WHAT IS FAITH? (12 OF 26)
Scripture: Romans 4:9-25
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What Is Faith? (12 of 26)
Series:Romans:The Gospel of God
Jonathan McLeod
Romans 4:9-25
No unbelief made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised (vv. 20-21).
INCREDIBLE PROMISES
Every day we hear incredible promises from advertisers. For example, lots of exercise gadgets (e.g., the Ab Roller) promise to give you ''rock-hard abs.'' But those gadgets usually end up in yard sales. They don't do what they promise to do. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
What is faith? We need to understand what faith really is. The apostle Paul shows us what biblical faith is by telling us about the faith of Abraham, the ''forefather'' of the Jews (v. 1).
ABRAHAM BELIEVED
On a clear night, God takes Abraham outside. He tells him to look up at the stars and try to count them. And God says to Abraham, ''So shall your offspring be.'' Abraham's descendants will be as numerous as the stars in the sky! That's an incredible promise!
The word ''incredible'' means ''difficult to believe.'' God's promise is hard to believe. Abraham and his wife Sarah are old and childless. To have even one descendant is physically impossible for them. But is anything too hard for God?
In spite of how everything looks, Abraham believes.
Genesis 15:6 says that Abraham ''believed the Lord, and he counted [i.e., credited] it to him as righteousness'' (cf. v. 3). Paul quotes this verse to show that Abraham was justified (i.e., declared righteous, innocent of wrongdoing) by faith, not by works (i.e., obeying God's law).
Back in Paul's day, a big question was, ''Is justification only possible for 'the circumcised'''? Paul points out that Abraham was justified before he was circumcised (Gen. 17). God had not only promised Abraham that he'd have countless descendants, but that he'd also be the father of many nations (Gen. 17:5; cf., v. 17). Paul s ...
Series:Romans:The Gospel of God
Jonathan McLeod
Romans 4:9-25
No unbelief made him waver concerning the promise of God, but he grew strong in his faith as he gave glory to God, fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised (vv. 20-21).
INCREDIBLE PROMISES
Every day we hear incredible promises from advertisers. For example, lots of exercise gadgets (e.g., the Ab Roller) promise to give you ''rock-hard abs.'' But those gadgets usually end up in yard sales. They don't do what they promise to do. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.
What is faith? We need to understand what faith really is. The apostle Paul shows us what biblical faith is by telling us about the faith of Abraham, the ''forefather'' of the Jews (v. 1).
ABRAHAM BELIEVED
On a clear night, God takes Abraham outside. He tells him to look up at the stars and try to count them. And God says to Abraham, ''So shall your offspring be.'' Abraham's descendants will be as numerous as the stars in the sky! That's an incredible promise!
The word ''incredible'' means ''difficult to believe.'' God's promise is hard to believe. Abraham and his wife Sarah are old and childless. To have even one descendant is physically impossible for them. But is anything too hard for God?
In spite of how everything looks, Abraham believes.
Genesis 15:6 says that Abraham ''believed the Lord, and he counted [i.e., credited] it to him as righteousness'' (cf. v. 3). Paul quotes this verse to show that Abraham was justified (i.e., declared righteous, innocent of wrongdoing) by faith, not by works (i.e., obeying God's law).
Back in Paul's day, a big question was, ''Is justification only possible for 'the circumcised'''? Paul points out that Abraham was justified before he was circumcised (Gen. 17). God had not only promised Abraham that he'd have countless descendants, but that he'd also be the father of many nations (Gen. 17:5; cf., v. 17). Paul s ...
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