Romans
4:18-25 - Outline and Summary
Paul
uses Abraham’s faith to illustrate the kind of faith which brings
justification
to us today - to us who believe in God, who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead
(Jesus who was delivered over for our sins and was raised to life for our
justification).
(Romans 4:18-25)
•
Romans 4:18-22 discusses the kind of
faith which Abraham had, faith which resulted in his having righteousness
credited to him.
–
The object of Abraham’s faith was God’s promise to
him that he would be given a vast number of offspring and thus would become the
Father of many nations
(Romans
–
The strength of Abraham’s faith is seen in that he still believed the promise when it was repeated to him (14 years
later in Genesis 17, when he was 99 years old and still did not have any
offspring).
(Romans 4:19)
–
Note the physical obstacles that
existed:
•
Abraham’s body
was as good as dead
•
Sarah’s womb was
also dead (she was 89)
–
The ground for Abraham’s faith was his persuasion that God had the power to do what He had promised (he believed that God
could and would keep His word). (Romans 4:20-21)
–
The result of Abraham’s faith was that “[his faith] was
credited to him as righteousness.” (Romans 4:22)
•
Romans
4:23-25
explains how the Old Testament
account of Abraham’s faith being credited to him as righteousness applies to us today (i.e. to Christians who, like Abraham, have
righteousness credited to them through believing in Jesus Christ - the
crucified and risen Lord).
–
The words [recorded in Genesis 15:6] “[faith] was credited
to him [for righteousness]” were written not for [Abraham] alone,
–
But also for us
–
To whom God will credit righteousness-- for us who believe
in [God] who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead [just as He gave life to
Abraham’s body which was as good as dead, [verse 19].
–
[The Lord Jesus Christ] was delivered over to death for our
sins [to die in our place as a substitute] and was raised to life for our
justification.