Therefore, since we have been made right in God’s sight by faith, we have peace with God because of what Jesus Christ our Lord has done for us. Because of our faith, Christ has brought us into this place of undeserved privilege where we now stand, and we confidently and joyfully look forward to sharing God’s glory.
We can rejoice, too, when we run into problems and trials, for we know that they help us develop endurance. And endurance develops strength of character, and character strengthens our confident hope of salvation. And this hope will not lead to disappointment. For we know how dearly God loves us, because he has given us the Holy Spirit to fill our hearts with his love.
Romans 5:1-5 New Living Translation (NLT)
As we trust in what Jesus did to make us right with God, we find peace with God and that peace gives us hope. Our trust in Him demonstrates our faith in what He did for us and not in what we can do for ourselves. We can be confident because we come to a point where we admit that we are not deserving of this grace but that it comes from a Source much higher than we will ever be. We can look forward to sharing God's glory because of who He is and because we put our faith in who He is and what He promises.
We persevere when faced with trial and tribulation from His strength and not our own. As we endure these troubles, our character is strengthened not because of anything we do, but because of what He did to save us. We can rejoice in these times because it is not upon our own limited abilities we need rely. Belief in our Savior opens our hearts to be filled with the Holy Spirit and gives us the sincere desire to follow Christ with faith that He can bring us through anything, including death. The only thing we will ever have to brag about as we overcome the trials and negative circumstances that come our way is that we believe in and are loved by our Heavenly Father who gave His only Son, Jesus Christ, to die for our sins and that He was raised from the grave to reconcile us to God forever. This is the hope of our faith and therein lies our peace.
Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Romans 12:12 NIV
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