The God Embrace 5: How Much More

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

Romans 5 talks about how we used to be and how we are, and it addresses the kind of treatment we can expect from God.

We used to be ungodly. We were not good people, but sinners. We were enemies of God. It was in this state that God showed His great love by sending Jesus to the cross for us. When we were deserving of nothing but wrath, we were shown love and mercy.

The passage also talks about how we are now. We have been saved. Justified. Reconciled.

To understand this verse, we must understand this difference. We have gone from being enemies to being friends. Sinners to saints. Children of the devil to children of God.

Think about how God treated us before, and then think about what that implies about our future treatment. If God showed us mercy when we were sinners, how much more will he show compassion now that we are forgiven. If God showed great patience toward us when we were his enemies, how much more now that we are his friends. If God granted us forgiveness when we were ungodly, how much more will he forgive now that have been made righteous!

Sometimes we may think that God will tire of our shortcomings, get fed up with our sins, and lose patience with our ongoing struggles. But carefully look at the verse again. If he has been loving and merciful when our relationship with Him was severed, how much more will he be loving and merciful now that we are His children.