Saving faith changes your life in real, practical ways. It brings peace with God, confidence, and joy, even in the middle of suffering. It also means Jesus has decisively won the war with sin, even though we still fight daily battles. The key to living a victorious Christian life isn’t trying harder. It’s tapping into the power of the Holy Spirit, who lives in every believer.
This lesson covers Romans 5–8. Read those chapters during the week, and highlight the verses that stand out to you.
Peace, Confidence, and Joy
In the first part of Romans, Paul explains how we’re made right with God by faith. In chapter 5, he shows what that means for everyday life.
Romans 5:1-4 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. Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character, hope.
Saving faith isn’t just a spiritual transaction. It has a real impact on our emotions and relationships. When you know you’re at peace with God, you can face hard times differently. God doesn’t exempt us from trials, but he uses them to build perseverance, character, and hope.
That’s a big deal for men. Many of us try to hold it all together on our own, and when life falls apart, we fall apart with it. Faith gives us a foundation that doesn’t move, even when everything else does.
The War Is Won, but the Battle Goes On
If Jesus has saved us, why do we still struggle with sin? Paul answers that question in chapters 6 and 7. Jesus has decisively won the war, but we still have to fight the battle every day.
Romans 6:12-13 Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires. Do not offer any part of yourself to sin as an instrument of wickedness, but rather offer yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life; and offer every part of yourself to him as an instrument of righteousness.
Theologians describe this with two words. At conversion, we are justified already. That’s our status before God, and it’s settled. But we are still being sanctified, which is the process of becoming more like Jesus. That’s our state, and it’s not complete yet. Paul himself admits how frustrating this can be.
Romans 7:18-19 For I know that good itself does not dwell in me, that is, in my sinful nature. For I have the desire to do what is good, but I cannot carry it out. For I do not do the good I want to do, but the evil I do not want to do—this I keep on doing.
If you’ve ever felt that tension, you’re in good company. Paul was one of the greatest Christians who ever lived, and he still struggled. The struggle itself isn’t a sign that you’re not saved. It’s a sign that God is at work in you.
The Power of the Spirit
Paul doesn’t leave us stuck in chapter 7. In chapter 8, he points us to the answer.
Romans 8:1-2 Therefore, there is now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus, because through Christ Jesus the law of the Spirit who gives life has set you free from the law of sin and death.
At conversion, every believer receives the Holy Spirit. He is our power source for a God-honoring life. Instead of white-knuckling our way through temptation, we learn to “walk by the Spirit” (Galatians 5:16), depending on him moment by moment. As we do, he produces his fruit in us.
Galatians 5:22-23 But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law.
These qualities aren’t a checklist we achieve on our own. They grow naturally as we stay connected to God. (For more on the battle with temptation, see How Do I Overcome Sexual Temptation?)
The Takeaway
Saving faith gives you peace with God and hope in suffering. Jesus has already won the war with sin, even though you’ll still fight daily battles. Don’t try to win them alone. Depend on the Holy Spirit, and let him grow his fruit in your life.
