Romans 4:1-12 The Gospel - Gods consistent method through the ages

Theological Proposition/Focus: Faith has always been the means by which God has offered salvation. Abraham's faith was credited as righteousness, highlighting that salvation has always been received through faith and not works. This underscores the accessibility of God's grace to all who believe, regardless of their background or status. From the very beginning, God intended for salvation to be accessible through faith.

Christ Focus: The faith of Abraham points to Christ, who fulfills the promise of salvation by grace through faith. Just as Abraham's faith was credited to him as righteousness, our faith in Christ secures our justification before God.

Homiletical Proposition/Application: This passage asserts that faith is the vital link between us and God's grace. It reassures believers that their faith, not their performance, secures their relationship with God, thus alleviating guilt and fostering a deeper trust in His promises.

Introduction

Image: Rediscovering the discoveries of the past, the history of mathematics.

One of the most fascinating aspects of being a math professor was exploring the history of mathematical thought. Mathematics is ancient! As a general rule, most of the mathematics that someone learns by the time they graduate high school was fleshed out thousands of years ago. If you progress far enough to take a calculus class, you delve into the 17th century. In college, students work to reach the 1800s. A master's student may break into the early 20th century. One of the first PhD-level courses begins with the work of Lebesgue, which was done in 1901! It is not until late in a PhD that someone begins to reach into the modern era.

What this means is that learning advanced mathematics entails grappling with discoveries that are hundreds of years old! It is truly enjoyable to guide a student through a problem, witnessing the delight in their eyes as they solve it, followed by awe as they realize that what they have come to understand has been known for nearly 2000 years.

This sentiment is somewhat reminiscent of Ecclesiastes 1:9: "What has been will be again, what has been done will be done again; there is nothing new under the sun."

In Romans 4, Paul does something similar with his readers. Once you understand that salvation is by grace, you may be in a state of shock. You might think, "Wow! This is amazing. This is life-changing; this changes everything." And then Paul says, "Yep, and guess what? You are not the first to realize this!"

Body

Abraham's Benchmark Belief — Abraham's justification is proof that righteousness comes by faith (1-5)

Abraham's faith was accounted by God as righteousness, showing that faith was the key to righteousness long before the law was given. Abraham believed God's promises wholeheartedly, modeling for us a faith that leans into trust rather than human effort. This serves as a reminder that our own journey with God mirrors this ancient example: it is our faith that God desires, not our flawed attempts at perfection. Believers today can be encouraged that their relationship with God is secure through faith in Christ, just as Abraham's was. Wages are earned, while righteousness is gifted. By eliminating works as a basis for salvation, Paul clarifies that faith unlocks God's grace.

How would we ever expect finite righteousness to compare with the infinite God (1-2)?

Paul begins his argument with an important question: "What do you suppose that Abraham discovered about the nature of salvation?"

From a "forming my argument" point of view, this is an incredibly important question. Abraham is the one to whom the Jews trace their lineage and entire view of God.

So, if Abraham has something to say on this matter, it is probably worth our attention. Let me give you an example: modern literary critics have at least six different controversial ways in which Shakespeare's works are analyzed, but can you imagine what would happen if we could go back in time and ask Shakespeare? What Paul is saying here is, "I have just presented an approach to understanding salvation that you may think is revolutionary, so let's go back and actually ask Abraham!"

Paul then makes a profound argument: Abraham is not God!

Abraham's faith was amazing following God from civilization into the wilderness and then even a willingness to sacrifice his own son for God.

Abraham was amazing. He followed God from the pinnacle of civilization into the wilderness. He faithfully trusted God, protected his family, and was willing to even give up his son for God. Jewish literature from the time that Paul was writing went so far as to declare that Abraham was perfect in his conduct.

In fact, some Jews at the time of Paul went so far as to call Abraham perfect in his conduct.

For example, the Book of Jubilees is an ancient Jewish text that retells and expands upon biblical narratives from Genesis and Exodus. The book was written sometime between 160 and 150 BC. In the early first century, the Book of Jubilees was used primarily by certain Jewish groups, particularly those who emphasized strict adherence to the Law of Moses.

Jubilees 23:10 states, "For Abraham was perfect in all his deeds with the Lord, and well-pleasing in righteousness all the days of his life; and behold, he did not complete four jubilees in his life, when he had grown old by reason of the wickedness, and was full of his days."

So what Paul does here is form an argument. Paul says, "Suppose with me for just a second that Abraham's works are amazing. Still, his works are nothing compared with the perfection of God. The one who thinks the works of a finite man can earn the favor of the infinite God must not understand God."

It was Abraham's belief that was the key (3).

In verse 3, Paul brings out the big guns: Scripture. The Bible itself agrees with Paul and states that it was Abraham's faith, his belief that was counted to him as righteousness.

Image: Abraham's incredible faith, the son that was not.

Ok, I am going to be just a little vulnerable here and try to get through this example.

In Genesis 15:1-6, we have one of the most incredible statements of faith. God promises Abraham great blessings in verse 1, but Abraham has a problem, a problem that he cannot just get over. Abraham essentially, in verse 2, tells God, "God, you are making these wonderful promises to me, but all those promises pale in comparison to my biggest need: a son."

Let me be very vulnerable. I have lost people to horrific deaths. I have felt the pain of rejection. I have felt the anxiety of not knowing what the future holds. But nothing compares to the pain of wanting a child and knowing that you will never have a child. I know that may sound dramatic to some, but I mean it. If you talk with and really get to know people who have infertility issues or have lost their children, you will learn about pain.

Abraham was old, Sarah was old, and Abraham saw no prospect, no hope. So, Abraham openly tells God, "I don't get it. You are promising blessings, but I am stuck." God responds in Genesis 15:5: "He took him outside and said, 'Look up at the sky and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.' Then he said to him, 'So shall your offspring be.'"

This is the context of Genesis 15:6: Abraham believed God with his deepest need, his deepest desire—a desire for which he saw no hope. Abraham saw no way for what God said to be true, but still, Abraham believed.

Abraham's belief resulted in it being "counted" ἀλογίσθη in the Greek.

The word ἐλογίσθη could be used in a metaphorical sense as classifying one thing as another . That is, Abraham's belief is not what is righteous, but rather it counts for righteousness.

There is a sharp contrast between wages and a gift (4-5).

In the world of bookkeeping their is a huge difference between those who earn ages and those who don't.

Paul brings it all together in verses 4 and 5 with some imagery of his own. Paul brings in the world of bookkeeping and tells his readers that if you go to work and at the end of the day you receive your paycheck, you are not obligated to write a thank-you card because the paycheck was not a gift. Ok, maybe the text does not say the whole part about the thank you card, but the idea is there.

But in verse 5, Paul makes a compelling argument. Some of you have worked as bookkeepers in the past. If you have worked on payroll, you might relate to this. Whose names get recorded in a payroll database? The answer is pretty simple: the names of the people who work. Thankfully, you are not required to maintain a list of people who don't work for a company. If you did, you would be in trouble; that would be a very long list. However, what we see in verse 5 is incredible. In God's payroll ledger, he has the names of people who have done no work but still received the gift of righteousness. It is not our work that saves us! It is the free gift.

David's Poetic Proof — David's poetry demonstrates that God's forgiveness is by grace, not works (6-8).

David's writing celebrates the blessing of forgiveness, which doesn't come from works. This reflects the consistent biblical theme of sinners finding forgiveness through faith in God's merciful promises. Believers today can find assurance and peace, knowing their sins are not accounted against them because of Jesus' sacrificial work. This offers hope to all who believe, confirming that it's faith, not deeds, that brings about divine grace.

David, almost 1000 years later, spoke of the peace that comes from credited righteousness (6).

Having discussed Abraham, Paul now moves to talk about another Jewish hero, David.

From where does this peace come?

From knowing that the God of the universe looks on you and sees Christ.

Imagine a situation where you have a job and your boss thinks that you walk on water. Your boss appreciates your work and shows it. Even when your work doesn't measure up, your boss still values you. You cannot do anything wrong. This sort of job is an easy job to work because you know that your work will be approved. I dare say you would have a level of happiness and peace about you.

But this situation is the reality we find ourselves in once we have accepted Christ as Savior. All of a sudden, our God accepts us. He looks upon us and sees the righteousness of Jesus. We don't have to work to earn God's favor.

David recognized that sins were covered (7).

What David knew, even though he would not have had a full understanding of the Messiah, was that the God of the universe forgives sin and covers them.

If someone knew what forgiveness was, it was David.

Think about it for a minute. David acquired multiple wives, but that was not enough, so he took the wife of another. When the reality of his sin was about to be uncovered, David had a man killed to hide his sin. Later in life, David ordered the people to perform a census despite God's command and warning against such an act. David was a sinner, but this sinner also knew forgiveness.

Hence, David can declare, "Blessed are those whose transgressions are forgiven."

David recognized that sin was overlooked by God (8).

In verse 8, we see the emergence of an accounting term, this time in the negative.=

Recall that in verse 5 we had this statement that faith was credited as righteousness. Faith is not righteousness; rather, it is credited as righteousness.

Image: Expunging vs forgiving: ASRS forgiveness is not an expunging of the record.

The NASA Aviation Safety Reporting System (ASRS) is a program that allows people in aviation—like pilots, mechanics, and flight attendants—to report mistakes or safety concerns without fear of punishment. If someone accidentally breaks a rule and reports it through ASRS, the FAA usually won't penalize them, as long as it wasn't intentional or part of an accident. However, this doesn't erase the mistake from their record; it just means they won't face fines or other punishments.

This is a sort of forgiveness, but at the same time, the transgression still counts against the individual. It is still on the record, and if something else bad happens, it will be brought back up. This is not the type of forgiveness that God offers. God's forgiveness is much better; it does not count against us.

Time's Telling Truth — Abraham's timeline proves that God offers justification to all, not just the Jews (9-12).

The significance of faith preceding circumcision in Abraham's life shows that God's promises aren't limited to rituals or heritage but are for all who believe. Believers must see themselves as part of the wide family of God, justified by the same faith Abraham exhibited.

A natural question that deserves attention is: "To whom does this apply?" (9)

What we have been discussing here is nothing short of incredible. The God of the universe chooses not only to forgive but to expunge. If we take a second and think about it, we only begin to grasp the significance of the situation. Everything changes when we realize what God has done.

A question then begins to emerge: am I eligible for this sort of treatment? What must I do to have this type of membership card? Maybe the key to getting this treatment is to be a Jew, or perhaps circumcision is the key.

The timeline answers the question (10-11a).

Genesis 15 comes before Genesis 17

The answer to this question lies in the timeline. You see, we can look at the timeline of Genesis, and what we will see is that Genesis 15 comes before Genesis 17. Why is that significant?

Just to be completely clear: Abraham was justified by faith in Genesis 15. Abraham was circumcised more than 13 years later.

How do I know it was 13 years?

In Genesis 16:16, we have 86-year-old Abraham having Ishmael by Hagar, and circumcision happening at 99 years old.

What does this mean? Abraham's justification came before he had the sign of the covenant. In other words, Abraham was justified strictly by faith, not through the sign of the covenant. Paul uses this to argue that the same justification is available to all, regardless of Jew or Gentile status.

So here is the really cool part: if God had already justified Abraham, what was the point of circumcision?

The answer: circumcision became the sign of Abraham's justification. Abraham was going to go through life and face temptation and trial. Indeed, Abraham would go through life and sin, but no matter what Abraham did, it would not change one simple fact: Abraham was justified before God not because of anything Abraham had done, but rather because God had chosen to justify Abraham.

Circumcision was a visible, consistent reminder to Abraham that he was justified before God. Things might go wrong and Abraham might be tempted to question his worth, after all, he was a sinner, but no matter what happened, Abraham had the visible reminder that he was justified before God.

Hence, faith provides the common bond that brings us all together (11b-12).

To understand the significance of verses 11b-12, we need to recognize a few key points.

• For a Jew, Abraham was revered as the father of the Jewish nation.

• Therefore, the only way one could become a descendant of Abraham was through birth or, in rare cases, through conversion to Judaism, which would have involved circumcision.

• Paul in the second half of verse 11 then argues that through faith, the Gentile becomes a child of Abraham.

• Now an important parenthetical is made: in order that righteousness might be credited to them.

• This parenthetical is incredibly important. The point is not that the Christian becomes a Jew; the point is that the Christian becomes part of something that predates Judaism: salvation by faith. This is incredible!

• In verse 12, we see something remarkable: Jews who place their faith in Christ are also invited into this state of those who are saved.

Abraham was saved before Abraham was a Jew (using that term loosely for rhetorical effect). Then, looking at verse 11, Paul argues that Gentiles who have faith are part of this pre-Jew salvation, and in verse 12, he is arguing that Jews who have faith can also be part of this pre-Jew salvation. Thus, the passage is not a statement that the church replaces or is equal to Israel, but rather a statement that there is a higher state: those who are saved, and both the church and Israel can be part of that state.

Image: The Nebraska Boating License

In the state of Nebraska, you are required to have completed a boating education course before operating a jet ski on a Nebraska lake. That is, unless you were born before December 31, 1985. In that case, no boating education course is needed. So for a large percentage of you in the church today, if we were to go jet skiing, you would first need to take the course. Imagine we all go out to the lake to ride jet skis; there would be four types of people on the lake.

• Those who took the course and know what they are doing.

• Those who took the course and still had no idea what they were doing.

• Those who were born before December 31, 1985, and know what they are doing.

• Those who were born before December 31, 1985, and have no idea what they are doing.

There are two groups of people that I am going to let drive my jet ski (in fact, I don't have a jet ski, but just bear with me). The two types are the people who know what they are doing. Those two types of people are not the same, but they both get to drive my jet ski not because of their age or their course but because they know what they are doing. In fact, those who took the course might be better drivers because they took the course; then again, they might not because the older group might have studied on their own. There also might be some in the older group who took the course. Taking the course might help you to be better at driving; it might not, but I am not concerned with that. What I want to know is: do you know what you are doing?