“From the Heart” teaching by Drs. Rodney & Adonica Howard-Browne.

Fully satisfied and assured that God was able and mighty to keep His word and to do what He had promised. 22 That is why his [Abraham’s] faith was credited to him as righteousness (right standing with God). 23 But [the words], It was credited to him, were written not for his sake alone, 24 But [they were written] for our sakes too. [Righteousness, standing acceptable to God] will be granted and credited to us also who believe in (trust in, adhere to, and rely on) God, Who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead, 25 Who was betrayed and put to death because of our misdeeds and was raised to secure our justification (our acquittal), [making our account balance and absolving us from all guilt before God].  Romans 4:21-25 AMP

Abraham’s faith was credited to him as righteousness – right standing with God. These words were not written just for his sake, but for yours as well, because through every generation, with or without the law, faith was required in order to be counted righteous, Works alone, no matter how good, cannot purchase righteousness. Righteousness comes only by faith – it is a free gift. Jesus was betrayed and put to death because of your misdeeds and mine. God raised Jesus from the dead to secure your justification (your acquittal) making your account balance (He paid the debt you could not pay) and absolving you from all guilt before God. You can come boldly and confidently into the throne-room of grace to find mercy in your time of need.

Therefore, since we are justified (acquitted, declared righteous, and given a right standing with God) through faith, let us [grasp the fact that we] have [the peace of reconciliation to hold and to enjoy] peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ (the Messiah, the Anointed one).  Romans 5:1 AMP

You are justified through faith and you have peace, and can enjoy peace, with God through your Lord, Jesus Christ, but it doesn’t completely benefit you unless you become aware of it and understand it

Through Him also we have [our] access (entrance, introduction) by faith into this grace (state of God’s favor) in which we [firmly and safely] stand. And let us rejoice and exult in our hope of experiencing and enjoying the glory of God.  Romans 5:2 AMP

Through Jesus, you have access by faith into grace – God’s favor. This grace and favor is secure – as long as you believe in Him – it will always be yours. You can relax and know that God’s grace and favor rests upon you now and you can rejoice as you look forward to experiencing and enjoying the glory of God, in a measure here, and in it’s fullness in eternity.

Moreover [let us also be full of joy now!] let us exult and triumph in our troubles and rejoice in our sufferings, knowing that pressure and affliction and hardship produce patient and unswerving endurance.  Romans 5:3 AMP

When you know how much the Father, Son and Holy Spirit love you, how much favor you have with them and how wonderful heaven is going to be – there is not much left that can scare you. For you to live is Christ and to die is gain (Philippians 1:29)! You are so full of Jesus and so full of joy that you are not afraid of trouble or hardship. When you go through something hard you have two choices – you can let it take you out or you can take it out! When you decide to fight the good fight of faith, place your confidence in God, and bear up under the pressure, you are going to come out better than when you went in. You are going to come out the other side with more patience than you had before and an ability to endure much more than you could before. The devil is not going to be able to push you around so easily the next time! You will be toughened up!

And endurance (fortitude) develops maturity of character (approved faith and tried integrity). And character [of this sort] produces [the habit of] joyful and confident hope of eternal salvation. 5 Such hope never disappoints or deludes or shames us, for God’s love has been poured out in our hearts through the Holy Spirit Who has been given to us. Romans 5:4-5 AMP

When patient endurance is developed in your life, it also develops maturity of character. This kind of character produces the habit of joyful and confident hope – a hope that will never disappoint you. Some people are afraid to hope in case things don’t work out and they are disappointed, but when you have gone through some hard things and you have trusted in God and He has come through for you, you are encouraged to develop the habit of a hopeful attitude. This hopeful attitude will always serve you well and will not disappoint you. Hope is the foundation for your faith and you know that it is only your faith in God that causes Him to pour out His grace, mercy and favor on you when you ask for it. Therefore, when you face your next challenge – and you will – you can face it with confidence, remembering that God came through for you last time and knowing that He is sure to come through for you again this time, as you put your trust in Him.