Father Abraham

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This is a reading from Paul's letter to the Romans, chapter 3, verses 28-30, and chapter 4, verses 1-8, and 16-25.

Romans 3:28–30

For we maintain that a person is justified by faith apart from the works of the law.

Or is God the God of Jews only?

Is he not the God of Gentiles too?

Yes, of Gentiles too, since there is only one God who will justify the circumcised by faith and the uncircumcised through that same faith.

What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh, discovered in this matter?

If, in fact, Abraham was justified by works, he had something to boast about, but not before God.

What does Scripture say?

Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.

Now, to the one who works, wages are not credited as a gift, but as an obligation.

However, to the one who does not work, but trusts God who justifies the ungodly, their faith is credited as righteousness.

David says the same thing when he speaks of the blessedness of the one to whom God credits righteousness apart from works.

Blessed are those whose transgressions are forgiven, whose sins are covered.

Blessed is the one whose sin the Lord will never count against them.

Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham's offspring,

not only to those who are of the law, but also to those who have the faith of Abraham.

He is the father of us all.

As it is written,

Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead.

Since he was about a hundred years old, and that Sarah's womb was also dead.

Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God,

but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God,

being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised.

This is why it was credited to him as righteousness.

The words,

It was credited to him, were written not for him alone, but also for us,

to whom God will credit righteousness.

For us who believe in him, who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead,

he was delivered over to death for our sins, and was raised to life for our justification.

This is the word of the Lord.

Thanks be to God.

Good morning, everyone.

My name is Andrew, and I'm one of the pastors here.

All right, so last week, Jonathan, he got a little bit theological, right?

He explained three important terms that Paul uses in his letter here throughout the church to Rome.

And one of those three terms is a very important concept, probably the most important concept in this letter.

It's central to Paul's message, and it is the word justification.

Like, if you get anything out of this sermon series, please, please, please make sure you understand the central aspect of the gospel.

You have to understand the concept of justification.

Even for those of us in the room who aren't Christians and don't know if we ever will be Christians,

none of us can avoid the universal relevance of this concept of justification.

Because, see, no matter what God you believe in, or whether or not you believe in God at all,

I don't care what you tell me, we are all seeking to be justified.

Yeah, sure, maybe in various different courts of opinion, but in some way or another, we are all seeking to be justified,

to be seen and declared as good and worthy and accepted by whatever court of judgment we most highly esteem.

Whether you're seeking to be accepted by some divine being,

or whether we're seeking to be declared as worthy by our parents, our families, our bosses, our peers, or this or that institution,

or maybe we're just seeking justification in our own eyes.

We all have some court of judgment, maybe multiple judges from whom we are seeking validation,

and that satisfying stamp of approval confirming to us that we are enough.

We all live under that gaze, right?

The gaze of someone or something.

We're all seeking justification, a positive verdict upon our lives and our identities.

And so two important questions for us to consider this morning are,

who or what are we ultimately seeking to be justified by?

And then how will we be justified in their sight?

You know, how we answer these questions, I believe, will change our lives.

Because see, ultimately, whoever it is that you are most ultimately seeking justification from,

whoever it is whose opinion and judgment you deem as carrying the highest value, the greatest weight,

well, functionally, that is your Lord.

Functionally, that is your God.

That is your Master.

We're all seeking to be justified.

And then whatever Lord you do serve, however you seek to be justified by that Lord,

will ultimately determine how you live,

and how you relate to this Lord and to others,

and how you understand what it means to be righteous and upright and noble and worthy and honorable.

Our understanding of justification, particularly who justifies us and how we are justified,

these are absolutely foundational matters for all of our lives.

Are we seeking to be justified by our parents, our colleagues, our religious community,

our own inner voices, or are we seeking to be justified by God?

And whichever of these it is, how will we be justified in their sight?

You know, get good grades, get a good job,

achieve the American dream to be justified in the eyes of my immigrant parents,

or my boss, or my self-determined standards of success?

Live a moral or upright, unselfish life,

sacrificing for others in order to be deemed as righteous in my, you know,

holy religious community, or in the eyes of God himself.

What Paul has been arguing throughout this whole letter

is that the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,

He is the ultimate standard of justice and righteousness,

the only one whose voice and verdict is true and truly matters,

and He alone is worthy and able to justify us.

Even when we've exchanged the truth about God for a lie,

even when we've worshipped and served created things,

even when we've sought ultimate justification from other lords,

from mere creatures like ourselves,

Paul's good news to us,

His good news for us is that in Jesus Christ,

God has revealed not just His mercy,

not just His love,

not just His grace,

but His righteousness.

A way to be justified in His holy sight,

accepted and honored in His own divine eyes,

the only eyes that really matter, right?

He has made a way for us to be justified,

and not by the works of the law,

but simply by faith.

And so that brings us to our text today,

starting at the end of chapter 3, verse 28.

Paul says,

Just like he said at the beginning, right?

The righteous will live by faith,

not by diligent obedience to the Torah,

not by cultural assimilation into the Orthodox culture,

circumcised Jewish community.

No, the righteous will live,

the righteous will be justified by faith,

apart from works of the law.

And so what we have in chapter 4

is Paul's defense of justification by faith.

And he starts his defense,

as every good Christian defense should,

appealing to the Scriptures.

And in particular,

starting in chapter 4, verse 1,

he points his readers all the way back

to the great patriarch of the Jewish faith,

Abraham himself.

He basically says,

What might our forefather Abraham

have to say on this matter

of justification by faith?

Now remember,

even in Jesus and John the Baptist's day,

Abraham was the OG,

all right?

He was the OG,

the very ancestor, right?

So many religious people have claimed

as their spiritual forefather,

the original person

that God made his covenant promise with

to bless his offspring

and to make him into a great nation

and to bless all the nations

through his family.

And this gave many Jewish people,

particularly reading this letter

to the church in Rome,

a lot of security

about their status before God.

They thought that

because they descended from Abraham,

they were automatically justified.

They're automatically good,

included into the covenant community of God.

You can read about that

in the Gospels,

in Matthew chapter 3,

Matthew 3 · chapter mention

in John chapter 8.

John 8 · chapter mention

The Pharisees and the religious leaders

are constantly rejecting

the words of Jesus

and the words of John the Baptist.

Why?

Because they think they're good.

They think they're fine

because Abraham is their father.

And yet,

what does John the Baptist say

to the Pharisees?

Do not presume,

he says,

do not presume to say to yourselves,

we have Abraham as our father.

For I tell you,

God is able from these stones

to raise up children for Abraham.

Bear fruit in keeping with repentance,

he tells them.

So what Paul does here

in Romans chapter 4

Romans 4 · chapter mention

is he actually shows his readers

that Abraham himself,

their great forefather,

was justified not by the works of the law,

not by being Jewish or circumcised,

but by faith.

Paul quotes here in verse 3

from the Torah,

Genesis chapter 3,

Genesis 3 · chapter mention

Genesis chapter 15, verse 6.

Genesis 15:6

What does Scripture say?

Abraham believed God

and it was credited to him

as righteousness.

The Hebrew Scriptures

didn't say that Abraham

was justified by being obedient

or hardworking

or sacrificial

or pious.

No, Abraham believed God.

He trusted what God said.

He held on to what God promised

and God justified him.

His faith was credited to him

as righteousness,

righteousness in the eyes of God.

So Paul demonstrates here

to his readers

that the very Hebrew Scriptures

have taught justification

by faith all along.

You know,

what I especially love

about Paul's argument here

is that he doesn't just

point to the Scriptures

and say,

I've got truth on my side.

I'm theologically correct.

You've got it wrong

because just look what it says

right here in the Holy Book.

Now at the very same time

as he points to the truth

and the logic of justification

by faith

and the authoritative

biblical witness

on his side,

he also points them

to the beauty,

the beauty of justification

by faith.

And so what I want to do

with the remainder

of this sermon

is for us to observe

this argument

that Paul makes

about the truth

and logic of justification

by faith

but also the beauty

of justification

by faith.

And to sum that up,

let me put it like this.

Justification by faith

transforms our gloating

into gratitude,

our guesses

into guarantees,

and our foes

into family.

I'll say that again.

Justification by faith

transforms our gloating

into gratitude,

our guesses

into guarantees,

and our foes

into family.

Alright, so let's get to

how does justification

by faith

transform our gloating

into gratitude?

Look with me

at chapter 4,

verse 2.

Paul writes,

if in fact Abraham

was justified

by works,

well then he

has something

to boast about

but not before God.

And what Paul

is arguing here

from verse 2

to all the way

to 16

is that if justification

is not by faith,

if justification

is by works,

by diligent effort

to obey,

and by cultural

assimilation

into Jewishness,

then those who

are justified

would have every reason

to boast

and to gloat

about their justification.

Like even before God,

they could boast

that they basically

justified themselves

in God's sight

by doing the right

things themselves.

But, you know,

as Harvard Law

professor Michael Sandel

points out in his book

The Tyranny of Merit,

the more we think

of ourselves

as self-made

and self-sufficient,

the harder it actually

is to learn gratitude

and humility.

Because,

think about it,

if people are justified

by the works

they do,

they could view God

as owing them

justification.

Look at verse 4.

Now, to the one

who works,

wages are not credited

as a gift

but as an obligation.

See, if justification

is not by faith

but by the works

of the law,

then creatures like us

could point our fingers

into the heavens, right,

and say,

O Creator,

hello, right,

you're obligated

to justify us

because of the works

we've accomplished.

You ought to reward us,

you ought to congratulate us,

you ought to,

you owe us

justification,

you're obligated

because look at

what we have done.

But now,

does that sound

like an appropriate posture

toward our maker,

toward the one

who holds the world together

and sustains the breath

in our lungs?

Does it make sense

that creatures,

particularly sinful creatures,

might be able to gloat

before God

and obligate Him

to do anything?

No.

That's why verse 2 says,

but not before God.

For creatures,

the gloat before their Creator

is madness.

It's nonsense.

As the psalmist says,

it is He who has made us

and not we ourselves.

If justification

is not by faith

but by works,

then we would be relating

to God

not as grateful children

before our benevolent

and gracious Father,

but as gloating employees

before our dutiful,

divine boss.

And that's what verse 4

is getting at.

To the one who works,

wages are not credited

as a gift

but as an obligation,

a mere business transaction.

If justification

is by works,

it is earned

and not something

to be grateful for.

Like really,

who here,

when they receive

their paycheck,

writes a nice thank you note

to their employer?

Anyone do that here?

Every single time?

Anyone?

Heck no, right?

No.

That wasn't a gift.

You earned it.

Your paycheck,

your wages

were due to you,

owed to you

because of your work.

And also,

think about how this

affects your relationships,

right?

Your relationship

with your employer.

Your relationship

is not based on benevolence

and gifts of grace

and mercy

but on merit

and transactional exchanges

for the sake

of mutual benefit,

right?

Your relationship

isn't primarily

one of gratitude

and humility

but of consumeristic

and capitalistic exchange.

Now,

I don't want to be

overly critical

of this kind of relationship

but I do want us

to consider,

is this the kind

of relationship

we want and long for

with God?

A primarily

transactional relationship

based on merit

and performance.

In verses 5 to 8,

Paul shows us

how justification

by faith

before God

is so much better.

It's so much better

than justification

by the works

of the law.

Verse 5,

However,

to the one

who does not work

but trusts God

who justifies

even the ungodly,

their faith

is credited

as righteousness.

Paul shows

not only from Genesis

in the Torah

but also from the Psalms

that the great king David

just like Abraham

also understood

that justification

has to be

by faith.

Verse 6,

David says the same thing

when he speaks

of the blessedness

of the one

to whom God

credits righteousness

apart from works.

And notice that word

blessedness right there.

That word blessedness.

Again,

when you get your paycheck,

sure you might say

that God blessed me

with a job

in the first place

but you don't say

my employer blessed me

with a paycheck

this week.

Right?

That's what your employer

contractually agreed

to pay you

contingent upon your work,

contingent upon your performance.

But see,

if justification

is by faith,

we can truly call

justification

a blessing.

Like it's something

to actually be

thankful for,

grateful for,

not a commission

that's owed to us

that we might gloat about.

Like,

check out my commission

this month.

No.

Here the psalmist

says in verse 7,

blessed are those

whose transgressions

are forgiven,

whose sins are covered.

Verse 8,

blessed is the one

whose sin the Lord

will never account

against them.

See,

in justification by faith

apart from works,

our debts are forgiven

at someone else's expense.

Right?

Our sins are covered

by someone else's blood.

Our sin is not counted

against us

because the Lord

has laid on his Son

the iniquity

of us all.

Right?

Put it to death

on the cross.

That's what he's done

for us

in our place.

Verse 16,

therefore,

the promise comes

by faith

so that it may be

by grace.

You see,

justification by faith

is ultimately

justification

by grace.

And if we are justified

not by our performance

but by grace,

the costly grace

of Christ crucified

for our sins

when he had no sins

of his own,

then all boasting,

all gloating

is excluded.

Right?

All of our gloating

is transformed

by justification

by faith

into gratitude.

For those who are

justified by faith

in Christ,

crucified for their sins,

for our sins,

our only boast

could possibly be

the cross

of Christ.

And do you know

what this does

when we internalize

justification

by faith

and realize

that our only boast

could possibly be

the cross?

Tim Keller

said something like this.

He said,

if you build your life

on being justified

by anything

or anyone

other than God,

such as your colleagues,

the crowds,

or a romantic partner,

it will distort you,

it will puff you up.

If you get it,

it will create conflicts

in this world,

it will make you

a slave to it.

And if you ever lose it,

you'll kill yourself

or you'll hate yourself.

There is only one

kind of justification

that doesn't puff up,

that you cannot lose,

that heals you

instead of rots your soul,

and that is the

justification of God.

The minute you begin

to understand

that in Christ

you have God's applause,

God's praise,

God's thunderous affirmation,

adoration,

honor,

and acclamation

by grace

through what Christ

has done,

not on the basis

of your performance,

on the one hand,

that destroys

your inferiority

complex forever,

and on the other hand,

it humbles you

and drowns your pride

deeper and deeper

and deeper.

That's the dynamic

of justification

by faith.

It inspires humility

and confidence

at the same time

like nothing else.

Zero reason to gloat,

every reason to be grateful,

that's what justification

by faith does.

And get this,

not only does justification

by faith transform

our gloating

into gratitude,

but also our guesses

into guarantees.

Look with me

at verse 16 again.

See,

the promise

comes by faith

so that it may be

by grace

and may be guaranteed.

Guaranteed.

See,

if justification

is not by faith,

then this not only

excludes the possibility

of grace

and gratitude,

but if justification

wasn't by grace

through faith,

it also couldn't be

guaranteed to us.

See,

the beauty of justification

apart from the works

of the law

is that the initiative

doesn't rest on me

in my fallibility

and in my finitude,

but in the strong,

mighty,

and more than capable

hands of our mighty God.

Like,

what is a surer thing?

Justifying myself

through my diligent works

or being justified

by God

by His grace

through faith?

Think about that

for a second.

You know,

throughout this series,

we've been referring

to Jesus' parable

of the two sons, right?

About that one

who ran away

and wasted his

inheritance

and the older son

who worked so hard,

right,

for so long

living obediently

to his father.

And maybe you remember

this line

that the older son

angrily shouts

to his prodigal father

who had just slaughtered

the fattened calf

for his wayward son

who just returned home.

The older brother says

to his father,

look,

these many years

I have served you

and I never disobeyed

your command,

yet you never gave me

a young goat

that I might celebrate

with my friends.

And I want us

to sympathize

with this older brother

here for a second.

Imagine him, right?

Toiling faithfully

every day.

He never disobeyed.

Never, it says.

That's amazing.

It's amazing, right?

And yet he's toiling

and he's toiling

and yet also

never knowing

if he's obeyed

enough,

if he's performed

at a high enough level.

And therefore,

every day,

he's been guessing,

guessing whether or not

this might be the day

that his father

might just give him

a young goat.

But it's always

ever a guess, right?

Never a guarantee

and he's forever waiting

because of how he understands

that he will be justified

in the eyes of his father.

See, the older brother

seeking to be justified

by his works of obedience,

he's unable to appreciate

justification by grace

through faith.

Because of his understanding

of how he will be justified

in the eyes of his father

through his works,

he had to live his whole life

guessing whether he even

was justified.

Even justified enough

to merit a young goat.

He was never sure,

always guessing.

You know, I wonder

if maybe that's how

some of us here

feel today.

Always guessing

about our status

with God

or whatever is

functionally our Lord

and God, right?

And I was counseling

someone this week,

probably the brightest

Cal student that I've met

in my time here

and she described herself

as having religious OCD.

Never, you know,

sure,

never sure of her status

with God.

Incredibly bright.

She's read tons

of religious literature

seeking confirmation,

always questioning

whether she was right

and worthy in God's eyes,

whether he loved her

and was truly willing

to be her personal God,

like whether she could

call him her own

and whether he actually

called her his own.

And as your pastor,

I know that many of you

here can relate

to this religious OCD

because it is true

none of us

has clean hands.

And this eats at our

consciences daily,

doesn't it?

But the beauty

of the gospel

is that our justification

in the eyes of God

does not depend

on our own

self-exertion

but simply

upon the firm

promise of God.

We can be justified,

we can be right

and accepted

with God

simply by faith.

simply by trusting

what God says.

We don't have to live

guessing about

our performance,

we can live by faith

in God's gracious

guarantee,

already paid for

by Christ,

our perfect older brother.

Our perfect older brother.

Now we must not miss

how justification

by faith also affects

not just our vertical

relationship with God,

but our horizontal

relationship

with one another.

Rightly understood,

justification by faith

also transforms

our foes

into family.

Verse 16 again.

The promise comes

by faith

so that it may be

by grace

and may be guaranteed

to all

Abraham's offspring.

Listen,

not only to those

who are of the law

or, you know,

like circumcised,

but also to those

who have the faith

of Abraham.

He is the father

of us all.

You see,

if justification

is not by faith,

but by works

of the law,

or really like

by functionally

becoming Jewish,

right,

that's what it means

to engage in the

works of the law,

then basically

every nation,

tribe,

people,

would pretty much

have to become Jewish

in order to be right

with God.

They would need

to eat culture,

all the men

would need to be

circumcised,

and on and on

according to the Torah,

right?

And thus the Jewish

people could rightly

assert and gloat

about their cultural

supremacy,

for their national

and cultural identity

would be their

righteousness,

even giving them

reason to mistreat

and villainize

and demonize

all other cultures

as inferior.

Justification by works

gives us reason

to gloat,

reason to dominate

and oppress,

right,

with violence.

But Paul argues

Abraham and his people

were never actually

justified,

never made right

with God

because of who

they were,

because of the things

they did,

but only ever

by faith.

It's always been

by faith.

Now you might have

noticed we skipped

over verses 9

through 15

for the sake of time,

but if I could just

sum that up

briefly,

what Paul argues

there is that

if you read the book

of Genesis

about the life

of Abraham,

right here you'll see

that Genesis 15

is quoted by Paul

in verse 3.

He quotes

Genesis chapter 15

Genesis 15 · chapter mention

where God justifies

Abraham by faith.

Abraham's justification

comes in chapter 15

and it comes

before his circumcision

which happens

in chapter 17.

And it also happens

like hundreds of years

before Moses

and the law.

And so Paul

is making an argument

just like Jesus,

just like John the Baptist

that the true children

of Abraham,

the true children

of the covenant

and of God's promises,

the true heirs

of God

are not those

who share Abraham's

faith.

You know,

as a kindergartner

in church,

I remember the first time

I heard the song,

Father Abraham

had many sons

and I am one of them

and so are you

and I had no idea

what that song was about.

It made no sense to me.

No, my dad is Dennis Ong,

all right?

But it was because

I hadn't read

and understood

the Apostle Paul.

Verse 17,

as it is written,

I have made you

a father of many nations

He is our father

in the sight of God

in whom he believed.

You see,

justification by faith

is what God

always had in mind

when he promised Abraham

that he would make him

a great nation

and a blessing

to all the nations.

God did not have

cultural supremacy

or imperialism in mind

but a gift of grace.

Justification not by being Jewish

but by faith

in the God of Abraham.

And this is the basis

for Christianity

really being the most

diverse movement

in all of history.

I recently met someone

here at Christ Church

who is not a Christian

but fairly interested

in Christianity.

His family comes from Iran

and he actually sent me

a YouTube video recently

about how Christianity

is booming in Iran

and how a lot of people

don't know about it.

And one thing

that this guy alluded to

that was mentioned

in this video

was how Iran is unique.

It's unique because

it is a Muslim country

but it also has

its own distinct culture.

Like most Muslim countries

are Arab cultures

but Iran is distinct

because it's a Muslim country

that has a distinctly

Persian culture.

Like that region of Iran

was Persian

long before it was Muslim.

But now if you know

anything about Islam

basically to become Muslim

you pretty much have to

become Arab

in some way.

Like according to Islam

if you've read

even the Quran

in another language

other than Arabic

you haven't actually

read it.

And so how that's

played out in Iran

or I should say

in the Islamic Republic

of Iran

is that Islam

and the Arabic culture

with it have been imposed

on these Persian people.

And so many Iranians

like increasingly more

each year

have found Christianity

to be a faith

that doesn't

imperialistically oppress

or culturally impose itself

but rather refreshingly

liberates

and affirms

them as Persians

in a way that

Shia Islam

their official state religion

never could do.

Many Iranians

are realizing

that with Christianity

they can be justified

and in right relationship

with God

not by becoming Arab

or becoming Jewish

but they can be justified

by faith

as Persians

just like the Chinese

just like the Nigerians

and just like the Germans.

And see my point here

is that justification

by faith

and not by adherence

to Moses' Torah

it's not just

a powerful

personal spiritual truth

about you

and some high God

in the heavens

but it has amazing potential

to bring the nations together

without destroying

their differences either.

Justification

by the one

and same faith

in the Lord Jesus Christ

unlike anything else

can transform

has transformed

foes into family

even people from nations

at war

with each other

for centuries.

The horizontal good news

of justification

by faith

is that this God

can be your God

and your super different

neighbor's God

at the same time

even if the only thing

you have in common

is your faith

in Christ

this Christ

who in his own body

took down

the dividing wall

of hostility

and bore our sins

the sins of the nations

against each other

and nailed them

to the cross

and this is the beauty

of justification

by faith.

It transforms

our gloating

into gratitude

our guesses

into guarantees

and our foes

into family.

Now maybe

hopefully

you've been convinced

of the beauty

of justification

by faith

apart from the works

of the law

and maybe you even

want to believe it

but I also recognize

that for many of us

both those of us

who identify as Christians

and those of us

who don't

for all of us

really justification

by faith

might sound beautiful

but I think for a lot of us

it also might sound

actually harder to believe

than justification

by works.

Maybe even

too good to be true.

And if that's you

this morning

I just want to close

by begging you

to consider

what if justification

by faith

isn't too good

to be true?

What if justification

by faith

might actually be

too good

to not be true?

Like I get it

faith is hard.

Faith is hard.

I've been walking

with some of you

for a couple years now

and you're wanting

to be there

but you're not there.

that the faith

you realize

it really

very much

is a gift

from God

and you can't

just muster it up

in yourselves.

And for those of us

in the room

who are Christians

we have trouble

believing the promises

of God

don't we?

That we are right

and righteous

in the eyes of God.

I get it

faith is hard.

Maybe even harder

to believe

than just trying

to obey

some code

of law.

But don't you

at least want

to believe

in this God

of Abraham?

This God

that he believed in

who justifies

by grace

through faith?

This God

as it says

in verse 17

who gives life

to the dead

and calls into being

the things

that we're not.

Maybe you're here

today and you feel

like having faith

is impossible

for you.

Like faith

is that thing

that will never be.

Like your skepticism

about God

and what he says

is too strong

to ever be overcome.

But may I just

point out to you

that this is precisely

the context

in which we are

invited to reach out

to God in faith.

Opening our hands

to receive

from this God

who does the impossible,

who gives life

to the dead

and calls into being

things that we're not.

Like might it be

that all our doubts

are merely

an occasion

for God

to break through

and to show us

that he is greater

than our doubts.

He is greater

than our doubts.

To those of us

who find it impossible

to trust God

and his promises,

Paul reminds us,

verse 18,

that against all hope,

Abraham in hope

believed

and so became

the father

of many nations

just as it

had been said to him,

so shall your offspring

be.

This guy was

a hundred years old

and without an offspring,

with his probably

post-menopausal wife,

they had no reason

to believe

what God said

other than

that God said it.

and yet he trusted

that God

could do the impossible.

Verse 19,

without weakening

in his faith,

he faced the fact

that his body

was as good as dead

since he was about

a hundred years old

and that Sarah's womb

was also dead,

yet he did not waver

through unbelief

regarding the promise

of God,

but was strengthened

in his faith

and gave glory to God

by trusting him,

being fully persuaded

that God had power

to do what he

had promised.

And so I just want

to close by asking,

what is your

impossible thing today?

What is your

impossible thing today

and what if your

impossible thing

is merely an opportunity

to bring glory

to God

by simply trusting him

by faith?

Maybe for you

your impossible thing

is that God

would accept

and justify you

after all the messed up

things that you've done.

But yo,

look at Abraham,

alright?

He was a coward.

He jeopardized

the promise of God.

He let his wife

be taken by Pharaoh.

Then he let his wife

be taken again

by another king,

King Abimelech.

And then he was

so impatient

with the promise

of God,

he slept with his

maidservant

to help God

get his heir.

Then look at

King David,

right?

He had a man killed

after sleeping

with that man's wife.

But what do

the Scriptures say?

These two foolish

and dishonorable men

were justified

not by their works

but by faith,

credited as righteous

in God's eyes.

And as it says

in verse 23,

the words

that was credited

to him

were written

not for him alone

but also for us.

To whom God

will credit righteousness

for us who believe

in him

who raised Jesus

our Lord

from the dead.

But again,

maybe that's precisely

your impossible thing,

right?

Just having faith

at all.

You just don't think

it's possible

for you to have

this kind of faith

and trust in God

and in what he says.

Well, God's word

to you today

is that it,

is that though

it was unthinkable,

it was unthinkable

that the Son of God

would die in the place

of sinners.

And though it was

unthinkable

for such sinners

to be justified

and clothed

in the righteousness

of God.

and though everyone

has always known

that it is impossible

to raise someone

from the dead,

God's word to you

is that nothing

is impossible

for God.

Not even the impossibility

of your faith

in the face

of all your doubts

because as it says

in verse 25,

Jesus,

the Son of God,

was delivered over

to death

for our sins

and raised to life

for our justification.

And this is the gospel.

that nothing

is impossible.

Neither your justification

as righteous

in the eyes

of your maker

nor the faith

by which you can receive

that justification.

Nothing is impossible

even today

if you believe,

if you'll trust

in Christ.

This is God's

gracious gift,

a gracious gift

from a loving Lord

who gave everything

to call us our own.

And that's the beauty

of justification

by faith

from the word of God.

Will you pray with me?

Lord, we

cannot

muster up faith

on our own.

Some of us

want to believe

but we need help

in our unbelief.

God, would you

send forth your spirit

to grant us

the gift of faith?

Would you give us

eyes to see

the beauty

of justification

by faith?

This precious gift.

We claim the promise

of your son

who said,

ask and you will receive,

seek and you will find,

knock and the door

will be opened.

Give us that kind

of a faith

and make us

this kind of

humble and confident

people marked

by grace.

The grace of our

Lord Jesus Christ

poured out upon us

by his

sacrificial cross.

Make us a community,

oh God,

that is marked

by justification,

by faith.

And use us

for the good

of this city,

for the good

of this world,

we pray in the name

of Jesus.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.

Amen.