Christian Character or “good character” Romans 5:1-5

i. The Core of My Existence as a Child of God “Therefore, since we have been justified through faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ…” (5:1) (a) Justified through faith “we have peace”

i. The Core of My Existence as a Child of God “through whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now stand…” (5:2) (b) Sanctified “we now stand”

i. The Core of My Existence as a Child of God “And we rejoice in the hope of the glory of God…” (5:2) (c) glorified “the hope of the glory of God”

ii. The Substance of My Existence as a Child of God “Not only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings…” (5:3) -2 Corinthians 12: Corinthians 4:1-6 & Colossians 1: Corinthians 4:7-12 A Present Reality “rejoice (glory) in sufferings ”

ii. The Substance of My Existence as a Child of God …perseverance, and with perseverance character, and with character hope… (5:4) A Personal Reality “we know that suffering produces…”

iii. Christ-character “who I am in Christ” “test of reality” “character”

iii. good character “how I act in response to a knowledge of Christ” “struggles” “doing my best”