March 12, 2006 pm Against all Hope! Romans 4:13-25
By Ronald E. George Jr. at the Fayetteville Baptist Church
It has been said that only man comprehends what he cannot see and believes what he cannot comprehend. Much of what we comprehend we cannot see: atoms, germs, love, hate, loyalty, sacrifice. He who lives by sight lives poorly indeed. Faith is learning to live by insight rather than by sight. -- Robert C. Shannon, 1000 Windows, (Cincinnati, Ohio: Standard Publishing Company, 1997).
For centuries the islands of New Zealand were unpopulated. No human had ever set foot on them. Then the first settlers arrived. They were Polynesians from other Pacific islands who had sailed a thousand miles in outrigger canoes. The Polynesians came with the purpose of settling in New Zealand. How did they know the land was there? How did they know they would not simply sail across empty seas until food and water ran out and they perished? The Polynesians had known for generations that land was there because their voyagers had seen a long white cloud on the distant horizon. They knew that when a cloud stayed in one place over a very long period of time, there was land beneath it. They called New Zealand the Land of the Long White Cloud. Faith is like that. It is voyaging to an unseen land, journeying to an unknown future. But it is not mere guesswork, or chance, or superstition. There are facts behind faith, facts that suggest conclusions. -- Robert C. Shannon, 1000 Windows, (Cincinnati, Ohio: Standard Publishing Company, 1997).
Scripture Text:
Romans 4:13 (NIV) It was not through law that Abraham and his offspring
received the promise that he would be heir of the world, but through the
righteousness that comes by faith. 14 For if those who live by law are heirs,
faith has no value and the promise is worthless, 15 because law brings wrath.
And where there is no law there is no transgression. 16 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
are of the faith of Abraham. He is the father of us all. 17 As it is written:
"I have made you a father of many nations." {[17] Gen. 17:5}He is our
father in the sight of God, in whom he believed--the God who gives life to the
dead and calls things that are not as though they were. 18 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." {[18] Gen. 15:5}
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. 20 Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God, but
was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, 21 being fully persuaded
that God had power to do what he had promised. 22 This is why "it was
credited to him as righteousness." 23 The words "it was credited to
him" were written not for him alone, 24 but also for us, to whom God will
credit righteousness--for us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from
the dead. 25 He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life
for our justification.
John 4:23 (NIV) Yet a time is
coming and has now come when the true worshipers will worship the Father in
spirit and truth, for they are the kind of worshipers the Father seeks. 24 God
is spirit, and his worshipers must worship in spirit and in truth."
What does God want? That is righteousness. Abraham is the perfect example of one who exercised his faith in God and was blessed.
Righteousness comes by faith not … law or good works but faith which is giving yourself to God.
Faith is the wire that brings the promise.
Against all hope….
Abraham in hope believed…
What was the result? He is the father of us all.
The promise was given . So shall your offspring be.
What did he face? He had no children. His body was as good as dead. He was about a hundred years old. Sarah’s womb was also dead.
He did not waver. We wasa strengthened in his faith. He gave glory to God. He was fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised. This was credited to Abraham as righteousness.
God will credit to us righteousness as He did to Abraham if we will…
If we believe in Him who raised Jesus from the dead.
He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification.
English is a strange language. You would think that full of faith and faithful would be the same thing. They are not. They are related, but they are not the same thing. To be full of faith is to have faith. To be faithful is to keep the faith. It is being true to the trust placed in us by others and by God. Everybody appreciates the person who is faithful, who will never betray a trust and never fail to keep a commitment. When we have not been faithful, it is because some doubt, however momentary or tentative, has crept in.
-- Robert C. Shannon, 1000 Windows, (Cincinnati, Ohio: Standard Publishing Company, 1997).