t have peace with God, that God is not happy with me….

Let it be clear, then, my beloved, that while rejoicing "in hope of the glory of God" certainly ought to characterise the believer, in the brokenness of this life rejoicing in fact does not always characterise the believer. This is a reality the fathers echoed in the Canons of Dort, where they spoke of certainty of faith and assurance of persevering as being "according to the measure of [one’s] faith" (V.9). And elsewhere they wrote what they learned from Scripture: "believers in this life have to struggle with various doubts of the flesh…" (V.11). To say it with the words of LD 44: even in the matter of rejoicing we "have only a small beginning of [the] obedience" God requires of us. Rejoicing should be there, there is every reason for those with whom God is happy to rejoice, to exalt. But you can’t build towers on your emotions, can’t build towers on the presence or absence of your experience of joy. Towers of certainty can be built only on the word God has spoken to you in your baptism and repeated to you in the preaching over the years, that Word that God gave Christ for you. Your response to such a glorious promise determines whether God is happy with you, determines then also whether you can rejoice or not.

2. I move on to our second point, the threat opposing this rejoicing. For we’ve got a real problem with Paul’s words, and it’s this: is it realistic to exalt – when your marriage is on the rocks? Is it realistic to rejoice – when a prison sentence hangs over your head? Is it realistic to exalt – when you’ve been diagnosed with cancer?

It is, beloved, as if the apostle expected precisely this reply from his readers in Rome. For he brings up the topic of tribulations, and by that word does not draw our attention to persecution as such (though that too); no, he means the very real problems of this life, the burdens we all cope with day by day – the strained marriage, the disobedient child, the stretched budget, the broken washing machine, the cancer verdict, the sore back. Such like difficulties, and so many more, eat at us and become opportunities for Satan to sow in our hearts thoughts of dissatisfaction and distrust of the God Who says we have peace with Him. What, now does Paul say about tribulations? Does Paul see them as a threat that hinders exalting in God’s justifying work in Jesus Christ? Would he have us think that tribulations give the lie to the fact that "we have peace with God"?

No, beloved, not at all. Listen: "… we also glory in tribulation." And we need to know: the word translated as ‘glory’ is the same word as appears in our text as ‘rejoice’. As the apostle ‘exalts’ in the hope of the glory of God, so he also ‘exalts’ in tribulation.

We find it odd. We for our part certainly don’t glory, don’t exalt in our tribulations. We find them downright a problem. Not so Paul; he rejoices in his tribulations. We wonder: why??

Paul explains. We know, he says, that "tribulation produces perseverance; and perseverance, character; and character, hope." That is to say: tribulation is in fact a school that moulds a person, that builds up a person’s ability to stick-to-it, his ability not to drop his bundle. Yet the perseverance that’s built up is not in the sense of ‘when the going gets tough, the tough get going’; the perseverance that’s built up is that notion echoed time and again the Old Testament, that notion of ‘waiting on the Lord’. The more one is tested, the more trials one undergoes, the more the child of God learns to wait on the Lord, to wait patiently for God to provide deliverance. And indeed, this God will supply deliverance – at His time and in His manner. Has He really sent His Son to atone for the sins that stood between us and God, has He really established peace between us and Him and given us access to His throne room – only to desert us in moments of tribulation??! Paul is insistent, beloved: this is not what your God is like! So tribulation can never be a problem in the loaded sense of the word. Rather, through tribulation God teaches you that He holds on to you always; "tribulation produces perseverance," tribulation is a tool in God’s hand to school His children in the art of waiting patiently on the God-Who-is-faithful-always.

This perseverance in turn, this ability-to-wait-on-the-Lord, produces (says our translation) "character". The term used describes what’s been tested in battle, tested by fire, and so denotes what’s hardened, what’s reliable. So: "proven character". Tested, battle hardened: that, says Paul, is the nature of the man who has suffered tribulation. In his difficulties he’s learned that God has held on to him, he’s withstood the temptations to disown the God who gave His Son for him, and now he’s the better for it; he’s tested, battle hardened.. Such a person, proven and battled hardened, is not dismayed when more tribulations come his way; such a person hopes, hopes always in the God who in Christ is happy with him. No, he doesn’t ‘hope’ in the sense of ‘I hope things will turn out’; rather, as with the word ‘hope’ in our text, this battled hardened, tested character is confident, unwavering in his trust in God. He knows that he has peace with God, that he has free access to the courts of this God, he rejoices "in the hope of God’s glory", and so knows that no tribulation can separate him from God’s love. Instead, tribulation spells out the more clearly how much God holds on to him.

Is tribulation a challenge, a threat to rejoicing, to exalting in the hope of sharing God’s glory? No, beloved, no! We may find tribulations a nuisance, a problem in the full sense of the word. We don’t appreciate the strife of this mortal life, and the struggles we face get us down, prompt us to question where God’s goodness, God’s nearness might be. But Paul doesn’t struggle like that. He glories in tribulations –why?- because he knows that through tribulation God is at work in His own, at work making children of faith into men of faith. So, for those with whom God is happy, the result of tribulation can ultimately only be greater hope in God, more confidence in the God in Whom we now rejoice.

And again, beloved, if not even tribulation was reason for Paul to give up rejoicing –after all, he has peace with God and even tribulation can’t break God’s love for him- do you think that tribulation is adequate reason for us to give up rejoicing?? Make no mistake: God is happy with all who respond fittingly to His promise of redemption in Jesus Christ. Well then, there’s no different between Paul long ago and us today; we too may rejoice in hope of the glory of God, and not even tribulation is adequate reason to quit rejoicing! Instead, no matter our circumstances, "we glory in tribulations, knowing that tribulation produces perseverance, and perseverance produces proven character, and proven character produces hope." And that hope … never, ever disappoints!

3. That’s our last point: the certainty that strengthens this rejoicing. Given God’s gracious, free work in Jesus Christ, the confidence the Christian has can never, ever be put to shame. God in Christ has restored peace between Himself and His child, and so opened the way for the child of God to come into the presence of God in prayer. If that’s what God has done, there cannot, cannot be a tribulation so severe that we lose peace with God, a tribulation so severe that He closes the door in our face to His presence, that He takes away cause to rejoice in hope of His glory. It’s Paul’s apostolic emphasis: "the love of God has been poured out in our hearts by the Holy Spirit who was given to us."

His argument is this: if God’s love for His own is so great that He gave His Son to die for the ungodly, if His love is so great that reconciled enemies to Himself through the death of His Son, if He has even poured out His love for sinners into our sinful hearts so that we can "rejoice in hope of the glory of God," then we have a certainty that’s forever unshakeable: God most definitely will hold on to us in every circumstance, until we come to the day when we see the fullness of God’s salvation face to face. What we hope for we can be certain to see. Talk about confidence, the hope of the Christian.

Shall we, then, beloved, doubt God’s love? Shall we waver in our confidence of seeing the splendour of what the Lord has done for us? Shall we doubt whether actually have peace with God, doubt whether we really have access into God’s presence? Shall we despair of God, and so give up on rejoicing? No, beloved, NO! The apostle is so very sure of His God, so very sure that if God is happy with him –and we heard all about that last week- there is every reason always to "rejoice in hope of the glory of God". In riches and poverty, in good days and bad, in health and sickness there is always, always cause to exalt in the sure confidence that the glory of God is prepared even for us!

Today, beloved, we possess already the fullness of the riches of God’s redemption. The only thing is: we don’t see it yet with our naked eye. That’s a privilege God has left for another day. And that day comes soon, very soon; any day the Lord will return, in glory, on the clouds of heaven, and we shall be welcomed into the courts of God Himself, Yes, and we shall live with Him in the New Jerusalem – in peace sublime, forever. Meanwhile, in the tears of this life, "we rejoice in hope of the glory of God." Amen.