Resting on Peace
Scripture Reading — Romans 5:1-5
Since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Paul has pointed out that my hope and faith are not based on my ability; they are grounded in the power of God. This is the God who raised Jesus from the dead, and who says that if we believe, then we are his children. Well, I believe, so I am a child of God. God has given birth, as it were, to a new me.
That does not make me perfect; it makes me a child of God. It means I am part of his family and that God is my Father. Therefore I have and am at peace with God because I am now safely within the family fold.
What I need to keep remembering is that this peace with God is not just something I desire. It’s something God desires to have with me! That’s why God sent Jesus, and it’s why he wants me to know that obedience to the law won’t earn me a place in his family.
Understanding that I am part of the family means something more. It means that when I suffer, I don’t need to wonder if I still belong. Whatever happens now happens within the context of God’s family. In fact, when I put my hope in God, God pours his love into me. God wants me to rest peacefully in that. It’s what a heavenly Father desires for his children.
Dear God, in all the talk about sin and justification, we can lose sight of your goal to make us your children. In Jesus, help me to know myself as your child, and to rest in your love and peace. Amen.
About the author — Henry Kranenburg
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