Bible Study
I said in Part 16 that we were done with our side-journey to understanding how Abraham became the Father of Faith. Alas, I was wrong, because here we are again! So am not going to make anymore promises 🙂 we’ll just flow with the study as led by the Spirit of God. Today, I am led to share something I captured in my study note but which I almost omitted in sharing about Abraham in this study….. “Abraham’s Righteousness”.
Abraham’s Righteousness
When we considered the Righteousness of God, we saw that righteousness is one of the intrinsic attributes of God. We saw from Romans 1:16-17, that faith (in the Word) reveals the righteousness of God. Anytime we act in faith, we will find that God is True, He is Just and He is Faithful.
Let’s read Romans 1:16-17 again,
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ, for it is the power of God to salvation for everyone who believes, for the Jew first and also for the Greek. For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, “The just shall live by faith.” Romans 1:16-17 NKJV
Now reading through Romans 3:25-26, we can see that God demonstrated His righteousness in the death of Christ.
“to demonstrate at the present time His righteousness, that He might be just and the justifier of the one who has faith in Jesus. whom God set forth as a propitiation by His blood, through faith, to demonstrate His righteousness, because in His forbearance God had passed over the sins that were previously committed” Romans 3:25-26 NKJV
I believe that Romans 3:25-26 says a lot about the righteousness of God…..
- It shows that God is faithful; He keeps His promise. He promised a Savior and He sent one.
- It shows that God is true; He is committed to His Word. God put His promise to save man above His love for His Son. God gave up His Son to die so as to keep His Word.
- It shows that God is just; He followed the right path to saving man. The penalty for sin was fully paid for; the blood of His precious Son Jesus was shed to save man.
- It also shows God’s commitment to saving man and restoring man’s authority and dominion back to Him.
- It shows how much God values His relationship with man
- It shows God’s abhorrence for sin and His preference for holiness
- It shows that God is just in Himself. He passed over the sins that were previously committed, He did not inflict wrath for sins committed. And He is the Justifier of the one who has faith.
Now the Bible says God declared Abraham righteous (Romans 4:11, 16-17). How did this happen?
Righteousness is God’s gracious gift to man. It brings man to a level of relationship with God. A level where man is acceptable to God as without sin or condemnation ((Romans 2:13). Righteousness is not obtained by works, by keeping the law or by man’s merit, it is a free gift obtained by faith in Jesus Christ. When someone receives Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior (by believing with the heart and confessing with the heart) God imputes His righteousness to such a one (Romans 3:21-22). Second Corinthians 5:21 says the person becomes ‘The Righteousness of God in Christ Jesus’. So righteousness gives boldness and removes a sense of guilt and inferiority.
You are the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus; bold as the lion. Halleluyah!
So this is what we now know and understand as righteousness in the new covenant. But all this began with Abraham. Galatians 3:6 tells us so….
“....just as Abraham “believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” Galatians 3:6 NKJV.
God credited righteousness to Abraham because of his believe (faith). Abraham believed the promise of God to him, he accepted it as true, and he judged God faithful.
“By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going. By faith he dwelt in the land of promise as in a foreign country, dwelling in tents with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise; for he waited for the city which has foundations, whose builder and maker is God.” Hebrews 11:8-10 NKJV
Abraham entrusted his life to God and His Word…..when you trust someone, you believe them even when you don’t fully understand…… So even without understanding where God was leading him to, Abraham trusted and obeyed. He didn’t know where God was leading him to, he didn’t fully understand what God was doing, however, he submitted himself and his life to God’s control and leading. He accepted/believed the Word of God as true in his spirit (faith) and he judged God as capable and reliable in his mind and thinking (trust). Abraham had faith in God’s Word and he trusted God to fulfill His promise.
According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, to trust is- “to have an assured reliance on the character, ability, strength or truth of someone or something. To place confidence in someone and to be dependent on someone“.
Faith deals with the spirit, trust deals with the mind and one’s understanding. Trust requires someone to suspend their own intellect (thinking, reasoning, understanding) even if temporarily. I think that the allowed intellectual engagement in trusting God is to judge Him faithful.
Proverbs 3:5 admonishes us to trust in the Lord…
“Trust in the Lord with all your heart, and lean not on your own understanding” Proverbs 3:5 NKJV
Do you trust God? To trust, is to put confidence in something or someone. Trust is evidenced by obedience. Do you trust God enough to obey His Word? Do you trust God enough to act on His Word? As a Christian do you obey God’s Word even when you don’t understand or are you okay with just filling in ‘Christianity’ as a religion on data collection forms?
God hears and answers us when we act or pray in accordance with His Word/Will (I John 5:14). This is our confidence.
Jesus said we are assured of inheriting kingdom life when we love God with the totality of our being; with our spirit, soul/mind and body…..
“And he replied, You must love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself. [Lev. 19:18; Deut. 6:5.] And Jesus said to him, You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live [enjoy active, blessed, endless life in the kingdom of God]” Luke 10:27-28 AMPC
To love like this requires trust.
Shalom!
Well, thank you for joining me again.
Remember that you can access previous parts of this study as follows; Part 1: Study Background. Part 2: The Scope of the Christian Victory. Part 3: How Christians Gained Victory. Part 4: How Faith, Love and Hope Mix Together for Victorious Christian Living. Part 5: The Nature of God’s Love. Part 6: Characteristics of God Kind of Love. Parts 7 and 8: Winning Through Love. Part 9: How to develop our love nature. Part 10: Giving Is Not (always) Love. Part 11:Victory Through Faith: Understanding Faith. Part 12: Victory Through Faith: The Righteousness of God. Part 13: The Stimulus for Faith. Part 14: The Faith of Abraham (A). Part 15: The Faith of Abraham (B). Part 16: The Blessing of Abraham. Part 17: Activate The Blessing.
Blessings and Love Always..
