Romans 4

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Romans 4:18-24, Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, “So shall your offspring be." Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead—since he was about a hundred years old—and that Sarah’s womb was also dead. Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised. This is why “it was credited to him as righteousness.” The words “it was credited to him” were written not for him alone, but also for us, to whom God will credit righteousness—for us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.

This is an interesting chapter. Paul clearly wants his Jewish listeners to know that justification by faith is not a new concept, but there is actually a precedent in the Old Testament. He wants his Gentile listeners to know that they have a rich spiritual heritage when they believe in Jesus, as the Old Testament attests to this salvation. Paul highlights Abraham and David, two great men of faith, to demonstrate that even under the old covenant, people were saved by faith rather than by works.

Let's take a closer look at our focus verses for today. It's a somewhat long passage but all of it is important. Paul discusses Abraham's faith. Abraham believed, against all hope and even though it was a crazy thought, that he would become a father in his old age and even become the father of many nations. Sarah was something like 100 years old. This was not a reasonable thing to believe! Despite some mishaps along the way (think Hagar and Ishmael), Abraham had faith that God would do what God said he would do. It was Abraham's faith, rather than his adherence to the law (works), that God credited him as righteous. It is also our faith, specifically our faith in Jesus Christ and belief that he died for our sins and was resurrected, that God credits us as righteous. To be righteous means to be in right standing with God.

Let's be clear. We are not righteous at all on our own merit. Rather, because of Jesus, we are credited as righteous. We essentially get to hang on Jesus' righteousness coattails and I am so very glad for it!

Let's pray...Thank you, Jesus, for your sacrifice and for allowing us to be credited as righteous. Because of you, Jesus, we can experience abundant life with God, knowing that God is always with us and that nothing gets in the way. We are so grateful. In Jesus' Mighty and Powerful Name, Amen.