Romans 4:13-16(NKJV) 13For the promise that he would be the heir of the world was not to Abraham or to his seed through the law, but through the righteousness of faith. 14For if those who are of the law are heirs, faith is made void and the promise made of no effect, 15because the law brings about wrath; for where there is no law there is no transgression. 16Therefore it is of faith that it might be according to grace, so that the promise might be sure to all the seed, not only to those who are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all
Romans 4 might be called the “quick start guide” to how to apply faith in God. As we began our look at this chapter yesterday, we discovered that Abraham found something very important. He discovered that it was possible to believe God beyond his experience. He was too old to have children and his wife had been barren her whole life. They had no experience to base their faith upon.
Sarah was 65 and Abraham was 75 when God promised Abraham he would be the father of multitudes. They received this promise by faith and eventually had a child together who became the beginning of the nation of Israel. What we want to learn is how this faith worked in Abraham. If we can do what he did, we can receive the answer to any prayer and God’s solution to any problem. Let us examine Abraham’s actions in this chapter.
In today’s verse, we see the first and most important element of any faith operation. We must have a promise. Abraham did not try to believe God without knowing upon what his faith would rest. God had given him a promise. Let us look at that promise.
Genesis 15:4-5(NKJV) 4And behold, the word of the Lord came to him, saying, “This one shall not be your heir, but one who will come from your own body shall be your heir.” 5Then He brought him outside and said, “Look now toward heaven, and count the stars if you are able to number them.” And He said to him, “So shall your descendants be.”
The promise continues in chapter 17 with the cutting of the covenant that seals the promise.
Genesis 17:3-5(NKJV) 3Then Abram fell on his face, and God talked with him, saying: 4“As for Me, behold, My covenant is with you, and you shall be a father of many nations. 5No longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be Abraham; for I have made you a father of many nations.
Everything Abrahams does from this point on is based upon this promise. Without a promise to stand on faith cannot work. Romans 10:17 tells us that faith comes by hearing and hearing itself comes by the Word of God. Why is this so important?
We must understand the nature of faith. Faith is not a mental exercise or some mystical spiritual state. Faith is a connection between two people. We have a word we use to describe people who have never had sexual relations with anyone but their spouse. We call those people faithful. If they have strayed, we use the term “infidelity.” This word simply means a breach of trust. If we do not stray outside of our marriage vows, we have faith within the relationship.
Faith is relationship by nature. You do not have faith in nothing. You must have faith in something and the kind of faith Abraham possessed was in someone. You cannot have faith in someone if you do not know what they have said they will do for you. That is the purpose of marriage vows.
When we stand next to our future spouse all dressed in the finest clothing we may ever wear, we do not simply say “pretty words” that hold a place in our wedding traditions. We should make vows to one another. Today we do not consider those vows as very important, but they are. A vow is a promise that cannot be broken. The same thing passed between God and Abraham.
God made a vow to Abraham and Abraham made a vow to God. God vowed to make Abraham the father of many nations and to bless the world through his descendants. Abraham vowed to serve God and mark those descendants with circumcision. There was much more to their covenant, but for now, this is the part we will focus on.
The marriage vow is a promise each spouse should be able to stand on when trouble comes. If it seems that the husband may have strayed, the wife should be able to go back to those vows and stand on them to prove he would never do such a thing. I know this is naive in today’s world, but that is the way it is supposed to work. Abraham knew that God took his vow as absolute and would never break it. Therefore, he could stand on the promise of God in the face of any impossibility.
The strength of the vow, or promise, is the character and power of the person who makes it. If a woman marries an unfaithful man, she should expect that the vow would not hold. If she marries a man of proven character, she can be assured of his faithfulness in life. God will never lie. Every promise he makes is absolutely true. He will never break even the smallest promise he makes to man. Furthermore, he has the power to back up even the greatest promise.
Abraham had an encounter with God in which he received a powerful promise. We have probably not had God speak to us in an audible voice or appear to us in a dream to make a covenant with us. However, we have something even better. We have the Word of God!
2 Corinthians 1:20(KJV) 20For all the promises of God in him are yea, and in him Amen, unto the glory of God by us.
The “him” in this verse is Jesus. We have a better covenant with God than Abraham did. That covenant is based on better promises. (Heb. 8:6) We have just as sure a promise to stand on as Abraham did. In fact, we have a whole book of them. The only question is whether we will take the time to find the one we need for our circumstance.
What are you facing today? To parody a popular cellular phone’s commercial; there is a promise for that. Do you need healing? There is a promise for that. Do you need direction? There is a promise for that. Are your finances in trouble, or are your relationships in need of help? There are many promises to meet those needs. If you are struggling with sin in your life there are promises that can give you the strength to overcome.
Find a promise. You can search the word via computer, the web or a concordance. You can go to someone who has been a Christian longer than you have and ask them to help you. You can ask for council from the leaders of the church, but when you do, go to them looking for a promise from God’s word.
Once you find a promise or two that applies to your situation, you will be ready to move on to the next step in Romans 4. However, without a promise you will not be able to apply the rest of the principles outlined in this chapter. So find your promise today and we will move on tomorrow.
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