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October 7 - Romans 4 · A Chapter a Day Bible Reading

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  Hello friends, it's Sean. Here it is Tuesday.
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  It's the 7th of October. Good to have your company as we
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  are going to open up our Bibles to this fantastic book of Romans
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  and keep on reading. We were having a conversation
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  around the dinner table last week and one of my boys was
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  saying, oh, isn't it cool the way that Paul has just got such
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  a fantastic knowledge of the Old Testament.
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  He can keep on pulling out quote after quote after quote and it
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  just really kind of informs and shapes the way that he's able to
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  present the gospel. So we have decided, yeah, there
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  are certainly benefits to having a Pharisaical knowledge of the
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  Old Testament. So those Pharisees, they knew
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  their stuff, right? Wow.
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  So when we read this, we read Paul with this fantastic
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  knowledge of the Old Testament and drawing out these signs from
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  long ago of Jesus to come and using them as these wonderful
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  explanations as to what Jesus has actually done for us and how
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  we get to live. So without further ado, shall we
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  dive in and read more about this amazing story?
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  Yeah, let's do that. As we read together Romans
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  chapter 4, Abraham was, humanly speaking,
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  the founder of our Jewish nation.
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  What did he discover about being made right with God?
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  If his good deeds made him acceptable to God, he would have
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  had something to boast about. But that was not God's way.
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  For the Scriptures tell us Abraham believed in God, and God
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  counted him as righteous because of his faith.
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  When people work, their wages are not a gift, but something
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  they've earned. But people are counted as
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  righteous not because of their work, but because of their faith
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  in God who forgive sinners. David also spoke of this when he
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  described the happiness of those who are declared righteous
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  without working for it. Oh, what joy for those whose
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  disobedience is forgiven, whose sins are put out of sight.
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  Yes, what joy for those whose record the Lord has cleared of
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  sin. Now, is this blessing only for
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  the Jews, or is it also for uncircumcised Gentiles?
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  Well, we've been saying that Abraham was counted as righteous
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  by God because of his faith. But how did this happen?
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  Was he counted as righteous only after he was circumcised, or was
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  it before he was circumcised? Clearly, God accepted Abraham
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  before he was circumcised. Circumcised was a sign that
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  Abraham already had faith and that God had already accepted
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  him and declared him to be righteous even before he was
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  circumcised. So Abraham is the spiritual
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  father of those who have faith but have not been circumcised.
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  They are counted as righteous because of their faith.
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  And Abraham is also the spiritual father of those who
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  have been circumcised, but only if they have the same kind of
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  faith Abraham had before he was circumcised.
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  Clearly, God's promise to give the whole earth to Abraham and
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  his descendants was based not on his obedience to God's law, but
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  on a right relationship with God that comes by faith.
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  If God's promise is only for those who obey the law, then
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  faith is not necessary and the promise is pointless, for the
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  law always brings punishment on those who try to obey it.
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  The only way to avoid breaking the law is to have no law to
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  break. So the promise is received by
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  faith. It is given as a free gift, and
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  we are all certain to receive it whether or not we live according
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  to the law of Moses, if we have faith like Abraham's.
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  For Abraham is the father of all who believe.
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  That is what the Scriptures mean when God told him, I have made
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  you the father of many nations. This happened because Abraham
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  believed in the God who brings the dead back to life and who
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  creates new things out of nothing.
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  Even when there was no reason for hope, Abraham kept hoping,
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  believing that he would become the father of many nations.
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  For God had said to him, that's how many descendants you will
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  have. And Abraham's faith did not
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  weaken, even though at about 100 years of age he figured his body
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  was as good as dead, and so was Sarah's womb.
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  Abraham never wavered in believing God's promise.
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  In fact, his faith grew stronger.
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  And in this he brought glory to God.
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  He was fully convinced that God was able to do whatever he
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  promises. And because of Abraham's faith,
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  God counted him as righteous. And when God counted him as
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  righteous, it wasn't just for Abraham's benefit, it was
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  recorded for our benefit too, assuring us that God would also
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  count us as righteous if we believe in Him.
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  The one who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead.
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  He was handed over to die because of our sins, and He was
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  raised to life to make us right with God.
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  Oh God, thank you for your law. Thank you that we have this set
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  of ways that we are to live by, but that when we attempt to live
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  by it, we just cannot do it. And so the Lord just turns us to
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  Jesus, turns us to you, Lord, and says, it's only through you
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  that we can ever be made right. We just can't do it on our own.
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  So the law like this mirror shows us that we are broken, but
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  that you, you make us right. So help us just put all our eggs
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  in your basket. I know that's against the wisdom
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  of this world that says don't do that.
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  But we just, we just give our lives to you wholeheartedly.
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  Lord, we thank you that it's through you that we are made
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  right with God. It's through our relationship
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  with you that we are able to be part of your family and receive
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  the incredible blessings that you have for us.
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  Blessings of peace now, of knowledge of all that you've
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  done for us now, and life with you and eternity.
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  You are a good, good God and we love you and we are grateful for
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  all that you've done for us and all that you are as loving,
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  forgiving, and merciful and kind.
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  God S we pray all of this in your name, Amen.