"Much more then, being now justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him" (Romans 5:9).

Sinners have no right standing before the law court of God. God, the Judge, has already declared mankind to be guilty, with the sentence being death. "For the wages of sin is death. . . . For all have sinned, and come short of the glory of God" (Romans 6:23; 3:23).

Therefore, man has no way to save himself from God's condemnation. "But God commendeth His love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us" (5:8). The word "commendeth" means, clearly proved. God clearly proved His love by sending His Son to die for us.

"Much more then [how certain then], being now justified by His blood, we shall be saved from wrath through Him" (text). Justification declares those who were once sinners, and hopelessly lost, to be righteous before God, the Judge of all the earth.

This was made possible through the blood of Christ. The Lord Jesus became "sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in Him" (II Corinthians 5:21).

Once we were guilty and sentenced to death; now we are not guilty and saved from the wrath to come. Once we were unrighteous sinners; now we are saved saints. Once we were utterly condemned, now we are not condemned. "There is therefore now no condemnation to them which are in Christ Jesus" (Romans 8:1). ". . . by the works of the law shall no flesh be justified," but we are justified by the faith of Christ (Galatians 2:16).

The end result of it all is peace. We no longer have to fear God's wrath. "Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Romans 5:1). NPS