Topic: Faith like Abraham
Reading: Romans 4:18-22
Introduction and Overview
When it comes to the great men and women of the Bible, Abraham stands tall. He is even called the “friend of God.” That is indeed high praise for this man of faith and shows how well loved he was by God.
What we see in these verses today is why Abraham was held in such high regard by God. And as has been noted in earlier Bible plans, it was not because of what he did, but because of his faith. He was and is a shining example faith, and in his example we see the principles of righteousness by faith.
For anyone to be called the friend of God (see James 2:23) they must have faith. The scripture at Hebrews 11:6 tells us that, “…without faith it is impossible to please him…” Abraham’s faith was so great that it is his example that is given to us and that we need to learn to emulate.
Hand in hand with faith we need to also learn to trust in the words and the power of God. We need to know that when God says He will do something, it WILL come to pass.
That is part of what this scripture shows us today about faith like Abraham. He trusted God even to the point of when God tested him by asking that he sacrifice his son Isaac. Abraham was prepared to do it because God had asked. Abraham’s faith and trust in God was so great that he believed God would raise Isaac from the dead, since God had previously told Abraham that it would be through Isaac that his descendants would be born and would receive the promises of God. (See Hebrews 11:17-19)
So, let us look at these scriptures today and the faith and trust that Abraham had in the word of God, so that we can learn to likewise trust and hold strong in faith ourselves.
Key points from reading:
- God made a promise to Abraham and Abraham believed God
- Abraham ignored the barriers preventing the word of God from occurring
- Abraham grew stronger in his faith as he trusted God would do as he said
Discussion:
- Scripture: Romans 4:18
- God had spoken to Abraham stating that he would become the father of many nations and have descendants as many as the grains of sand by the sea or the stars in the night sky. Furthermore, God told Abraham that these children and his line would be through a son born to his wife, Sarah.
- Most people would have considered Abraham and Sarah’s situation hopeless in this regard. Abraham was an old man when he was told these things by God, being around ninety years of age, and Sarah was about eighty at that time. But it would be another ten years or so before the promise of a son would come to pass.
- After waiting ten years for the promises of God, especially at the ages of Abraham and Sarah, it would have seemed that it was never going to happen. At their advanced age it was more likely they would die before God’s word was fulfilled. But none of these thoughts afflicted Abraham as he lived and grew stronger in hope that God would come through in His time.
- We see in this scripture that Abraham had hope that this would occur. And as we learn, it was not a hope based upon the strength or power of man, but on the power of God. His example was a forerunner for us as we learn to place our hope in God and not the things or people of this world. Instead, Abraham hoped and believed that God could and would do the impossible. His hope was underpinned by an immovable faith and unshakable trust.
- Scripture: Romans 4:19
- Added to this were the physical issues that would prevent Sarah having a child. She was ninety years old, she had long since gone through menopause, and she was barren. That is, she had some physical problem preventing her from falling pregnant. To anyone else, these issues would seem insurmountable, but Abraham believed that God could do anything, and that if He said that Abraham and Sarah would have a son, then it would take place according to God’s word.
- Abraham understood that there was nothing that God could not do. Physical deformities and conditions preventing Sarah from falling pregnant were meaningless to the Creator who designed the human body in the first place. Whatever was done could be undone, and whatever was not working could be made to work.
- The aspect of being too old was also no issue under the faith of Abraham. He knew and was totally convinced that God could even rectify problems of old age to enable His promise to Abraham to be fulfilled. God could turn off the issues that caused menopause in a woman and make her fertile once more.
- Faith like Abraham had is what we all need to strive for in our walk with Christ. Too often we focus on the problems that stand in our way or prevent us doing what we ought to do. But God showed in Abraham’s example that when we have faith like Abraham, all barriers, problems, and issues fade away because God can do anything.
- Scripture: Romans 4:20-21
- We see in these words that to have faith like Abraham also requires us to trust God. Trust underpinned Abraham’s faith and as this verse tells us, Abraham had no distrust in the words of God. He trusted God completely and totally because he believed that if God said it, it would come to pass.
- Faith and trust go hand in hand. If we are to believe in what God did for us through the death and resurrection, we need to trust Him too. We need to both believe and trust that what He said is true. And there is a very good example all Christians need to understand that shows the importance of these things.
- All Christians know that Jesus came to, “Take away sin.” This teaching is written in many places in the New Testament, which I recommend you read now. For example, John 1:29, Romans 11:27, 1 John 3:5-6, Romans 6:1-2, and there are many other references to the taking away of sins in Jesus Christ.
- But even though the scriptures state clearly and categorically that your sins have been taken away, many Christians believe that they are still sinners. They do not therefore believe the word of God that says, “You sins are taken away.” They do not trust that God has already done this in the death and resurrection of Jesus. That is, that Jesus has died for our sins and they have been removed by the grace of God.
- And this is a faith teaching. It is the same type of message as God said to Abraham.
- God gave Abraham a specific thing to believe, even though it was seemingly impossible in the minds of man. Abraham was told to believe that God would give Abraham a son by Sarah, despite their age and the physical issues preventing such a thing occurring. And because Abraham believed God and trusted that God would do as He said, God declared Abraham to be righteous.
- Likewise, God has asked us to believe that He resurrected His Son, Jesus Christ from the dead. This too is an impossible thing to accept in the eyes of men as who can bring the dead back to life? No-one is able to do such a thing…except God who created man and put the spirit of life into man in the first place. For God, this is a simple thing. And all we need to do is to believe God raised Christ from the dead and He too will declare us righteous by faith, just as He did with Abraham. And when we are righteous by the word of God, we are no longer under sin because our sins have been taken away. We should no longer consider ourselves as sinners, but rather dead to sin and alive to God.
- And like Abraham we must trust God in this belief, fully convinced that what God said is true, and that He will do what He said. He will remove and cast away your sins, not simply forgive them and leave them in place, but rather they will be removed and cast as far away and irretrievable, as if dropped into the deepest and unreachable depths of the ocean, as it says in Micah 7:18-20.
- Scripture: Romans 4:22
- It was because Abraham both believed and trusted in the word of God that he was reckoned righteous by God. God is able to condemn a person for their sins, and He is able to wipe every sin away because He is God. He is the great lawgiver and judge and He will judge the world.
- But…He is also a God of love, compassion, and mercy. It is not the desire of God for people to be sinners and to suffer judgement for their sins. God is seeking a people who want to live in accordance with His word. He wants a people who are perfect as He originally created man, before man chose sin over righteousness.
- That is why He has established a way for us to be set free from our sins. And in Abraham, God shows us the way we can enter into His salvation by grace and through faith. When we believe what God has said, He accepts our faith and declares us righteous, just as He did with Abraham.
- This is why the scripture says that Abraham’s faith was “reckoned to him as righteousness.” It means that righteousness was “added” to Abraham, not on the grounds of anything he did, but because he believed God and trusted that God would do as He said.
- In the same way we believe God raised Jesus from the dead and in His resurrection He has set us free from our past sins and removed us from the laws of Moses so that we cannot break the law ever again and be condemned as sinners. In Christ we are no longer sinners, nor under the power of sin, which is the law (see 1 Corinthians 15:55-57). This is what it means to have faith like Abraham because his faith is an example to us.
Key Takeaways:
- God is able to do anything and He always keeps His word
- We are to learn to have the same degree of faith and trust in the words of God as Abraham had, and so be saved.
- By believing the word of God, that He raised Jesus from the dead, we are set free from sin and declared righteous.
Prayer Points
- Pray and ask the Lord to strengthen your faith and trust in Him so that you too can have faith like Abraham.
- Pray for a deeper understanding of the promises of God that He has given to mankind through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, as it is important to know what He wants us to believe.
- Pray for understanding to recognise that God has indeed removed all of your sins and you no longer stand before Him as a sinner, but as His child, made righteous in His eyes through the faith and trust you hold in His words.