Justified
READ
Have you ever longed to clear the air with someone you've hurt? That tension before reconciliation can be unbearable—the awkward silences, avoiding eye contact, the knot in your stomach. Now imagine that multiplied infinitely in our relationship with the holy God of the universe. This is where justification enters our story with breathtaking power, highlighted in today’s passage.
Let’s take a moment to read Romans 5:1-2:
Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand. And we boast in the hope of the glory of God.
REFLECT
When Paul uses the word "justified" in Romans 5:1, he's employing legal language that his readers would immediately recognize. In a courtroom, to be justified meant to be declared righteous—not just forgiven, but positively affirmed as being in the right. It's the judge not only dismissing all charges against you but declaring you have perfectly fulfilled the law.
What makes this so revolutionary is that we know we haven't perfectly fulfilled God's law. We've fallen short countless times in thought, word, and deed. Yet God, in His extraordinary goodness, offers justification as a gift received through faith rather than something earned through performance.
Notice that justification isn't a process but a completed action—"we have been justified." The moment we place our faith in Christ, God declares us righteous based not on our record but on Christ's perfect life credited to our account—our sin placed on Jesus at the cross, His righteousness gifted to us.
The immediate result? "Peace with God." The cosmic hostility created by our rebellion against God's authority is resolved. The divide is over. Where there was alienation, there is now reconciliation. Where there was fear, there can now be confidence. This isn't merely the absence of conflict but the presence of a restoed relationship.
This peace isn't something we manufacture through positive thinking. It comes "through our Lord Jesus Christ"—the only mediator who could bridge the infinite gap between our sinfulness and God's holiness. Jesus didn't simply make peace possible; He Himself is our peace.
The good news of justification means waking up each morning not wondering if God accepts you based on yesterday's performance. Your standing with God doesn't rise and fall with your spiritual achievements. The justified person experiences the profound relief of knowing the verdict is already in, and it's "righteous in God's sight."
In a world that constantly evaluates us based on appearance, accomplishments, or affluence—where approval feels conditional and fleeting—justification speaks a different message. God's goodness shines in His willingness to permanently settle our case through Christ, offering a peace that doesn't depend on our perfection but on His.
This peace with God becomes the foundation for everything else in the Christian life. From this place of acceptance, we can serve without trying to earn favor, confess sin without fear of rejection, and approach God with confidence rather than cowering in shame. The hope of justification is that God's final word over your life is already spoken in Christ: "righteous."
RESPOND
Take a moment to process what God might be leading you to do in light of what you read.
How would your daily life look different if you fully embraced that your standing with God is settled once and for all through Christ?
Where do you still find yourself trying to earn God's approval rather than resting in justification by faith?
REST
Take a moment to rest in God’s presence and consider one thing you can take away from your time reading, then close your devotional experience by praying:
Gracious Father, thank you for the indescribable gift of justification through faith in Jesus. Help me to live today from a place of peace with you rather than striving for your approval. Let the truth that I stand righteous in your sight through Christ transform my thoughts, emotions, and actions. Amen.