Brown's Daily Word 6-2-10

Good morning,
Praise the Lord for this new day. It is going to be brilliant today, with bountiful sunshine. Janice, Jeremy, Micah, and Simeon spent a few days in Vermont with our friends Warren and Linda Ayer. Janice and Jeremy ran part of the Burlington Marathon. Even little Micah ran a half mile race for four to seven-year-olds. Her parents are teaching her about rock climbing. Alice and Laureen joined them for few days, and then I drove up on Sunday and joined them for a couple of days. The Lord blessed us wonderfully.
The reading for last Sunday was taken from Romans 5:1-5. The first result of receiving God's justification is that the sinner secures peace with God. It should be noted that this peace is not like worldly peace. It does not mean some quiet atmosphere or the absence of trouble. The peace that is secured by being justified, leads to having the sense and knowledge one's relationship with God has indeed been restored. Having been counted righteous by faith in Christ, man now knows that he is no longer alienated and separated from God; he is now accepted by the Father as His child. This peace with God includes being freed from fearing God’s wrath and judgment, knowing that as he continues in faith he remains pleasing to God.
The second result of justification is the blessing of having access into the grace of God. In this passage grace is looked upon as a place or a position. Grace is a place to which we are brought, a position in which we are placed. It is the place of God’s presence where we are positioned in Christ and His salvation. It is in that place of grace that we stand in the favor, the privileges, and all the promises of God.
The third result of justification is hope. The text says that "the hope of the believer is for the glory of God." When Scripture speaks of the believer’s hope, it does not mean what the world means by hope. The hope of the world is desire, expectation, and want for whatever can be possessed. The hope of the believer is a guarantee; it is a perfect assurance, confidence and knowledge. Moreover, the believer’s hope is sustained as an inward possession by the presence of God’s Spirit who dwells within each true believer. The hope of glory is provided only by the Spirit of God, as He abides in the one who believes in Jesus Christ. The hope of glory will see the dying person take his last few breaths in this life with a smile of joy; he knows beyond any doubt that in the twinkling of an eye he will be present with the Lord upon his passing.
The fourth result of justification is the ability to glory in trials and sufferings. When a man is truly justified, he is no longer defeated by trials and sufferings. Trials and sufferings no longer discourage and swamp him, no longer cast him down into the dungeon of despair and hopelessness. The very opposite is true. Trials and sufferings become purposeful and meaningful, in that the believer understands that they are allowed by God for the purpose of refining faith and producing character. As the storm of any trial begins to rage, the believer remains confident that his life and welfare remain in God’s sovereign care and under His watchful eye. He perceives trials and testing as the means in which perseverance, character, and hope are both sustained and strengthened.
It is written in Romans 1:5, "And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom He has given us." The man or woman who has been justified enjoys the continuous experience of God’s love through the presence of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit pours out the love of God in our hearts; He matures us in the love of God, and He increases our understanding of what God has done and is doing for us.
In Christ,
Brown
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PMCOyY0Rlus