The Promise That Rests on Grace

Romans 4:1–5 ESV

1 What then shall we say was gained by Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh? 2 For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. 3 For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.” 4 Now to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as his due. 5 And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness,

Romans 4:13–17 ESV

13 For the promise to Abraham and his offspring that he would be heir of the world did not come through the law but through the righteousness of faith. 14 For if it is the adherents of the law who are to be the heirs, faith is null and the promise is void. 15 For the law brings wrath, but where there is no law there is no transgression. 16 That is why it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his offspring—not only to the adherent of the law but also to the one who shares the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all, 17 as it is written, “I have made you the father of many nations”—in the presence of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist.

Introduction

Lent is a season of honesty. It invites us to examine not only our sins, but our assumptions—especially the assumption that God’s favor must be earned. We work hard, try to do better, and hope that somehow our effort will be enough.

In Romans 4, Paul dismantles that way of thinking. He points us back to Abraham, not as a model of religious achievement, but as an example of trust. Paul’s message is simple and unsettling: if God’s promise depended on our performance, hope would always disappoint. But the promise rests on grace.

Big Idea: Because God’s promise rests on grace rather than our works, true hope is secure—not in what we do, but in what God has done and will do.

1. God’s Promise Is Not Earned by Works but Received by Faith (vs. 1-5)

Paul starts by asking what Abraham learned about being made right with God. If Abraham had been justified by his works, he would have had something to boast about—but not in the presence of God. Instead, Scripture tells us that “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”

Paul explains the difference between wages and gifts. Wages are earned and owed, while righteousness cannot be earned. God justifies the ungodly—not those who prove themselves worthy, but those who place their trust in Him.

Justification by faith was not a new concept that Paul introduced; it has always been the way God operates, even in the Old Testament. Many in Paul’s time believed that Abraham was justified by his obedience, but Scripture clearly states that Abraham was counted as righteous because he trusted God's promise—not because he earned it through his actions. Paul emphasizes that righteousness is a gift freely given to those who believe, so completely free that God justifies the ungodly, accomplishing what human effort never could.

This truth resonates throughout the New Testament. As Paul writes elsewhere:

“For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.” — Ephesians 2:8–9

Paul's message is neither new nor controversial; it reflects how God has always worked. Abraham was not counted as righteous because of his performance, but because he trusted God’s promise. This illustrates that righteousness is a gift rather than a wage. This is exactly what Paul reiterates in Ephesians 2:8–9: salvation comes by grace through faith, not by works, so that no one can boast. From Abraham onward, God's promise has always relied on grace received through faith, not on human achievement.

Lent begins here—not with spiritual striving, but with surrender.

God’s Promise:

We stop trying to earn what God has already promised and learn again to receive grace as a gift.

2. God’s Promise Is Bigger Than the Law and Older Than Our Efforts (vs. 13-14)

Paul reminds us that the promise to Abraham—that he would be heir of the world—was never given on the basis of obedience to the law but was grounded in faith from the very beginning. If the inheritance depended on keeping the law, faith would become meaningless and the promise would collapse, because the law does not create blessing but exposes sin and brings judgment. Ironically, the law that people trusted to make them acceptable to God only revealed how deeply they needed grace, placing everyone—Jew and Gentile alike—on the same ground of dependence on God’s promise.

This is why John can say so clearly, “The law was given through Moses; grace and truth came through Jesus Christ” (John 1:17). The law reveals God’s holiness and exposes our need, but it was never meant to carry the promise or secure the inheritance. Grace and truth come through Jesus because he fulfills what the law could only point toward, making the promise effective not by human obedience but by God’s saving action.

God’s grace was not an afterthought. It was always the foundation.

God’s Promise:

Lent reminds us that obedience is not the doorway into God’s promise—it is the response to a promise already given.

3. God’s Promise Creates Hope by Trusting the God Who Gives Life (vs. 16-17)

Paul presses this truth to its hopeful conclusion by insisting that the promise depends on faith so that it may rest entirely on grace and therefore be guaranteed. Faith is not a spiritual accomplishment that earns God’s response; it is the posture of open hands, the admission that we cannot secure the promise for ourselves. Faith is dependence—trusting God precisely where our strength, resources, or righteousness fall short. Because the promise rests on grace rather than human effort, it does not fluctuate with our faithfulness or collapse under our failure. It stands firm, secure, and freely available to all who share Abraham’s faith, whether Jew or Gentile. In this way, hope is not fragile or selective; it is grounded in God’s character and extended to all who trust him.

Abraham’s faith was directed toward a particular kind of God—the God who gives life to the dead and calls into existence things that do not yet exist. Abraham believed God could create a future where none seemed possible, bringing life out of barrenness and fulfillment out of impossibility. That same creative power lies beneath every promise God makes. This is why the prophet can declare, “See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it?” (Isaiah 43:19a). God’s grace is not limited by what already exists or constrained by what we think is realistic. Hope does not disappoint because it is rooted in the God who is always bringing something new into being—by grace, not by human effort, and by his power, not ours.

God’s Promise:

This is resurrection hope. Not confidence in ourselves, but trust in the God who brings life out of death. Because the promise rests on grace, hope does not disappoint.

Conclusion

Lent strips away our illusions of control and achievement. Romans 4 tells us why that is good news. If hope depended on our works, it would fail. If it depended on the law, it would condemn. But the promise rests on grace—received by faith, grounded in God’s faithfulness, and guaranteed by his power to give life.

And that is why this hope does not disappoint.

Big Idea: Because God’s promise rests on grace rather than our works, true hope is secure—not in what we do, but in what God has done and will do.