The Reward of Faith

Blessing Of Belief

Abraham believed God and it was reckoned to him as righteousness. Abraham believed God’s promise to have a son that would fulfill the promise of God.

After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision, saying,

“Do not fear, Abram, I am a shield to you; [a]Your reward shall be very great.”

“Do not fear, Abram, I am a shield to you; [a]Your reward shall be very great.”

2 Abram said, “O Lord [b]God, what will You give me, since I [c]am childless, and the [d]heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” 3 And Abram said, “[e]Since You have given no [f]offspring to me, [g]one born in my house is my heir.” 4 Then behold, the word of the Lord came to him, saying, “This man will not be your heir; but one who will come forth from your own [h]body, he shall be your heir.” 5 And He took him outside and said, “Now look toward the heavens, and count the stars, if you are able to count them.” And He said to him, “So shall your [i]descendants be.” 6 

2 Abram said, “O Lord [b]God, what will You give me, since I [c]am childless, and the [d]heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” 3 And Abram said, “[e]Since You have given no [f]offspring to me, [g]one born in my house is my heir.” 4 Then behold, the word of the Lord came to him, saying, “This man will not be your heir; but one who will come forth from your own [h]body, he shall be your heir.” 5 And He took him outside and said, “Now look toward the heavens, and count the stars, if you are able to count them.” And He said to him, “So shall your [i]descendants be.” 6 Then he believed in the Lord; and He reckoned it to him as righteousness.

The greatest desire of Abraham was the fulfillment of God’s purpose. He desired a lineage that would honor God forever. However, he did not have a son to carry on this lineage. God’s promised Abraham a son that would come from his own body. A son that would lead to the fulfillment of the promise. God gave Abraham Isaac when he was 100 years old () This was a miracle in and of itself that Abraham could conceive a son at 100 years old. It was something that only God could do. God showed Abraham that all things promised by God will come true even when it appears impossible.

Though Isaac was not the one who would be the source of blessing to all nations, he was in the lineage of the one who would. Jesus is the fulfillment of the promise of God to Abraham. Through Jesus all nations are blessed.

Through faith in Jesus Christ you are justified. This means that Christ has served your sentence for your sin. Our sin is placed on Jesus on the cross and His righteous perfection is imputed to us. The imputation of Christ redeems us to the Father. We are no longer guilty of our sin, but are called to live in Christ!

TELL STORY ABOUT MAN WHO COVERED HIS WIFE DURING HAIL STORM

Limitation Of the Law

The limitation of the law is that it demands perfection. This means that you must adhere to the all of the law all of the time. If you fail at any point in obeying the law you cannot be saved. God requires perfection of the law in order to be saved.

10 For whoever keeps the whole [a]law and yet stumbles in one point, he has become guilty of all.

This means that if you tell a little white lie then you are just as guilty as a murderer. There is no hierarchy of sin God’s eyes. If you break one you might as well have broken them all.

For the wages of sin is death

Justification cannot come through following the law. Because we are all guilty. If we could be justified by the law then we would not need a Savior.

Paul says that no one is ever justified by the law. Justification comes through faith alone in Christ alone.

“[c]The righteous man shall live by faith.”

John MacArthur says

Justifying faith also involves reliance on and submission to the Lord. When a sinner sees that he has no way to escape and no power in his own resources, he knows he must rely on God’s provision and power. Finally, justifying faith involves appropriation, as the sinner gratefully receives the free gift of pardon Christ offers and submits to His authority.

MacArthur, John. Galatians MacArthur New Testament Commentary (MacArthur New Testament Commentary Series) . Moody Publishers. Kindle Edition.

TELL 1997 STORY OF TIMOTHY MCVAY. “If you don’t consider what happened in Oklahoma city Timothy is an alright guy”

If you ask any of the any of the 168 victims family members of the Oklahoma City Bombing if Timothy M cvay is an alright guy what do you think they would say

Our sin in the sight of God is an Oklahoma City event. No matter how trivial it may seem to you, it cost Him his Son.

You cannot make up for your own sin! it cost God too much!

Reward of the Redeemed

The reward of the redeemed is Salvation, Inheritance, and the Spirit

When a person places their faith in Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of their sins they are saved from eternal torment in hell and saved to eternal life in heaven. Eternal separation from God in the lake of fire is where a person will go if they do not accept in faith the gift of salvation in Jesus Christ.

And if anyone’s name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.

9 They will be punished with everlasting destruction and shut out from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of his might

So it will be at the [a]end of the age; the angels will come forth and [b]take out the wicked from among the righteous, 50 and will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.

47 If your eye causes you to stumble, throw it out; it is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye, than, having two eyes, to be cast into [a]hell, 48 where their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.

Hell is not a place you want to go to. Hell is the place that we deserve. Faith in Christ is the only way to get out of going there.

You are saved to eternal life.

“Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life, and does not come into judgment, but has passed out of death into life.

and I give eternal life to them, and they will never perish; and no one will snatch them out of My hand.

13 Then one of the elders asked me, “These in white robes—who are they, and where did they come from?”

14 I answered, “Sir, you know.” And he said, “These are they who have come out of the great tribulation; they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.

15 Therefore, “they are before the throne of God and serve him day and night in his temple; and he who sits on the throne will shelter them with his presence.

16 ‘Never again will they hunger; never again will they thirst. The sun will not beat down on them,’nor any scorching heat.

.17 For the Lamb at the center of the throne will be their shepherd; ‘he will lead them to springs of living water.’‘And God will wipe away every tear from their eyes.’ ”

4 ‘He will wipe every tear from their eyes. There will be no more death’ or mourning or crying or pain, for the old order of things has passed away.”

5 He who was seated on the throne said, “I am making everything new!” Then he said, “Write this down, for these words are trustworthy and true.”

6 He said to me: “It is done. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End. To the thirsty I will give water without cost from the spring of the water of life.

7 Those who are victorious will inherit all this, and I will be their God and they will be my children.

You will receive an inheritance as part of your reward for trusting in Jesus

3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, 4 to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, 5 who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

You receive the gift of the Holy Spirit when you trust Jesus Christ as you Savior.

I baptized you with water; but He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit.”

but you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”

Peter said to them, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the HolySpirit.

The reward of the redeemed is greater than anything the world has to offer. You can have it today by putting your faith in Jesus Christ.