What does Romans 5:1 mean?
Romans 5 begins a new section of Paul's letter to the Christians in Rome. He has finished his argument, in chapters 1—4, that nobody can be made right with God by following the works of the law of Moses. This "justification" is impossible by works, because nobody follows the law well, let alone perfectly (Romans 3:10, 23). Human beings can only be declared righteous and escape God's angry judgment on our sin by faith in what He has done for us through Jesus' death, meant to pay for our sin, and His resurrection, which secures our justification (Romans 4:24–25).Now Paul turns a corner, to describe what we have gained in being justified by faith. It's true that we have escaped the wrath of God, but being righteous before God means so much more than just not being punished for our sin.
Before jumping into these benefits, it's important to remember that Paul is writing to Christians. That is the context of his comments in this section, which should not be misunderstood. Paul's use of the term "we" in this passage is not universal—it does not apply to all of the entire human race. He is describing what is true for those who have trusted in Christ's work for our salvation. This is made explicitly clear by his explanation of faith and belief in the prior passages. Paul is not saying all people everywhere have peace with God, only those who, as he and his readers had done, have believed in the God who raised Jesus from the dead.
It's also helpful to notice that Paul describes this act of being justified by God, of becoming a believer, as something in the past. For those who are Christians, that transaction is complete. Our status before God will never again be in doubt. Paul does not describe a process, or a future event. Eternal salvation is accomplished once, and forever, when a person comes to faith in Christ.
Paul begins by showing that those who have been justified in God's eyes have peace with God. Paul does not mean by this that we feel peaceful, that we experience no anxiety. He means that we are right with God. We are at peace with God from now and through eternity. This is possible only "through our Lord Jesus Christ."
In Christ, God has made a permanent peace with us. And since He is the one who made it, it is peace that can never be lost.
