Romans 5:5 “Logical?”

Here’s my fairly literal translation of these verses:

⁵And this hope is not shaming [us], because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts through [the] Holy Spirit, the One given to us.

This passage has taken some considerable pondering before my soul finally tasted the milk of its sweetness. On the surface, it is certainly a very nice verse. One can read it quickly and certainly say, “Praise God!” We have been reading in Romans 5 how, being justified by faith, we enjoy tremendous benefits, of which the most recent, in v. 4, was that we can even have hope in what others would call the worst of trials.

Verse 5 would have us know, too, that this hope will not shame us. It won’t leave us ashamed for having owned it. The NIV translates it “does not disappoint us,” and I suppose that is okay, except that the verb definitely includes the idea of disgrace, dishonor, marring – words that all communicate more of an “outside/in” than “disappoint.” It strikes me that to say I’m “disappointed” is more of something that happens entirely in my own mind. It wouldn’t necessarily involve anyone else, which then doesn’t quite communicate what I find is the meaning of the word. That is why, in my translation above I say this hope is not “shaming” us.  I want to make sure I leave the verse with the sense that my “disappointment” is more than my own internal struggle. On the other hand, I think today the word “disappoint” somehow is a more natural way to express the problem, so I will use it going forward, unless I think that sense of shame makes some important contribution to the passage’s flow of logic.

It is then further a great blessing to know that the love of God has been poured out in our hearts. Then it is an even greater blessing to know that love is poured out not through any effort or merit on my part but rather because God’s very Holy Spirit has been given to me. It is great to know God’s hope won’t disappoint me, that His love is poured out in my heart, and that it is all owing to His Holy Spirit which He has given.

My struggle has been the “because” in the middle. I couldn’t seem to see how it is true that God’s hope “doesn’t disappoint” because “His love is poured out in our hearts.” My problem is that “because” calls for a clear logical connection. That seems like it would be true if it said, “This hope does not disappoint us, because God is faithful,” or “because He is greater than our troubles,” or even “because God love us.” But why is it “because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts”?

Here is what I think. I hope this makes sense. Purely on the face of it, the statement as it stands is not logical. If all we had was the bare statement itself, it really wouldn’t make sense. As is often the case in the Bible, the gold doesn’t lie on the surface for any casual passerby to pick it up. God’s truth is, in fact, surprisingly simple, yet it often has to be mined. In other words, although it is simple, it can only be understood by those who would enter into this personal relationship with God, people who are looking for something much more than bare logical facts. Even on a human level, relationships are not about facts. A relationship between living things is itself a living thing. To “know” someone is far more than simply knowing facts about them. It is knowing them, knowing the person, or, in our present case, the Person.

If we would know this Person, what do we soon discover? God is love. This truth is itself far bigger than mere logical facts. We soon find out it isn’t just true that He loves us. He is love. This God whom we would know, “made His light shine in our hearts to give us the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (II Cor. 4:6). What do we find in the face of Jesus Christ? We find a love so large, it is something far greater than we could have ever imagined. It isn’t just true that Jesus loves us. We find out He is love. The love that you and I receive from His heart is like getting a cup of water at the foot of the Hoover Dam. It’s like pulling teaspoons of water from the ocean. It’s why Paul could say, “The life that I now live, I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me” (Gal. 2:20). In this statement, Paul isn’t simply referring to the fact of Jesus’ substitutionary atonement on the Cross. For those of us who have known Christ, like Paul we know this love of Jesus is way, way, way bigger than a fact on a page. It is a living reality that fills every corner of our very existence, until we too can say it is our life.

Now go back and read the statement, “because the love of God has been poured out in our hearts.” How does that (logically) insure that our hope in Him won’t disappoint us? Can we all say it together, “Of course our hope in Him won’t disappoint us, because He loves us.” Only now, do you see that the bare statement means so much more than the mere facts would portray? When you or I say “He loves us,” it means far, far, far more than mere facts. It is an enormity of our existence. We could even say, “His love has been poured out in our hearts.”

Hmmmm. So then it is logical. It’s just something way bigger than mere facts. It is a relationship. What has happened? Because He is love, because love is the very essence of His infinite Divine glory, when He steps into our lives, that love can do no less than fill every corner of our very hearts. It’s like holding a cup and having someone pour the ocean into it. His love floods our hearts. And, if I am the object of that kind of love, then, no matter what I can be quite assured He won’t disappoint me. He won’t shame me for having owned my relationship with Him.

Actually, this is a very good point to insert a reality check. Sometimes He does allow things that seem to disappoint me or even shame me. I have had several things in the last few years where I prayed for something, even expressed my confidence in the Lord to other people that He would answer me, only to have it seem He did not. I honestly do feel a sense of shame. I trusted Him. I told other people I was trusting Him. Then it seems He didn’t answer. Frankly, there is a part of me right now that is baffled by it all. I’m not 100% sure what to do with it. However, and this brings us back to our verse, one thing I know is that His love has been poured out into every corner of my very existence. He has been speaking His love to me, showering me with His love for over 40 years. Knowing that love, I can step back and say, “I guess there is just something here I don’t understand.” Then I can drop it and go on trusting Him. He doesn’t always have to make sense to me. He loves me. As the song says, “Many things about tomorrow, I don’t seem to understand, but I know Who holds tomorrow, and I know Who holds my hand.” I know Him.

We’re told this love is poured out “by the Holy Spirit, the One given to us.” This is one clue that the verse is calling us to dig deeper than just what we read on the surface. What I mean is that, at first glance, that wouldn’t seem like it needs to said here. It’s nice to know, certainly, but if we are just being straightforwardly logical, it wouldn’t need to be added. You would think the Lord did add it because He actually wants us to stop and ponder and ask, “What’s that got to do with our not being disappointed?” I think that is precisely why He added it. That is exactly what He wants us to do. Stop and ponder. The truth presented here is way, way, way beyond anything you or I will grasp as we rush by. Love needs to be pondered!

It is good news to be reminded that we have the love of God flooding our existence, not because of any merit on our part, but because Jesus gave us the Holy Spirit (the third Person of the Trinity mind you!) and that Holy Spirit’s presence bears His fruit. And what is that? The fruit of the Spirit is …love! His love poured out in our hearts is just more of His infinite love to us.

So, is it all logical? As a simple statement of fact, I will be so bold as to suggest no it is not. The verse in and of itself is not logical. The “because” doesn’t make sense. However, knowing Him, truly knowing Him, swimming in the ocean of His love, yes, it does make perfect sense. To be loved this much, by a God this wise and powerful, is assurance enough that somehow, in the end, there can be no room for disappointment and shame. “It is well with my soul” and always will be!