Counted Righteous — Romans 4:1–25

Introduction: The Only Kind of Good News That’s Actually Good

If you’ve got your Bible, go ahead and open with me to Romans 4. Today we come to one of the most personally freeing and church-shaping chapters in all of Scripture. Because Romans 4 answers a question every human heart asks, even if we don’t have the words for it: How can I be right with God? How do I know I’m accepted? How do I know I belong?

And Paul is going to answer that question in the most disruptive way imaginable. He is going to take the most celebrated religious figure in Israel’s history—Abraham—and prove that even he didn’t earn his way into God’s family.

Because if Abraham was justified by being impressive, then Christianity becomes a spiritual performance review. But if Abraham was justified by faith, then Christianity is not about climbing—it’s about receiving. It’s not about achieving righteousness—it’s about having righteousness credited to you as a gift.

Illustration: Martin Luther and the Weight of Performance

In the early 1500s, long before the Reformation exploded across Europe, there was a young monk named Martin Lutherwho was terrified of God. He wasn’t terrified because he didn’t believe. He was terrified because he did believe. Luther believed God was holy, and he believed he wasn’t. So he tried to earn peace through religious performance—fasting, confession, self-punishment. Luther once said that if anyone could get to heaven by monkish discipline, it would’ve been him. But it didn’t work. The harder he tried, the more guilty he felt.

And then Luther began studying Paul—especially Romans—and something snapped into focus. Luther realized that the righteousness God requires is not something we climb toward; it’s something God gives. It is not earned; it is credited. Luther later wrote that when he understood this, he felt as though he had been “born again” and had entered paradise through open gates.

That is Romans 4. Paul is taking Abraham—the father of faith—and saying, “If Abraham wasn’t justified by religious effort, then nobody is.” God doesn’t justify the impressive. God justifies the ungodly who believe. And for the first time, the weight comes off.

The Secret:

You are God in a physical body. You are Spirit. You are eternal life. You are God manifested in human form, made to perfection."

"You are the master of the Universe. You are the heir to the kingdom. You are the perfection of Life. And now you know The Secret."

"We are all connected, and we are all part of the One Energy Field, or the One Supreme Mind, or the One Consciousness, or the One Creative Source…we are all One."

"You are a cosmic being. You are a creator." 

Context of the Quotes: These quotes are used to support the "Law of Attraction," which suggests that because everything is energy, your thoughts (as part of that divine, universal energy) can directly influence and create your reality. The book encourages readers to see themselves as divine,, rather than helpless. 

And here’s why this matters for us in Brampton: this truth doesn’t just save individuals—it shapes the kind of church we become. If righteousness is credited and not earned, then this has to be a community where no one performs, no one pretends, no one boasts—because we’re all here by grace. That’s how God makes us a real spiritual family, and that’s how He makes us a bold, humble community of missionary disciples in this city.

So as we come to Romans 4, we’re going to see three truths today:

God justifies the ungodly by faith, not works.

Justification is bigger than identity markers.

Faith clings to a God who raises the dead.

Historical and Contextual Background

In Paul’s day, Abraham was widely viewed as the prototype of covenant faithfulness. It was common to think of Abraham as someone who earned God’s blessing by obedience. Paul agrees Abraham matters—he just disagrees about why.

Paul argues from Genesis 15:6, where Abraham is declared righteous before he is circumcised in Genesis 17, and centuries before the Law at Sinai. Paul’s point is surgical: Abraham was counted righteous by faith alone. That means Jews cannot boast in circumcision, and Gentiles do not need to adopt Jewish identity markers to belong. Paul is unifying the church by destroying every foundation for pride.

Main Idea

God justifies sinners by crediting righteousness through faith, not by rewarding works, so all boasting dies and all hope lives.

God Justifies the Ungodly by Faith, Not Works (Romans 4:1–8)

Paul begins with a question:

“What then shall we say was gained by Abraham…?” (v.1)

And he immediately goes after the human craving to earn:

“If Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about—but not before God.” (v.2)

Paul is saying: if salvation is wages, then God owes you. If righteousness is earned, then grace is destroyed. But God does not relate to sinners as an employer paying wages. He relates as a Father giving gifts.

Then Paul quotes the controlling text:

“Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.” (v.3; Genesis 15:6)

The key word is counted. The Greek is logizomai—an accounting term. It means credited, reckoned, imputed. Abraham didn’t achieve righteousness. God credited righteousness.

Illustration: The Guilty Man Who Cannot Pay Back

Some of us treat Christianity like God gives forgiveness as long as we promise to pay Him back. Like salvation is a loan and sanctification is our repayment plan. But Romans 4 will not allow that.

Imagine a man caught stealing, red-handed. The judge reviews the evidence, and the man knows he’s guilty. But then he says, “Your honor, if you give me enough time, I’ll make it right. I’ll work extra shifts. I’ll volunteer. I’ll be better.”

That’s what our pride always says: Just give me time and I’ll earn it.

But then the judge does something unheard of. He says, “You can’t pay this back. Someone else is paying it. You’re free to go.”

That man doesn’t walk out thinking, “Wow, I impressed the judge.” He walks out thinking, “I have received mercy I did not deserve.”

That’s justification. Verse 5 says God “justifies the ungodly.” Not the impressive. Not the cleaned up. The ungodly.

John Murray says:

“Faith is not the ground of justification. Christ’s righteousness is the ground; faith is the instrument.”

Then Paul quotes Psalm 32 to show David understood this too:

“Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven… blessed is the man against whom the Lord will not count his sin.” (vv.7–8)

So here’s what happens in justification: God counts righteousness to you, and God refuses to count sin against you. Two accounting moves. One Savior.

Douglas Moo writes:

“Justification is a verdict, a new status given as a gift, not a moral achievement.”

Application: Church, this is why we have to become a confession-safe people. If God justifies the ungodly, then we don’t pretend to be godly to earn love. We repent, we confess, we heal. This is how a missionary family forms—by grace, not image management.

Justification Is Bigger Than Identity Markers (Romans 4:9–12)

Paul now asks:

“Is this blessing only for the circumcised, or also for the uncircumcised?” (v.9)

Then he does something brilliant. He walks through Abraham’s timeline:

Genesis 15: Abraham believes → counted righteous

Genesis 17: Abraham circumcised → sign and seal

Paul says:

“It was not after, but before.” (v.10)

Meaning circumcision didn’t cause righteousness; it confirmed it.

“He received the sign of circumcision as a seal…” (v.11)

Illustration: Adoption Papers — The Sign Doesn’t Save

In Brampton, we understand the importance of identity documents—passports, PR cards, citizenship paperwork. Those documents matter, but they don’t create belonging—they confirm belonging.

Think about adoption. When a child is adopted, the paperwork doesn’t create love. It doesn’t create family. The papers are a sign and seal of something already true: that child belongs.

That’s what Paul is saying. Circumcision is the certificate, not the family. It’s the sign, not salvation.

And we need this because Christians still create identity markers:

church attendance

spiritual vocabulary

theological knowledge

baptism

serving

ministry involvement

These are beautiful signs. But they are not saviors. Paul is killing the idea that the visible marker is the basis of belonging.

Tom Schreiner says:

“Paul’s aim is to exclude boasting and to establish Abraham as the father of all who believe.”

"It's a violation of the ancient dictum 'do not use the Lord's name in vain': translation: do not claim moral motivations when acting for narrowly self-serving purposes. That, along with pride, is the cardinal sin of our time".

"It means don't claim divine virtue when you're working for your own purposes. And the same thing happens in the gospel account say because the Pharisees... are the people he accuses of utilizing the sacred: they're praying in public they're trying to occupy the best seats in the marketplace".

"The most broken commandment, currently? Do not use the Lord's name in vain. What does it mean? Among other things: Do not claim to be acting for religious reasons when pushing your own self-serving moral and ideological agenda".

It's a sin to "justify your political/instrumental beliefs by tying them falsely to the divine substrate". 

Application: This is how the church becomes multi-ethnic and unified in the gospel. We don’t unite around cultural sameness, we unite around credited righteousness. That’s how we reach Brampton: not by building a club of the righteous, but by being a family of the justified.

Faith Clings to Resurrection Power (Romans 4:13–25)

Paul now zooms out to God’s promise:

“The promise… did not come through the law but through the righteousness of faith.” (v.13)

The Law came centuries after Abraham. Paul’s argument is that salvation has always been by grace.

If inheritance comes by law-keeping, then faith is empty. But:

“That is why it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace.” (v.16)

God set it up this way so no one can boast and so everyone can have assurance.

Paul then describes Abraham’s faith. Abraham looked at his body—“as good as dead.” He looked at Sarah’s barrenness. He didn’t pretend it was easy. He didn’t deny reality. But:

“No unbelief made him waver… he grew strong in his faith.” (v.20)

Why? Because Abraham believed in:

“God, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist.” (v.17)

This is resurrection language.

Illustration: The Early Church — Faith When the Math Doesn’t Work

And this isn’t only Abraham. This is Christianity from the beginning. In the first three centuries after Jesus, the church had no buildings, no political power, no cultural influence. Christianity was illegal. Christians were persecuted. They were mocked and marginalized and even killed.

From a human standpoint, the math didn’t work. The church should have died out. Rome was too strong. The pressure was too intense. The believers were too weak.

But the church spread like wildfire anyway. Why? Because the earliest Christians lived with a resurrection certainty. They trusted the God who gives life to the dead. Their hope wasn’t in what Rome could give or take. Their hope was anchored in a risen King.

That’s Abraham’s faith. That’s our faith.

And then Paul makes it explicit:

“The words ‘it was counted to him’ were not written for his sake alone, but for ours also.” (vv.23–24)

We believe in the God who raised Jesus:

“who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification.” (v.25)

Moo writes:

“The resurrection is the decisive public demonstration that Christ’s atoning work has been accepted and justification secured.”

Application: If Jesus was raised for your justification, then your standing with God isn’t fragile. It isn’t dependent on your performance. It rests on Christ’s finished work and God’s public declaration in the resurrection.

This creates humble confidence and bold mission. A church that knows it is justified can stop performing and start loving.

Conclusion: Stop Counting, Start Trusting

Romans 4 is God calling you to stop trying to pay Him back and start trusting Him. It tells you righteousness is not earned; it is credited. It tells you belonging is not achieved; it is received.

So if you are exhausted from performing, hear this: God justifies the ungodly. If you are proud of your spiritual résumé, hear this: Abraham can’t boast, so neither can you. If you are ashamed, hear this: blessed is the one whose sins are not counted against him.

“Church, this is why Romans 4 matters when Christian leaders fall. Some of you have watched trusted Christian voices collapse—people who wrote about grace, talked about faith, led others to Jesus—and then later confessed years of hidden sin. And if your faith is built on their steadiness, you’ll feel like the ground is shaking. But Romans 4 is here to remind us: the gospel was never built on the righteousness of leaders. It was built on the righteousness of Christ credited to sinners. We do not excuse sin—we grieve it. We do not minimize it—we confront it. But we do not become cynical, because Jesus didn’t fail. He was delivered up for trespasses and raised for our justification. And if we are here today, it is not because our heroes are pure—it is because our Savior is.”

So come to Christ with empty hands. That’s the only way to receive a gift.