Sunday Morning Bible Study: Romans 4–5 — From Faith to Peace: from Abraham to Jesus Christ
- Aug 15
- 10 min read
Romans 2 and 3 brought us face to face with the universal problem of sin. No one is righteous by personal achievement. Religious heritage cannot save us. Keeping the Law cannot save us. Every person stands in need of God's mercy.
But Romans 3 did not leave us in despair.
Paul declared:
“But now apart from the law the righteousness of God has been made known.” Romans 3:21
That righteousness comes through faith in Jesus Christ.
Now, in Romans 4 and 5, Paul takes that truth further.
How does faith work?
What does it mean to be justified by faith?
Was this really something new?
And what happens to a person who has been justified?
Paul answers those questions by taking us back to Abraham, the father of faith, and then forward to Jesus Christ, the One through whom we have peace with God.
Romans 4 explains faith that receives God's promise.
Romans 5 explains the life that flows from being justified by faith.
Together, these chapters move us from faith to peace, from guilt to reconciliation, and from Adam's fall to Christ's victory.
Romans 4: Abraham Was Justified by Faith
Paul begins with Abraham.
This is important because Abraham was the great father of the Jewish people. If anyone could have claimed that his standing before God was based upon religious achievement, Abraham might seem to be the obvious candidate.
But Paul asks:
“What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh, discovered in this matter?” Romans 4:1
Then Paul gives the answer:
“Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.” Romans 4:3
There it is.
Before the Law of Moses.
Before circumcision.
Before the nation of Israel.
Abraham believed God.
And God counted that faith as righteousness.
Paul is making an essential point: Abraham did not earn his relationship with God. He trusted God's promise.
Faith Is Not a Wage
Paul makes the contrast very clear.
If a person works for something, the payment is not a gift. It is something owed.
But justification is different.
“However, to the one who does not work but trusts God who justifies the ungodly, their faith is credited as righteousness.”Romans 4:5
This does not mean that good works are unimportant.
It means that good works cannot purchase salvation.
We cannot put God in our debt.
We cannot come before Him and say, “I have done enough. You owe me salvation.”
Salvation is grace.
Faith receives what God gives.
This is why the gospel leaves no room for boasting. We do not stand before God because we have accomplished enough. We stand because God has been merciful enough.
David Knew the Same Grace
Paul then brings David into the discussion.
David wrote:
“Blessed are those whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered. Blessed is the one whose sin the Lord does not count against them.”Romans 4:7–8
David knew what it meant to fail.
He also knew what it meant to receive mercy.
The blessed person is not the person who has never sinned.
The blessed person is the person whose sin has been forgiven.
That is the same gospel Paul is proclaiming.
Abraham believed God's promise. (4:13)
David rejoiced in God's forgiveness.
And we are called to trust in Jesus Christ.
The means of salvation is not human perfection.
It is God's grace received through faith.
Abraham Believed Before the Circumcision
Paul makes another important point.
Abraham was declared righteous before he was circumcised.
That means circumcision was not the cause of Abraham's righteousness. It was a sign of what God had already done.
This matters because Paul is demonstrating that Abraham is not merely the father of one ethnic group.
He is the father of all who believe.
“So then, he is the father of all who believe.” Romans 4:11
God's family is not ultimately defined by ancestry.
It is defined by faith.
That does not erase God's purposes for Israel. But it demonstrates that God's saving purpose reaches beyond one nation.
The promise is received through faith.
Abraham Believed the God Who Gives Life
Paul then describes Abraham's faith in one of the most beautiful passages in Romans.
Abraham believed in:
“the God who gives life to the dead and calls into being things that were not.” Romans 4:17
Abraham and Sarah were old.
Humanly speaking, the promise of a son seemed impossible.
But Abraham believed God.
“Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed.” Romans 4:18
That is biblical faith.
Faith does not mean pretending that circumstances are different from what they are.
Faith looks honestly at circumstances and then looks beyond them to the God who has made the promise.
Abraham knew his own limitations.
But he also knew God's power.
“He did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God.” Romans 4:20
And then Paul gives us the connection to ourselves:
“The words ‘it was credited to him’ were written not for him alone, but also for us.” Romans 4:23–24
Abraham believed in the God who could give life.
We are called to believe in the God who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead.
The resurrection is at the heart of our faith.
Romans 5: Therefore, We Have Peace
Romans 5 begins with one of the great “therefore” passages in Scripture.
Paul has spent Romans 4 explaining justification by faith.
Now he tells us what follows:
“Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Romans 5:1
Notice the progression.
We are justified.
Therefore, we have peace.
Not peace because life is easy.
Not peace because circumstances are always favorable.
Not peace because we have solved all our problems.
Peace with God.
The great problem has been settled.
The sinner who was separated from God has been reconciled to God through Jesus Christ.
We Have Access to Grace
Paul continues:
“Through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand.” Romans 5:2
That phrase is worth pausing over:
“the grace in which we now stand.”
Grace is not merely something God gives us at the moment of conversion and then expects us to live without.
We stand in grace.
We live in grace.
We continue to depend upon grace.
The Christian life begins with grace and continues by grace.
And because we stand in grace, Paul says that we can rejoice in the hope of the glory of God.
Even Suffering Has a Place
Then Paul says something that sounds surprising:
“Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings.” Romans 5:3
Paul does not say that suffering is pleasant.
He does not say that suffering is good in itself.
He says that God can use suffering.
Suffering produces perseverance.
Perseverance produces character.
Character produces hope.
And:
“Hope does not put us to shame.” Romans 5:5
Why?
Because God's love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit.
The Christian therefore does not look at suffering and say, “God must have abandoned me.”
Instead, faith learns to say, “Even here, God is at work.”
Christ Died for the Ungodly
Paul now takes us to the heart of the gospel.
“You see, at just the right time, when we were still powerless, Christ died for the ungodly.” Romans 5:6
This is the astonishing thing about God's love.
Christ did not die for people who had made themselves worthy.
He died for the ungodly.
Paul continues:
“God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” Romans 5:8
The cross is not merely a demonstration of human tragedy.
It is a demonstration of divine love.
Jesus did not wait for us to become worthy.
He came because we were not worthy.
He did not wait for us to find our way back to God.
He came to bring us back.
From Enemies to Reconciled Children
Paul then uses an even stronger word:
“For if, while we were God’s enemies, we were reconciled to him through the death of his Son...” Romans 5:10
Reconciled.
The gospel is not merely about improving our behavior.
It is about restoring a broken relationship with God.
Sin had separated us from our Creator.
Christ came to reconcile us.
And Paul says that if God reconciled us through Christ's death, we can rejoice because we have received salvation through His life.
Jesus did not remain in the tomb.
The One who died for us was raised for us.
The resurrection confirms that the work of Christ is victorious.
Adam and Christ
Romans 5 then takes us all the way back to the beginning.
Paul introduces Adam.
Through one man, sin entered the world.
And through sin came death.
“Therefore, just as sin entered the world through one man, and death through sin, and in this way death came to all people, because all sinned...” Romans 5:12
Here Paul is looking back to Genesis.
Adam's disobedience brought sin and death into the human story.
But Paul does not stop with Adam.
He introduces another Man.
Jesus Christ.
Adam represents humanity in its fall.
Christ represents redeemed humanity in its restoration.
Adam's disobedience brought condemnation.
Christ's obedience brings grace.
Adam's sin brought death.
Christ brings life.
The Greater Gift
Paul repeatedly emphasizes that what Christ gives is greater than what Adam lost.
“But the gift is not like the trespass.” Romans 5:15
That is one of the great themes of Romans 5.
The damage caused by sin is terrible.
But the grace of God is greater.
Paul says:
“How much more did God’s grace and the gift that came by the grace of the one man, Jesus Christ, overflow to the many!” Romans 5:15
And again:
“How much more will those who receive God’s abundant provision of grace and of the gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man, Jesus Christ!” Romans 5:17
The gospel is not simply that Jesus repairs what Adam broke.
It is that God's grace overflows.
Christ is greater than Adam.
Grace is greater than sin.
Life is greater than death.
Where Sin Increased, Grace Increased Even More
Paul reaches the climax of the chapter with these remarkable words:
“But where sin increased, grace increased all the more.” Romans 5:20
This does not make sin unimportant.
It makes grace astonishing.
Sin is real.
Judgment is real.
Death is real.
But God's grace is greater.
Paul concludes:
“So that, just as sin reigned in death, so also grace might reign through righteousness to bring eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord.” Romans 5:21
There is the name at the center of it all:
Jesus Christ our Lord.
The Message of Romans 4–5
Romans 4 teaches us that Abraham was justified by faith.
Romans 5 shows us what justification produces.
Together they teach us:
We cannot earn righteousness from God.
Abraham was justified by faith, not by works.
David rejoiced in forgiveness.
Faith trusts the God who keeps His promises.
Jesus was raised from the dead.
Those who are justified by faith have peace with God.
We stand in grace.
God can use suffering to produce perseverance, character, and hope.
Christ died for us while we were still sinners.
Through Christ we are reconciled to God.
Adam brought sin and death into the world.
Jesus Christ brings grace, righteousness, and life.
Where sin increased, grace increased even more.
The movement is beautiful:
Faith → justification → peace → grace → hope → reconciliation → life.
And all of it leads us to Jesus.
What Does This Mean for Us?
Romans 4–5 asks us to examine what we are trusting.
Are we trusting our goodness?
Our church membership?
Our knowledge of Scripture?
Our religious background?
Our ability to live a moral life?
Or are we trusting Jesus Christ?
Abraham teaches us to believe the promise of God.
Paul teaches us to believe in the God who raised Jesus from the dead.
And Romans 5 tells us what happens when we do.
We have peace with God.
We stand in grace.
We have hope.
We know God's love.
We are reconciled.
And we have the promise of eternal life.
The gospel does not say, “Make yourself good enough for God.”
It says:
Trust the One who came to save you.
Jesus Christ has done what we could never do for ourselves.
Questions for Reflection and Discussion
What does Abraham's example teach us about the difference between faith and works?
Why is it important that Abraham was justified before circumcision and before the Law was given?
What does Romans 4:20–21 teach us about trusting God when His promises seem impossible?
What does Paul mean when he says that we have “peace with God” through Jesus Christ?
How can suffering produce perseverance, character, and hope?
What does Romans 5:8 reveal about the nature of God's love?
Why is the contrast between Adam and Christ so important to Paul's argument?
What does Paul mean when he says, “where sin increased, grace increased all the more”?
Where are you tempted to rely upon yourself rather than upon the grace of God?
How should knowing that we are reconciled to God through Jesus Christ change the way we live?
One Final Thought
Romans 4 begins with Abraham believing God.
Romans 5 ends with grace reigning through Jesus Christ.
Between those two truths lies the heart of the Christian life.
We do not save ourselves.
We trust God.
We do not earn grace.
We receive it.
We do not make peace with God through our own efforts.
Jesus Christ makes peace for us.
And because of Him, the Christian can look at the past with forgiveness, the present with grace, the future with hope, and even suffering with confidence.
For:
“Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.” Romans 5:1
That is where Romans 4–5 leaves us:
Not trying to earn our way to God, but standing by faith in the grace of God—and rejoicing in Jesus Christ, through whom we have been reconciled to Him.
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YES He will! I know He will.
ALL His promises are true
He will keep His word with you
He will fill your heart TODAY to overflowing
With the Holy Ghost and power. Lei¬la N. Mor¬ris, 1912
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GRACE GREATER THAN OUR SIN
Marvelous grace of our loving Lord,
Grace that exceeds our sin and our guilt!
Yonder on Calvary’s mount outpoured,
There where the blood of the Lamb was spilled.
Refrain
Grace, grace, God’s grace,
Grace that will pardon and cleanse within;
Grace, grace, God’s grace,
Grace that is greater than all our sin.
Sin and despair, like the sea waves cold,
Threaten the soul with infinite loss;
Grace that is greater, yes, grace untold,
Points to the refuge, the mighty cross.
Refrain
Dark is the stain that we cannot hide.
What can avail to wash it away?
Look! There is flowing a crimson tide,
Brighter than snow you may be today.
Refrain
Marvelous, infinite, matchless grace,
Freely bestowed on all who believe!
You that are longing to see His face,
Will you this moment His grace receive?
Refrain
Julia H. Johnston, 1911
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