Love That Produces Salvation
A Sermon on Romans 5:6-8
Originally preached Jan. 10, 1958
Scripture
6For when we were yet without strength, in due time Christ died for the ungodly. 7For scarcely for a righteous man will one die: yet peradventure for a good man some would even dare to die. 8But God commendeth his love toward us, in that, while we …
Sermon Description
It is the kindness of God that leads His people to salvation. That kindness and love of God is evident throughout the book of Romans as Dr. Lloyd-Jones continues proclaiming its truth in this sermon on Romans 5:6-8. Christ’s love ensures the finality of salvation. It is easy to point out that most people do not truly understand the riches they have in salvation because of Christ’s love since all are sinful people. In the sermon “Love That Produces Salvation,” Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones breaks down Romans 5:6–8 and shares just how much Christians have received because of Christ’s love for His people. The first realization of this love is that Christ Himself produced and created salvation before the foundation of the earth was made. A second realization is that Christ not only came to the earth, but He also chose to die and bear God’s wrath in humanity’s place. Finally, the listener needs to consider the type of people that benefit from that salvation. These people are not wonderful, good-natured people; they are full of sin and completely undeserving. They are weak and incapable of doing anything that would warrant salvation, and this alone proves that the Lord loved His own enough to save them Himself.
Sermon Breakdown
- Our salvation is entirely of God and of his love. God planned salvation before the foundation of the world.
- Salvation comes out of God's great and eternal love. God's love is constant and unchanging. Our salvation isn't accidental or haphazard.
- God sent his Son, Jesus Christ, to die for us. Christ's death on the cross demonstrates God's love for us.
- Christ died for us while we were still sinners. His death saves us, not his life or teachings.
- God proved his love for us by sending his only Son to die for us. The incarnation and Christ's death show the depth of God's love.
- We should look to the cross to understand God's love. Surveying the cross and meditating on it helps us grasp God's love.
- We were without strength, ungodly, and sinners when Christ died for us. We were totally unable to save ourselves or please God.
- We need to realize our inability and helplessness to grasp God's love. Recognizing our incapacity helps us see God's gracious love.
- We can do nothing for our salvation. Our salvation depends completely on God's love and grace.
- God's love is amazing given our helpless state. Though we were without strength, Christ died for us.
- We must not trust in ourselves or pride ourselves for believing the gospel. Our only boast should be in the Lord.
Sermon Q&A
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones on God's Love in Romans 5:6-8
What does Paul mean by "in due time" in Romans 5:6?
According to Dr. Lloyd-Jones, "in due time" refers to the appointed time in God's eternal plan of salvation. It shows that salvation was not an afterthought but planned "before the very foundation of the world, before the world was ever made, before men was ever created, before time had ever come into existence." This specific moment in history was chosen when it had been thoroughly proven that mankind was incapable of saving themselves - after the Law had been given to Israel for 1400 years, after Greek philosophy and Roman civilization had risen and fallen, demonstrating that "nothing else could save men."
How does Romans 5:6-8 demonstrate God's love?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones explains that these verses show God's love in three primary ways: (1) God planned our salvation from eternity past, (2) Christ, God's own Son, died for us, and (3) He did this while we were in a completely undeserving state. Lloyd-Jones calls Romans 5:6 "one of the greatest verses in the whole Bible" and "the apostle Paul's exposition of John 3:16." God's love is demonstrated not simply by Christ's coming or teaching, but specifically by His death: "it is by his death that the Lord Jesus Christ saves us."
What is the common misunderstanding about the atonement that Lloyd-Jones corrects?
Lloyd-Jones corrects the misconception that "the atonement is something that the Son of God has done to affect the Father" where "the Son, having done the work, as it were, stands before the Father and pleads with him and has to persuade him to forgive us." He calls this a "terrible travesty of scripture," emphasizing that "it was the Father who sent the Son to do it." There is no "schizophrenia" or conflict in God between justice and love - both exist perfectly in Him without contradiction.
What does Lloyd-Jones mean by being "without strength" in Romans 5:6?
Being "without strength" refers to humanity's "total inability" in spiritual matters. Lloyd-Jones explains this means we are: (1) "totally incapable of spiritual understanding" as "the natural man receiveth not the things of the spirit of God," (2) "totally unable to please God" as "our righteousness is but as filthy rags," and (3) "unable to obey God" as Paul proved in the first four chapters of Romans. In summary, we are "totally and completely incapable of saving ourselves" and can "do nothing at all in the matter of [our] salvation."
Why does Paul address the love of God again in Romans 5 when he already covered salvation in Romans 3?
Lloyd-Jones explains that while Paul repeats similar content from Romans 3:24-26, his purpose is different. In Romans 3, "his object was to show this, that there was no means or method or way of justification apart from this." But in Romans 5, "he's got a different object in mind. What he's concerned to show now is not so much the way of salvation as the love that ever devised such a way of salvation." The focus shifts from the mechanism of justification to the motivation behind it: God's love.
The Book of Romans
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.