Under the Law

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Abraham, an Old Testament Example

 ["Click here for Romans 4:1-8"]

In these eight verses we have all the scripture that we need to justify our belief in the doctrine of "Justification by Faith". What can we say about Abraham? Abraham was justified before God. Abraham found the "pearl of great price". How did he do this?

Surly if any man has reason to boast, it was Abraham. Did not God make his name great among all the nations? Was he not the earthly father of a nation of God's people? Was not great honor and glory brought to his name? Certainly Abraham's justification came by his works. But no, Abraham was great because God made him great. He still needed to be made right before God. Works, no matter how great, would not accomplish this. But Abraham was justified before God so it must have been by faith. The scriptures says that Abraham believed God and it was reckoned to him as righteousness.

Reckoned:

What can we say then that God did when He "reckoned" to Abraham righteousness through faith?

  1. He gave consideration to Abraham.
  2. He, who knows the mind and heart of all people, concluded that Abraham's faith was true.
  3. This faith allowed God to settle all accounts with Abraham.
  4. This faith allowed God to forgive Abraham of all sins and remember them no more.

This is what God did for Abraham when he demonstrated his faith in God and this is what God does for us when we demonstrate our faith in Jesus Christ. Abraham's faith was "reckoned" for righteousness just as ours is. Therefore, Abraham was justified by faith, apart from works, so he had nothing to boast about. We must remember that salvation is ours purely by the Grace of God.

It is interesting to note that this period of great faith in the life of Abraham followed immediately after a period of grievous disbelief on the part of Abraham. So, be of good cheer, it is not the perfect faith that is required for justification, it is the prevailing and persevering faith that God looks for. So Abraham was justified by faith, not as a reward for works, not because he merited it, but because of God's Grace and unmerited favor.

We cannot leave this portion of scripture without attempting to answer the obvious question, "Will faith, without works, save you?" This is the question that is always asked by those who do not believe in "Justification by Faith". I think that Paul makes it very clear that those who believe in Jesus Christ and have accepted Him as their Lord and Savior, are saved, period, and those who find no work to do for the Lord after that, are missing out on the joy of their salvation.

Matthew Henry, in his commentary, says, "Therefore the one who had no merit under the Law, no works to boast about, but casts himself or herself boldly upon the free Grace of God thru Jesus Christ, is saved." He goes on to say, "This should be evidenced by an active, lively and obedient faith." To further emphasize this point, Paul quotes from the 32 Psalm, "Blessed are those whose iniquities are forgiven and whose sins are covered." "Blessed is the man, against whom, the Lord will not reckon sin." David believed that the man whose sins were forgiven, had them removed from him and remembered no more. This man was blessed and should be happy for those whom God forgives, are forgiven indeed. I believe that this belief that we are justified by faith, is the foundation upon which all other beliefs are built.

The Meaning of Circumcision

["Click here for Romans 4:9-12"]

This second part of this section deals with the true meaning of circumcision for the Jew and baptism for the Christian. Baptism, for the Christian, is as circumcision, is for the Jew. It is a "sign" of an inner cleansing or as Paul says, a sign of the righteousness which we have by faith.

Is justification by faith pronounced only on those who are baptized? No.... we are baptized after we have been justified by faith, after accepting God's plan of salvation thru Jesus Christ.

Matthew Henry makes an interesting point, "Circumcision was the seal of the covenant." "It was administered to infants on the 8th day after they were born." "So if infants were then capable of receiving the 'seal of the covenant', which said that they were within the confines of the covenant, why isn't baptism given to the infants of Christian believers?"

Paul answers this question. Baptism is not a saving ordinance nor is it a sign of believing parents. It is a declaration of ones regeneration made possible by the acceptance of Jesus Christ. Therefore, sense infants cannot declare this belief, they cannot be baptized. However, infants can be dedicated to the Lord, by believing parents, in the hope that ultimately, by God's Grace, they will accept the Lord and come into the commonwealth of believers when they become accountable.

The Promise to Abraham

["Click here for Romans 4:13-25 (Gen. 15:1-6)"]

Here Paul reminds us of the promise that God made to Abraham that he would have many descendants. This promise was made when Abraham was childless accept for a male child borne for him by a slave, and when he was 100 years old and his wife, Sarah, was 90 years old.

Certainly a lesser man might have doubted this promise but Abraham believed the Lord and it was reckoned to him as righteousness. Abraham had so little of this worlds possessions yet he was to be heir of it all, he and his "seed". The "seed" of Abraham was Christ and now Christ is the heir of the world and we are joint heirs in Christ.

How did Abraham become God's heir? Certainly not through the Law but through the choosing of God and the obedience and trust of Abraham, for when God commanded Abraham to leave his own country, by faith, Abraham did. If it had been possible to have been justified by works, then there would have been no need of faith, and man, by the works of the Law, could have justified himself. Paul says that this is impossible because of the Law brings wrath towards God.

Why does the Law bring wrath or anger toward God? It appears that it is natural for people to rebel against authority. Children often rebel against the authority of their parents. The demands that loving parents put upon children for their own good, often anger the children. This same inner rebellion toward boundaries, codes, laws, fences, anything that appears to confine the human spirit, makes us angry. Thus the Laws of God brought anger from His people.

If there was no Law, there would be no transgression, but there are laws and we are obligated to obey them, yet these very laws which are there for our own good, anger us. So the law makes us angry and we become disobedient and disobedience brings judgment and condemnation. Then we need a means of escaping that condemnation. That's where faith comes in.

Then Paul lists three reasons why faith was responsible for God's promise to Abraham:

  1. That it might be by God's Grace. Faith is the "key" that unlocks the Grace of God.
  2. That the promise might be sure. Faith guarantees your salvation. But you may ask, what guarantees faith? Left to the believer, there would be no guarantee but sense faith is a gift from God, it is eternal. Thus Paul brings out a very important doctrine of the church, the Perseverance of the Saints, or, once saved, always saved. Blessed assurance. Faith is in God's keeping. He is the author and finisher of our faith. He gives it to us and he will preserve and protect it.
  3. The promise was given to Abraham because of his faith, that it might be available for all of his descendants. If it had been by the Law, technically only Jews could have been saved, but with the change of Abram's name to Abraham, came our relationship to him and our claim to the promise. The name "Abraham" meant "Father of a multitude", and God promised Abraham that he would be father of many nations.

Abraham believed God and it was reckoned to him as righteousness and Paul here assures us that faith will do the same for us. The accounts in the Old Testament were not written for their historical value, rather, they were examples of God's reaction to faith and man's reaction to God.

Paul says that this righteousness shall be imputed to us. Notice this verb (shall) is in the future tense but the process is ongoing. Forgiveness and justification is past, present and future, guaranteed by our Lord Jesus Christ. There is but one condition and that is that we believe on Jesus and have accepted Him as our Lord and Savior.

What is it that we must believe about Jesus?

  1. That He is the Son of God.
  2. That He is the Christ, the promised Messiah.
  3. That He died for our sins.
  4. That He arose on the third day for our justification.
  5. That He can save you and keep you and present you faultless before the one true and living God.
  6. That there is salvation in no other and that it cannot be obtained by works but is a gift of God.

These are the things that we believe about Jesus of Nazareth, declare this to the Lord and be saved, be justified, be covered by the "robe of righteousness".


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