Promises for the Faithful

Romans 4:17-25

INTRO

Pastor to a dead church, “I’ve stopped expecting you to make leaps of faith, but it would be nice to see a hop now and then.”

I have faith we’ll get to all the points in todays message.

The point of preaching is to change lives.

But, we must become willing to change.

Will resting on God’s Word lead me to change?

PRAY

On faith we know the Bible teaches that justification comes by faith alone.

The Bible puts it this way:

Romans 3:28 CSB

For we conclude that a person is justified by faith apart from the works of the law.

On the 14th last month I stood here noting that Paul argued this point by looking at the life of Abraham.

Abraham believed God would give him a baby at an advanced age.

Genesis 15:6 tells us, and this is before Abraham was a Jew, he believed God and it was, “credited [it] to him as righteousness.”

Jews, Paul, and the church all agree that Abraham is a man of great faith.

Today last half Romans chapter four.

What do you believe and know about faith?

How will your faith affect what God will do in this church?

Good questions to ask.

Let’s come back to them after looking at todays text.

Our passage gives you the spiritual food to properly answer those two questions.

I’m labeling the points:

Author of Faith

Adversity with Faith

Aspiration of the Faithful

Author of Faith

Romans 4:17 CSB

As it is written: I have made you the father of many nations— in the presence of the God in whom he believed, the one who gives life to the dead and calls things into existence that do not exist.

Knowing God who, “calls into existence” is the key point.

As awesome as your faith, its not so much if it’s not faith in God.

We think Abraham’s faith is awesome, but its not because he is Abraham, but because his faith is in God.

Where you put your faith is key.

Abraham believed before he was a Jew.

But there is more.

Before Jesus, Abraham believed in the resurrection of the dead!

In Genesis 22:5 Abraham obeyed God by raising a knife over Isaac; he believed God would raise Isaac if he died.

God is the Author of everything.

The world, universe, and you and I.

God created everything out of nothing.

Faith is not in being a Jew, a Christian, or attending church.

True faith has God as its object.

Two things I can ask you now are:

Is your faith in God?

How to you see God?

TRANS - There is human hope and heavenly hope.

Human hope might be trusting in science, our abilities, or medicine.

In our next topic we examine the place for reason and faith; hoping against hope.

The Biblical explanation might shock some of you.

Adversity with Faith

Romans 4:18–20 CSB

He believed, hoping against hope, so that he became the father of many nations according to what had been spoken: So will your descendants be. He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body to be already dead (since he was about a hundred years old) and also the deadness of Sarah’s womb. He did not waver in unbelief at God’s promise but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God,

I see two challenges to Abraham’s faith:

One is believing God’s promise for a baby.

Less obvious the time waiting on God’s promise.

Some think having faith means ignoring facts.

These people consider faith and facts exclusive of each other.

Know the word for this?

Faith without reason is fideism.

The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy notes fideism:

faith is in some sense independent of, if not outright adversarial toward, reason

What about reason without faith?

Reason without faith is called rationalism.

Let me be clear, are you listening?

In no way is faith less than reason nor is reason less than faith.

Biblical faith is both.

Was Abraham ignorant or simple by having faith God would give him a baby?

No, Abraham put his mind into action and put reason and faith to work.

He knew the impossibility of birth at an advanced age and the impossibility of God lying, and understood that nothing is impossible with God.

Abraham didn’t take an unreasonable step of faith nor did he stop in his tracks when the facts added up to “impossible.”

How might this apply to FBC Tavares?

APP - Facts are that SBC churches are declining & LCBA churches have fewer numbers then 10 years ago.

Yet, Lake County is Florida’s 3rd fastest growing county.

Programs, events, new music, everything FBC Tavares and other churches have done is not even keeping pace with area growth.

Those are the hard to face facts.

But, other facts offer hope.

You can change the way you do things in the future.

FBC Tavares can do more for the kingdom that at anytime in her history starting in 2022.

Few facts:

You own prime real-estate.

You have bright young leadership

New results happen when churches change how they do things.

Now is the time to trust God who called your new pastor, who is blessing you with property, and who wants grow His church.

Your big part is to support your pastor’s vision, and pray a whole lot for unity.

In my short time as AMS, I’ve already helped too many pastors deal with people opposed to the vision God gives these men. Don’t a few misguided people get in the way of what God is doing.

Being a church that God will bless is not going to be easy. Faith might even ask this church to risk a whole lot. Remember the rich young ruler. Jesus asked him to risk everything for the kingdom. Can you imagine if he did as Jesus said? What great thing might had happened.

Okay, so God proposed something outside our comfort zone like he did with Abraham and Sara.

STORY - Abraham comes in and says, “Guess what happened to me today?” Sara says, “Tell me.”

“God and I talked and he said you are going to have a baby!”

Rolling her eyes, Sara says, “Where’s the bottle?”

Ab says, “No, really God said we’re gonna be parents.”

As a church, God says make every effort to believe and do together.

Believe in God and make every effort to be unified. Right?

Some will suggest ideas, some will contest ideas, but in the end it must be both faith and reason that you discuss.

Like with Abraham and Sara, they experienced God’s will and power together. It was a little hard to believe, but they did believe.

Against all church changes, type of music, adding and dropping ministries, tearing down and building gathering places, service times, and giving big time, you will need to be one in order for God to grow this church.

Your choices will not be easy or every church would be growing.

Your pastor will cast vision that, hopefully, challenges you to do everything you can to achieve that vision.

Keep in mind that with God, anything is possible.

Recall Jesus’ words to Peter:

Matthew 16:18 (CSB)

...on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.

God promises to grow the church and make you a powerful force in this world against evil!

If God is for us, the only thing in the way must be us!

With real faith, that is in God and reasoned faith, God’s promise will not fail.

ILL - One of my best days as a pastor was when nearly the entire church were moved to come to the front of the church during an altar call. Not programed, spirit-led.

That day, that time, was an amazing experience.

The church was at a point or crisis. Only a God-sized miracle would do and the people came together as one and God delivered.

The bank, buildings, and bills were closing the church doors.

Within a week the church was debt free for the first time, money for the buildings poured in, and all the bills were paid.

All that because the people were unified in faith and prayed as one that Sunday morning.

Sometimes it seems we say we believe, but then only believe in what we can do ourselves.

A church must trust God to do more than the entire body is capable of doing, otherwise its simple faith in our ability.

Your trust in God’s promise is only as good as your worry list is short.

If this church does not change, if you keep doing things the same way, you will get the same results.

If you are worried about the change, or worse, trying to prevent change, I ask you what does that say about your faith?

TRANS -We noted faith is to glorify God & faith makes you righteous.

We noted God creates out of nothing and gives life to the dead.

We saw faith evaluates obstacles in light of God’s Word & power.

And we considered church application of these principles.

Now lets ask, “What can our text teach us about putting this into action?”

Aspiration of the Faithful

Romans 4:20–22 CSB

He did not waver in unbelief at God’s promise but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, because he was fully convinced that what God had promised, he was also able to do. Therefore, it was credited to him for righteousness.

Abraham believed what God promised He will do.

Abrahams faith is credited to him for righteousness.

ILL - You too can have this righteousness.

Promises that WOW our minds our ours.

Now we call God “Abba Father.”

It’s hard to imagine life better than being a child of God.

However the Bible teaches just that1

2 Corinthians 4:17 NASB95

For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison,

Your eternal you, for you it gets better than it is now.

Place your faith in God who raised Jesus from the grave.

Place your faith in God who died for your sin.

Place your faith in Jesus who was resurrected for your justification.

Hope sees the invisible, feels the intangible, and achieves the impossible.

Against all human hope, hope in what God promises.

Conclusion

I opened with these questions:

What do you believe and know about faith?

How will your faith affect what God will do in this church?

The purpose of preaching the Word is to change lives.

How did todays message change me?

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