God is Able
Notes
Transcript
Introduction
Introduction
Romans chapter 4 seems to always get the shaft when it comes to the famous chapters of Romans. There are verses that are memorized from nearly every chapter of Romans, but not Romans 4. It gets overlooked and yet we need chapter 4. Romans 4 is hugely important to Paul argument for God’s salvation. In sports, there are often times some type of set-up. In basketball, someone may pass the ball to a teammate as he is in midair. The player then makes a slam dunk and the crowd goes wild. The player who made the slam dunk gets all the applause, but it would not have happened if the pass had not come from his team mate. In volley ball, you have a player knock the ball up toward the net so that a team mate is able to jump up and spike the ball on the opposing team. The player who spikes gets the applause, but without her teammate, the spike would never have happened.
That’s what Romans 4 does for Romans 5. Romans 4 sets up Romans 5. We know verses like
Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
and
but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
But it is Romans 4 that puts so much weight behind these verses, along with all of chapter 5. These are slam dunk, ball-spiking verses, but they were set up by Romans 4, especially the verses we saw last week and the ones we are studying this week. Chapter 5 shows us the results of what Paul built up in chapter 4. In these verses this morning, we will find that the grace that God showed Abraham in providing him a son is the same grace that God shows sinners in providing us salvation as both come by way of faith. Paul showed three truths of what faith in God can overcome. First, belief in God’s promise overcomes hopelessness. Secondly, belief in God’s power overcomes inability. Finally, belief in God’s Son overcomes unrighteousness.
Belief in God’s Promise Overcomes Hopelessness
Belief in God’s Power Overcomes Inability
Belief in God’s Son Overcomes Unrighteousness
In hope he believed against hope, that he should become the father of many nations, as he had been told, “So shall your offspring be.”
He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was as good as dead (since he was about a hundred years old), or when he considered the barrenness of Sarah’s womb.
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.
That is why his faith was “counted to him as righteousness.”
But the words “it was counted to him” were not written for his sake alone,
but for ours also. It will be counted to us who believe in him who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord,
who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification.
Belief in God’s Promise Overcomes Hopelessness
Belief in God’s Promise Overcomes Hopelessness
The grace that God showed Abraham in providing him a son is the same grace that God shows sinners in providing us salvation as both come by way of faith. And the first way that Paul proves this is by showing that believing in God’s promise overcomes hopelessness.
In hope he believed against hope, that he should become the father of many nations, as he had been told, “So shall your offspring be.”
He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was as good as dead (since he was about a hundred years old), or when he considered the barrenness of Sarah’s womb.
When Abraham was 75 years old, God called him out of the land of Ur of the Chaldeans. At this point, Abraham was a pagan, just like all the other people of Ur. But God made a promise, as we saw last week. He promised Abraham land. If he would leave everything behind, God would give Abraham a land and make him a great nation and bless him and those who bless him. And as we saw last week, Paul took this to mean not just Canaan, but the world as a whole.
Now, I noticed something interesting this past week. It’s something I’ve never noticed before. It’s something I’ve assumed was always there but as it turns out, it’s not. In fact, it is conspicuously missing! There was no promise of a son in Genesis 12! In fact, the promise of a son does not come until Genesis 15 which is about 11 years after Genesis 12. How did I miss that!? See, this is what happens when we become so familiar with a story; we assume things that aren’t there. We begin to conflate parts of the story. Until Genesis 15, Abraham had planned to use Eliezer as his heir. But God told him instead that he’d have a son.
But wait! There’s more! No where in Genesis 15 does God say that Sarah will be the mother of Abraham’s son. That doesn’t happen until Genesis 17, after Abraham has already had a child with Hagar. Like Genesis 15, God comes to Abraham and Abraham explained that he was going to make Eliezer his heir, so in Genesis 17 God came to Abraham and Abraham explains to him that Ishmael was going to be heir. In both 15 and 17, God contradicted Abraham’s plans. In chapter 15, God said, “No; Eliezer won’t be your heir.”
And he brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”
In Genesis 17, God said, “No; Ishmael will not be your heir.”
God said, “No, but Sarah your wife shall bear you a son, and you shall call his name Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his offspring after him.
Little by little God revealed what Abraham was supposed to be and do. When Abraham heard the promise, he believed.
In hope he believed against hope, that he should become the father of many nations, as he had been told, “So shall your offspring be.”
We just saw the verse that Paul referenced. Count the stars if you’re able. So shall your offspring be. Abraham believed the promise. But here’s the issue: there was no logical reason to believe the promise. That’s what Paul is getting at.
He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was as good as dead (since he was about a hundred years old), or when he considered the barrenness of Sarah’s womb.
Paul’s point in verse 19 is that humanly speaking, there was no hope of Abraham having a child with Sarah. Sarah had been barren her entire life. She was 90 years old when she finally got pregnant! For how many years had they tried to have a child and were not able to do so? She couldn’t conceive; how devastating! Surely, the two finally came to the conclusion it just wasn’t going to happen. It wasn’t meant to be. There was no hope. Though we aren’t told, it would not be surprising that a young Abram and Sarai would have sought help through the fertility goddess Anunit (Ishtar) of Chaldeans. No child. For decades there was no hope of having a baby of their own.
Yet when Abraham is 99 years old, God comes and says that he and Sarah would have a child together. The translators of the ESV say that Abraham’s body was as good as dead, but Paul actually wrote that it was already dead. He was speaking reproductively. Abraham’s reproductive abilities were dead.
There we go! Sarah has never been able to have a child in her life. Abraham at one time could, but now his system was dead. It is hard enough to have a child when one adult can’t conceive, but it’s doubly impossible when neither adult can. What Paul was getting across to his readers was that this was an absolutely impossible situation. It was hopeless. It’s no wonder that when Abraham first heard God tell him, he thought it was a joke and laughed. Then Sarah did the same thing. The situation was hopeless. But when God assured him that he was serious and he would have a child by Sarah. We see what Paul described about him:
In hope he believed against hope, that he should become the father of many nations, as he had been told, “So shall your offspring be.”
This verse can sound confusing: “In hope he believed against hope?” What does that mean? Simply that against hope’s human perspective. From a human perspective, there was no hope. But Abraham would not accept the human perspective. Hope says, “I got nothing for you, Abraham.” But God said, “So shall your offspring be.” Abraham believed God’s word over hope’s. He did not allow his hope to focus on the hopelessness of the situation, but his hope would focus on God’s promise of offspring as numerous as the stars. You see, belief in God’s promise overcome hopelessness.
If you are a person who has not put your faith in Jesus Christ, you are without hope. The writer of Hebrews 11:6 stated that it is impossible to please God, impossible!, without faith. If you have not put your faith in Christ, you have no hope. There is no other way to the Father, no other way to inherit eternal life without him.
You see, this promise and every promise of God, is given through and in Christ. Only in Christ can these promises be received. Without Christ, you have no promise. No faith no promise. No promise no hope.
But for you, beloved, you have hope! Remember what Paul wrote in
By no means! Let God be true though every one were a liar, as it is written, “That you may be justified in your words, and prevail when you are judged.”
God is true and so his promise is true. Everyone else will lie to you. They may do so purposefully or through indirect deception. But not God. He keeps his promises. Trust him. Don’t doubt him.
Belief in God’s Power Overcomes Inability
Belief in God’s Power Overcomes Inability
This leads us to the second truth that Paul pointed out. The first truth was that believing in God’s promise overcomes the feeling of hopelessness when humanly speaking things are hopeless. The second truth is that believing in God’s power overcomes our inability.
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.
Everything seemed so hopeless. Sarah was barren and Abraham was impotent. Yet against what hope was telling him, Abraham believe what God had promised, but not only what he had promised, but that God had the ability, he had the power to deliver on his promise. And though not explicitly stated in this text, I think the implication is that he believed God was willing to fulfill his promise. Why else would God make a promise he was unwilling to fulfill? God doesn’t play games. He isn’t about semantics. He’s not about slight of hand. If he makes a promise, he is willing to fulfill his promise. And he has the power to do so.
That word waver means to go between two options, two decisions. No unbelief caused him to go between the two options. The question is only which two options were set before him in his mind. The answer is in verse 21. Is God able to do as he promised or not? Verse 21 is the positive way of saying what was said in the negative in verse 20. There are negative connotations with the words “waver” and “unbelief,” but positive connotations with “fully convinced.” To be fully convinced of something by definition means to not waver between two options or have unbelief that something is true.
What Paul was explaining about Abraham is that he did not allow unbelief to gain a foothold. Instead he determined in mind and heart to believe what God had promised would come true because God was able to make it so. You may recall that last week, as we ended Romans 4:17, I told you we would deal more with the latter part of the verse this week. It’s time to deal with this verse. So let’s go back and review it.
as it is written, “I have made you the father of many nations”—in the presence of the God in whom he believed, who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist.
Here, Paul wrote that Abraham was given the promise and he believed God who gives life to the dead and calls into existence the things that do not exist. What did we just learn about Abraham’s dilemma? That his reproductive organs were dead—already dead—Paul wrote. Never has a child come from Sarah’s womb. There was a promise that Abraham’s heir would come from Sarah, but no child yet existed and there was no hope, humanly speaking, that one could exist. BUT the God whom Abraham believed is able to give life to those dead reproductive organs. He is able to cause a barren womb to bring forth a child that never could have existed. This is the God whom Abraham believed.
Note that Abraham did not have faith in faith. And he certainly didn’t have faith in himself. Those are the mantras of today. You can be anything you set your heart on. If you believe it, you can achieve it. That’s ridiculous. That’s not the faith of Christianity. It’s not the faith of Abraham or of Paul.
He would not allow unbelief to have a place. Instead, he glorified this God—giving life to the dead and making things exist that did not—which brought strength to Abraham’s faith. When there seemed to be no way for God to do what he promised, when all the physical obstacles stood in the way, when everything said “give up hope,” Abraham glorified God. This takes us back to Romans 1.
For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened.
Claiming to be wise, they became fools,
and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things.
And then skip down to a similar verse in
because they exchanged the truth about God for a lie and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever! Amen.
Look at how these verses are in stark contrast to how Paul described Abraham. The word “honor” in verse 21 is actually the word “glorify.” It’s the same word as used in verse 23 when it says that they “exchanged the glory.” Just 21 is a verb and 23 is a noun. So how then did they not glorify God? They did not thank him. They exchanged his glory for lesser glory, turning in the Ferrari for the jalopy. They exchanged the truth about God for a lie. They worshiped and served the creature. What was the result? Futile thinking, foolish hearts, idolatry.
Here is Abraham who did glorify God. How? By doing the exact opposite of what is seen in these verses. Rather than being thankless, he was thankful. Rather than exchange God’s glory for lesser glory, he sought God’s glory. Rather than exchange truth, he believed the promise even when everything was against him. And what was the result? His faith was strengthened. This is in contrast to
He did not weaken in faith when he considered his own body, which was as good as dead (since he was about a hundred years old), or when he considered the barrenness of Sarah’s womb.
The physical inability of his body or Sarah’s body did not weaken his faith, but his glorifying God led to his faith being strengthened. Thus Paul’s point being that believing in God’s power overcomes inability. Clearly Abraham and Sarah had a child named Isaac. Which means Abraham had to get over his own inabilities and trust in God’s power to empower him to do what was necessary in order to impregnate Sarah. The very act of marriage was a sign of faith in God’s power, and it glorified God as well.
And God did the impossible! He took a physically impotent body and joined it with a barren womb and created a promised son. There was no power in Abraham to do this. And if you have not yet believed in Jesus to be your Savior, understand that the same goes for you. You have no more power to save your soul that Abraham had to bear children. Abraham’s body was dead, reproductively speaking. So are you, spiritually speaking. You are just as dead. Paul said that all who are outside of Christ are dead in their trespasses and sins. Just as Abraham could not give life to his body or his son, so you cannot give life to your soul.
Belief in God’s Son Overcomes Unrighteousness
Belief in God’s Son Overcomes Unrighteousness
Which leads us into this last point. Because as I said at the beginning of this sermon: “the grace that God showed Abraham in providing him a son is the same grace that God shows sinners in providing us salvation as both come by way of faith.” The first point was that belief in God’s promise overcomes hopelessness. The second was that belief in God’s power overcomes inability. The last is that belief in God’s Son overcomes unrighteousness.
That is why his faith was “counted to him as righteousness.”
But the words “it was counted to him” were not written for his sake alone,
but for ours also. It will be counted to us who believe in him who raised from the dead Jesus our Lord,
who was delivered up for our trespasses and raised for our justification.
Verse 22 goes back to verse 18.
In hope he believed against hope, that he should become the father of many nations, as he had been told, “So shall your offspring be.”
If you go back to Genesis 15:5-6, you’ll see these two lines go together.
And he brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”
And he believed the Lord, and he counted it to him as righteousness.
Abraham’s belief in God’s promise and God’s power to do as he promised, was credited to his sin-debt as righteousness. Abraham from Ur of the Chaldeans, pagan-Abraham, had an entire lifetime of sin-debt against God. And yet, his faith in God’s promise and power wiped it out, as God counted his faith as righteousness. Have you ever stopped to think why that line is in the Bible in the first place? It seems out of place. Moses interrupts the narrative to put in a bit of commentary. According to Paul, it wasn’t just for Abraham’s benefit. In fact, these words were written hundreds of years after Abraham died. Paul wrote that these words were written for our benefit. Why? Because the grace that God showed Abraham in providing him a son is the same grace that God shows sinners in providing us salvation as both come by way of faith. Paul hasn’t been taking this stroll down memory lane for no reason. At the end of this, we aren’t supposed to be saying, “Great story, Uncle Paul.” The whole point of the story of Abraham, Sarah, and Isaac, is to explain our salvation!
In the case of Abraham, God gave life to Abraham and Sarah’s reproductive organs which had long beforehand died. In our case, he gave life to Jesus as Jesus had died. But it wasn’t simply that Jesus had died. It was more than that to Paul. Jesus was delivered up for our trespasses. Probably a better way to say it is that Jesus was given over on account of our trespasses. Those trespasses that we were dead in, Jesus was given over to the Sanhedrin, Pilate, Herod, the Roman soldiers to die on a cross. But he rose, but not just for any reason, but on account of our justification. Let’s not forget that the word justification means that we are made right with God. So Jesus rose on account of our being made right with God.
God had offered and promised Abraham a son through Sarah. Abraham believed God’s promise and believed that God had the power to keep that promise and would keep it. That faith was counted as righteousness. God offers and promises righteousness to us, but we must believe the promise and believe that he is able and willing to give it. We must put our faith in the very one of died because our trespasses and rose so we can be made right with God.
Some may doubt that this is true or that it could be true. Perhaps the things that happened to you were so wrong, so dirty, so impure, so sinful. There’s not a day that goes by that you don’t feel shame; not a moment where you don’t feel dirty and unloved. It’s impossible for such a holy God, such a pure God to love you. It’s impossible for such a righteous God to make you righteous and take away your shame. It is no more impossible for God to do that than for him to give an impotent man and barren woman a son. It is no more impossible for God to do that than for him to give life to his Son who was dead in the grave for three days. The promise and power are yours if you will believe. Belief in God’s Son overcomes unrighteousness.
Some people think it impossible, not because of what has happened to them, but because of what they have done themselves. But I remind you of the thief on the cross who mocked Jesus, but then repented and was promised paradise. I remind you of Paul who persecuted the church, throwing its members in jail and killing others and yet he too was accounted righteous. I remind you of the Samaritan woman who went through five husbands and was living with a man who was not her husband, yet was declared righteous when she believed. There is no sin, no trespass that you can commit that will not be overcome through faith in Jesus Christ.
Conclusion
Conclusion
As we conclude our study in Romans 4:18-25, I hope we have seen that the grace that God showed Abraham in providing him a son is the same grace that God shows sinners in providing us salvation as both come by way of faith. We’ve seen that Abraham believed God’s promise and overcame hopelessness. We’ve seen that Abraham believed God’s power and overcame his own inability. We’ve seen that in the same way, if we believe in God’s Son, we will overcome every form of unrighteousness.
This is God’s radical gospel! It changes everything! If you have never believed in Jesus, you are considered lost. You’ll hear church-going people talk about the lost. That’s you. You’re lost because you have wandered far away from God. You’re lost because you are going in the wrong direction even when you think you’re going right. And I am standing here pointing you to the only way back. Believe in Jesus. He died on account of your trespass and rose on account of your justification—to make you right in God’s eyes, if you will receive his promise by believing.
Beloved, this power of salvation is not in you by nature. You have no power to save yourself. You have no power to be righteous in yourself. This is Christ’s work in you by way of the Holy Spirit in you who has come to you through your faith. This is the promise. Remember how I said at the beginning that chapter four sets up chapter five? Chapter four ends with reminding us that Jesus died on account of our sin but rose so we would be justified. Chapter five begins, with
Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Don’t take your eyes of the promise no matter how hopeless your situation may seem. Believe in the promise of God. Believe in the power of God. Believe in the Son of God.