Romans 5: Saved from Hell

“Since we have now been justified by his blood, how much more shall we be saved from God’s wrath through him!” (Romans 5:9)

Wait a minute! What we’ve heard all week as we’ve been building our list from Romans 5 about all the good things that come with our salvation is how kind and loving and sacrificial our good God is. And he is all of those things. He loves us deeply and the sacrifice of Jesus in our place, for our sin, proves his love.

cross_350He’s also the God who would send us to hell forever in his wrath if we were not in Christ. That’s a tough concept for a lot of people square with their understanding of a good God. Part of the problem is that we undervalue sin. We think of it as a cold when it’s really a plague. We think of it as dynamite when it’s really a nuclear bomb. A God of justice must not let sin pass.

The other reason we discount hell is because we discount what it cost God to sacrifice his only Son. He provided payment for the plague and scorched-earth destruction of our sin by crushing the Son he loves in our place. And then we say, “How unfair of you, God, to allow only one path into heaven and away from hell!”

Let’s not miss how high these stakes are. We needed to be saved from eternal punishment in hell for our sin. And that’s what God gave us through Jesus.

Think: Are you tempted to be ashamed or embarrassed by Christian teaching about hell? Why do you think we’d mostly rather not talk about the reality of God’s wrath against sin?

Pray: Thank God for saving you from his own wrath through your faith in the blood of Jesus spilled for your sin.

Do: Add the next item to your list: 9) We are saved from hell.