Abraham's Faith Applied Today

Abraham’s Faith Applied Today
Romans 4:23-25

· We are now coming to the end of Paul’s illustration of faith through the father of the faithful, Abraham.
· We have been talking about salvation by grace through faith, and in looking at faith, Romans has told us in detail about the faith of Abraham, the father of the faithful.
· We learned about the vital doctrine of imputation, that our sins are paid for and the account is closed.
· We saw the blessed doctrine of eternal security, that once truly saved, the believer is in a different relationship with God, and will not be lost.
· We saw that Abraham was the father of all the faithful, and that as believers, we are children of Abraham, true Jews of the heart.
· And we saw the source of Abraham’s faith. Abraham was able to believe God for the truly amazing promises made because Abraham knew God. Abraham knew who God was, and Abraham knew what God was like.
· And we saw the results of the great faith that Abraham, the Father of the Faithful, had.
· Now the Holy Spirit finishes the fourth chapter of Romans with a tremendous little passage which brings the doctrines of Romans right up to the present.
· We find out how the faith of Abraham is applied today.

1. The Doctrine of Imputation is not for Historical Purposes Only-- Rom 4:23 "Now it was not written for his sake alone, that it was imputed to him; 24 But for us also, to whom it shall be imputed

a. Now it was not written for his sake alone —Often, we have the wrong approach to Biblical doctrine, or to Biblical history, the historical accounts we read in the Bible.

(1) the Bible is not a 2,000 year old dead book—it is a living book, with a living message that is as fresh today as it was when it was written.

(2) Even the Old Testament histories and biographies are current and useful. 1 Cor 10:1-6

(3) The Doctrines of the Bible, the way of life taught in the Bible, the absolute truths about how the whole universe works, these are current, these are “now,” these are for you, for now, for you to use in your daily life.

(4) So with Abraham—his great faith, his great knowledge of God and his great trust in God, and the doctrine of imputation, and the other related doctrines of salvation, these are not outmoded ideas of the past, but they are absolute, universal, and they apply today.

b. that it was imputed to him—the history of Abraham we see given here is all related to the vital doctrine of imputation— Imputation is the most important point of this chapter, and imputation is the heart of justification by Faith alone, and salvation by Grace alone

(1) We must understand that justification is a legal declaration by God of a permanent and irreversible change in the legal status of the sinner who places faith in Christ alone for salvation.

(2) We are not…

(a) We are not…On a gradual road to a way of salvation
(b) We are not… On a road which will eventually lead to salvation
(c) We are not on a journey “living in hope” of salvation

(3) If we have been justified by faith, our legal state is changed, it is changed absolutely, it is changed permanently, it is changed irrevocably, and it was not due to any works of ours whatsoever.

(4) Recall the doctrine of imputation again.

(a) We had a debt of sin we could not pay, recorded in heaven in an account book—Rev 20:12 "And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works."

(b) We were and in ourselves are, destitute, with not a penny to pay this debt, and what is more, there was not one good deed on the positive side of the ledger.

(c) But by the design of God, those who place all of their faith and trust in Christ and receive Him as Savior and Lord have their record wiped clean, and all their missing righteousness supplied.

c. 24 But for us also, to whom it shall be imputed—

(1) It was written for us—

(2) The Old Testament passage in Gen 15:6 was written for New Testament people!

(3) To whom it shall be imputed—this message is sent, it is written, it is addressed, to those who believe in Christ and are justified by faith. It is a message to specific individuals, to God’s People, “those whom Thou has given me….” From John 17

(4) Shall be imputed—Imputation is not maybe, salvation is not “if…..” true believers shall receive imputation.

(a) There are no additional conditions
(b) There is no application process
(c) There is no second or third interview—if you truly place your faith in Christ, imputation, the clearing of your account, will take place.

2. The NO If’s [the KJV uses “if” here, but that is not in the original]— “…24 but also for us. It shall be imputed to us who believe in Him who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead…”

a. Only Believers are saved—Again, you don’t get Christianity by inheritance or by osmosis. You must put your faith in Christ to be saved.

Rom 10:9-10 "That if thou shalt confess with thy mouth the Lord Jesus, and shalt believe in thine heart that God hath raised him from the dead, thou shalt be saved. 10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation."

b. Only believers in the True God are saved… “…believe in Him who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead…”

(1) There are a lot of religions in this world, and all of them are false except Biblical Christianity.

(2) The Bible teaches it, the Lord Himself said it in John 14:6

(3) There is only One True God, and only One True Mediator—The Lord Jesus!

(4) Only those who have salvation in Jesus are going to heaven! All of God’s promises, all of God’s goodness, all of God’s grace, is in Christ alone, and in no other place.

John 14:6 "Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me."

Acts 4:12 "Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved."

c. Only those who accept and believe Who Jesus Is are saved. “…believe in Him who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead…”

(1) Again, it is faith in Christ, not in anyone else.

(2) Some say, “it doesn’t matter what you believe, as along as you believe…” what hogwash! It makes ALL the difference what you believe, and In Whom you believe!

(3) He is Jesus our Lord, not anyone else but Jesus, not anything else but Lord.
(4) He is the Son of God, and God the Son, He is the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the end, He is the One to whom every knee shall bow, and this is the One in Whom you must believe.

(a) Not the limp-wristed “Jesus” of liberalism

(b) Not the perverse “Jesus” of the Cults

(c) Not the “good old boy Jesus” of a lot of imaginations.

(d) But the Almighty, All-knowing, Sovereign, Holy, King Jesus of the Bible!

Ø Rev 1:11-19
Ø Rev 19:11-15
Ø Phil 2:9-11

3. The Work of Christ on the Cross—“…25 Who was delivered for our offence…”,

a. Who—Only One Savior, and that is Christ the Lord. It makes a very great difference in Whom you believe—you must believe in Christ!

b. Who was delivered—Christ was delivered, not taken

(1) God the Father planned it-- 1 Pet 1:18-20 "Forasmuch as ye know that ye were not redeemed with corruptible things, as silver and gold, from your vain conversation received by tradition from your fathers; 19 But with the precious blood of Christ, as of a lamb without blemish and without spot: 20 Who verily was foreordained before the foundation of the world, but was manifest in these last times for you,"

(2) God the Son volunteered for the task. John 10: 18 No man taketh it from me, but I lay it down of myself. I have power to lay it down, and I have power to take it again.

(3) God the Son offered Himself, working together with the Spirit-- Heb 9:14 "How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?"

(4) He was delivered, not captured! No one had the ability to overcome Him, He is the Overcomer, but He volunteered, the Father delivered Him, Christ laid His life down!

c. Who was delivered for our – He was delivered for OUR offenses. He was a substitute! He did not die for a shapeless mass, He did not die to make salvation possible, He was delivered for us!

Isa 53: 5 But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed."

d. Who was delivered for our offences—Make no mistake, it was our sins that placed Him there. We sinned and He died to pay for our sins.

(1) He was not delivered to show an example of love, though the Cross is the supreme example of Love.
(2) He was not delivered to be a martyr, though He is the Father of all the Martyrs.
(3) He was not delivered to set up some sort of automatic salvation machine
(4) He was delivered for our offenses. He was OUR substitute.
(5) Mat 1:21 "And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins."

4. The Resurrected Lord: “…and was raised again for our justification."

a. He was Raised.
b. He was raised for us
c. His resurrection is the token that His sacrifice was accepted, that the debt was paid.

Applications

1. The Old doctrine of imputation, the final, ultimate result of the faith of Abraham, applies today, it is alive today, it is real today, just as it ever was.

2. There is nothing you have ever done, nothing you can ever do, which will merit one iota in God’s accounting system. You cannot pay the bill, you cannot pay the taxes, you cannot leave the tip!

3. If you pass the “pulse test,” you are a sinner, and unless you have been to Calvary for salvation and put faith in Christ only for salvation, your debt stands unpaid—and the bill collector could come