Romans 4
Studies On The Book Of Romans • Sermon • Submitted
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Intro
Intro
Series - Studies On The Book Of Romans
Part 6 - Romans 4
What then shall we say that Abraham our father has found according to the flesh? For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God. For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” Now to him who works, the wages are not counted as grace but 3as debt.
Background
Background
Key points
How Abraham was justified
When Abraham was justified
How the promise is to be fulfilled
Review - definition of terms
Justification - the doctrine of the Bible that says a person who believes in God and His promise is declare righteous apart fromt he deeds of the law.
Propitiation - the means of appeasing wrath and gaining the good will of an offended person
the law of works - the principle in which a person is declared righteous based on his fulfillmet of the law
the law of faith - the principle in which a person is declared righteous by his faith
How was Abraham justified
How was Abraham justified
1 What then shall we say that Abraham our father has found 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 accounted to him for righteousness.”
4 Now to him who works, the wages are not counted as grace but as debt.
Abraham was not justified by works
If it was by works, he will have something to boast about
Question - why did James say Abraham was justified by works and not by faith alone?
21 Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered Isaac his son on the altar?
22 Do you see that faith was working together with his works, and by works faith was made perfect?
23 And the Scripture was fulfilled which says, “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” And he was called the friend of God.
24 You see then that a man is justified by works, and not by faith only.
James was referring to the “work of faith” - faith obeying God
Paul was referring to the “works of the law” - fulfilling the law as a human achievement
28 Therefore we conclude that a man is justified by faith apart from the deeds of the law.
Abraham was declared righteous before the laws came
Abraham received grace from God, not a debt paid
Justification is a blessing!
5 But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness,
6 just as David also describes the blessedness of the man to whom God imputes righteousness apart from works:
7 “Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, And whose sins are covered;
8 Blessed is the man to whom the Lord shall not impute sin.”
impute - grk. LOGIZOMAI
to credit; to put on one’s account;
the righteousness of Christ is put on our account (credited to us)
our sins are not put on our account (not credited to us)
21 For He made Him who knew no sin to be sin for us, that we might become the righteousness of God in Him.
When was Abraham justified
When was Abraham justified
9 Does this blessedness then come upon the circumcised only, or upon the uncircumcised also? For we say that faith was accounted to Abraham for righteousness.
10 How then was it accounted? While he was circumcised, or uncircumcised? Not while circumcised, but while uncircumcised.
11 And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had while still uncircumcised, that he might be the father of all those who believe, though they are uncircumcised, that righteousness might be imputed to them also,
12 and the father of circumcision to those who not only are of the circumcision, but who also walk in the steps of the faith which our father Abraham had while still uncircumcised.
Abraham was justified before he was circumcised
circumcision - a sign of the covenant between Israel and God
7 And I will establish My covenant between Me and you and your descendants after you in their generations, for an everlasting covenant, to be God to you and your descendants after you.
8 Also I give to you and your descendants after you the land in which you are a stranger, all the land of Canaan, as an everlasting possession; and I will be their God.”
9 And God said to Abraham: “As for you, you shall keep My covenant, you and your descendants after you throughout their generations.
10 This is My covenant which you shall keep, between Me and you and your descendants after you: Every male child among you shall be circumcised;
11 and you shall be circumcised in the flesh of your foreskins, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between Me and you.
God declared Abraham righteous in Gen 15
God established HIs covenant with Abraham in Gen 17
the covenant states - I am your God, you are my people
God gives the sign of the covenant - circumcision
Paul sees this event in a different light -
circumcision was a seal of righteousness by faith
justfication comes before relationship (covenant)
Abraham’s life was a pattern for ALL
How the promise of God to Abraham is to be fulfilled
How the promise of God to Abraham is to be fulfilled
13 For the promise that he would be the heir of the world was not to Abraham or to his seed through the law, but through the righteousness of faith.
14 For if those who are of the law are heirs, faith is made void and the promise made of no effect,
15 because the law brings about wrath; for where there is no law there is no transgression.
The promise was not given through the law
otherwise faith is worthless and the promise ineffective
because no will be righteous enough to earn the promise
16 Therefore it is of faith that it might be according to grace, so that the promise might be sure to all the seed, not only to those who are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all
17 (as it is written, “I have made you a father of many nations”) in the presence of Him whom he believed—God, who gives life to the dead and calls those things which do not exist as though they did;
18 who, contrary to hope, in hope believed, so that he became the father of many nations, according to what was spoken, “So shall your descendants be.”
19 And not being weak in faith, he did not consider his own body, already dead (since he was about a hundred years old), and the deadness of Sarah’s womb.
20 He did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God,
21 and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform.
22 And therefore “it was accounted to him for righteousness.”
The promise was given through faith
so that God can freely and certainly give to anyone who believes
so that God may gain the glory, not man -
real faith trust in God power to give life and declares things as though they already exist
God is glorified when faith persists
Conclusion
Conclusion
23 Now it was not written for his sake alone that it was imputed to him,
24 but also for us. It shall be imputed to us who believe in Him who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead,
25 who was delivered up because of our offenses, and was raised because of our justification.
The things that God did to Abraham were written fo our benefit -
righteousness is imputed to us in the same way
we promise of God in the same way
The faith that God justifies -
faith in God who raised us Jesus from the dead
Abraham believed in the resurrection
17 By faith Abraham, when he was tested, offered up Isaac, and he who had received the promises offered up his only begotten son,
18 of whom it was said, “In Isaac your seed shall be called,”
19 concluding that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead, from which he also received him in a figurative sense.
the heroes of faith believed in the resurrection
13 These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.
14 For those who say such things declare plainly that they seek a homeland.
15 And truly if they had called to mind that country from which they had come out, they would have had opportunity to return.
16 But now they desire a better, that is, a heavenly country. Therefore God is not ashamed to be called their God, for He has prepared a city for them.
32 And what more shall I say? For the time would fail me to tell of Gideon and Barak and Samson and Jephthah, also of David and Samuel and the prophets:
33 who through faith subdued kingdoms, worked righteousness, obtained promises, stopped the mouths of lions,
34 quenched the violence of fire, escaped the edge of the sword, out of weakness were made strong, became valiant in battle, turned to flight the armies of the aliens.
35 Women received their dead raised to life again. Others were tortured, not accepting deliverance, that they might obtain a better resurrection.
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