Recovered By Grace: FATHER ABRAHAM
Romans 4
Introduction
Genesis 12:1-4
The Lord had said to Abram, “Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you. “I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a
blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be
blessed through you.” So Abram went, as the Lord had told him; and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he set out from Harran.
Hebrews 11:8 By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going.
The faith of Abraham is demonstrated in his acceptance of the Lord’s assignments and promises.
Hebrews 11:11-12 And by faith even Sarah, who was past childbearing age, was enabled to bear children because she considered him faithful who had made the promise. And so from this one man, and he as good as dead, came descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as countless as the sand on the seashore.
Paul lays the foundation of his letter in 1:16-17, that he is not ashamed to preach the Gospel, the power of God for the salvation of everyone who believes. Everyone needs this Gospel message because all sin. Romans 3:23 "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God." Everyone you know is in need of rescue and recovery. This cannot be accomplished by our own strength, but God’s!
Romans 3:24 "all are justified freely by his grace through the redemption that came by Christ Jesus."
The amazing faith of Abraham is going to lead us in the right path as we seek to be rescued and recovered by grace. Let’s get ready to go to the school of faith by seeing how the Father of Faith gets it right! Seven Reminders of the Power of Faith!
1. You Are Good, But Not Good Enough! (4:1-2)
Romans 4:1-2 "What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh, discovered in this matter? 2 If, in fact, Abraham was justified by works, he had something to boast about—but not before God."
*It would be hard to find anyone as committed as Abraham
*He was human, he made mistakes that caused him problem
*In our own life we can be pretty good, but not good enough
2. Righteousness is Given, Not Earned! (Romans 4:3-5)
Romans 4:3-5 What does Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.”
4 Now to the one who works, wages are not credited as a gift but as an obligation. 5 However, to the one who does not work but trusts God who justifies the ungodly, their faith is credited as righteousness.
*Reckoned / Counted - means given, imputed, credited.
*This term is used 11 times in this chapter.
*If we could earn our righteousness we wouldn’t need Jesus
3. The Blessing We All Need: Beatitude of Psalm 32 (4:6-8)
Romans 4:6-8 David says the same thing when he speaks of the blessedness of the one to whom God credits righteousness apart from works: “Blessed are those whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.
Blessed is the one whose sin the Lord will never count against them.”
*David was a man of faith - near to God’s heart.
*He was still a forgiven sinner.
*The Bible is specific about the sins of David.
*Yet, he found his greatest blessing in being forgiven.
4. Make Faith Your Identity (4:9-12)
Romans 4:9-12 Is this blessedness only for the circumcised, or also for the uncircumcised? We have been saying that Abraham’s faith was credited to him as righteousness. 10 Under what circumstances was it credited? Was it after he was circumcised, or before? It was not after, but before! 11 And he received circumcision as a sign, a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. So then, he is the father of all who believe but have not been circumcised, in order that righteousness might be credited to them. 12 And he is then also the father of the circumcised who not only are circumcised but who also follow in the footsteps of the faith that our father Abraham had before he was circumcised.
*Conflict: How each one thought of themselves.
- Circumcised = The Jews
- Uncircumcised = The Gentiles
*Paul’s Emphasis: All Who Believe!
Righteousness was credited before Abraham’s circumcision.
Righteousness was not based on anything he earned!
Righteousness was not only for Abraham - but for all people!
Faith is your identity, not your goodness nor your failures!
5. Righteousness Comes By Faith, Guaranteed by Grace (4:13-16)
Romans 4:13-16 It was not through the law that Abraham and his offspring received the promise that he would be heir of the world, but through the righteousness that comes by faith. 14 For if those who depend on the law are heirs, faith means nothing and the promise is worthless, 15 because the law brings wrath. And where there is no law there is no transgression. 16 Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham’s offspring—not only to those who are of the law but also to those who have the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all.
*Faith is the key that fits the lock that opens the treasure house of grace. (Cottrell)
*The guarantee is active because it is only by God’s grace that any of us will be saved.
*What if your goodness was the guarantee?
*When we trust God, we activate God’s grace and receive a credit in our account: Righteous!
6. Faith Is Empowered When…
*We believe God’s Promises! (4:17 As it is written: “I have made you a father of many nations.” He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed—the God who gives life to the dead and calls into being things that were not.) Faith does not discount the impossible!
*We have hope beyond hope! (4:18 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.”) It might seem impossible that God would save someone like me, but He has. It might seem impossible that we could live the life God calls us to - but He will strengthen us to do it!
*We trust God’s strength above our own! (4:19 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. ) We are in need of God’s help, He knows!
*We choose not to waver! (4:20 Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, ) Don’t give up no matter what happens!
*We believe God is able! (4:21 being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised.) Believe it!
7. This is God’s Message for You! (4:22-25)
Romans 4:22-24a This is why “it was credited to him as righteousness.” 23 The words “it was credited to him”
were written not for him alone, 24 but also for us
This is for YOU!
Romans 4:23-25 The words “it was credited to him” were written not for him alone, 24 but also for us, to whom God will credit righteousness—for us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. 25 He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.
*Faith is rooted in the gospel - and we are not ashamed of the gospel, it is the power of God to save everyone who
believes!
-We believe in Jesus who lived
-We believe in Jesus who died because of our sins
-We believe in Jesus who was raised from the dead to make us right with God
Conclusion:
1. Let’s Review!
- You are good, but not good enough!
- Righteousness is given, not earned!
- We all need the blessing of forgiveness.
- Faith is your identity, not your strengths and failures.
- Righteousness comes by faith, guaranteed by grace!
- Faith is empowered when we believe God’s promises, have hope, trust God, and we do not waver because God is able!
- This is God’s message for us all - made possible by the cross!
2. Why do people resist this great news?
- We want to trust in our own works, goodness?
- We believe we can’t live a life of faith?
- Too good to be true? It is the best news we can hear!
3. Lifeguards often have to struggle with those they are trying to save.
- Instinctively the drowning person wants to grab and hold on, while thrashing and kicking and straining
- This only hinders and may even thwart the attempt to save him.
- If he really wants to be saved, he must relax and trust himself to the expertise and ability of the lifeguard.
- Likewise if we want to be saved we must truly believe in God’s saving grace.
4. Faith is exemplified by Abraham - the father of all faith-filled people.
5. There is no such thing as perfect faith, but we are reminded when we face difficulties and struggles of life that our Father Abraham walked this path ahead of us.
6. Galatians 3:26-29 So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Gentile, neither slave nor free, nor is there male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.
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Discussion Questions
1. What aspect of faith in Romans 4 was the most challenging to you?
2. What episodes from Abraham's life can you recall that demonstrated his great faith?
3. What episodes from Abraham's demonstrated that he still needed God's grace to save him?
4. Verses 6-8 are a quote of Psalm 32:1-2. How does David demonstrate faith here - and why would David be so expressive about forgiveness?
5. How does this chapter confirm or challenge our understanding of grace?
6. How can Romans 4 encourage you in moments of doubt or unbelief / questions?
7. What practical steps can we take to develop a faith like Abraham's?
8. How does Galatians 3:26-29 connect us to Abraham's faith? What does it mean to be "heirs according to the promise"?
9. What else did you want to talk about today?
