Saved by faith or lost in unbelief? Romans 4:9-25
There were three guys discussing their obituaries and one asked, “What would you like people to say at your funeral?” One of his friends thought for minute and said, "I’d like them to say ‘He was a great humanitarian who really cared about his community.’" The second guy said, "I’d like them to say ‘He was a great husband and father who was an example for many to follow.’" Both nodded in agreement and then looked at their silent friend who said, "I’d like them to say ‘Look, he’s moving!’"
“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.
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.
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.”
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.”
It’s interesting that Paul keeps back to the issue of circumcision and I think he does this for a few good reasons.
First, he knew that those who believed they were saved because they were trusting in their circumcision were actually lost; and he wanted to do everything he could to help them get their eyes off themselves and their good deeds and unto Jesus who died to save them, not only from their sins but also from trusting in their good works.
Second, he also saw the danger of such false teaching, because if the Jews believed they were saved by circumcision then the Gentiles might follow their lead and trust in the same or some other form of religious activity to save them like church membership, baptism or even the Lord’s Table.
Third, Christianity could face its greatest trial by believers getting their eyes off Jesus and unto works to save them. There have always been false teachers either with cults or even as individuals trying to persuade believers that Jesus was the answer; but you just need a little bit more in order to be saved.
These people are motivated and many are possessed by Satan and their goal is to discourage anyone from evangelism and get everyone back into the world. And guess what, they’ve been very successful. We are seeing evangelical churches that haven’t reached a soul in years and even though some of them are growing, it’s because they’re swallowing up the smaller churches around them. And then there are the churches and pastors who have simply drifted away from the word of God. Jesus warned us in Matthew 7:15, “Beware of false prophets, who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inwardly they are ravenous wolves.” They might look like the real thing but their goal is to destroy your spiritual life and take whatever you have.
Listen, counterfeit Christians can teach, preach, profess faith, do miracles, and even perform good works according to Jesus in Matthew 7. The counterfeit Christian claims to be preaching Jesus but he’s actually preaching a Jesus who will save you but allow you to be lord of your own life. The counterfeit thinks you can be justified without being sanctified or cleansed from sin without being purified. The counterfeit preaches you can turn to the Lord without turning from your sin.
The counterfeit’s gospel is a message of an easy-going salvation where all you have to do is say a little prayer and you’ll be saved forever. It doesn’t matter if you go to church, if read your Bible or if you end up spending your life on dope and booze; it’s OK because once you’ve prayed the sinner’s prayer, you’ll be saved from hell forever.
I was visiting a home one time where the people had been on the membership roll of our church but none of them had attended for years. They weren’t exactly happy to see me but after a few minutes I got them talking about the things of the Lord and the mother started telling me about her son. She said he was an immoral drunk, who never did anything for anybody; but then she said, “I remember when he was six years old and he accepted Jesus at summer camp, so I know he’ll go to heaven when he dies.” The counterfeit gospel is deadly and it’s so common.
So, the false teacher says, “All you have to do is enough good works and you’ll get into heaven. And do you know what the problem with this line of thinking is? First, they’ll never know if they’ve done enough until they’re standing in the presence of God and if they haven’t there’ll be no time to back to do more. And then second, the scripture says that all of our righteousness is as filthy rags. So, if the part that we think is good is actually garbage then what’s the rest?
I think of the thief on the cross who trusted Jesus to save him with his final breaths. His salvation had nothing to do with his relationship to the church. He didn’t have time to get baptized or take the Lord’s supper. He couldn’t do any good works or even lift a hand to help anyone and he didn’t have a penny to give. He simply trusted Jesus to save him and he was saved by simply putting His faith in the Lord.
I think we also need to consider Paul’s life and how he may have been looking back on his own life and thinking about everything he trusted in such as religion, his heritage, his family connections and all his good works; and now he could see all his efforts as being completely worthless as compared to knowing Christ.
I So, how do we get saved?
In verses 11 and 12 it says of Abraham, “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.”
Paul uses an unusual clause in verse 11 when he’s talking about salvation and he says, “that righteousness might be imputed to them also.”
The word imputed means, to attribute or to ascribe to someone. It’s setting something to someone's account or reckoning something to someone else. Genesis 15:16 says, “God reckoned righteousness to believing Abraham,” which means He credited to Abraham account that which he did not have in himself. So, just as Adam’s sin was added to our account Christ’s righteousness was added and the one cancelled out the other. This means, even though we were born sinners we now stand in the presence of the Father as though we had never sinned.
In spite of who we were, we are a new creation. I like how Max Lucado said: “God is crazy about you. If God had a refrigerator, your picture would be on it. If God had a wallet, your picture would be in it. Whenever you talk, He listens and even though you might go days without thinking of Him, there’s never a moment when He’s not thinking of you.”
So, Jesus righteousness has been put on our account and not because we deserve it but because He loved us. I think of the story of orphan Annie. In the beginning of the story she was all alone, dressed in rags and caged in a filthy old orphanage that was run by a drunk, but then she was adopted by an extremely wealthy man who took care of all her every need and want.
Now I know that’s just a story but it conveys the same idea of our adoption into the family of God. We had nothing to begin with and no reason to be chosen but we were accepted in God’s family. Now we look forward to all the riches of eternity.
So, how do we get saved? By simply believing in the Lord Jesus Christ.
II The means of our salvation
In verse 16 it says, “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.”
We are saved by faith and our faith is in Jesus and His finished works and there’s certainly nothing that we have ever have done.
The Old Testament saints like Abraham looked forward to God’s provision of salvation while we look backward and see how He did it. Both of us have this in common, we are looking through the eyes of faith.
The problem is, we have had so many people with so many forms expression of belief and they think they’ve done enough to satisfy God’s holiness.
Jesus illustrates this so well in the parable of the Pharisee and the tax collector in Luke 18:9-14.
“He spoke this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: 10 “Two men went up to the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. 11 The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, ‘God, I thank You that I am not like other men—extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this tax collector. 12 I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I possess.’ 13 And the tax collector, standing afar off, would not so much as raise his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me a sinner!’
14 I tell you; this man went down to his house justified rather than the other; for everyone who exalts himself will be humbled, and he who humbles himself will be exalted.”
Here we have two people who are extremes. First, there is the Pharisee who was not only well known for his religion but as he says he fasted twice a week and gave away ten per cent of everything he had. People would see him and say, “Now there’s someone who really walks the walk and talks the talk. He really to put on a show. But the fact was, he hated everyone who wasn’t like him.
He was full of himself. Notice in verses 11 and 12 that the word "I" occurs 5 times in just two little sentences. He is self-righteous, self-centered, self-exalting and self-congratulating. If his arm was long enough, he’d spend all his time patting himself on the back.
And his problem was, his religion had made him feel so superior that he won’t even associate with someone like the tax collector for fear of contamination. He was afraid his sinfulness might somehow rub off onto his holiness.
On the other hand, is the tax collector and there was no such thing as a good tax collector. These men were known as traitors to their own countrymen and they were willing to do anything for a buck. All their friends were other tax collectors, prostitutes and sinners and or those who were known for being wicked.
And here we see the tax collector in an out of the way corner all by himself because he didn’t even feel as though he were good enough to even be in the temple. He was so conscious of his sin that he didn’t feel as though he were good enough to pray. And his prayer was hardly even a prayer but all he said was, "God, be merciful to me a sinner."
So, we have one guy who was so obsessed with how good he was and he was obviously waiting for some kind of reward while the other one was so convicted of sin that he was beating himself up and crying out for the mercy of God, because he knew he didn’t deserve anything.
It was the faith of the tax collector, that communicated to God that led to his repentance. Why? Because he was saved by faith and it has always been faith because faith alone saves everyone and anyone.
Now listen, it says in verse 9, “He spoke this parable to some who trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others.” Jesus was speaking to those who were trusting in themselves and their religion just puffed up their egos and made them feel as though they were above those who were really saved.
Those who exalt themselves will end up being humbled while those who humble themselves will be exalted.
So, we are saved not by what we do but by repenting of who we are because we’re all sinners in need of salvation. I like how Gresham Machen said, “At the very root of the modern liberal movement is the loss of the consciousness of sin.” And if you don’t know you are sinful then you’ll see no need to be saved.
Imagine if the tax collector had run into one of our modern liberal preachers. He’d say, “You’re not all that bad, sure, you’ve done a few things wrong but then, haven’t we all. You just need to say a little prayer and then go on your way rejoicing.” And anyone who listens to this crowd will be just as lost as the Pharisee.
III The goal of our salvation is in verses 23-25.
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.
Paul says this salvation that belonged to Abraham also belongs to us if we believe in the Lord Jesus Christ who was delivered up because of our offenses, and was raised because of our justification.
We are saved by faith and heading for heaven for the rest of eternity but it’s got nothing to do with how good we’ve been or how faithful we are but because of what Jesus suffered for you and I.
One of the most striking things about the four accounts of Jesus’ death in the Gospels is the absence of sensationalism. There were no death-defying acts of heroism, there were no great speeches to challenge or teach us, there were no moderators that stood off to the side and described in vivid detail every little thing that happened. And there wasn’t even any kind of a demonstration from heaven that demonstrated the horror of God the Father at the death of His Son. All that’s here is the simple story of three men being crucified and the one in the center is the Son of God.
I think the physical suffering of Jesus; was the worst kind of torture that any man has ever devised and I don’t want to minimize His agony any more than I want to amplify what the writers were silent about. At the same time, the four gospel accounts make us wonder; why isn’t there more emphasis on the physical torture and the horrendous abuse He went through?
I think we can assume that Jesus physical torture was so extreme because He had been beaten and tortured by the soldiers so bad that He collapsed on His way to Calvary and Simon of Cyrene was forced to carry His cross.
So, the first question that comes to mind is; why didn’t John or any of the other gospel writers tell us more about the specifics of what happened while Jesus was put to death for your sins and mine?
I would suggest three reasons as to why was silent. And the first is, that the physical sufferings of Jesus were just a very small part of the things He endured. After all, the physical pain was what men were able to impose upon Him; but I think the greater suffering He had to endure was the spiritual agony when He who knew no sin became sin for us. I mean, He took on Himself all the sin of the world and since He was pure and sinless; the experience of His taking on sin had to be the most repulsive and excruciating thing He could ever have experienced.
And yet, the scripture tells us that Jesus took our place in order to save us from everything we’ve consciously or even unconsciously done to offend God; and in His suffering and death He experienced the eternal wrath of God.
So, compared to His spiritual suffering, His physical suffering would have been miniscule in comparison. There are many who assume that the three hours of darkness during the crucifixion was God’s way of turning out the lights so we wouldn’t be able to see what Jesus was going through.
The second reason we weren’t told more is because, there’s no way that you or I could possibly comprehend or understand even a little of God’s wrath. Many of us have tried to imagine what heaven will be like and yet, no matter how hard we try or how far we let our imaginations run wild, our minds always fall far short of grasping anything of the glory or beauty of heaven. 1 Corinthians 2:9 says, “But as it is written, eye hath not seen, nor ear heard, neither have entered into the heart of man, the things which God hath prepared for them that love him.” Listen, heaven is so wonderful; it’s simply beyond our comprehension. So, how could anyone of us understand anything that resembles the horrors of hell?
Did you know that Jesus spoke about hell more than He did about heaven? And yet, there’s many people who say, there’s no such thing as hell, but either Jesus was telling the truth about hell or we can’t believe Him about heaven either. We can’t just say the truth is what we believe.
Listen, hell is real and it’s going to be filled with people who’ve ignored God’s invitation to enjoy heaven. Do you know what the worst part is? You can only ignore the invitation for so long and then you’ll become totally oblivious to the message. You see, we block things out all the time. We block out things that aggravate us, things that annoy us and even things that scare us. And we can do the same with God. We can ignore Him so long that we don’t even seem to hear Him anymore.
We don’t like to think about it but there is a place called hell and hell is one of those subjects that we all feel a little uncomfortable with, and I think we should. But the word of God tells us that hell is real, it’s awful, it’s eternal and it’s crowded. One writer said, “Hell will have such severe degrees that a sinner, were he able, would give the whole world if his sins could be one less.” But listen, the good news is, that no one has to go there unless they choose to; and everyone and I mean everyone has a choice.
I’ve heard preachers say that the phrases used to describe hell were not meant to be taken literally but they were symbolic and mysterious and meant to demonstrate all we’re missing if we don’t go to heaven. That’s absurd, Jesus said it was awful and I’d rather believe Him.
No matter how you approach the subject, hell is an awful thought. It’s a place of eternal torment and constant pain in unquenchable flames. Hell is a place of terrible memories and horrible thirst. Hell is a place of eternal separation from everything of beauty that resides in this world. Hell is a place of eternal separation for the presence of God. Hell is also a place that was prepared for the devil and his angels, but all those who reject the Lord as their Savior will go there as well.
I can only think of one thing worse than going to Hell; and that would be to go to there while knowing you rejected heaven. Does that really happen?
There were several in the New Testament who rejected the good news of salvation. Judas Iscariot had not only walked with Jesus for three years during which he had heard all His teaching and saw and maybe even performed some miracles but in the end he died and went to hell. Felix the governor heard Paul preach but said he wanted to wait for a more convenient time. Herod Agrippa had admired Paul’s preaching and he almost seemed to step right up to the door of heaven but turned away. And then there was Festus who heard Paul’s testimony and referred to it as the ravings of a mad man.
Listen, you can wash a pig, spray perfume on him and put a ribbon around his neck and he’ll look clean but, as soon as you turn him loose, he’s going to head straight for the mud hole; because he’s a pig and that is what pigs do! You can take a corpse and comb its hair, put makeup on him, clean him up and he might look good for a while but eventually the corpse will rot and stink and decay. Why? It’s dead and that what corpses do! In the same way a sinner may come to church and even turn over a new leaf and look like a believer. He may be a moral, clean, hard working person, but he’s still a sinner at heart who needs a Savior in order to be saved.
Hell is one of the most talked about subjects in the Bible. While it is only mentioned a few times in the Old Testament, it’s a major topic of conversation in the New Testament. All four Gospels, the letters of Paul, Peter, James, and John, and the Book of Revelation all talk about eternal judgment. Do you know who talks about hell more than anyone? Jesus.
Jesus spoke about heaven seventeen times but He spoke about hell seventy-one times and I think the reason was, He was troubled by those who would ignore heaven and go to hell. He describes hell as such an awful place that anyone would be better cutting off their hand or gauging out their eye rather than to ending up in hell. The only way to escape hell is by becoming a child of God so you can go to heaven.
So, the physical suffering Jesus endured was minimal compared to His spiritual suffering and the reason we weren’t told more about it was there’s no way you or I could ever comprehend what He went through and then third, from God’s perspective; our knowing how much Jesus actually endured would only cause needless suffering.
I’m a husband and a father and I can say that I don’t like to suffer but it would be even more painful to me to have to watch my wife or one of my children going through something rather than going through it myself. And I’m sure that one of the purposes of Jesus’ suffering was to pay our penalty so that we wouldn’t have to endure what He’s already paid.
The third reason we weren’t told more is because we’ll never fully understand why Jesus did what He did and why He did it until we get to heaven.
Over the years I’ve read the Bible cover to cover more than fifty times and yet I’m always seeing things I’ve never seen before. At times it’s a verse that’s escaped my attention and other times it’s seeing something that applies to my current situation.
How much more when we see Jesus in all His glory will our minds be open in such a way that we’ll understand even more how He came into this sinful world, was rejected, crucified and died on a cruel cross for your sins and mine.
Listen, God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life but He has an even better plan for your afterlife but don’t keep putting Him off till it’s too late.
So, let me close by reminding you of three choices that none of us get to make in life. None of us get to choose to be born, none of us get to chose who our parents will be, and none of us get to choose whether or not we’re going to die or when we will and none of us get to choose whether or not we’re going to exist in the next life.
But there’s one choice we all get to make and that’s the choice of where we’re going to spend eternity and we make that choice when we decide to commit ourselves to follow Jesus Christ.
Three hundred and fifty years ago – a ship landed on the northeast coast of America. In the first year they established a town site. In the second year they elected a town government. In the third year the town council planned to build a road five miles to the west into a wilderness area. But in the fourth year the people tried to impeach their council because they thought it was a waste of public funds to build a five-mile road into wilderness.
What is so ironic is…. these people had the vision to see three thousand miles across the ocean but in just a couple of years they couldn’t see five miles outside of town.
It’s easy to lose a vision. I remember the very first time I went to church after I was saved. My hair hung down past my shoulders and I wore a dirty t-shirt with a pair of striped jeans but no shoes. This was the seventies and people were doing whatever they wanted.
I had been staying with a friend and on Sunday morning he invited me to go to church. I said sure and this was a large church with about three or four hundred people. The building was full and we were a little late and all the seats were occupied so we walked right down front and sat in the very first row. I just assumed it was the normal thing to do.
The preacher was good but I noticed he was preaching about hell and he kept looking at me. In the end he gave an invitation but nobody moved and I guess it was a good thing because I was quite willing to counsel anyone that did.
When the service was over, he came down and spoke to us and I told him how I had been saved and we had a good time of fellowship.
Years later, I had been a pastor for a few years and one day I noticed a young guy with long hair in the back row and I asked myself, “I wonder what he wants?” And then I realized that I had become the very thing I hated in others. A self-righteous Christian.
Conclusion
There was a British painter and engraver by the name of William Hogarth who was once commissioned to paint the portrait of an exceptionally ugly nobleman. As was his custom, he painted this man with a sense of honesty and realism. When the nobleman saw the portrait, he refused to pay for it, and a bitter discussion ensued. Eventually Hogarth, needing the money, sent a letter to this man and told him that a certain publisher who specialized in exhibiting freaks and monstrosities was interested in the portrait. Unless Hogarth received payment within three days, he said he would elaborate the picture with a tail and a few other monstrosities and sell it to the publisher for exhibition. The nobleman paid up and then he burned the portrait proving that his ego was much more important than his money. He was living his life for the pleasure of others and ultimately for himself. So, who are you living for? God or yourself?
