The Faith of Abraham

INTRODUCTION

REVIEW QUESTIONS

QUESTION: What two examples do we have of salvation by faith in the OT

ANSWER: Abraham and David

QUESTION: What kind of justification is Paul talking about?

ANSWER: Justification before God

QUESTION: What kind of justification is James talking about?

ANSWER: Justification before men

QUESTION: Which one must we have?

Both

Romans 4:9a “Is this blessing then on the circumcised, or on the uncircumcised also?

QUESTION: What blessing is Paul referring to?

ANSWER: The blessing of justification

The blessing of justification.

What is justification? It is the ability to stand before God as if we have never sinned.

I think that is important for us to remember that our justification is a great blessing, not a curse. It is a gift from God that we should be thankful for over and over again. It should cause us to worship God every time we think about it and we need to be reminded over and over how blessed we are

Psalm 1 “How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, Nor stand in the path of sinners, Nor sit in the seat of scoffers! But his delight is in the law of the Lord, And in His law he meditates day and night. He will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, Which yields its fruit in its season And its leaf does not wither; And in whatever he does, he prospers. The wicked are not so, But they are like chaff which the wind drives away. Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, Nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous. For the Lord knows the way of the righteous, But the way of the wicked will perish.”

(v 9b-12) For we say, “Faith was credited to Abraham as righteousness.” How then was it credited? While he was circumcised, or uncircumcised? Not while circumcised, but while uncircumcised; and he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had while uncircumcised, so that he might be the father of all who believe without being circumcised, that righteousness might be credited to them, and the father of circumcision to those who not only are of the circumcision, but who also follow in the steps of the faith of our father Abraham which he had while uncircumcised.”

The argument here is that circumcision is not necessary for righteousness or justification

Paul is merely showing the Romans that the Bible says Abraham was declared righteous before he was ever circumcised.

The reason Paul makes this argument is because many people then believed that one had to be circumcised to be one of God’s people

QUESTION: Can you tell me what these verses say the circumcision was?

ANSWER: It was a “seal of the righteousness”

A seal is a validation of something, or [a token or proof of something]

Baptism is similar to circumcision in that it is a seal or a “sign of our faith”

And if it a sign it is not the means

These verses tell us again that the means of our salvation is faith

What does this matter to us?

INFANT BAPTISM

CHILD BAPTISM WITHOUT EVIDENCE OF FAITH

BAPTISM AS A MEANS TO BE SAVED

(v 11) “so that he might be the father of all who believe without being circumcised, that righteousness might be credited to them, and the father of circumcision to those who not only are of the circumcision, but who also follow in the steps of the faith of our father Abraham which he had while uncircumcised.”

How do we follow in the steps of the faith of our father Abraham?

We believe what God tells us. No matter how supernatural or impossible it may seem.

We obey God.

Hebrews 11:8 “By faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed by going out to a place which he was to receive for an inheritance; and he went out, not knowing where he was going.”

Romans 4:13 “For the promise to Abraham or to his descendants that he would be heir of the world was not through the Law, but through the righteousness of faith”

“that he would be heir of the world”

Now the promise to Abraham said he would:

have descendants like the stars

be as source of blessing to the nations

and inherit the promised land

He is saying is that in the eschaton, this promise will be fulfilled

Revelation 22:5 “And there will no longer be any night; and they will not have need of the light of a lamp nor the light of the sun, because the Lord God will illumine them; and they will reign forever and ever.”

Who will heir of the world?

Those who live by faith

The descendents of Abraham who relate to God in the same way that he did BY FAITH

The true children of God are those who live BY FAITH!

What about those who live by the Law (Pharisees, religionist today)

(v 14-15) “For if those who are of the Law are heirs, faith is made void and the promise is nullified; for the Law brings about wrath, but where there is no law, there also is no violation.

If the Law could save people, then faith would be useless, it would have no value, there would be no point in it.

Galatians 3:18 “For if the inheritance is based on law, it is no longer based on a promise; but God has granted it to Abraham by means of a promise.”

This is still the common practice of many in the church today. People are prone to place their trust in what they are doing, rather than trusting in Jesus whom is the One who justifies

REMEMBER: John 6:28–29 “Therefore they said to Him, “What shall we do, so that we may work the works of God?” Jesus answered and said to them, “This is the work of God, that you believe in Him whom He has sent.””

What happens to those who are trusting in their works?

(v 15) wrath awaits them

(v 15-17) For this reason it is by faith, in order that it may be in accordance with grace, so that the promise will be guaranteed to all the descendants, not only to those who are of the Law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all, (as it is written, “A father of many nations have I made you”) in the presence of Him whom he believed, even God, who gives life to the dead and calls into being that which does not exist.”

For By Grace (this is the means) we have been saved through faith (this is the channel)

Trusting God saves us, trying to do things to be accepted brings condemnation

Romans 4:18–25 “In hope against hope he believed, so that he might become a father of many nations according to that which had been spoken, “So shall your descendants be.” Without becoming weak in faith he contemplated his own body, now as good as dead since he was about a hundred years old, and the deadness of Sarah’s womb; yet, with respect to the promise of God, he did not waver in unbelief but grew strong in faith, giving glory to God, and being fully assured that what God had promised, He was able also to perform. Therefore it was also credited to him as righteousness. Now not for his sake only was it written that it was credited to him, but for our sake also, to whom it will be credited, as those who believe in Him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead, He who was delivered over because of our transgressions, and was raised because of our justification.”

“In hope against hope he believed”

That is, God’s promise to Abraham was “against all hope”

The word hope means expectation

In others words what God said to Abraham was the opposite of what he would have expected, it was the least likely scenario and that is what God did

Hebrews 11:1 “Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen.”

Hebrews 11:13 “All these died in faith, without receiving the promises, but having seen them and having welcomed them from a distance, and having confessed that they were strangers and exiles on the earth.”

“being fully assured that what God has promised, He was able to perform”

His hope was not focused on the miracle, but on what God was able to do.

That is what our faith must always stay focused upon. It cannot be on the circumstances. It cannot be ON THE IMPOSSIBILITY of the situation, but on THE ABILITY OF ALMIGHTY GOD

Genesis 18:14 ““Is anything too difficult for the Lord? At the appointed time I will return to you, at this time next year, and Sarah will have a son.””

Jeremiah 32:27 ““Behold, I am the Lord, the God of all flesh; is anything too difficult for Me?””

And to us, in our impossible situations right now. Are we looking at the Almighty or on the IMPOSSIBILITY?