In Romans 4, Paul is seeking to make a point about the centrality and the necessity of
.
• Last week he showed how Abraham believed God and that was what made him righteous before God. This blessing of redemption, the covering of and forgiveness of our sins, can only happen as we turn away from our sin and believe in the finished work of Christ.
•
What justified Abraham?
• Paul knows if his readers make the critical mistake that followers of Christ need to adhere to the system of Judaism in order to be right with God then the
• In order to prove his point, he points to the simple chronology of the Old Testament, that Genesis
• In noting that Abraham was circumcised AFTER he was declared righteous by God, Paul is helping his readers put
What makes you
with God?
• What makes you right with God, what makes Him pleased with you, is not some kind of act of obedience (a religious work like circumcision), but simple faith in the finished work of Christ.
• Christ obeyed perfectly, not me. Christ earned salvation by His moral perfection because God knew that I could not be holy. Christ died for my sins so that I would not have to.
• God’s formula for
Jesus +
=
Jesus +=
Rest in Grace
• Receiving the promise of God is by faith, given in God’s grace, so that all
• When the promise rests IN grace, we can rest ON grace.
• This is the Gospel of Jesus >> Matthew 11:28-30 | Come to me, all who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you, and learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy, and my burden is light.”