PREFACE

The overwhelming evidence of the New Testament verifies that the natural state of mind of the first-century Christians was happiness. The first Tritons, those baptized on Pentecost, "took their food with gladness and singleness of heart, praising God, and having favor with all the people" (Acts 2:46, 47). The effect of Philip's work and teaching in Samaria was that "there was much joy in that city" (Acts 8:8). The baptized Ethiopian eunuch "went on his way rejoicing" (Acts 8:39). The baptized Philippian jailer and his converted household "rejoiced greatly" (Acts 16:34).

This new-found joy in Christ was to be the way of life for God's children. In describing the basic nature of Christian existence in Romans 12, Paul told those Christians to rejoice in hope (v. 12). In 15:13 he declared again, "now the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that ye may abound in hope, in the power of the Holy Spirit." Three times Paul urged the Philippian Christians to rejoice in the Lord (Phil. 3:1, 4:4). He proclaimed joy as one of the fruits of the spirit (Gal. 5:22). Peter even declared that Christians should rejoice as they partook of Christ's sufferings because they knew they would rejoice with exceeding joy upon His return (1 Pet. 4:12, 13).

While joy may have been a common characteristic of those first-century Christians, it is too uncommon among Christians today. Many factors contribute to the absence of joy among the believers of today. High on the list of the most significant factors are an overpowering sense of guilt and a sense of uncertainty in regard to one's spiritual security.

The purpose of this book is to deepen the understanding of God's perfect solution to a Christian's sins and mistakes in the faith of righteousness. That understanding will result in a proper confidence in one's salvation, a daily life which is lived free from the burden of guilt, and a continuing sense of purity before God. The end result will be a joyful life in Christ.

Abraham is the model for the Christians faith. Having the faith of Abraham is the key to joyful life in Christ.

Chapter 1 - This Word Called Faith

One of the common word-concepts of the Bible is faith. It has been fundamental to man's relationship with God from the beginning. It is fundamental to the Christian's salvation and to continuing relationship with God in Christ. The word translated as faith or believe occurs about 550 times in the New Testament text. It is found in every book of the New Testament except the books of 2 and 3 John. It possibly constitutes the most frequent instruction-command found in the New Testament.

It would seem probable from such textual emphasis that faith would be one of the best understood Christian concepts. If any word readily could be defined and explained, faith would seem to be that word. However, such is not true.

If any typical, congregational Bible class were asked, "What is faith?" one or more of the following answers would be a predictable response. (1) Invariably, the first response would be the "round-robin" answer, "Faith is belief." When asked what belief is, the response would be, "Belief is faith." Since neither word is understood, the result is a non-definition. (2) Someone with more insight, more knowledge of the text would quote Hebrews 11:1. Faith would be acknowledged to be an assurance of things hoped for and a conviction of things not seen. However, that answer produces little personal insight or comprehension. Most still find faith an abstract, vague concept. (3) Someone would observe that faith expresses itself through works as he professed, "inactive faith is dead, lifeless, and powerless." James 2 correctly would be cited as evidence. While the truth that living faith expresses itself in appropriate actions must be understood, faith itself is still undefined. (4) Frequently, classes pursue a discussion of what faith is not and what faith of itself cannot do. That still does not define what faith is and does.

None of those responses would produce a working, easily grasped meaning for faith. The truths affirmed about faith's significance and its limitations have not specified what it is. Class members are left without a working definition of faith and without the knowledge of how faith is operative in the life of a person. The fact that works exist does not prove faith exists. Living faith does express itself in appropriate works, but one can do appropriate works without having faith. It is essential for Christians to have a clear understanding of faith.

pisteuo

The Greek word which is translated faith or believe is pistis (noun) or pisteuo (verb). It is translated "faith" about 250 times and "believe" over 200 times. It is defined as religious belief in God (and Christ) with emphasis on trust in His power and His nearness to help, in addition to believing that He exists and that His revelations and disclosures are true.<1> The best English synonym for pistis/pisteuo is "trust."

The word is also used in the New Testament to mean confidence in one's conviction.<2> On several occasions Jesus declared to those who asked a miracle of Him, "May it be done according to your faith." That is what He said to the centurion who asked Jesus to heal his servant (Matt. 8:13) and to the two blind men who cried for His mercy (Matt. 9:29). That is the force of what Jesus said to the woman healed of her bleeding (Matt. 9:22); to the ruler of the synagogue whose daughter had just died (Mark 5:36); and to the father of the demon possessed child (Mark 9:23, 24).

In each instance these individuals trusted Jesus and His power to help them. That trust was genuine enough and deep enough to bring them to action: they approached Jesus convinced that He could help them. Jesus then asked them how much confidence they placed in their trust in Him. Trust exists on many levels. The degree of confidence produced by a person's trust is a measurement of the quality of his trust. Trust exists both in fact and in degree.

An African man was on a journey with a goat, a cow, and his wife when he came to an abandoned wooden bridge crossing a deep gorge. The man declared emphatically that he trusted the bridge. The question was, "How much confidence did he have in his trust?" Did he have enough confidence to let his goat cross it first? or his cow? or his wife? Did he have enough confidence to cross it first himself? Did he have enough confidence to lead them across it as a group, or to follow them across it as a group?

Faith encompasses these concepts: (1) confidence in the existence of God (and Christ): (2) confidence in the truth of His Word; (3) trust in His power to aid and benefit our lives; and (4) trust in His ability to help us because of His nearness.

The Struggle

Those understandings do not resolve the struggle of understanding faith. Because a person has a working definition of what faith is does not resolve the problem of knowing when he possesses faith. When can a person know he is believing? When can he place confidence in the faith which he has? What level of trust is acceptable to God? What is the quality of trust to which God will respond: At what point does faith secure a person's relationship with God?

Please understand that these are not questions for the sinner outside of Christ. These are the questions to be answered by the baptized believer who is in Christ. All Christians are plagued by periods of doubt. Most Christians readily admit they do not have enough faith. Many are fearful that they do not possess proper faith. Troubled Christians frequently conclude that the source of their trouble is a lack of faith. Every conscientious Christian would welcome more faith.

The struggle is intensified by the fact that American Christians tend to be quite uncomfortable placing the confidence of their salvation in their ability to believe. The American culture and its free enterprise system is powerfully oriented to the "deed-reward" concept. Americans are trained to trust the work ethic and to put their trust in their ability to earn. The ultimate work ethic of society is that a person should be rewarded properly for his labors. If someone tells a successful person, "You surely have been blessed," he likely will say (or think), "No one gave it to me." Because of these cultural influences and social philosophies, the American Christian tends to be comfortable with a religious concept which places trust in rewards to be received because of pleasing acts or deeds performed. That is also the Achilles heel of those Christians' hope: no matter how much they do for God, they know without being told it is never enough.

The inability of any Christian to earn his salvation creates an acute sense of discomfort in many. The fact that no one can deserve the death of Jesus and the forgiveness of sin creates a profound sense of uneasiness in them. The realization that no human act in response to God, not even a martyr's death, can place God in a person's debt is distressing. Most Christians intensely dislike having to be at the "mercy" of grace. Dependence on the unmerited goodness of another is deemed a most undesirable position. Collective experiences in the American society do not vindicate that kind of dependence on others.

The Problem

If the achievable level of trust could be absolute, that would resolve the problem. If a person could have "complete" faith in God every day of his life, he could relax by placing his confidence in his perfect faith. If he could live without doubts, if he easily could conquer every temptation, if he could be untouched and unmoved by trials, if he could be unwavering in hard decisions, and if he could make all sacrifices without hesitation, he could feel good about his salvation. He would not feel good because he trusted God's grace; he would feel good because he had attained the "perfect" faith. "Perfect" faith would be deserving of salvation.

The problem exists because absolute faith is not within human grasp. He cannot find the comforting reassurance he seeks in the unquestionable adequacy of his own spiritual achievements. There are occasions of challenging doubts. At times temptation wins. Trials do touch and move him, even to the point of despair. Some hard decisions twist him like a cornstalk in the wind. Some sacrifices are made in agony. Though Christians search for a means to place their trust in personal spirituality rather than in God, they cannot find it. Ungodly attitudes, self-serving motives, unethical decisions, and immoral deeds continuously remind them of their human vulnerability and spiritual inadequacy,

In the face of all of this, the common question Christians ask is not, "Do I believe?" It is, "Do I believe enough?" This brings one to the heart of the issue concerning the state of spiritual security produced through the proper trust of God. Is acceptable faith to be determined by the amount of faith one has, or by the kind of faith one has, or by both?

Only the most mature Christians have experienced the peace produced by knowing that salvation is secure because one has the proper kind of trust in God. The mature Christian who has learned what it means to be righteous through faith will be spiritually diligent, a conscientious steward of God, a hard-working servant in the kingdom, and unselfish servant of others. Yet, in his commendable commitment and service he seeks to earn nothing. He is attempting to prove nothing about his own worthiness. He merely is expressing appreciation for what he has already received in Christ.

Chapter One Questions

1. What are some common answers to the question, "What is faith?"

2. Discuss why such answers are ineffective definitions.

3. What four concepts are encompassed in the word "faith"? Explain what each concept means.

4. What is the basic struggle involved in understanding faith?

5. Why do American Christians tend to be uncomfortable in placing their confidence of salvation in their ability to believe?

6. Why do some think that "perfect" faith would be the ideal means of being saved? What is meant by "perfect" faith?

7. Is it possible to have absolute faith? Why?

8. What common question do Christians ask concerning faith? Why do you think Christians ask that question?

Suggestion

Have class members collect as many definitions of faith as possible. Collect them by asking others for their personal definitions or from written sources. Share the answers in class.

Endnotes <1>Walter Bauer, William F. Arndt and F. Wilbur Gingrich, "pisteuo," A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament (Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 1952), p. 666.

<2>Ibid., p. 667.

Chapter 2 - Faith and the State of Being Righteous

The fundamental truth concerning the role of faith in the life of a Christian is this: it is through faith that a Christian can exist in a righteous relationship with God. One cannot produce a righteous relationship with God through any form of obedient behavior. The most powerful spiritual deeds a Christian can perform are feeble and insufficient before God. If everything humanly possible is done to obey and to serve God, that Christian would be an unprofitable servant who had done only his duty (Luke 17:10). A Christian is reckoned righteous by God because of his faith.

That concept is very difficult for New Testament Christians to grasp. Two factors contribute to the difficulty of understanding the concept. First, as stated in chapter one, Christians retain the age-old desire to place their confidence in the deeds of obedient response to God. They trust obedience; they do not trust faith. Their preference is to believe that they are righteous because of their acts of obedience. Second, Christians rightfully fear the faith only doctrine. As a reaction to the faith-only error, many feel most comfortable with a concept of faith which reflects the opposite extreme. In an attempt to give Biblical emphasis to obedience, these do not give proper emphasis to the New Testaments teaching concerning faiths role in righteousness. These Christians have not understood that Pauls teaching concerning being righteous through faith (Rom. 4:1-13) in no way affirms the position of faith only.

An Old Problem

The struggle many experience in grasping the concept of righteousness through faith differs little from the struggle of the Judaizing teachers in the early church. In the early church, Judaizing teachers could not grasp the fact that a Gentile could be in full relationship with God by being baptized into Christ and living by faith in Christ. The idea of Gods grace being so freely available to pagan people was unacceptable. Prior conditions had to be imposed upon a believing Gentile before he could enter Christ and have full relationship with God. Appropriate prior conditions included at least two elements of Jewish proselytism: instruction in the Mosaical law and circumcision.

These teachers were so convinced of the inadequacy of the teaching of salvation by grace through faith that they did follow up work among baptized Gentiles. The Gentile converts were told that they were not yet in full relationship with God. They must be indoctrinated in the Mosaical law and be circumcised to have salvation. This activity of the Judaizing teachers necessitated Pauls letter to the Galatians.

Before Paul returned from his first missionary journey, the Judaizing teachers had created great confusion in the church at Antioch. Upon their return, Paul and Barnabas had no small dissension and questioning with those people, but the confusion endured (Acts 15:1, 2). The Judaizing teachers had convinced some Gentile Christians that without circumcision they could not be saved (Acts 15:2). They inferred that they had been sent by the church in Jerusalem (Acts 15:24). When the matter was considered by the apostles and elders in Jerusalem, Christian Pharisees declared, It is needful to circumcise them (baptized Gentiles), and to charge them to keep the law of Moses (Acts 15:5). The faith of a baptized Gentile was effective only if he was being obedient to the Mosaical law.

Peter observed that a yoke should not be placed on the Gentiles neck which Jews had been unable to bear: We believe that we shall be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, in like manner as they (Acts 15:11). Peter understood that the achievements of obedience under the law could not make one righteous; faith in Christ made one righteous. James documented Gods longstanding interest in the Gentiles by citing the prophets (Acts 15:13-20).

A decree from the apostles and elders that baptized Gentiles were not obligated to obey the law did not resolve the matter. The problem in the churches of Galatia verifies the fact that the Judaizing teachers continued to hold their position and to pursue their cause. At Pauls later arrest in Jerusalem, the Judaizing element in the Jerusalem church was still powerful (Acts 21:20).

The heart of the issue was this: does a person achieve a relationship of righteousness with God as a result of prescribed human works, or is the person in a relationship of righteousness with God because of the proper faith in Christ? For generations Judaism had declared that the key to righteous existence was obedient works. That orientation of Judaism had long been a flaw in Judaism. The end result of people placing confidence in ritual and prescribed works was the neglect of their hearts, their motives, and their emotions. The prophets of old declared that God rejected right acts which came from wrong hearts (Isa. 1:10-17; Jer. 6:16-21; Mal. 1:6-14; Amos 5:21-27). Their message continued to fall on deaf ears. Jewish confidence that righteousness resulted from human deeds was unshakable.

An Expected Attitude

It was to be expected that Jewish Christians would find the concept of righteousness through faith difficult to accept. Their background of stringent demands focused in commands and rituals made the idea of being righteous through faith seem too simple, too easy. On the surface that concept seemed to negate the importance of obedience. For generations the soul of Judaism had been conformity through obedience. Well before Jesus birth the Jews were conforming to the authoritative tradition of the fathers." The tradition of the fathers was Pharisaisms interpretation of the Mosaical law. Its primary emphasis was on strict obedience expressed in precise conformity. The idea that one could be righteous merely by having the proper faith in Jesus stood 180 degrees in the opposite direction.

Yet, in Romans 3 and 4 that is precisely what Paul said the Jew had to understand. It was and is a fact that righteousness is reckoned through faith. The Jews argued that meant the Jew had no advantage, and there had been no profit in circumcision. They ridiculed the idea of the sufficiency of grace through faith by arguing that Christians should continue to live in sin to illustrate the sufficiency of Gods grace (Romans 6:1).

Paul documented his position with Abrahams relationship with God (Romans 4:1-13). He declared that being made righteous through faith was not a new concept. Abraham, who lived before the law, was ancient proof that a person stands in a righteous relationship with God because of his faith (v. 3). Christ had not ushered in a new concept of the means of being righteous. He only had verified a truth which was older than the nation of Israel. It was that truth which made their forefather righteous. All of that which God had culminated in Christ began in Abraham. It had begun in Abraham because he was capable of having the faith which could be reckoned for righteousness. As Abraham was righteous before God through faith, so are Abrahams new heirs made righteous through the faith which characterized Abraham (Gal. 3:26-28).

The Concept

When Jesus died upon the cross, He literally bore mankinds sin in His body. In Pauls words, Him who knew no sin he (God) made to be sin on our behalf" (2 Cor. 5:21). In Peters words concerning Jesus, ...Who his own self bare our sins in his body upon the tree..." (1 Pet. 2:24). Jesus on the cross experienced the ultimate human experience. It was not just death, but death with sin in separation from God. Though he had no sin of his own, he died as a sinner would die because he carried the sins of mankind in his body.

When a person accepts Jesus sacrifice for his sins through faith, repentance, and baptism, that persons sins become a part of those given to Christ. His sins become a part of the sins Jesus bore in His body.

At the same moment the persons sins are being given to Christ, the person is receiving something from Christ. When he accepts Jesus sacrifice by entering Christ through baptism, God takes the perfect righteousness of Jesus and clothes him in that righteousness. Again 2 Corinthians 5:21 states that God made Jesus to be sin on our behalf that we might become the righteousness of God in him. A person is able to be seen as righteous before God only if that person has been clothed in the righteousness of Jesus. By the grace of God, when one is baptized into Christ he puts on Christ (Gal. 3:27).

It is crucial that this concept not be misunderstood or misrepresented. The point is not that Jesus was made sinful on the cross.1 He was not a transgressor and did not become a transgressor on the cross (Heb. 4:15; 1 Pet. 2:22; 1 Jn. 3:5). He was made to be sin. He was identified with sin because he assumed in his body humanitys sin as he died.2 The point is not that we become righteous when clothed with Christ.3 No human being will ever be righteous before God (Rom. 3:10); people cannot achieve the state of being righteous. That is not within the capacity of earthly existence. The person who is baptized into Christ is identified with righteousness because his faith-response to God allowed God to identify him with the righteousness of Christ. In the same way God identified Jesus with sin on the cross by allowing the sins of mankind to be placed in His dying body. God identifies the baptized believer with righteousness by allowing the perfect righteousness of Jesus to clothe the believer.

Following baptism, the believer continues to be reckoned as a righteous person because of his faith. It is having the proper faith which allows God to continue to reckon him as being righteous. Thus, in spite of being temptable and having flaws, imperfections, imperfect knowledge, sins of ignorance, and the weakness of the flesh, he continues to stand as being righteous before God through having proper faith. The imperfect Christian (which is every Christian) clothed in the righteousness of Jesus continues before God as a righteous person because of his faith.

This faith of righteousness will be the source of all his obedience. The obedience produced by the faith of righteousness will be superior in every way to the obedience produced by duty, by obligation, by fear (terror) of God, or by guilt. It will arise out of the deepest form of commitment and out of the highest sense of service. It will not be an attempt to prove the goodness or the worthiness of the baptized believer; it will be an expression of genuine love and boundless appreciation for righteousness bestowed through faith in Jesus.

The Christians faith of righteousness is not a mystical defense against sin. It is not a magical power to keep a Christian from sinning. It is a state of being for one who is alive in Christ. It allows imperfect Christians to be seen as righteous by a perfect God. It means that a Christian through Gods grace can be righteous despite the fact that true righteousness is unattainable through any human act.

The Perfect Example

Paul himself is the perfect example of being righteous through faith in Jesus. Philippians 3:1-16, especially verses 4-11, is (a) the perfect contrast of the righteousness sought through obedience and the righteousness which exists through faith, and is (b) the declaration of the superiority of the righteousness which exists through faith. Paul enumerated his achievements through works of obedience to divine teachings (vv. 4-6). He had all the works-obedience credentials of one who was regarded as being righteous by virtue of extraordinary obedience. Before accepting the fact that Jesus was the Christ, he was confident that personal righteousness was produced through obedience to divine expectations. His conviction that righteousness was achieved through obedience was devout and absolute. Unshakable confidence in righteousness produced by obedience resulted in his persecution of Jewish heretics who followed a dead Jesus (v. 6). He was so devoted to righteousness produced by obedience that he was blameless when examined by the standard of righteousness that is in the law."

The discovery of the real identity of Jesus resulted in his consciously discarding the whole concept of righteousness through obedience. He regarded the past achievements of obedience as garbage (vv. 7, 8). He learned that the perfect means of being righteous before God was revealed in Christ. He no longer wanted a righteousness of mine own (v. 9), the inferior and inadequate righteousness of human achievement through obedience. Because he was then found in Christ he wanted the righteousness which is through faith in Christ, the righteousness which is from God by faith.

The transition from the covenant of the law of Moses to the covenant of Christ was far more than changing systems of authority. It also was changing the means of being righteous before God. It was the transition from an inadequate, inferior approach to being righteous before God through the achievements of human obedience. It was the transition to being righteous before God by being righteous through faith when one is in Christ. The righteousness possible through faith is of such superiority and perfection that the highly religious Paul would give up every past religious achievement to receive it.

Disarming A Fear

The righteousness which is to be found through faith by being in Christ does not repudiate the importance or the place of obedience in ones relationship with God. Pauls obedient dedication and sacrificial service increased through having the faith which is reckoned for righteousness. No writings surpass Pauls in stressing the importance of baptism into Christ and the importance of obedient service to Christ.

Righteousness through faith does not eliminate obedience. It changes the purpose and role of obedience. The person obeys because he is a believer who is in Christ. He is committed fully to the teachings and expectations of Christ because in Christ he lives in the faith reckoned for righteousness.

However, his confidence in his righteousness never rests in his obedient deeds. His confidence rests in his faith in his Savior. It is being in Christ that guarantees the security of his soul. The security of his soul does not rest in the fact that he has obeyed X number of commandments. He obeys because he is righteous through faith in Christ; he does not obey in order to become righteous. The power to be righteous is found in proper faith in Christ after having entered Christ. The power to be righteous is not found in the human achievement of obedience.

The Key

Abraham is the key to understanding this concept as it relates to the Christians life and existence. At what point was Abrahams faith reckoned for righteousness? What was the relationship between that faith and Abrahams obedience?

Chapter Two Questions

1. What is the relationship between faith and a righteous relationship with God?

2. Why do Christians find this concept difficult to understand?

3. Who were the Judaizing teachers?

a. What was their position concerning a Gentiles salvation?

b. What work did they do among baptized Gentiles?

4. Discuss the problem the Judaizing teachers created in the church at Antioch (Acts 15).

5. Discuss the handling of the problem in the church in Jerusalem (Acts 15).

6. What issue lay at the heart of that problem?

7. Why was it difficult for Jewish Christians to accept the concept of righteousness through faith?

8. Using Romans 4:1-13, discuss how Paul used Abraham to verify the concept of righteousness by faith.

9. By using 2 Corinthians 5:21, 1 Peter 2:24, and Galatians 3:27, discuss the meaning of mans sins being placed on Jesus and Jesus righteousness being placed on man.

10. Use Philippians 3:1-16 to illustrate the righteousness of faith in Christ by using Pauls life.

11. What unnecessary fear must be disarmed?

12. Who is the key to understanding the concept?

Suggestion Have the class do some research on Judaizing teachers and report their findings.

Endnotes 1. Philip E. Hughes, Commentary On The Second Epistle To The Corinthians (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1962), pp. 213, 214.

2. James Thompson, The Second Letter of Paul To The Corinthians (Austin, Texas: R. B. Sweet Co., In., 1970), p. 83.

3. Hughes, op. cit., p. 214.

Chapter 3 - Abraham the Model for Faith

Many tributes deservedly can be paid to the patriarch Abraham. He is the source of several nations including the nation God called His own people. Peoples who trace their origin to Abraham still have a vigorous existence 4000 years after his death and still maintain their identity. He was the father of kings and the father of persons who influenced the thinking and the course of the world. Three world religions trace their origin to Abraham: Judaism, Christianity, and Mohammedanism.

Of all the tributes that justly can be bestowed upon Abraham, no tribute equals the one conferred upon him by God. This nomad who lived a primitive existence as he wandered among foreign cultures was capable of having a faith which God declared to be the Christians model for faith.

That remarkable accomplishment scarcely can be exaggerated. He produced that faith without benefit of having a written Word of God. He had less revealed to him about Gods plan for the redemption of mankind than any great man of God who followed him. Yet, it is the nomad Abraham who is the timeless example of the faith which God wants in His peoplenot Moses who led Israel out of Egypt and gave them the law; not David, the man after Gods own heart; not Elijah who was received up into heaven without experiencing death; not Isaiah who in evil, distressing times said, Here am I; send me (Isa. 6:8). Incredibly, this nomadic patriarch who possessed so little information about God and His purposes trusted God in a manner which cannot be surpassed by those who have the knowledge of history and revelation.

The Christians understanding of Gods promise to produce a universal blessing through Abraham far exceeds Abrahams understanding. The Christian knows the full meaning of the promise, knows the ultimate fulfillment of that promise was achieved in the death and resurrection of Jesus, and knows the ultimate objective was the opportunity for all people to have salvation in Christ. He has the written Word. He can see God working through history to keep that promise. Yet, the best any Christian can hope to do is to equal the faith of Abraham. Gods purpose began to take its earliest earthly form in Abraham because he was capable of having a faith which God could reckon for righteousness. It is that same faith which will allow the Christian to be righteous before God.

The New Testament pays great tribute to Abraham, the man of faith. His name appears 30 times in the gospels, 8 times in Acts (5 in one sermon), and 32 times in the epistles. When a New Testament writer wanted to teach a lesson on the nature of or importance of faith, Abraham was the model. When Paul taught about the righteousness which exists through faith, Abraham was the model (Rom. 4). When Paul taught that all people became the heirs of Gods promises through faith, Abraham was the foundation of the lessons (Gal. 3). In Hebrews roll call of the people of faith, one section pays tribute to Abrahams sojourning and another to his offering of Isaac (Heb. 11). When James taught that obedient works were the natural expression of a living faith, Abrahams faith was a primary evidence (Jas. 2).

When the Christian properly understands Abrahams faith which was reckoned for righteousness, he will understand the faith which will allow him to be righteous before God. It will be possible to gain that understanding by examining the development of Abrahams faith.

God and Abraham at Ur (Genesis 11:27-32)

In the city of Ur, a rich, highly developed culture predated life there. Over 600 years before Terah and his family lived in Ur, the city was a Sumerian royal city and culture center. Excavations of the royal tombs of the First Dynasty revealed impressive evidences of the wealth and artistic refinement of the city. Gods request to Abraham to migrate from Ur was no small request. Abrahams leaving Ur would be like a person today leaving a city which was prosperous, was filled with opportunity, and provided safety and security.

Genesis 11:27-32 gives the following facts about Abraham and Ur. Haran, Abrahams brother, died in Ur, the land of his nativity, before the family left (v. 28). Abraham married Sarah (Sarai) in Ur, and they lived there long enough for her barrenness to be an established fact prior to departure (vv. 29, 30). Terah took his family from Ur, and they left to go into the land of Canaan (v. 31). Terah led the migration from Ur toward the land of Canaan. However, the migration stopped short of Gods intended destination. They settled at Haran, a place which held many things in common with Ur (v. 31).

Two other passages give insights into Gods call of Abraham at Ur. In his final address, Joshua declared to Israel that Terah and their fathers of "old times served other gods beyond the River (Josh. 24:2). If beyond the River is to be identified with Ur, Joshua declared that Terah and his family served pagan gods prior to Gods call of Abraham. In Stephens sermon before the Jewish council, he declared that Gods call to Abraham in Ur was the same call Abraham received a second time in Haran: he was to leave his land, to leave his kindred, and to go to a land which God would show him (Acts 7:2, 3).

If all the pieces of information are assembled, this would seem to be the situation when God called Abraham at Ur. Abraham was under the guidance and oversight of the family (clan) head, Terah. Religiously, they were polytheistic. Abraham married his half-sister (same father, different mother) who proved to be incapable of conceiving. God told Abraham to leave Ur, to leave his extended family, and to go to a place God would show him. Abraham understood his general destination to be the land of Canaan. Abraham believed the message which he received from God and accepted the responsibility. He had sufficient faith to forsake the pagan gods for the guidance of the God who called him. He had sufficient faith to leave Ur and its advantages. He had sufficient faith to migrate in the direction which God desired. However, he either would not leave the oversight of Terah, or Terah would not permit him to leave the family and his oversight.

It is possible that Terah forbade Abraham to leave without the family. Rather than allowing Abraham to leave the clan, Terah may have decided that the family must go with Abraham. Two facts might indicate that. Terah took the family on the journey, indicating that he was in charge (Gen. 11:31). The call to Abraham was not renewed by God until Terah died (Gen. 11:32-12:1; Acts 7:4).

Considering all the circumstances, Abraham had great faith in Ur, a faith which led him to accept the guidance of God and to migrate to a new home hundreds of miles away. However, at this point Abraham did not have the faith reckoned for righteousness.

God and Abraham at Haran (Genesis 12:1-5)

After the death of Terah in Haran, God renewed His call to Abraham. Terahs position as head of the family may have been a formidable obstacle to Abrahams fulfilling Gods call. It is implied that under Terahs leadership the family had settled and established itself in Haran.

Abraham was 75 and Sarah 65 when God renewed His call. The same requests were made. Abraham was to leave his country (now Haran), to leave his kindred (those who had migrated with him to Haran and those who had been born there), to leave his fathers house (perhaps his position within the extended family), and to go to a land which God would show him. In doing so, Abraham was to be a blessing. In return, God would make Abraham a great nation, would bless him, would make his name great, would bless those who befriended him, would curse those who were his enemies, and would bring a blessing to all families of the earth through him.

Gods requests represented major challenges to Abrahams faith. First, he must sever his ties with his kinsmen. There are many today who will not leave family ties for any reason. Second, he had to sever his tie to the place he had settled, to familiar things and customs, and with his roots. There are many today who have such a powerful bond to the place they live that they will not sever that bond for any reason. Third, he had to leave the known for the unknown. God gave him no description of his destination. Abraham knew nothing about where he would be or how long he would be there. There are few who would make a move today with so little information. Fourth, he had to trust Gods ability to protect him among strange peoples. In that time it was not safe for a man of wealth to live as a foreigner among strange peoples. Most people today would be hesitant to place their security solely in the hands of God. Fifth, he had to believe that God actually could cause his barren wife to conceive.

The key factor in Gods ability to keep His promises was His ability to enable Sarah to conceive. If Sarah did not conceive and bear a son, there could be no great name, no nation, no descendants to possess the land, and no blessing to come upon the families of the earth. The pivotal point of all the promises was Sarahs ability to bear Abraham a son.

In this situation, Abraham possessed and exhibited a remarkable faith. He did leave his family ties and his position in the family. There is no indication that his taking Lot violated Gods request. Since Lots father had died in Ur and Terah had died in Haran, it is probable that Abraham was Lots guardian, and that Lot was considered a part of Abrahams immediate family. Abraham also left the known security of Haran for an unknown destination. He did travel to Canaan, and he did trust God to protect him.

However, Abrahams trust was not perfect. When a famine forced Abraham to travel to Egypt, he feared that the Egyptians would kill him in order to marry the beautiful Sarah. He told the Egyptians only that she was his sister and deliberately hid the fact that she was his wife (Gen.12:10-20).

Even so, Abrahams faith in God was great. Yet, it still was not the faith which God reckoned for righteousness.

Chapter Three Questions

1. What great tribute has God bestowed upon Abraham? Why is the fact that he had such faith so remarkable?

2. Discuss Gods call to Abraham at Ur.

3. Discuss Gods call to Abraham at Haran.

4. What was the key factor in God making all His promises to Abraham come to pass?

5. Was Abrahams faith perfect at these times? Explain your answer.

6. Discuss the difficulty of being such a person of faith in those times and places.

Suggestion Have some class members research life and civilization in ancient Ur by looking in such sources as Old Testament Times by R. K. Harrison. Let them report their findings to the class.

Chapter 4 - When Faith Was Reckoned For Righteousness

Abraham returned to Canaan after God delivered him from the consequences of his deceitfulness in Egypt. By that time God had blessed both Abraham and Lot so abundantly that the land could not sustain their combined herds (Gen. 13). Competition for grass and water created conflict between Abraham and Lots herdsmen. Seeing the potential for much greater problems, Abraham separated himself from Lot by allowing Lot to migrate in the direction of his choice.

Immediately following the separation, God renewed His promise to Abraham (Gen. 13:14-18). God declared that all the land he saw would belong to his descendants, and that his descendants would be too many to count.

Lots chosen dwelling place put him in the midst of warring kings (Gen. 14). Their war resulted in the capture of Lot and all his possessions. In a daring, creative maneuver, Abraham liberated Lot and all the spoil the victorious kings had taken.

Abraham: Doubt and Faith (Genesis 15)

After the liberation of Lot, God appeared to Abraham in a vision. God declared that Abraham had divine protection and that his great reward was certain. Abraham now had grave doubts about Sarah bearing him a son. He knew that if he was without a son, God could give him nothing. Concluding that Sarah could not bear a son, he proposed to God an alternate solution. He requested that God accept Eliezer of Damascus, a servant, as his heir.

Abrahams request was not some curious invention of his own imagination. The Nuzi Tablets document the practice among the Hurrians, who lived in the vicinity of Haran, of childless couples adopting a slave. The slave functioned as their son and became their heir. Abraham was suggesting a known, practiced solution to a threatening problem.1

God rejected Abrahams proposal. He declared Abrahams heir would be from his own body. He also declared that his descendants would be in number as the stars of the heavens.

Upon Gods reassurance, Abraham believed Gods promise. At that point the faith reckoned for righteousness came into existence.

And he (Abraham) believed in Jehovah; and he

(Jehovah) reckoned it to him for righteousness

(Gen.15 :6).

Only when Abraham trusted Gods promise in the face of his own doubts did God reckon Abrahams faith for righteousness.

It is important to note that nothing had happened concerning Gods promise of an heir. Sarah was barren in Ur. She was barren in Haran. She was barren in the initial travels in Canaan and in Egypt. She was still barren at this time. Nothing physically indicated she had been given the ability to conceive. In fact, God gave no indication that conception was imminent. God simply affirmed that the son would be born. On nothing more than the promise of God, Abraham believed it would happen. He believed God would keep His promise simply because God declared that He would. He trusted God to keep His promise at a time when Abraham had genuine doubt born of deep concern. That is the faith which God reckoned for righteousness.

Sarah: Doubt and Solution (Genesis 16)

Abrahams concerns were not Abrahams alone. Gods promises affected Sarahs life and future as certainly as they affected Abrahams. Her role in the fulfillment of Gods promises equaled that of Abrahams. She desired the promised son as fervently as did he. She was as anxious for that son as he was. She had to wrestle with the same fears, uncertainties, and concerns that Abraham felt.

Out of her doubt and concern, she also determined a solution. Whereas Abraham proposed his solution to God, Sarah proposed her solution to Abraham. From Sarahs perspective, she had no son because God had restrained her. Since God had restrained her, she would give Abraham her handmaid, Hagar. Hagar was to conceive a child in Sarahs behalf. The child would then be reckoned as Sarahs and could stand as their heir.

Sarahs solution was not a device of her own imagination.2 The practice of servants bearing children in behalf of their mistresses occurred in other families in the Bible, most notably with Jacobs wives, Rachel and Leah (Gen. 30:1-24). Both the Nuzi Tablets and the Code of Hammurabi document the fact that Sarahs proposal was an accepted practice in the culture of their former homes.

Sarahs decision to provide an heir without Gods promised help proved to be no solution. A son, Ishmael, was born. However, Sarah was obsessed with jealousy of and resentment for Hagar from the time of Ishmaels conception. The conflict became so unbearable that Hagar even attempted to run away.

Sarahs doubt and concern produced results which distinctly differed from those of Abrahams doubt and concern. Both Abraham and Sarah concluded that the promised son was not going to be born to them. Both concluded that Gods promises would go unfulfilled because of the lack of an heir. As both looked to the future, their deep concern turned into real doubt. Both felt that the situation still could be rescued if only they could provide an heir through which God could work. Both felt a personal responsibility to devise a means of acquiring an heir independent of Gods promise and action. Both found a personal solution to the problem which each felt was workable. However, Abrahams doubt became faith upon Gods reassurance, and he abandoned his proposal. Sarahs doubt produced a solution of her own making which resulted in her bitter jealousy and her harsh treatment of Hagar.

Abraham: Faith Triumphs in Doubt (Genesis 17)

Ishmael was born to Abraham when he was 86 years of age. Thirteen years later at 99 years of age, Abraham received Gods confirmation that He indeed would establish His covenant with Abraham. On this occasion, God reaffirmed the covenant in specific terms. He would multiply Abraham exceedingly. He would make Abraham the father of a multitude of nations. Kings would descend from him. Gods covenant would extend to Abrahams descendants who would inhabit Canaan as a continuing possession. God would be the God of Abrahams descendants. As assurance, God renamed Abram Abraham (father of a multitude) and Sarai Sarah (Princess).

However, Abraham and his descendants must seal this covenant with God with a specific act: every male must be circumcised. Circumcision perpetually would stand as the sign of the covenant. Each descendant and each slave must be circumcised. The uncircumcised male would be cut off from Abrahams descendants as a covenant violator.

Abraham never had doubted God to the degree which he did on this occasion. He fell on his face and laughed (v. 17). He asked in his heart, Shall a child be born unto him that is a hundred years old? and shall Sarah, that is ninety years old, bear? (v. 17). Then Abraham pleaded with God to accept Ishmael as his heir. Could doubt be any more complete? He laughed at the idea of their having a child. He declared it to be physically impossible. He regarded Gods promise as so impossible that he pled with God to accept one already born to him.

Gods reply was pointed and specific. Ishmael would not be the heir. Another son to be called Isaac would be born to him of Sarah. Sarah would give birth to Isaac at that same time in one year.

Please carefully note the faith which God reckons for righteousness. When God stopped talking with Abraham, Abraham immediately circumcised Ishmael, every male under his authority, and himself. Why? He placed his trust in Gods assurance. What had changed? Nothing. Was Sarah then pregnant? No, and she would not be for three months. What tangible evidence did Abraham have that God would do as He said? None. In the midst of consuming doubt Abraham believed Gods assurance when God renewed the promise.

Upon confidence in Gods promise alone, Abraham circumcised himself and every male under his control and oversight. Could there be any greater evidence of full trust in Gods promise? Could there be any greater affirmation of acceptance of the covenant? Circumcision is extremely painful. The resulting soreness lasts for days. It wounds one of the most sensitive parts of the human body. It was performed on that occasion (and for many generations after) with little to deaden the pain, little to disinfect the wound, and little to relieve the soreness. It was performed with crude cutting instruments. If grown men had to demonstrate trust in God today by subjecting themselves to such an ordeal, it is likely that the ranks of the church would diminish quickly.

Why did Abraham subject himself and all those men under him to such a painful ordeal? For one reason only: he believed that God would keep his promise. That kind of faith made Abraham righteous before God. It was not the obedience of being circumcised that made him righteous. It was the faith which prompted the circumcision which made him righteous.

Chapter Four Questions 1.

1. Discuss Gods message to Abraham and Abrahams response in Genesis 15.

a. Why was Abraham concerned at this time?

b. What was Abrahams proposed solution?

c. Where did he get such an idea?

2. What was Gods reaction to Abrahams proposal?

3. Discuss the significance of Genesis 15:6.

4. Why had Sarah also been concerned?

5. What was her proposal?

a. From her perspective, why had no son been born to her?

b. Where did she get her solution?

c. Did her solution work? Explain your answer.

6. Discuss Gods renewal of the covenant in Genesis 17.

a. As an assurance, what did God do on this occasion?

b. How much did Abraham doubt on this occasion?

7. How did God respond to Abrahams doubt?

8. How did Abraham respond to Gods reassurance?

9. Discuss how Abrahams faith reckoned for righteousness functioned on this occasion.

Suggestion

In a book such as The Living Word Commentary: Genesis by John T. Willis, have some class members read and report on patriarchial customs which have been historically verified.

1R. K. Harrison, Old Testament Times (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1970), pp. 75, 76.

2Ibid., p. 76.

Chapter 5 - The Ultimate Test (Genesis 22)

At the set time which God had spoken, Isaac was born to Sarah. As God had commanded, Abraham circumcised Isaac when he was eight days old. He grew from infancy to boyhood.

The future must have looked quite secure to Abraham and Sarah. God had kept His promise precisely as He said that He would. Isaac was a growing boy. The heir through which God could keep all His promises was a part of the family. After having received a child in their old age, they could look at the rest of Gods promises as inevitable. The difficult, trying, doubt-ridden years were now a thing of the past.

Then God again spoke to Abraham. It was a brief, incomprehensible revelation containing a single instruction with no explanation and no assurances. Abraham, take Isaac, the son you love, to the land of Moriah and offer him as a burnt offering on a mountain I will show you. That unbelievable instruction was the total extent of Gods message.

There are many ways in which Abraham could have reacted to Gods message. (1) He could have doubted that it was God who was speaking to him. God never before had required human sacrifice. God always had given him assurances and encouragement. Both the request and the nature of the message was out of character with God. (2) He could have set aside the request because it did not make sense. It violated every aspect of Gods promises given in Ur and renewed in Haran and in Canaan. It was a seeming violation of the covenant itself. God had promised him a son, and God specifically said Isaac was that son of promise. God had made it quite clear that Isaac was the heir. It was through Isaac that the descendants were to come. It was the descendants who were to possess Canaan. Through the descendants the universal blessing was to come. Without Isaac none of that could happen. (3) He could have agreed to obey after God gave an explanation. Since God always had given Abraham assurances, Abraham could have declared obedience was reasonable only if God explained how the covenant would be kept if Isaac died. Yet, Abraham reacted in none of these ways.

The Faith of Righteousness Functions

Abrahams reaction to Gods request exceeded the merely remarkable. (1) He rose up early the next morning (v. 3). He did not delay the sacrifice by taking his time. He did not take one last day to remember with his son. (2) He saddled a donkey for himself and selected two young men to accompany and to assist them on the journey (v. 3). He wanted to make the journey as quickly as possible. (3) He cut the wood for the sacrifice, and he took the wood and fire with him (v. 5). He made full preparation prior to the journey to complete the sacrifice promptly. (4) When he neared the place of offering, he ordered the young servants to stay behind (v. 5). He made certain that no one would interfere with the completion of Gods request.

The entire situation is almost too painful to envision, here was a man over 100 years old with the son for whose birth he had yearned for over 25 years. He loved Isaac more than he loved his own life. Isaac represented all of the hopes and the dreams of Abrahams entire life. For three days Abraham traveled with his son knowing that every step moved them closer to Isaacs death. For three days he watched and listened to the son he loved knowing that these were the last days, that he was preparing to kill him.

If the journey was heart rending, how much more painful were those final minutes together? When they reached the mountain, Abraham had Isaac carry the wood for his own sacrifice while Abraham carried the knife and the fire. Is it not remarkable that Abraham could even speak to answer when Isaac asked, Where is the lamb for the sacrifice? Can the thoughts of Abrahams heart, can the surge of his emotions be imagined as they built the altar and laid the wood? What kind of faith is it which would move a man to tie up the son he loves more than life itself, to place that son helplessly on the altar, and to look upon that sons face as he raised the knife to end the boys life? What did Isaac think or say as his father placed him on the altar? What look was upon Isaac's face as he watched his father raise the knife?

What kind of faith could function in such a manner? The faith which believed that God, regardless of circumstances, would keep His promises. The faith which believed that even the death of Isaac could not stop God from keeping His covenant. The faith which trusted God so implicitly that it would obey God even when Gods request could not be understood. That was the faith which God reckoned for righteousness.

Only the instruction of an angel stopped Abraham. In Gods sight, Abraham sacrificed Isaac. Because of Abraham's faith, God again affirmed the promises of the covenant.

What Was The Object?

Why did God make that request of Abraham? The response, God wished to prove Abraham, is correct but likely unclear. What was God proving? Had not Abraham already proven his confidence in God many times? What need was there for further proof after Abraham had left Ur and Haran, after he had left his family, after he had wandered in Canaan, and after he had trusted God to give him an heir? Was God being excessive in His testing? Was God unsure of Abrahams trust or loyalty? What specifically did God hope to accomplish by this episode?

First, it must be understood that God was not seeking Abrahams failure. God was vindicating Abrahams faith. This incident occurred not because God doubted Abraham, but because God had confidence in Abraham. God was providing Abraham the opportunity to establish the most complete relationship with God possible. That relationship is possible only through the maturing of the faith reckoned for righteousness.

Second, God wanted Abraham to make it evident that the faith reckoned for righteousness still characterized his life. The point of Isaacs sacrifice can be seen in two simple questions: did Abraham place his faith in the fact that Isaac was alive? or did Abraham place his faith in the God who gave him Isaac?

The faith of righteousness dies when the believer places his trust in the things which God has given rather than continuing his trust in the God who gave. It is possible to place ones trust in God the Promiser before the promises are received, and later to replace ones trust in the blessing which has been received. When one trusts the material blessings God has given rather than the God who gave the material blessings, the faith of righteousness dies. When one trusts the strength which God has developed in his life rather than in the God who gave the strength, the faith of righteousness dies. When one trusts the wisdom God has made possible rather than the God who authored the wisdom, the faith of righteousness dies.

After the birth and development of Isaac, Abraham easily could have placed his trust in the fact that Isaac was alive, was his heir, and could be the source of all the anticipated blessings. Had Abraham done that, the faith reckoned for righteousness would have been dead. Abrahams confidence and trust had to remain where it long had beenin God the promise keeper. Did Abraham trust God because he knew God kept His word? If Isaac were dead, would Abrahams trust in God and His promises remain unshaken? Or, was Abrahams confidence in God now limited to Isaacs life and well-being? Could God keep His promises with or without Isaac, or could God keep His promises only if Isaac lived?

Abraham clearly proved that his life continued to be ruled by the faith which God could reckon for righteousness. It was God and God alone Abraham trusted. The God who gave him Isaac would keep His promises even if Isaac died. Isaacs death would be no barrier to God fulfilling His covenant. It was because of such faith that God regarded Abraham a righteous man.

The Central Lesson

Abraham was quite an obedient man. So notable are his acts of obedience that he easily could have been declared the symbol of obedience. Leaving Ur and Haran, wandering as a foreigner in the land of Canaan for many years, and the willingness to sacrifice Isaac rank among the great acts of obedience of all ages and generations. Yet, Abraham is not the symbol of obedience.

Abraham is the symbol of faith. It is significant that a man of great obedience is the symbol of faith. There is not and never has been a conflict between obedience and faith. The two are so interdependent that either is meaningless and valueless without the other.

Abrahams faith relationship with God declares an ageless truth which is as alive today as it was in Abrahams lifetime.

The means of Abraham being righteous before God and the means of a Christian being righteous before God are one and the same. The obedient Abraham did not achieve righteousness before God through his obedient acts. The obedient Abraham was accepted as being righteous by God because of his faith. It was Abrahams ability to trust Gods promises which allowed God to accept him as a righteous man. That fact must be understood clearly, and Abrahams life can be the basis of that understanding.

Chapter Five Questions

1. Discuss Abraham and Sarahs probable feelings about God and their future after Isaacs birth.

2. What did God command Abraham to do with Isaac?

3. Discuss some of the ways Abraham could have reacted to Gods instruction.

4. State specifically how his faith of righteousness did respond to Gods instruction.

5. Discuss as many difficult, heart-rending moments as you can envision which must have occurred between the time Abraham awoke after the vision and the time he placed Isaac on the altar.

6. Why is Gods request of Abraham difficult to understand?

7. Was God seeking Abrahams failure? Explain your answer.

8. What purpose was Gods request for Isaacs sacrifice to serve in Abrahams life?

9. What does this incident teach us about Abrahams faith of righteousness?

10. What is the central lesson to be learned in Abraham about faith?

Suggestion

Discuss ways the faith of righteousness might be put to the test in the life of a Christian today.

Chapter 6 - Understanding the Faith of Righteousness

To focus clearly on the faith which is reckoned for righteousness, the concept must be understood. What is meant by faith being reckoned for righteousness? The Greek word elogistha from logizomai in Romans 4:3 is translated counted for righteousness (KJV); reckoned to him as righteousness (RSV, NAS); reckoned to him for righteousness (ASV); accepted him as righteousness (TEV); credited to him as righteousness (NW); and considered as justifying him (JB). In Romans 4:3 the literal meaning of the Greek word is to credit something to someone as something1 or to allot.2 When one is reckoned as being righteous by faith, he is counted as a righteous person or accepted as a righteous person by God because of his faith. God allots righteousness to him or credits him as being righteous because of his faith.

Abraham: The Key

Not just any faith or any level of confidence will permit God to regard a person as being righteous. Abraham believed and rendered numerous acts of obedience before he grew to the point at which God reckoned his faith for righteousness. Though he believed enough to leave Ur, to travel hundreds of miles to Haran, to leave Haran, to leave his extended family, and to wander in Canaan, in none of these instances did God reckon his faith for righteousness. Obviously, one can believe enough to achieve a significant level of obedient response to God and still not have the faith of righteousness.

A clear distinction must be made between being forgiven and being righteous before God. Abraham belonged to God before his faith grew to the point that it could be reckoned for righteousness. The discussion of the faith reckoned for righteousness is not a study to determine the moment of forgiveness. This study is not about a sinners appropriate response to God; it is about a Christians appropriate response to God. The question being asked is this: how does a Christian stand as a righteous person before God?

In Abraham, God was looking for a specific kind of relationship. When Abraham was able to establish that relationship with God, God could regard him as being a righteous person. Abraham could not achieve that relationship through deeds. He could bring that relationship into existence by having a particular kind of trust in God. The trust which God sought in Abraham is the highest level of trust people are capable of having. It is the trust which exists when a person will accept, cling to, and function on Gods promises simply because God has given His assurance. The greatest evidence that this trust exists is the persons willingness to depend on Gods promises and assurance in the face of deep personal doubts. When the person directs his life and functions in his life by relying on Gods promises, he possesses this trust. This is the kind of faith which existed in Abraham when God reckoned him to be a righteous person.

Dependence on God

This kind of faith cannot exist in a persons life until he confronts circumstances which demand that he trust God and not himself. Until he is in a position wherein he can do nothing but depend on God, he cannot produce such faith. Abraham is the perfect illustration.

Carefully take note of the evolution of the faith of righteousness in Abrahams life. At Ur it took a remarkable faith for Abraham to leave a pagan past, to listen to the voice of God whom he previously had not known, and to trust that voice enough to leave Ur. As remarkable as his trust was, he still followed Terah, still continued in the security of his family, and still believed it was physically possible for Sarah to conceive.

At Haran Abraham expressed greater faith in his willingness to leave his family, to leave his home, and to begin wandering in a strange region. Yet, Abraham still thought that it was in the realm of physical possibility for Sarah to conceive.

The further their age removed them from the physical probability of Sarahs conception, the more significant the problem of doubt became. Aging demanded that they place increasing confidence in Gods power to keep His promise. As long as Abraham deemed it physically possible for Sarah to conceive, he could believe that God could keep His promise. As aging demanded that they place increasing confidence in Gods power and decreasing confidence in their physical ability, doubt became a significant problem. Abrahams struggle with doubt reached a critical point when he requested that God accept Eliezer as his heir. It was his struggle with doubt on that occasion which brought the faith of righteousness into existence. When faced with the option of rejecting Gods covenant in doubt or depending on Gods promise because of His assurance, he trusted the promise. At that moment he placed his trust in Gods power to make conception possible, not in the physical ability to conceive. That trust was the faith which God reckoned for righteousness.

If Abraham was to continue in relationship with God through acceptance of the covenant, he had to make a decision. He had to decide if God through His power could cause Isaac to be born. Age produced the inevitable moment when Abraham had to depend completely on Gods power to keep His promise. Abraham had to grow in trust to the point that he knew Isaac would be born because God promised it, not because of Sarah and his physical capability. He had to grow to the position of placing no confidence in human capability and complete confidence in God. This is the heart and soul of the faith of righteousness. The faith of righteousness is founded in the ability of the person to trust God rather than himself.

What It Is Not

Just as Abraham illustrates what the faith of righteousness is, he also clearly illustrates what it is not. It is not a faith which is characterized by perfect obedience. As obedient as Abraham was, he still made his mistakes. After having enough faith to leave Haran and wander in Canaan, Abraham did not trust God to preserve his life in Egypt (Gen. 12:10-20). He believed that the Egyptians would kill him in order to marry Sarah, and he used deliberate deception to try to preserve his life. After having laughed at the thought of Sarah having a child, after saying in his heart that it was a physical impossibility, and after expressing renewed faith through circumcision, Abraham lied to King Abimelech of Gerar (Gen. 20). It is significant that after Abraham had the faith which God reckoned for righteousness, he failed to trust God in some matters. How could Abraham believe Gods promise that Sarah would bear him a child within the year, and then fear that Abimelech would kill him in order to take Sarah (Gen. 20:11)? Obviously, the faith which God reckons for righteousness is not based on perfect obedience.

The faith which God reckons for righteousness is not characterized by a perfect confidence which eliminates all doubt. God first reckoned Abrahams faith for righteousness on the occasion when doubt moved Abraham to ask God to accept Eliezer as his heir (Gen. 15:1-6). Long after Abraham had developed the faith of righteousness, he experienced his most severe doubtslaughing at the idea of having a child and declaring in his heart that it was physically impossible (Gen. 17:17). The faith which God reckons for righteousness is not based on an unwavering confidence in God.

The Faith of Righteousness and Obedience

Abraham teaches the Christian some powerful lessons about the relationship between the faith of righteousness and obedience. (1) All of Abrahams acts of obedience prior to Gods reckoning his faith for righteousness did not result in Abraham being righteous. Neither a single incident of obedience nor all collective acts of obedience resulted in God reckoning Abraham to be righteous. (2) The obedience rendered by the faith reckoned for righteousness was superior to any obedience rendered prior to that faith. The greatest of all of Abrahams obedient acts was the offering of Isaac. That obedient act occurred after Abraham had the faith of righteousness and because he had the faith of righteousness.

The faith of righteousness does not set aside obedience nor negate the importance of obedience. It produces a superior form of obedience. When Abraham obeyed God in offering Isaac, he acted promptly; he made immediate provision to render complete obedience; he asked no questions of God; with forethought he eliminated possible obstacles to obedience; and he did precisely as God instructed him to do. The obedience Abraham rendered on that occasion cannot be improved. He was able to render that form of obedience because of his faith in Gods promises. The faith of righteousness allows one to trust completely in Gods promises and His power to keep those promises. Confidence in Gods promises frees one to obey God promptly and completely.

The lesson the Christian should derive from Abrahams faith of righteousness is this: being righteous before God is not an achievement; it is a relationship. The Christian is not righteous before God because of that which he has accomplished through obedient deeds. He is righteous before God because of his relationship with God made possible by faith in Gods promises.

Faith Graphs

Examine Faith Graphs I and II carefully. For the sake of illustration, let faith be measured in trust units. Perfect faith would be 100 trust units. Absolute doubt (complete faithlessness) would be zero trust units. Trust units are measured vertically. The horizontal axis represents any point in time in an adults life.

Many Christians would define acceptable faith, a faith which could sustain a relationship with God, in this manner. To have a faith which God would tolerate, a person must have between 60 and 70 trust units. That is a marginal faith in which one is saved but also is in danger of falling from God. A stable faith would require from 71 to 80 trust units. This would be regarded as the typical faith of a sound Christian. An exceptional faith would be expressed in 81 to 90 trust units. This faith would exist only in the most godly people. An ideal faith would be expressed in 91 to 100 trust units; rarely would anyone have such faith.

In Faith Graph I, line A represents the typical Christians concept of proper faith. In this view, at any point in a Christians life his trust in God under all circumstances should be between 75 and 85 trust units. For his faith to rise higher than that is excellent. However, it should never fall below 75.

Line B on Faith Graph I likely represents the faith of any committed Christian. There are times of great confidence, and there are moments of grave doubt. Most moments are somewhere between great confidence and grave doubt.

Faith Graph II depicts Abrahams faith from the time of Ur to the sacrifice of Isaac. After the moment that God reckoned Abrahams faith for righteousness (Gen. 15:6), there were moments of great trust (Gen. 17:23, 22:10), and moments of grave doubt (Gen. 17:17, 20:2). Yet, from Genesis 15:6, Abraham had the faith which God reckoned for righteousness.

The Faith Graphs are a device to illustrate this truth: the faith of righteousness is not a static degree of trust; it is a type of trust. It is the type of trust which is regenerated in the face of doubt by the renewal of Gods promises. If this type of faith exists in a persons life, his moments of severe doubt will occasion some of the greatest faith responses possible in human life. Faith does not destroy the ability to doubt, and doubt does not destroy the ability to trust. Times of doubt can produce great opportunity for trust to grow.

Righteous faith is not maintaining a constant level of 90 trust units or 75 trust units in God. The degree of ones trust will vary from day to day, from crisis to crisis, and from trial to trial. Whatever the level of trust or doubt, the faith of righteousness is renewed and regenerated by the reaffirmation of Gods promises.

Following is one expression of great faith. A person confronts circumstances in which it seems impossible for God to keep His promises. The situation seems to defy help being extended from any source in any manner. There seems to be no possible solution for the problems being experienced. The person struggles with doubt as his immediate reality and the promises of God clash. Yet, the person carefully considers anew the promises of the God who declares Himself faithful. He places his confidence in Gods power to keep His promises. He functions and makes his decisions on the basis of trusting the promises. Such is great faith. It is the faith which God reckons for righteousness.

The question is not, Do you ever have doubts? The question is, When you have doubts, do you still place your full confidence in the promises of God?

Chapter Six Questions

1. What does the word reckon in Romans 4:3 mean? What are some other translations of the word?

2. Is the study of the faith of righteousness an attempt to determine the moment of forgiveness? Explain your answer.

3. Explain this statement: studying the faith of righteousness is determining how the Christian stands as a righteous person before God.

4. God was looking for a specific kind of relationship with Abraham. Describe that relationship and explain its importance.

5. The faith of righteousness cannot come into existence in a persons life until he confronts . . . what?

6. Discuss the evolution of the faith of righteousness in Abrahams life.

7. Use the life of Abraham to illustrate what the faith of righteousness is not.

8. Use Abraham to explain the relationship between the faith of righteousness and obedience.

9. What basic lesson should Christians derive from Abrahams faith of righteousness?

10. What are the Faith Graphs designed to illustrate?

a. What does line A in Faith Graph I illustrate?

b. What does line B illustrate?

c. Discuss Faith Graph II.

Suggestion

Have the class suggest situations that commonly create doubt for a Christian. Discuss how a Christian can use the faith of righteousness when facing such doubts.

End Notes 1Bauer, Arndt and Gingrich, op. cit., logizomai, p. 477.

2 Gerhard Kittel and Gerhard Friedrich, eds., logizomai, Theological Dictionary of the New Testament, 9 Vols., trans. Geoffrey W. Bromiley (Grand Rapids: Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1967), 4:291.

Chapter 7 - Promises:  The Faith Crisis

Fundamental to placing confidence in another person is the solid conviction that the person will abide by his word. People who do what they say they will do are the people who are trusted by others. Ones faith in another person cannot exceed the persons trustworthiness in keeping his word. Trust is placed in those who prove themselves trustworthy by being dependable. Deception, irresponsibility, unpredictability, and undependability stand as insurmountable barriers to being the recipient of others confidence.

There are numerous ways to say that a person is deserving of the faith of others. A person worthy of trust is said to be one who abides by his word, who can always be counted on, who is trustworthy in all matters, who is honest and honorable, or who is a person of integrity. While all such phrases may have differing shades of emphasis, they all have one essential thing in common. All such phrases refer to one who keeps his promises. If a person does not keep his promises, it is impossible for him to abide by his word, be dependable, be trustworthy, be honest, be honorable, or be a person of integrity.

Promises come in many forms. A declaration of commitment, a verbal assurance, a pledge, an acceptance of responsibility, and a contract agreement are some common forms of a promise. When one affirms that he will or will not do something, or makes a declaration which gives another the right to hold specific expectations of him, he has made a promise. His faithfulness in keeping that promise provides the rightful reason for others to place their faith in him. Broken promises dig the grave of human confidence.

God: The Promiser

Divine promises are a fundamental part of Gods relationship with people. Gods promises provide the primary reason for man, the free moral agent, to choose to belong to God. The divine promises of eternal life to those who live in a covenant relationship with God and of just, eternal consequences for those who reject His covenant constitute the greatest reason for people to give serious consideration to surrendering their lives to God. Were it not for the promises of God, mankind would find little reason to seek a living relationship with God.

Gods Word bears eloquent testimony to the importance of divine promises in the God-man relationship. Gods promises were the reason for people accepting the responsibility of a covenant relationship with God throughout the Old Testament. Noah, Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, the nation of Israel, Saul, David, and Solomon were all challenged to establish a powerful faith relationship with God by virtue of divine promises. The Old Testament prophets sought to move the Israelites to repentance and to spiritual restoration by extensive use of divine promises. Among the many promises the prophets made in Gods behalf were the physical restoration of the nation (Ez. 37:24-28), security from their enemies (Jer. 30:7-11), the return of prosperity (Ez. 34:25-31), times of peace and well-being (Isa. 35:5-10), and the coming of the Messiah (Isa. 53). Even when Judah was in captivity, the prophets urged the people to repent and to renew their faith in God because of Gods promise to return them to their land and to reestablish them as His people. Throughout the Old Testament, from Noah through the prophets, the reason for a person or a people having faith in God was the divine promise.

In the New Testament, a new covenant with God was made possible by Jesus sacrifice. With the new covenant came better promises (Heb. 8:6). With the death of Jesus, the covenant between God and man changed. The nature of the relationship between God and man changed. The proper concept of how to relate properly to God changed. The means of living within Gods security changed. The means of acquiring forgiveness and atonement changed. The nature of Gods kingdom and people changed. Jesus sacrifice for the sins of mankind brought basic, sweeping changes to the whole concept of how man belonged to God and what it meant for man to belong to God. However, one thing did not change. The basic motivation, the fundamental reason for developing and maintaining faith in God continued to be the divine promise. The promises of complete forgiveness, salvation in Christ, the constant caring of a personal God, the strength to endure trials and pain, and an eternal life free from all earthly woes provided a person the reason for having faith in God.

God always has wanted people to understand one basic truth about His divine nature: God the promise maker is also God the promise keeper. God established the rainbow as a symbolic reminder to man that God would never forget His promise to Noah (Gen. 9:16). Sarah conceived because God kept His promise (Gen. 21:1). Moses declared that Jehovah is God, the faithful God who keeps His covenant to a thousand generations (Deut. 7:9). God would not forget His promises to the Jews forefathers (Deut. 4:31). In Joshuas farewell address to Israel, he testified that God had not failed in one good thing which He had promised (Josh. 24:13). In Solomons dedication prayer for the first temple, he declared before all Israel that God the covenant keeper had fulfilled every promise which He made to David (I Kings 8:22-24). The psalms contain many references to Gods faithfulness (Psa. 40:10; 89:1, 8, 33; 119:90). When Daniel read Jeremiahs writings and understood Gods promise of deliverance from captivity he prayed to God the covenant keeper (Dan. 9:14).

The New Testament frequently stresses the same truth. God is faithful (1 Cor. 1:9; 2 Cor. 1:18; 2 Thess. 3:3). It is impossible for mans unfaithfulness or deceit to make God unfaithful (Rom. 3:3, 4). Gods being faithful means God keeps His promises; He does that which He says He will do. Paul told the Corinthian Christians that God would not permit temptations to exist which exceed the ability of humanity to endure. The validity of this promise was assured in these words: God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able.." (1 Cor. 10:13). Paul prayed that God would preserve the Thessalonian Christians spirits, souls, and bodies until the Lord returned. This was the assurance that such could happen: Faithful is he that calleth you, who will also do it (1 Thess. 5:23, 24). Paul declared this promise to Timothy: For if we died with him, we shall also live with him: if we endure, we also shall reign with him ... The surety of that promise was this fact: ...He abideth faithful; for he cannot deny himself (2 Thu. 2:11-13). The writer of Hebrews urged the Christians to whom he wrote not to apostatize. They must draw near to God with true hearts and must hold fast the confession of their hope. Why? For he is faithful that promised (Heb. 10:19-23). John declared that the Christian who would confess his sins can be assured that God will cleanse him from all unrighteousness. Why? God is faithful and righteous (1 Jn. 1:9). The fact that God is faithful was the reason for persecuted, suffering Christians to commit their souls to Gods keeping (1 Pet. 4:19).

The reason for Abraham placing his trust in God was Gods promises. Abraham demonstrated the faith of righteousness by placing full trust in Gods promises rather than in his own ability and power. The reason for Christians placing their trust in God is Gods promises. Christians demonstrate the faith of righteousness by placing full confidence in Gods promises rather than in their own abilities and powers. They trust the faithful God, the God who keeps His promises.

Gods Promises: Our Faith Crisis

Few Christians ever determine why they experience crises in believing. When a Christian struggles with doubt or endures a stressful trial, he readily will admit that his faith is inadequate. He will identify the reason for his struggling as being too little faith." He will acknowledge that the solution to his problem is having more faith."

Having too little faith and needing more faith are vague, indefinable ideas. Of what specifically does he have too little? Why specifically does he have too little of it? Precisely what is it that has caused this deficient faith? What specifically needs to be done to increase that faith? Precisely why did the faith crisis occur?

The greatest single reason for any Christian experiencing a faith crisis is his failure to trust Gods promises. Behind every faltering faith is a distrusted divine promise. The basic challenge in believing to any Christian is the challenge to trust Gods promises. The struggle to believe is the struggle to place full confidence in Gods promises. Any time the Christian doubts that God can do what God said He could do, the Christian experiences a faith crisis.

This truth is easily illustrated. A Christian man lived a horrible life of sin prior to conversion. He committed sins which debased him and hurt others. His conversion was genuine, and his change of life dramatic. However, the more spiritual maturity he gained, the more aware he became of the terrible sinfulness of his past life. After years of faithful devotion to Christ, he still was plagued with an enormous sense of guilt for the sins of the years of his alienation. That guilt worked against his faith. He could not believe that God could forgive him of such horrible sins. Why was his faith in crisis? He did not trust Gods promise of forgiveness of all past sins.

In an unusual set of circumstances, in a time of great loneliness, and in a time of severe personal stress, a devout Christian woman committed fornication. Though her repentance was genuine, she never was able to forgive herself. She continued to be so guilt-stricken that she regarded herself as unworthy of Christian association. She held herself in such contempt that she felt her presence in any assembly of the church offended God. She desperately desired full, renewed relationship with God and His people, and many Christian friends reached out to her, encouraged her. Yet, her faith was in deep crisis. Why? She did not trust Gods promise to cleanse His penitent children from all unrighteousness.

A properly baptized believer seriously doubted the validity of his baptism. He was baptized with a penitent heart in the full conviction that the resurrected Jesus is Gods Son. He confessed his faith, was immersed, and was baptized for the remission of his sins. However, every day was plagued with doubt because he wondered if he really belonged to God. Did he know enough when he was baptized? Could he be sure that he responded for the right reasons? How could God accept his baptism when he knew and understood so little? His faith was in crisis. Why? He did not trust Gods promise to transform a believer into a full child of God at the moment of baptism.

A faith crisis involves a question which raises a terrifying doubt. The question involves a promise of God. The crisis exists because the person cannot trust the promise. Will God be with me as I face this trial? Did God make me a new creature when I was baptized? Will God hear my prayers? Will God forgive me? Can God sustain me in this crisis? Will God raise me from the dead?

Every Christian needs to determine if he is standing on the promises or if he is resting upon traditional habits. He needs to ask himself, Do I trust God, or am I mindlessly following ritualistic practices? Gods promises and human faith are inseparably linked. Gods promises form both the foundation of faith and the crisis for faith.

Chapter Seven Questions

1. Explain how a person gains the trust of another person.

2. List different forms of a promise. Illustrate each form of a promise.

3. Discuss the importance of Gods promises to people.

a. What role did Gods promises play in His relationship with the following people: Noah? Abraham? Saul? David? Solomon?

b. Read the following passages and discuss their promises to the Israelites: Ezekiel 37:24-28; Jeremiah 30:7-11; Ezekiel 34:25-31; Isaiah 35:5-10; Isaiah 53.

4. What does Hebrews 8:6 say about the new covenant?

5. List the things which changed when the new covenant of Christ became authoritative and the authority of the old Mosaical covenant ended.

6. What did not change?

7. God always wanted people to know that He kept His promises. Use the following passages to demonstrate that fact: Genesis 9:6; Genesis 21:1; Deuteronomy 7:9; Deuteronomy 4:31; Joshua 24:13; 1 Kings 8:22-24; Daniel 9:1-4.

8. What does the statement, God is faithful mean? What is the significance of that statement in the following passages: 1 Corinthians 10:13? 1 Thessalonians 5:23, 24? 2 Timothy 2:11-13? Hebrews 10:19-23? 1 John 1:9? 1 Peter 4:19?

9. What is the greatest single reason for Christians experiencing a faith crisis?

Suggestion

Have the class make a list of serious faith crisis situations. Discuss what divine promises need to be trusted in each crisis situation.

Chapter 8 - Faith and the Promise of Forgiveness

The promise of forgiveness is the key to Christian existence. Sin separated man from God. Sin made mans return to God impossible. Sin imprisoned man within the consequences of his own evil. Man of himself was powerless to eliminate sin from his own life, to destroy the consequences of past sin, or to reverse the damage that sin did to his relationship to God. Man was a helpless captive of his own evil.

God was equally helpless to restore full relationship with man. God could not ignore sin. He could not pretend that sin had not occurred. He could not dismiss the fact of sin as insignificant. God is by nature a God of justice. Justice is an attribute of His divine being. Divine justice demanded rectification of the injustice of sin. Without rectification, God was powerless to restore full relationship with man.

The solution to the dilemma is contained in the word forgiveness. If God was free to extend forgiveness, and if man was free to accept forgiveness, sin would be destroyed as the barrier between God and man. The primary purpose and the ultimate objective of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus was to make forgiveness possible.

Forgiveness is Gods essential promise. It stands at the foundation of all of Gods other promises to the Christian. Without forgiveness, all the other promises of God become meaningless fantasies. All other promises, including the promise of the resurrection to life eternal, are contingent upon a persons having been forgiven. All other promises are intended for a forgiven people, a people cleansed from sin.

All the key New Testament words which depict and affirm renewed relationship with God focus on the reality of forgiveness. Redemption is one being bought back by God, being ransomed from sin. Sanctification is one being set apart from sin for God. Justification is the destruction of ones accountability for previous sins. Atonement is one having his sins paid for by the blood of Jesus. Propitiation is Gods acceptance of Jesus sacrifice as the penalty paid for our sins. Every divine benefit radiating from Jesus sacrifice is focused in the forgiveness of sins.

The promise of the forgiveness of sins to those who enter Christ is parallel in significance to the promise of Isaac to Abraham. All the other promises made to Abraham were dependent upon the birth of Isaac. In order for God to keep those promises, first He had to keep the promise of Isaacs birth. All other promises made to Christians are dependent upon mans forgiveness. In order for God to keep those promises, first He has to keep the promise of forgiveness. It is just as essential for the Christian to trust the promise of forgiveness as it was for Abraham to trust the promise of Isaacs birth.

Jesus and Forgiveness

The primary business of Jesus is the forgiveness of people. Scripture is irrefutably clear about the fact that the primary objective of Jesus was to make the forgiveness of sin an established reality. When the angel explained Marys conception to Joseph, he declared, And she shall bring forth a son; and thou shalt call his name JESUS; for it is he that shall save his people from their sin (Matt. 1:21). Just prior to the beginning of Jesus ministry John the baptizer declared, Behold the Lamb of God, that taketh away the sin of the world! (Jn. 1:29). In the final days of His life, Jesus said of Himself, . . .The son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many (Matt. 20:28). Just prior to the ascension, the resurrected Jesus declared to the apostles, Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer, and rise again from the dead the third day; and that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name unto all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem (Lk. 24:46, 47). Paul wrote to Titus concerning Jesus, . . .who gave himself for us, that he might redeem us from all iniquity, and purify unto himself a people for his own possession, zealous of good works (Tit. 2:14). To Timothy Paul wrote, Faithful is the saying, and worthy of all acceptation, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners. (1 Tim. 1:15).

Jesus death is a solution to the problem of sin only if forgiveness is a reality in the life of a Christian. Jesus either can forgive or He cannot forgive. If He can forgive, then the cleansing from sin is a fact in the life of a Christian. If forgiveness has occurred in the life of a Christian, he has the responsibility to feel and to act as a person who has been freed from sin. The Christian who refuses to trust Gods promise of forgiveness is a living refutation of the power of Christ. Why should any sinner wish to become a Christian just to exchange the guilt of a sinner for the guilt of a Christian? The burden of guilt is equally oppressive whether one be a sinner or a Christian. If God cannot keep His promise of forgiveness, why should a sinner trust any other promise God has made?

Forgiveness and Past Sins

Perhaps the great irony to be found in common Christian conviction is this: Christians tend to have much greater faith in Gods forgiveness of the alien sinner than faith in Gods forgiveness of His own children. Christians will argue passionately that Gods complete forgiveness of the baptized alien sinner is a fact. No matter what sins a person has committed, if he with faith and repentance will be baptized into Christ, his total forgiveness of all past sins is an unquestionable fact. Yet, many of those same Christians will not affirm Gods complete cleansing of a Christian. They affirm that sins committed before baptism into Christ are completely destroyed by the blood of Jesus. At the same time, they spend many anxious hours in their own lives fearful that sins committed after baptism will condemn them to hell. They never feel confident that any sin committed after baptism has been destroyed as thoroughly as those sins committed prior to baptism.

The promise of the complete forgiveness of a believing, penitent alien sinner who is baptized into Christ is clear and certain. The New Testament clearly declares that baptism marks the point of transition from unforgiven sinner to forgiven Christian. In the process of transition, faith, repentance, and baptism are of equal importance. Baptism cannot make forgiveness possible if either faith or repentance are absent. Baptism is no more essential than faith or repentance; baptism is the point of transition from sinfulness to spiritual purity. The passages which document the importance of Christian baptism (the baptism commanded by Christ and the apostles after the resurrection and the inauguration of the new covenant) are likely well-known and understood by the reader: Matthew 28:18-20; Mark 16:15, 16; Acts 2:37, 38, 41; 10:48; 16:33; 22:16; Romans 6:1-4; 1 Corinthians 12:12, 13; Galatians 3:26, 27; 1 Peter 3:18-22.

There is unanimous agreement in Christs church that baptism is the point of transition from sin, and that at baptism all past sins of the sinner are destroyed completely. The baptized sinner is no longer accountable to God for his past sins. It is because of that unquestioned conviction that any Christian will plead with any sinner guilty of any form of evil to be baptized into Christ. Regardless of the nature of the sins committed, the sinner is assured unconditionally that the sins will be destroyed if he with faith and repentance will be baptized for the remission of his sins.

There is only one reason for any Christian placing that much confidence in the effectiveness of baptism. There is only one reason for any sinner placing that much confidence in the effectiveness of baptism. This is the reason: faith in the promise of God. Baptism is to be trusted to cleanse a sinner from all past sins simply because God promised it would. God promised that He would accept the shed blood of Jesus as atonement for the sins of any baptized believer, and He would thereby extend forgiveness for all past sins.

Forgiveness and The Christians Sins

Gods plan for mans forgiveness was not a partial solution to the problem of sin in human life. It was not a powerful plan to care for 100% of the needs of the alien sinner, but a weak and ineffective plan for caring for the needs of the Christian. It was not a highly effective means of dealing with human sinfulness for those outside of Christ, but an inadequate means of dealing with human sinfulness for those in Christ. Gods sacrifice of the perfect Lamb of God, Jesus, was a total solution to the problem of all human sinfulness of both the lost and the saved. It was a complete resolution of the problem of human sinfulness. It is as effective in dealing with sins committed after baptism as it is in dealing with sins committed prior to baptism.

The most specific passage which deals with Gods promise of forgiveness for sins committed by His children is 1 John 1. This letter was unquestionably written to Christians. Through the frequent use of we John affirmed the common spiritual bond linking him and those he wrote. In verses 5-10, John stated these truths: (1) God is light; there is no darkness in God. (2) To claim to have fellowship with God as one walks in the darkness is to lie and to not do the truth. (3) The blood of Christ cleanses Christians from all sin if they walk in the light. (4) If Christians claim to have no sin, they are self-deceived. (5) A Christians confession of sin results in the certain cleansing of sin, a cleansing from all unrighteousness. (6) To claim to be free from sin (and thereby having no need for forgiveness) is to make God a liar and to prove His Word is not in that individual.

There are those who would claim that walking in the light (v. 7) means that the person is living a sinless life in Christ. At any time the person sins, he ceases to walk in the light. That position stands in opposition to the point of the passage in two distinct ways. (1) If walking in the light means living a sinless life, John said that God will use the blood of Jesus to cleanse all sins from those who have no sin. Thus, forgiveness is for those who do not need it. To the contrary, the passage affirms that it is for those Christians who do need itwhich is every Christian. (2) John also plainly stated that to claim sinlessness is to be self-deceived and to be void of the truth (v. 8), and is to make God a liar and to verify that His word is not in that person (v. 10).

This passage shows how imperfect, sinful Christians (which is every Christian) can live in fellowship with a sinless God. They cannot live in fellowship with God by pretending to have no sin. They can live in fellowship with God by walking in the light, by maintaining fellowship with other Christians, and by confessing their sins. To walk in the light is to devote ones self seriously to a godly existence. He will not live a sinful lifestyle. He will not indulge evil in his life. Maintaining fellowship with Christians is to be a living, functioning part of the spiritual family of God. He is a living part of the church. Confessing sins is a persons acknowledging acts or attitudes of evil to God when he becomes aware of his sin.

There are specific promises to the Christian who walks in the light, maintains fellowship with Christians, and confesses his sins. The blood of Christ cleanseth (present, on-going) that Christian from ALL sin. The faithful, righteous Gods forgiveness will be extensive and adequate; it will cleanse from ALL unrighteousness.

Note the perfection and completeness of Gods forgiveness for the Christian. If the Christian maintains (1) a continuing, serious commitment to godly living, (2) fellowship with Christians, and (3) the readiness to confess sin upon the awareness of sin, God will forgive ALL sin and cleanse from ALL unrighteousness. Just as Gods forgiveness at baptism is not just for those sins which the sinner knows and understands he has committed, Gods forgiveness of the Christian is not just for sins the Christian knows and understands he has committed. Not only does God forgive the Christian of known sin, but He also forgives sins of ignorance. No Christian has a perfect understanding of the Word or a perfect knowledge of all forms of evil. All Christians likely commit more sins in ignorance than through knowledge. No one can repent of or confess sin which he does not know to be sin. Yet, proper dedication to godly living and to a penitent heart which readily confesses known sin results in one being forgiven of all sins.

Gods perfect, total solution to the problem of sin cares for all sin before and after baptism. It does not permit willful indulgence in sin, but it provides complete forgiveness to those who resist sin in their lives through godly living and who confess their failures. Forgiveness of sin does not end at baptism; it begins at baptism. The blood of Christ begins to flow continuously in the life of a Christian upon baptism into Christ. It will continue to flow in his life continuously cleansing him of his sins as long as he dedicates himself to godly living in Christ, as he continues fellowship with Gods people, and as he confesses his sins. When he ceases to do any of these things, the continuous cleansing ceases. Gods forgiveness allows the baptized person to have the total confidence that his sins prior to conversion have been destroyed, and it allows him to have the same confidence that his sins after baptism are being destroyed.

Confidence in Gods full forgiveness of sins comitted before baptism and after baptism should be the same confidence. Both forgivenesses are to be accepted and trusted for the same reason: God promised it would happen. Both are empowered by the same source: the blood of Jesus. Both are permanent solutions: any sin forgiven is a sin destroyed. Both acts of forgiveness destroy ALL sin, ALL unrighteousness.

A Matter of Faith

A failure to have confidence in Gods promised forgiveness is an act of faithlessness. The faith of righteousness trusts the promise of God. The penitent Christian sincerely devoted to walking in the light who doubts his full forgiveness is struggling with faithlessness.

When does a Christian trust his forgiveness? When does he know he has placed faith in Gods promise? He has the faith of righteousness when he feels and carries no sense of guilt for forgiven sins. When his forgiven sins are as dead to him as they are to God, he has the faith of righteousness.

The penitent Christian sincerely dedicated to godly living and to the Lords family who constantly struggles with an unending burden of guilt does not have a problem with sin; he has a faith problem.

Chapter Eight Questions

1. Explain why the promise of forgiveness is the key promise to Christian existence.

2. Explain the meaning of each of the following words and how each relates to forgiveness: redemption; sanctification; justification; atonement; propitiation.

3. Prove that the primary business of Jesus is the forgiveness of people by using Matthew 1:21; John 1:29; Luke 24:46, 47; Titus 4:14; and 1 Timothy 1:15.

4. If forgiveness has occurred in a Christians life, what responsibility does that Christian have?

5. Do Christians commonly have more faith in Gods forgiveness of an alien sinner or Gods forgiveness of a Christian? Explain your answer.

6. Why do Christians have so much confidence in the effectiveness of baptism?

7. List the basic truths declared about the Christian in 1 John 1:5-l0

8. Does walking in the light mean living a sinless life? Explain your answer.

9. How can the imperfect, sinful Christian (all Christians) live in fellowship with a sinless God?

10. What is Gods promise to the Christian who walks in the light, maintains fellowship, and confesses his sins? What is included in all sin and all unrighteousness?

11. Explain Gods perfect solution to the problem of sin in a Christians life.

12. A Christian who does not accept the fact that he is forgiven is having a faith crisis. Explain why.

Suggestion

Have the class discuss reasons for most Christians being afraid to believe in Christs blood continually cleansing their sins.

Chapter 9 - Faith and the Promise of Spiritual Survival

For the person genuinely converted to Christ, the person who knows and feels his personal deliverance from sin, there is a unique sense of well-being created by having been baptized into Christ. There is a marvelous sense of freedom, a refreshing sense of cleanliness which results from the knowledge and understanding that the blood of Jesus literally has destroyed all of ones past sins. That is the most refreshing, revitalizing personal experience which can occur in a persons mind and heart.

This unique sense of freedom from sin and cleansing from all past mistakes can create within a person a false sense of invincibility. He is so thrilled at being a new child of God, so impressed with the power of God, so in love with Christian existence, that he can conclude that sin will never have any attraction and appeal to him again. He enjoys freedom from guilt so much that he has no desire to sin again. Gods forgiveness has such a powerful impact on his awareness that he can believe that it will not be difficult to give up past sins and evil habits. With Gods help he can do anything! The devil has no chance in his life!

A new convert who concludes that the combination of Gods power and forgiveness will render temptation impotent in his life is opening his life to major disillusionment. Satan never surrenders any portion of his kingdom or any of his subjects to the Lord without a fight. Satan exists for one reason aloneto oppose God. He cannot be victorious over God Himself. Satan forever lost his war against God with Jesus resurrection from the dead. There are only two ways in which Satan can oppose God effectively. By ruling the hearts and minds of the lost, he can keep them from turning to God, from accepting the sacrifice of Gods Son, and from receiving salvation. Or, he can succeed in causing people who have turned to God to fall away from God. Separating people from God is the only means Satan has of opposing God.

Satan is an accomplished adversary. He is cunning, skilled, and constantly searching for persons that he can devour (1 Pet. 5:8). Baptism into Christ intensifies the conflict. One who was his subject has dared to renounce his control and accept a new Master. Satan will be determined to regain control over the Christians life. The new converts struggle with temptation will not diminishit will escalate and intensify.

The War

Considering the intensity and the seriousness of the Christians personal conflict with Satan, it is fitting and accurate for Scripture to characterize that struggle as a war. God is at war with Satan, and all of those who belong to God live on the front line of that war. A Christian must not forget that he is at war with the worlds deadliest enemy.

Paul declared in 2 Corinthians 10:3-6 that, though Christians are fleshly beings, their war is not a physical warfare. They do not fight with earthly weapons of war. The arena of this spiritual conflict is in the heart and mind. It centers in the reasonings of man and the knowledge of God. The object of the war is to bring the thoughts of the mind into captivity to God resulting in obedience to Jesus.

In Ephesians 6:10-20 Paul urged Christians to take their strength from the Lords might. They must wear the armor God has made available. Only the Lords strength and Gods armor are adequate to enable a Christian to do battle with Satan. He is not fighting against a flesh and blood opponent. He is struggling against principalities, against the powers, against the world-rulers of this darkness, against the spiritual hosts of wickedness in the heavenly places. Only the Lords might and Gods full armor will equip him to withstand the evil and to quench the fiery darts of Satan.

Peter declared that the Christian must understand that he is a stranger and a pilgrim in this world. He does not belong to or in this world. It is not his home; it is only the scene of his pilgrimage. Recognizing that truth, the Christian will abstain from fleshly lusts. He will understand that Satans most effective weapon against his spiritual well-being and relationship with God is the lust of the flesh (1 Pet. 2:11).

James graphically depicted how effectively Satan can utilize fleshly lust to battle a Christian (Jas. 4:1-4). The lust for pleasure will create the battlefield within the persons desires. Because a mind craving pleasure has taken control of his body, he loses his godly perspective and involves himself in pursuits and actions contrary to a godly lifestyle. His ineffective prayers are not answered because he seeks to pervert Gods blessings to achieve his lustful ambitions. The end result is spiritual adultery. He again makes himself Gods enemy by becoming the worlds friend.

There are some basic facts that the Christian must understand about Satan. Fact one: Satan will never fight fair. He honors no code of justice. He is the perfect example of the win at any cost philosophy. Fact two: Satan never has the slightest interest in a persons well-being or best interests. The final result of anything Satan desires for a person will be his spiritual ruin. Fact three: Satan will never tell the truth. He is the master liar. Any time he uses any element of truth, his objective is to deceive. One of his highest ambitions is to deceive Christians. Fact four: Satan will inflict as much pain and hurt as possible in a Christians life to disillusion him with God and spiritual existence. Death, illness, injustice, betrayal, pain to loved ones, and physical abuse are but a few of the weapons in his arsenal. Fact five: Satan will make belonging to God as costly as possible. If he cannot disillusion a Christian, if he cannot seduce him through his own lust, if he cannot intimidate him through fear, then he will make him pay as dearly as possible for his relationship with God.

The Battleline

The front line in the war against Satan is called temptation. Shortly after baptism the euphoria of having been cleansed will be replaced with the sober reality of the struggle against evil. One does not cease being impressed with the power of God; he simply confronts the frailty and weakness of his own flesh. Rather than being more than a match for Satan, he begins to wonder if he will ever be a fit, worthy opponent. The appeal of old sins did not die at baptism. Evil attitudes did not wither and die at baptism. He is not only faced with the continuing process of crucifying the flesh with its lusts and passions (Gal. 5:24), but now he has whole new areas of temptation. His commitment to build godly attitudes, to think godly thoughts, to learn and to live by godly values, and to treat other people in accordance with Christian ethics creates struggles that are completely new. Suddenly he finds that he does not have less temptation because he is a Christian; he has more temptation.

With this discovery comes a critical vulnerability. Many Christians begin to believe that they are on their own as they wrestle with temptation. They convince themselves that God cannot help them with their temptable natures. They conclude that since God did not destroy temptation upon their conversion, God virtually is powerless to help them with their temptations. They may even conclude that God could help them with the problem, if they were not so weak and sinful that they are beyond Gods help. Satan is quite close to victory when any Christian begins such reasonings.

Gods Promises Regarding Temptation

Temptation in a Christians life is real. The struggle is real. Its demands unquestionably exceed mere human willpower, determination, and commitment. However, Gods power in a Christians life is equally real. His ability to help far exceeds mere human willpower, determination, and commitment. The simple truth is this: when the Christian does what he can do, God will do what the Christian cannot do. There are specific promises made to the Christian regarding temptation which assure him that Satan cannot master him.

The first promise to consider is found in 2 Peter 2:9. Peter revealed a somber picture of realities those Christians would confront. Just as in Israel of old, false teachers were going to arise in the church. They would bring in destructive heresies, some of which would even deny the Master. These covetous men would deceive many as they exploited their followers for material advantage.

In the face of those bleak realities, Peter offered two powerful encouragements. First, the wicked have never prevailed. The advantages they gain and the power they hold are temporary. Just as wicked angels, the ungodly people of Noahs day, and the evil people of Sodom and Gomorrah did not prevail or go unpunished, neither would the false teachers who arose in the church. It was a certainty that they would receive just retribution for their wickedness.

Second, The Lord knows how to deliver the godly out of temptation ... Human temptations are not an impossible problem for God. They are an insurmountable problem for man alone, but they are not an impossible, insurmountable problem for the man who has the help of God. God holds the solution for mans struggle with temptation. God promises that He knows how to deliver His people out of temptation.

The second promise to be considered is found in James 1:12-18. James began this passage with a beatitude: Blessed is the man that endureth temptation; for when he hath been approved, he shall receive the crown of life, which the Lord promised to them that love him (v. 12). Temptation contains as much opportunity for blessing as it does for failure. The person who succumbs to temptation sins, and if he continues in his sin, he loses his soul. The person who endures temptation receives approval, and as a result shall receive the crown of life. Temptation creates a tremendous opportunity for success and an enormous opportunity for failure at the same time. The single factor which determines if the temptation will become the avenue to the crown of life or the highway to spiritual failure is the tempted person.

Christians must understand that the origin of temptation is not God. God is neither temptable nor tempter. Mankinds temptation does not rest in divine provocation but in his fleshly nature. It is his own lustful desires which make him susceptible to enticement. Yielding to ones own lust produces sin, and the maturity of sin produces spiritual death. God is the source of every good gift, not the source of mans temptations. The steadfast God of invariable kindness is the source of the ultimate blessing: because God willed it He brought the Christian into being through the Word of truth.

It is Gods promise that He can transform our temptations into a source of eternal blessing. There is no question of His ability to do it; there is only the question of ones confidence in Gods ability to do it.

The third promise to consider is found in I Corinthians 10:12, 13. The context of this passage rests in a somber warning. Paul wanted the Corinthian Christians to understand that their salvation did not mean that God valued them to the extent that He disregarded their accountability. Israel provided undeniable verification of that truth. They, too, were baptized when they crossed the Red Sea. With the cloud above and the water on the sides they were figuratively buried. The crossing of the sea brought them out of bondage and into the freedom of Gods redemption. It was Gods promise to Abraham concerning the Christ that served as the primary cause for this event. It thus appeared that God had invested so much in Israels deliverance that God simply could not afford to forsake them. Not so! Those with whom God was displeased in the wilderness were overthrown.

All that happened to Israel was to stand as an example to the Christian. The Christian is not to conclude that because God has made an enormous investment in him through the death of Jesus that He could not possibly forsake him. If the Christian reverts to a lifestyle of lust, idolatry, making trial of God, and murmuring against God as did Israel, the Christian will as surely perish as did the offending Israelite. Israels failure was to serve as an admonition for the Christian living in the last age.

In regard to human temptation and human proneness to sinfulness and rebellion, the Christian needs two basic understandings. First, the Christian who has developed great confidence in his own strength and ability to stand is the prime candidate for falling into sin. Human self-confidence is not the means to acquiring victory over temptation. Self- reliance is the guarantee that temptation shall gain victory over the Christian.

Second, the fact that God continues to hold the Christian accountable for his life and his decisions does not mean that the Christian is at the mercy of temptation. The problem does not rest in the power of temptation. The problem of the Israelites who were overthrown was not found in the fact that their problems and temptations were mightier than their God. The problem confronting the Christian is not that his problems and temptations are mightier than his God. In both instances the problem is found in people placing their confidence in themselves rather than God.

The most wondrous promises God made regarding temptation are these: (a) God will not permit forms of temptation to exist which exceed humanitys capability to endure; (b) God promises (He is faithful!) that He will not allow you to be tempted above your ability to endure; (c) God promises that there will be a way of escape provided when any temptation occurs, thus assuring the Christian that he is able to endure.

As wonderful as this promise is, it must be correctly understood. The fact that temptation will not exceed humanitys or the individual Christians ability to endure is not the promise that all temptations will be simple and easily conquered. It means that there will never be a situation in a Christians life when yielding to temptation and rebelling against God is his only option. Gods promise is that the Christian will always have and be able to exercise the option to do that which is godly. The option may be costly. It may mean forfeiture of a privilege, of a right, of a cherished aspect of ones lifestyle, of a prized relationship, or of life itself. The cost may be great, but the option always will be there.

Again, the promise that the way of escape exists does not mean that the route will be simple and easily traveled. For many persecuted Christians of the first century the way of escape was death. However, God promises that escape from temptation rather than surrender to temptation always will be possible.

Jesus the Verification

The greatest hours of temptation in Jesus earthly life were found on the night of his betrayal and the day of his death. Hebrews states concerning those hours,

Who in the days of his flesh, having offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and having been heard for his godly fear, though he was a Son, yet he learned obedience by the things which he suffered; and having been made perfect, he became unto all them that obey him the author of eternal salvation (Heb.5:7-9).

Jesus was tempted as severely as flesh can experience temptation in his betrayal, in Peters denial, in his unjust trials, in his physical abuse and mockery, and in his execution. He plead with tears to God for deliverance, and God heard Him. God not only heard Him; God also provided Him the way of escape. God gave Him the strength to die. Though Jesus faced the severest temptations, He did not have to sin. He had an option. It was a costly option, but He exercised it. He placed His confidence in God, and He died without sinning. The same God who sustained Jesus in His darkest hour and delivered Him from temptation without sin can sustain any Christian in his darkest hour and deliver him from temptation without sin.

A Matter of Faith

A Christian is deceived when he cries, God cannot help me. I am too weak to overcome my temptations. My trials are greater than my strength to endure. I am beyond hope and help. People like me are far gone for even God to help. He sees Gods ability to help him as being limited to his own human ability. He is convinced that God can function only through his personal will power and human resolve.

This persons crisis is not created by human weakness. The issue is not his insufficient, inadequate strength. His problem lies in the fact that he does not trust Gods promises concerning temptation. The issue is his inability to have confidence in the God who knows how to deliver the godly out of temptation.

Chapter Nine Questions

1. Discuss in detail how a genuinely converted sinner feels after having been baptized.

2. Why might he conclude that he will never be tempted to sin again?

3. How does a sinners conversion affect Satan?

4. What do the following passages say about the Christians war? 2 Corinthians 10:3-6; Ephesians 6:10-20; 1 Peter 2:11; James 4:14.

5. What basic facts must a Christian understand about Satan?

6. What is the front line in the Christians war with Satan? Explain how being a Christian intensifies the struggle with temptation.

7. Discuss in detail Gods promises regarding temptation in the following passages:

- 2 Peter 2:9

- James 1:12-18

- 1 Corinthians 10:12, 13

8. Show how Jesus experience in Gethsemane illustrates the genuineness of this promise.

9. Explain why the Christian who thinks God cannot help him with his temptations is having a faith crisis.

Suggestion

As a class, discuss why Christians often are afraid to trust Gods promises as they struggle with temptation.

Chapter 10 - Faith and the Promise of Endurance

Far too many Christians live in a state of spiritual terror. They view themselves as being suspended over the pit of hell by a fragile, frayed thread. No available course of action can rescue them from their precarious position. They live in the continuing conviction that the probability of them being lost in hell far exceeds the likelihood of them living in heaven.

Fear is a poor spiritual motivation for Christian conduct. It is a proper, powerful motivation for turning from sin to God. Fear played an essential role in the response of the three thousand on the day of Pentecost (Acts 2:37) and in Sauls conversion (Acts 9:1-9). In both instances the fear was produced by the realization that these people had killed Gods Son or His followers.

While fear is one proper motivation for conversion, fear must soon be replaced with love for God after conversion. Fear may turn a person to God, but fear cannot produce a long-tern relationship with God. Just as fear cannot serve as the sound basis for a stable marriage, for a good parent-child relationship, or for an enduring friendship, neither can fear serve as the sound basis of a long-term relationship with God.

Most Christians who live in fear are afraid of one thing: hell. They have no sense of security in Christ. Life is lived in doubt of salvation. After baptism, they begin a lifelong period of probation. They cannot know that salvation is theirs until the judgment day; only when they hear, Well done, good and faithful servant will they know that they are secure. Ironically, though they long to hear those words on the judgment day, never on earth do they feel like a good and faithful servant. They constantly feel like spiritual failures whom God tolerates one more day. Gods patience may end at any moment. When His patience ends, God will say, I have had all of your weakness and failure that I can endure. I reject you and condemn you to hell. Christians living by this fear-filled perspective have no accurate understanding of such passages as Romans 8:31-39, 1 John 1:5-2:6, 1 John 5:13, and Hebrews 10:10-14.

When a Christian holding this perspective is asked, are you saved? he will reply, I dont know, or, I hope so, or, I wish I knew. If he is asked, Do you have an incorruptible, undefiled, fadeless inheritance reserved in heaven? (1 Pet. 1:4, 5), he will say, Noa persons place in heaven cannot be reserved. If he is asked, Is Gods power guarding you through faith for salvation? (1 Pet. 1:5), he will say, No, Gods power does not work in that manner. If he is asked, Can God preserve your spirit, soul, and body entire and blameless until the coming of Christ? (1 Thess. 5:23, 24), he will say, Scripture nowhere indicates that God will do that. If he is asked, Does God have the power to provide help to you beyond your comprehension and your ability to ask through prayer? (Eph. 3:20, 21), he will say, God can do no more for us than we ask of Him, and perhaps not even that much?

The fundamental question is this: can God help a Christian endure? Does God have the power to help the Christian maintain faith and spiritual stability through life? Or, is the Christian strictly on his own as he seeks to endure for Christ?

God, The Source of Endurance

Pauls letter to the Romans is a beautiful book with a powerful message. A part of that message is this: salvation in Christ means that the Christian is not alone, is not on his own, and is not dependent on inadequate human strength. To understand Gods power in Christ to help a Christian endure, one needs to look carefully at Romans 7:7-8:30.

Chapters 3, 4, and 5 reveal the Jewish Christians nervousness about the teaching that a pagan could become a full child of God just by having proper faith in Christ. He argued that if Gods grace through faith was adequate to save a pagan, then the law had been of no advantage to the Jew.

In chapter 6 Paul declared a person died to sin and received newness of life at baptism. Newness of life must result in a new lifestyle which refused to allow lust to rule and sin to use the body. The new lifestyle of obedience to Christ openly declared that the person was no longer the servant of sin.

In 7:1-6 Paul maintained that the Christians new grace relationship with God did not constitute unfaithfulness to the Mosaical law. Just as a wifes marriage covenant with her husband ended when the husband died, the Jews covenant relationship with the Mosaical law ended in the sacrificed body of Jesus. Just as that wife would be free to enter a new relationship with another husband, the person who accepted Jesus sacrifice was free to enter a new relationship with God.

Beginning in 7:7, Paul said the law had two basic impacts on those under it. (1) It made them aware of sin. The law defined sin and designated sin in a persons life. (2) The law made it indisputable that all under it were continuously sinful. Though he try with all available human resources, the person under the law never escaped sinfulness. His finest endeavors to be righteous always ended in failure.

One of the New Testaments most touching passages is Romans 7:14-23. In picturesque, heart-rending language, Paul depicted the horrible, inner agony of one determined to live in perfect compliance to the law. It is easy to identify with the fervent desire of that person to do what he knew to be right, with his ceaseless war between the mind which dearly loved God and the body which yearned to surrender to lusts, and with the contempt he felt for himself because he could not permanently evict sin or perfectly master his rebellious flesh.

The conflict was too great! The struggle was too severe! The situation was hopeless! Human mastery over sin, even sin which was despised, was impossible! The harder he struggled to be righteous through obedience to the law, the more hopeless his situation became. Finally, filled with the full sense of his weakness, his failure, and his doom, he cried out, Wretched man that I am! Who shall deliver me out of this body of my death?

In that despair, created by the hopelessness of human weakness, the wretched man was given a hope which was not dependent on human achievement. Verse 25 means that God would deliver that wretched man through Jesus Christ.

How would God use Christ to fashion this wretched mans deliverance? He would do so by refusing to condemn the one who is in Christ Jesus (8:1). Paul declared in 8:1-11 that Christian existence was made possible by having the mind of the Spirit rather than the mind of the flesh. Possessing the mind of the Spirit enabled the Christian to have and to maintain a relationship with God which was impossible under the law in the mind of the flesh.

In 8:12-17 Paul affirmed that the Spirit, not perfect obedience to the law, verified the person in Christ was a child of God. Being a child of God meant the person was a full heir to Gods inheritance and a co-heir with Christ Himself.

In 8:18-25 Paul stated when one understood what it meant to be Gods child and heir, he realized that any physical suffering was insignificant in comparison to the inheritance to be received.

The Christian would not despair as he struggled in an evil world (8:26-30). Two things made despair unnecessary: an aid and a promise. The Spirit would provide the aid. When he did not know the words to express his thoughts, feelings, and desires to God, the Spirit in His own words would make it all clearly known to God. God gave the promise. He promised that all things would work together for good to those who loved Him and were called according to His purpose.

The Promise

Fear is the greatest faith killer on earth. Fear destroys faith by rendering a person incapable of trusting Gods promises. The most destructive earthly foe to ones faith is the fear that harsh trials and evil afflictions will render God powerless in ones life. It is the fear that the trials of life will exceed Gods power to help.

The assurance of Romans 8:28 was made in full acknowledgement of every persons inability to deliver himself from his own internal struggles. In spite of inescapable human weakness, in spite of this worlds powerful opposition, this is Gods assurance: We know that to them that love God all things work together for good, even to them that are called according to his purpose. Regardless of the harshness of the evil opposition, regardless of the severity of personal trials, God promised that He will transform every human experience into a blessing for those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. No set of circumstances, no experience of any kind can exceed Gods ability to use the circumstance or the experience to bless the Christian.

This is Gods key promise which assures that every Christian can endure. The Christian who endures faithful unto death is the Christian who knows that every circumstance and experience ultimately will work to his benefit. He knows that God unfailingly will transform all of lifes experiences into blessings. It is this confidence in God which enables him to endure anything.

As is always true, this promise is conditional. It is made to the person (1) who loves God and (2) who is called according to Gods purpose. It is not made to those who seek to serve God out of obligation, fear, or resentment. It is not made to those who seek to do as little as possible for God, or those whose hearts are not in their service, or those who regard Christian existence as only a duty. It is made to those people who have agape for Godthey seek Gods highest good and best interest in their lives. It is not made to Christians who live for themselves, whose own interests, ambitions, goals, concerns, and earthly objectives are more important than Gods purposes. It is not for those who place God second or lower on theft priority lists. It is for those who commit themselves to the truth that Gods purposes are the primary purposes of life.

This assurance does not declare that everything which happens to a Christian will be good. It is the assurance that the final result of all that occurs will be good for those who love God and are called according to His purpose. It was the assurance to first-century Christians that even such occurrences as physical persecution, economic reprisals, or rejection by ones family or nation which resulted because they believed in Jesus would ultimately bless them. God would transform even physical pain and death into real blessing for the Christian. Nothing could happen that would not result in their good. Since no earthly pain or opposition can of itself destroy ones salvation, and since heaven is the Christians greatest blessing, God will use even the evil a Christian endures to help him gain eternal life.

Jesus, The Example

The last two days of Jesus life are a perfect example. Betrayal, denial, unjust trials, mockery, physical abuse, evil humiliation, and painful execution were not good. God did not transform those evil acts into good acts. Yet, God used those painful, evil occurrences to work for Jesus highest good. He raised Him from the dead, He made Him Lord and Christ, and He established Him as the eternal Savior of the world. None of Jesus experiences in those evil matters were good, but God used them all to accomplish Jesus greatest good. One of the reasons Jesus was able to endure all those horrible, ungodly experiences was His unfailing confidence in the fact that God could utilize all those occurrences to accomplish His divine will and Jesus greatest good.

A Matter of Faith

The primary key to Christian endurance is ones confidence in Gods promise to produce good from all his life experiences. When severe trials and harsh opposition create distress in a Christians life, he faces a crisis which could separate him from God. If distress becomes an intimidating fear which manipulates his decisions, it will destroy his relationship with God. That person will not endure.

Why will such a Christian not endure? Because his trials were too great? Because the opposition of evil was more powerful than the help of God? Because some forms of trial and opposition exceed Gods ability to help? Though the distressed Christian will often reach such conclusions, those conclusions are erroneous. Primarily, such a Christian fails to endure because he has too little confidence in Gods promises. He does not believe that God can work through horrible circumstances and hurtful experiences to produce good. His primary crisis is a faith crisis.

The faith of righteousness trusts Gods promises even when trust must exist in defiance of circumstances. When all reasoning declares that confidence in Gods promises is foolish and unjustified, the faith of righteousness continues to trust God. In hours of great trial and distress, the Christian endures because he knows that God will use even those experiences to produce good for him.

Chapter Ten Questions

1. Why do many Christians live in a state of spiritual terror?

2. Is fear a valid motivation for conversion? Explain your answer.

3. Is fear a good spiritual motivation for godly living? Explain your answer.

4. How does the fear of hell affect many Christians lives?

5. How would an understanding of Romans 8:31-39, 1 John 1:5-2:6, 1 John 5:13, and Hebrews 10:10-14 help such Christians?

6. Discuss how these Christians would commonly answer the question, Are you saved? How do the following passages address that question: 1 Peter 1:4, 5; 1 Thessalonians 5:23, 24; Ephesians 3:20, 21.

7. In Romans chapters 3-5, what teaching made Jewish Christians nervous?

8. What did Paul teach about newness of life in Romans 6?

9. What two basic impacts did the law have on a person (Romans 7:7)?

10. Discuss the wretched man of Romans 7:14-23.

11. How would God deliver this wretched man (Romans 8:1)?

12. For what two reasons should the Christian not despair in his struggle with evil (Romans 8:26-30)?

13. In detail, discuss and explain the meaning of the promise in Romans 8:28.

- For whom is this promise?

- Who will not benefit from this passage?

14. How do the last two days of Jesus life illustrate the genuineness of this promise?

15. Explain why the Christian who is convinced God cannot help him with his bad life circumstances and experiences is having a faith crisis.

Suggestion

Have the class list some of lifes more difficult experiences. How can Romans 8:28 help the Christian at those times?

Chapter 11 - Faith and the Promise of Relationship

Christians who are afflicted with spiritual inferiority complexes are so commonplace in the church that they have created a distressing problem. The church is filled with troubled people. That is nothing new, and of itself, it should cause no alarm. The church of Corinth, the churches of Galatia, the church of Colosse, the church of Thessalonica, and the congregations in Pergamum, Thyatira, Sardis, and Laodicea had their full share of troubled members. The gospel of Christ with its hope-filled promises has always attracted the troubled. Jesus' earthly ministry held great appeal to all types of troubled people. When His message is understood today, it is no less appealing to the troubled.

The church should be converting troubled people. Troubled people should be reaching out to the Lord who knows how to give rest to those who are wearied by their struggles and how to free the oppressed from their destructive burdens. The realization of their desperate need coupled with the understanding of the real hope Jesus offers should cause troubled people to cling to Jesus in faith. The church was not established for those good people who are convinced that they do not really need to be saved. It was established for sinful people who know how desperately they need forgiveness and deliverance.

While the church must be converting the troubled, it must not cause them to conclude that they are second-class citizens in Christs kingdom. They must not enter Christ and His church with the false conviction that the Lord wants good people to enter and to serve in His kingdom, but He permits bad people to enter the kingdom only if they do not bring their problems. The troubled are not to be converted to live their lives in apology for being inferior spiritual beings. They are not tolerated step-children whom the Lord has accepted into His family because He had no alternative.

The Problem

The problem does not exist because many Christians have problems. In any age, if the church exists as the spiritual body for which Jesus died, it will contain many troubled people. The fact that troubled people respond to the gospel and bring their troubles to Jesus simply means that the gospel is doing the work it was designed to do. Baptism into Christ does not cure a persons problems; it merely makes him a child of the Problem Solver. Solutions do not come instantaneously. Solutions are the product of faith, knowledge of the Word, spiritual development, loving support and help from the spiritually mature, and time.

The problem exists because of the attitudes these troubled Christians hold regarding themselves. They are convinced that their struggle with real problems in their lives completely disgusts God. They are convinced that God is offended by people such as them who seek to be Christians. Inaccurate concepts have convinced these Christians that God hardly can tolerate their presence. They are convinced that God cannot respond to them as He does to good Christians. He will not hear their prayers. He will not be moved by their requests. He will not concern Himself with their problems. They are on their own until they straighten their lives out; only then can they appeal for His help. When they themselves solve their problems and resolve the struggles, then they can pray; then they can ask for Gods help; then He will be moved by their requests; then He will aid them with acceptable problems which are permissible for proper Christians to have.

There are no step-children in the Lords family! The tragedy of any Christian seeing himself as an inferior, tolerated, unwanted spiritual stepchild is found in his failure to understand a fundamental truth: Jesus came to save sinners. He did not come for the sake of the good people. He came and died for those who desperately need a Savior. Jesus made that fact unmistakably, undeniably clear. When the Pharisees criticized Him for associating with the spiritually undesirable (the tax collectors and sinners), Jesus responded, They that are whole (literally, strong) have no need of a physician, but they that are sick (Mat. 9:12). Jesus not only wants to save troubled people, but He also wants troubled people to understand clearly that every baptized believer is a FULL child of God with complete access to the privileges of relationship.

Every person who is baptized into Christ is promised real relationship with God. That relationship is a full, intimate relationship. It is the relationship of a Father with His child. God is not an unfit Father. He does not exploit or abuse His children. He does not withhold love when it is most needed, and He does not use love as a weapon or a bargaining power. As with a good earthly father, the more Gods child needs and wants His help and caring, the more helpful and caring the heavenly Father becomes. No Christian needs to apologize for exercising the privilege of relationship with God. Never forget that the father of the prodigal son is a portrait of God the Father.

Jesus, the Model

To understand the priceless privilege of relationship with God and the richness of its promise, one must begin with Jesus in the garden of Gethsemane on the betrayal night. Mark wrote that when Jesus left his disciples to go and pray alone, He fell on the ground and prayed fervently (Mark 14:32-35). One statement in His earnest prayer was this: Abba, Father, all things are possible unto thee; remove this cup from me: howbeit not what I will, but what thou wilt (v. 36).

All Christians would agree that no earthly person could equal or surpass Jesus in effective prayer. Jesus had more right to approach and petition God than anyone who has ever lived. He could appeal to God in a manner no Christian would claim or presume.

Please note that Jesus approached God by saying, Abba, Father. The word, abba, is an Aramaic word easily translated. Aramaic was the common daily language of the Jews in the first century (and before). The translators often chose not to translate abba because of the unique force of the word. Abba simply means father. It is the heart-cry of a child pleading for the help of his daddy. When a Jewish child was in serious, earnest need of his fathers help, he cried, abba! It meant the same thing as the cry of a distressed, anxious child today who hollers, Daddy!

The writer of Hebrews, referring to this very incident, wrote of Jesus in Hebrews 5:7, 8:

Who in the days of his flesh, having offered up prayers and supplications with strong crying and tears unto him that was able to save him from death, and having been heard for his godly fear, though he was a Son, yet learned obedience by the things which he suffered . . .

Jesus cried, Abba! in Gethsemane, and God heard Him and responded to His appeal.

Perhaps all Christians would agree that it was most appropriate for Jesus to cry, Abba in His prayer. He was literally Gods Son. God was in the true sense of the word His Daddy. God should have listened to Jesus as a daddy listens to the cries of his child. If Jesus ever needed His Daddy to listen and to come to His aid, it was in Gethsemane.

The Marvelous Privilege

This is the incredible promise of Scripture: every baptized believer has the same right to cry, Abba, to God as did Jesus. The reality of a baptized believers relationship with God is this: every baptized believer is an actual child of God who can freely, with full assurance cry, Abba unto God his Father.

Paul wrote in Romans 8:14, 15, For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God. For ye received not the spirit of bondage again unto fear; but ye received the spirit of adoption, whereby we cry, Abba, Father. In context, Paul declared that Christians do not live for the sake of physical existence. The ungodly desires and ambitions of the physical existence do not determine the life he lives. He lives for the sake of spiritual reality. Gods Spirit lives within him permitting God, through the knowledge of Christ and the understanding of the divine will, to direct his life. The fact that Gods Spirit does reside in Christians serves as irrefutable proof that Christians are sons of God, actual members of the divine family.

Pauls statement in verse 15 is an essential understanding. Christians were not delivered from the bondage of sin to be placed in a different kind of bondage. They did not escape the terror of sin simply to fall victim to another kind of terror. They left bondage to become children; they were slaves, but they became sons. They left the terror of being the tragic victims of Satans slavery to become children who had a spiritual Daddy who cared for and about them. They no longer cry in terror to him who delighted in their fear and suffering (Satan); they now cry to their Daddy who hears them.

Though Paul used the adoption analogy, he made it clear and certain that he was speaking of full membership in the family (vv. 16, 17). Gods Spirit witnessed to their spirit that they were in fact children of God. Each Christian is a full child with complete privileges of family relationship with God. Each Christian is an heir of God and a joint-heir with Jesus Himself. He is as fully an heir as is Jesus because he is as certainly a child of God as is Jesus. Because the Christian is both child and heir, he will be glorified with Jesus if he is willing to suffer with Jesus. Christians who will partake of their Elder Brothers suffering will unquestionably be glorified with that Elder Brother.

Paul made precisely the same point to the Gentile converts of Galatia in Galatians 4:1-7. Judaizing teachers, Jewish Christians who declared that Gentile converts had to accept teachings and customs of the Mosaical law, had caused Gentile Christians to doubt the validity of their salvation. Paul declared that the Jew needed Christ to become Gods child just as certainly as did the Gentile. Both Jew and Gentile had to be made children of God through Christ. Gods Son had to redeem the Jew from the law and extend the adoption of sons to the Gentile. Gentile Christians were to understand that they were actual sons, full sons of God. Paul stated emphatically, And because ye are sons, God sent forth the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, crying, Abba, Father. So that thou art no longer a bondservant, but a son; and if a son, then an heir through God (vv. 6, 7). The fact that they were Gentiles did not alter the fact that entering Christ made God their spiritual Daddy.

The Heart of the Matter

Someone might observe, It is a beautiful thought to realize that Scripture says that any Christian has the right to call upon God as his Daddy just as did Jesus in Gethsemane. It is touching to know that Scripture depicts our relationship with God as being one of a true son to his caring father. However, as nice as it is to think that we can cry, Abba, Father if it does us no more good than it did Jesus, it is no more than a pleasant thought. Jesus still suffered and Jesus still died.

This inaccurate perspective fails to see the blessing of relationship by assuming an incorrect objective in that relationship. Scripture never suggests that the objective of being Gods son is to escape the fleshly problems and troubles created by physical life in an evil world. The objective of being a son of God is to keep from being enslaved, victimized, and destroyed by this evil world. Jesus physically suffered and died, but Jesus also triumphed. God sustained Him, strengthened Him, and resurrected Him. From Gethsemane to the resurrection, in no instance and in no matter did evil triumph over Jesus. Jesus feared both the suffering and the enormous responsibility in His death; God sustained Him in His suffering and gave Him victory in death. The divine Abba did not remove the cup, but the divine Abba did not allow the cup to gain victory over Jesus.

The Christians privilege of having a relationship with God in which he can cry, Abba carries the same blessing of being sustained, strengthened, and given victory. The issue is not escape from physical trials and suffering in this world. There is no such escape. The Christians divine Abba will not remove his trials, but He will make it impossible for the trials to triumph in the Christians life. The son shall remain an heir as long as he keeps his faith and dependence in the Father. Even in death, there is victory.

A Matter of Faith

A Christian who has decided that he is unfit and unworthy for God to help has a basic relationship problem with God. That relationship problem is not due to his being too undesirable for God to help. His sincere conviction that his wickedness and problems make him personally revolting to God is in complete error. His primary problem does not lie in the weakness of the flesh or his problems in life.

His primary problem lies in the fact that he has not understood what it means to be a child of God. He has been told that he is a child of God. He has been told he is in Gods family. He has been told that God is his Father. However, he does not believe he is an heir of God. He does not believe he has the right to cry Abba, Father. He does not trust Gods assurances and promises concerning Gods relationship with His children. He truly is suffering from a spiritual self-image crisis. His self-image crisis is a product of an even more serious crisis. His primary problem is a lack of faith.

The faith of righteousness casts all anxiety upon God because he careth for you (1 Pet. 5.1).

Chapter Eleven Questions

1. Why should the church be converting troubled people?

2. What false conviction must these people not hold upon conversion?

3. Explain why the church will always have troubled people as a part of the fellowship.

4. Discuss the attitudes which troubled Christians commonly have about themselves, Why are these attitudes destructive? What fundamental truth do such attitudes ignore?

5. What promise belongs to every baptized believer?

6. Explain in detail the meaning and significance of Jesus praying, Abba, Father in Mark 14:32-35.

7. Discuss the teachings of Romans 8:14, 15 about the baptized believers relationship with God.

8. Discuss the teaching of Galatians 4:1-7 concerning the Gentile Christians relationship with God.

9. Did Jesus prayer to the divine Abba help Jesus? How?

10. How will a Christians prayer to the divine Abba help him?

11. Explain why the Christian who has decided that he is unfit and unworthy for relationship with God is having a faith crisis.

Suggestion

Have the class discuss reasons which cause many Christians not to seek a close child-Father relationship with God.

Chapter 12 - Faith and the Promise of Eternal Triumph

The problem handled more poorly by more Christians is the problem of death. Most Christians respond to the reality of death with ineffective thoughts and fear-filled miscomprehensions. Very few Christians handle the reality of death with confident trust in the Lord. Christians may sing spiritedly, This world is not my home! but too many confront death as though they are forfeiting the certainty of a real home for an unknown oblivion.

Occasionally one will work with the family of a terminally ill Christian who has this attitude: We are sorrowful for our coming loss, but our loved one is losing nothing. Soon he is going to certain happiness and peace. Occasionally one will work with a terminally ill Christian who speaks with genuine confidence as he declares that he is not afraid to leave this world and join the Lord. Christians who have understood the promise of the resurrection and place their full confidence in God, the Promise Keeper, certainly do exist.

However, these confident Christians are a minority within the Lords church. One much more frequently works with families or persons facing the certainty of death who are fear-filled and desperate. These Christians are unable to cope with the fact of death. The thought of dying creates terror in their hearts. They will do anything physically possible to cling to the last possible moment of life. The terminally ill who are rapidly approaching the end of physical life may plead, Please dont let me die! Please do something! The distraught family may resort to praying for a last-minute, miraculous cure.

It is not uncommon for the bereaved family to feel intense anger toward God. God is all powerful! He could have kept this from happening! It is His fault! If He loves us so much why has He hurt us by letting this happen? Because of their anger they have trouble praying, worshiping, and continuing their spiritual commitment.

Christians who confront death personally or within their family are the source of the greatest single spiritual failure and the greatest single tragedy among the Lords people.

Clarifying the Issue

Those who suggest that there should be no sorrow when a Christian dies are unrealistic. When Steven, a devout Christian, was buried, other Christians made great lamentation over him (Acts 8:2). Even when there is unshakable faith in the resurrection, loved ones still experience great sorrow in their loss.

When death is approaching, it is proper for the Christian to grieve about the coming separation from his earthly loved ones. A husband and father or a wife and mother feels great concern for the continued well-being of those he or she loves. The Christian made a lifelong commitment when he or she established a home. The pleasant prospect of living with the Lord does not destroy the love and feeling invested in his or her earthly commitment.

When death is going to take a loved family member, it is proper for the family members to grieve. Even if they are fully confident of the blessings of the resurrection, there is still reason for genuine sorrow. For a mate, a cherished companionship is ending. The loneliness of single living will be a hard adjustment. His or her life has been completely entwined in the one dying. The dying person is literally a part of him or her. There are also deep bonds which are being broken when a Christian parent, child, or a cherished Christian friend dies. Sorrow for ones loss is not destroyed by full confidence in the resurrection. Such sorrow is an expression of love and is entirely appropriate.

The inappropriate sorrow at the time of death is the sorrow created by the fear of dying. It is the sorrow produced because the dying person continues to cling to earthly existence. It is the sorrow which results from the Christians lack of confidence in the resurrection. He loves physical existence on the earth, and he is terrified to leave it.

An Essential Promise

Confidence in the promise of the resurrection is essential to spiritual existence. There are two foundation promises which are essential to Christian existence. The failure to trust either promise is a critical blow to spiritual endurance and survival. The first is the promise of Gods forgiveness. The second is the promise of the resurrection. These two promises serve as the bookend promises of all of Gods assurances to the Christian. The Christian initially responded to God because he was convinced that God could forgive all sin and destroy his guilt. The Christian endures for God because he is confident that God can raise him from the dead. The God who possesses resurrection power forgives; the God who forgives has the power to resurrect.

The stress which Scripture places on the importance of the resurrection cannot be exaggerated. The writer of Hebrews defined the purpose of Jesus earthly mission in terms of the resurrection.

Since then the children are sharers in flesh and blood, he also himself in like manner partook of the same; that through death he might bring to nought him that had the power of death, that is, the devil; and might deliver all them who through fear of death were all their lifetime subject to bondage (Heb. 2:14, 15).

Jesus lived as a fleshly man in order to destroy the power of death by dying. The specific objective of His death was to deliver people from the bondage created by the fear of death. The reality of the resurrection makes it unnecessary for a Christian to live in the fear of death.

Jesus comforted the grieving Martha by declaring, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth on me, though he die, yet shall he live; and whosoever liveth and believeth on me shall never die. Believest thou this? (Jn. 11:25, 26). Jesus being the resurrection and the life was a fact. Jesus power to resurrect was a fact. The issue was Marthas faith in Jesus as the resurrection and the life.

No writer surpassed Paul in documenting the necessity of the resurrection. Paul often illustrated the importance of absolute confidence in the resurrection with his own life. In Philippians 3 he explained why he sacrificed all his spiritual achievements in Judaism (which were considerable by stringent Jewish standards) in order to belong to Christ. He freely acknowledged that he counted all Jewish accomplishments as loss for Christ (v. 7). In comparison to the blessings and the opportunity found in Christ, those past achievements were garbage (v. 8). Paul cited specific reasons for forfeiting all past religious accomplishments to be in Christ. Prominently on that list were his desires (1) to know the power of Jesus resurrection, and (2) to personally attain unto the resurrection (vv. 10, 11).

His last letter to Timothy is filled with confidence in the resurrection. As Paul watched his death approach, he reminded Timothy, that God gave us not a spirit of fearfulness; but of power and love and discipline (2 Tim. 1:7). The resurrected Jesus had abolished death and brought life and immortality to light through the gospel (1:10). He is suffering but is unashamed because I know him whom I have believed, and I am persuaded that he is able to guard that which I have committed unto him against that day (1:12). His confidence in Gods promise of the resurrection was so absolute that he knew the crown of righteousness was laid up for him and that God would give it to him (4:8).

Paul did not possess his assurance of the resurrection because he was an apostle who had made enormous sacrifices for Christ. Paul possessed that confidence because he was a Christian. By affirming his confidence in the resurrection as a Christian, he was declaring the common right of all Christians to place complete confidence in the resurrection. In 2 Timothy 4:8, when Paul affirmed the crown of life was his, he also stated that not only would God give that crown to him, but also to all them that have loved his appearing.

The passage which most powerfully affirms the Christians right to place unreserved trust in the certainty of resurrection is Pauls statement in 2 Corinthians 5:1-l0. In 4:7-18 Paul described the hardship, harshness, and physical toil that serving Christians then endured for faithfulness to Christ. Acknowledging those realities, he stated we know that if the physical body is destroyed that we have an eternal heavenly home (v. 1). Because of the physical hardships serving Christians were then suffering for the faith, they groaned as they longed to be unburdened with physical existence and to be clothed with life (v. 4). So certain was the resurrection that they were willing to be absent from the body, and to be at home with the Lord (v. 8).

If It Were Not True

In 1 Corinthians 15 Paul tied the reality of the promise of the resurrection to the actual existence of Christianity. Some at Corinth affirmed that there was no resurrection from the dead (v. 12). Paul declared that Jesus resurrection was a verifiable historical fact; many witnesses who had seen Jesus alive after His resurrection were still alive at that time (vv. 4-8).

He then declared that Christianitys existence and viability were dependent on Jesus resurrection and His promise that Christians would be resurrected. (1) If there was no resurrection, then the apostles preaching was vain, and anyones faith resulting from that preaching was vain (v. 14). (2) If there was no resurrection, the apostles were false witnesses who had knowingly deceived others (v. 15). (3) If there was no resurrection, the Corinthian Christians (and all other Christians) were still lost in their sins (v. 17). (4) If there was no resurrection, Christians who already had died had perished (v. 18). (5) If there was no resurrection, Christians were the most pitiable people on the earth (v. 19).

Without faith in the reality of Jesus historical resurrection and faith in the promise of the Christians resurrection, the Christian has no reason to belong to Christ. He has no reason to live the Christian life. Successful spiritual existence is dependent upon firm confidence in the resurrection.

A Matter Of Faith

There is far too little teaching about the reality of resurrection. There is far too little thinking about the resurrection. The failure to found Christians securely in the conviction and confidence of the resurrection is a major failure of the New Testament church of today. Christians must believe, understand, and trust resurrection with the same conviction that they believe, understand and trust baptism for the remission of sins.

The resurrection of Jesus was an essential part of the sermons of Acts. Teaching about the resurrection figured prominently in the message of most of the epistles. The one essential teaching that the first-century Christians were expected to know and to accept was the fact of Jesus resurrection which was the assurance of their resurrection. Faith in the resurrection allowed them to make the decision to leave family and friends to belong to Christ. Confidence in the resurrection was the reason that they could suffer severe persecution and still endure in their commitment to Christ. Trust in the resurrection was the reason they were able to suffer lives of hardship and yet live in such hope that they still could bring others to Christ. Without unshakable confidence in the resurrection, the Lords church would not have survived the first century. Those Christians who lacked that faith did not spiritually survive.

Faith in the resurrection is no less critical to the church and the Christian now. Christians will stop being materialistic when and only when they trust resurrection more than they trust earthly possessions. Christians will become living sacrifices for God when and only when they believe in resurrection. Christians will suffer necessary hardships for the faith when and only when they have confidence in resurrection. Christians will stop plaguing the church with ideas and teachings designed to rationalize ungodly lifestyles and to justify acts and deeds in clear violation of plain teachings of Scripture when and only when they believe in resurrection.

The common crises of spiritual weakness, of wavering spiritual commitment, and of being afraid to leave wrold1iness for serious commitment to Christ are not a result of the costliness of Christianity. Christianity is costly, but Americans love costly objects and costly commitments. Cost is no object to the American who believes the benefits are worth the price. The common crises of commitment are not the result of the costliness of life in the Lord. Those crises primarily exist because of a lack of faith in the resurrection. The Christian who truly believes in the resurrection and knows the rewards of that promise will pay the price.

Above all other things, the faith of righteousness trusts the promise of the resurrection. It trusts because the God who raised Jesus from the dead has promised He will raise the Christian from the dead. Because the God who cannot lie promised, it shall surely happen.

Chapter Twelve Questions

1. All Christians must cope with the reality of death.

a. How do some cope constructively with death?

b. How do many cope poorly with death?

2. Explain the kind of sorrow that is appropriate and good when a loved one dies. Why will faith in the resurrection not remove this good sorrow?

3. Describe the inappropriate kind of sorrow caused by the death of a loved one.

4. What two fundamental promises serve as the bookend promises for all Gods assurances?

a. Why does a person initially respond to God?

b. Why does a Christian endure for God?

5. How does Hebrews 2:14, 15 verify the importance of the resurrection to the Christian?

6. Illustrate the importance of the resurrection by using Pauls life and his teachings in the following passages:

a. Philippians 3:1-16

b. 2 Timothy I (especially vv. 7, 10, 12)

c. 2 Timothy 4:6-8

7. What does 2 Corinthians 5:1-10 teach about a Christians confidence in the resurrection?

8. By using 1 Corinthians 15:12-19, list an the things which would be true if there was no resurrection.

9. Why is faith in the resurrection as critical to the church and Christians of today as it was to the church and Christians of the first century?

Suggestion

Have the class discuss ways in which faith in the resurrection can be increased among Christians.

Chapter 13 - The Faith of Righteousness and You

Abraham's faith stands as ancient documentation of the fact that the means of being accepted as a righteous person by God is and always has been faith. Becoming a righteous person has never been a matter of human achievement. A full acceptance of Gods authority is essential to relationship with God. Rendering full obedience to God as one yields to divine authority is essential to relationship with God. Sacrifice and service are essential expressions of humble submission to God the Father and Christ the Lord. Yet, as essential as accepting Gods authority, rendering obedience, and submitting through sacrifice and service are, none of them will make a person righteous before God without the proper faith.

One must yield to Gods authority because he believes. He must obey because he believes. He must sacrifice and serve because he believes. It is possible for one to accept authority, to obey, and to render sacrifice and service and have very little faith. It is possible to do all of that and have a faith that God does not recognize as being the faith which makes one righteous. Such is not only possible, but it is a common practice of many Christians. These Christians are convinced that they can achieve righteousness by appropriate human actions. They are convinced that why they act is insignificant as long as what they do is what God wants. Thus being righteous is simply a matter of doing the right things. How much one believes and what type of faith he has is insignificant.

Often such Christians do not want the righteousness which is through faith. They have no desire to understand it, regardless of how Biblical and accurate it might be. In fear, they resist understanding it. There is a specific reason which causes them to fear and resist this Bible truth. Through shallow teachings, poor study, and inaccurate concepts, they long have been convinced that the single important key to salvation and being righteous is obedience. As long as one does what God says to do, he is saved and righteous.

That conclusion is both harsh and comforting. It is harsh because no person is able to render perfect obedience. Consequently, his inability to live in perfect obedience condemns him to an existence of continual guilt feelings and of unending uncertainty about his spiritual security. It is comforting because he can live his life trusting no one but himself. Trusting God with his salvation makes him extremely nervous. He simply does not have enough faith in God to trust God with the serious business of saving his soul. He is more comfortable trusting his human achievements than he is in trusting the promise of God. Thus he has the comfort of trusting the certainty of his own actions rather than the uncertainty of Gods promises. Unfortunately, he does not know that this false sense of comfort based upon faith in his own achievements is actually the primary source of all his spiritual anxieties and fears.

The Tragedy

How tragic it is for any Christian to live in ignorance or fear of the faith which makes one righteous! Almost a thousand years before the birth of Jesus, David knew and wrote of the person whose iniquities were forgiven and to whom God would not impute sin (Ps. 32:1-2). David knew that there could be a relationship with God in which God would forgive sin instead of reckoning sin. Almost 700 years before the birth of Jesus, Jeremiah wrote of the coming of a new covenant which would make possible a new relationship with God (Jer. 31: 31ff). The new covenant would be unlike the covenant given to Israel when they left Egypt (the law of Moses). Prominent among the features of this new covenant would be the fact that God would be merciful to iniquities and would have no remembrance of sins.

Christians who do not learn of and understand the faith of righteousness are seeking to live for the ideal Savior with a law-of-Moses attitude and perspective. They have accepted a Savior who stands as the perfect solution to all the inadequacies and imperfections of the Mosaical law (carefully study Hebrews 8:1-10:18), but they are trying to live for Him with the same attitudes and perspectives produced by the inadequacies and imperfections of the Mosaical law. They are trying to live as a new creature in Jesus Christ with the mind and understanding of Old Testament Judaism.

Jesus became Savior to destroy lives of guiltiness. He has made it unnecessary to live ones life in a continual sense of guiltiness. Jesus as Savior seeks to destroy all consciousness of past sins. His salvation makes it unnecessary to live in anxiety of past sins, and yesterdays sins are past sins when one repents. Jesus as Savior has made it needless for one to live his life in fear of ignorant sin. When one lives in right relationship with God through Christ, ignorant sins are forgiven. Jesus can make these things possible because He is the source of perfect forgiveness. He produced the perfect solution to sin.

Jesus does not condone sin. He has not made sin acceptable or unimportant. He does not ignore sin. Jesus has made possible the relationship with God of which David spoke. It is possible for anyone to establish a relationship with God in which God forgives and God refuses to reckon sin to the persons life.

That marvelous relationship is available to the person who does four things. (1) He trusts Gods promises. What God promises is believed. The promise is believed with such conviction that the person makes choices, fashions decisions, and determines the course of his life on the basis of what God has promised. (2) He walks in the light. He rejects and refuses to live the lifestyle of an ungodly person. (3) He maintains fellowship with Gods people. He is a functioning, participating, active part of the Lords people, the church. (4) When he realizes that he has sinned, he confesses his sin.

How tragic it is for a baptized believer to not know and understand that the perfect Savior has fashioned the perfect solution for human sinfulness! How tragic it is for any Christian not to understand that the perfect forgiveness of Jesus makes it possible for any Christian to live a life free from guilt! How tragic it is for any child of God not to know that he can live his life in the joy of loving God rather than in the constant fear of going to hell!

A Transforming Concept

Nothing will transform a Christians personal life and daily existence as will the knowledge and understanding of the faith of righteousness. That knowledge will change his attitude, his perspective of God, his perspective of Jesus, his perspective of self, and his perspective of life. He will be free to live with the sense of joy and happiness seen in the lives of the Christians in Acts and proclaimed in the epistles. Godly living ceases to be an impossible burden and becomes a privilege gladly accepted. Hope replaces fear. God becomes the perfect Friend instead of the vengeful Punisher. Jesus is appreciated for being the perfect Savior that He is. Gratitude and appreciation for what Jesus has done in providing salvation and for what Jesus continues to do in keeping one cleansed before God is a daily source of rejoicing. Life becomes the fulfilling existence clearly depicted in the New Testament. One begins to experience the abundant life which Jesus promised.

This transformation in personal existence is real. It occurs for specific reasons. (1) It occurs because Jesus solution for sins is genuine. It works! His forgiveness is perfect! It was divinely designed to destroy both sin and guilt! (2) It occurs because the Christian stops seeing himself as a sinner. If a Christian feels like he is an unforgiven sinner, if he believes he is still condemned for his sinfulness, and if he sees himself as a spiritual failure, then he will live and act like an unforgiven sinner who is a spiritual failure. A persons life and actions are powerfully influenced by what he believes himself to be. (3) It occurs because a person has begun to see himself as the new creature which God has brought into being through the blood of Jesus. He understands a basic truth: he is not a Christian because of his worthiness; he is a Christian because of the grace of God. (4) It occurs because he starts trusting Gods promises and stops trusting himself.

The effect of this transformation will be greater obedience given without struggle, more determined opposition to sin in his life, and increased service to God because of deeper love for God. By personal choice and desire, Jesus becomes the person he most wants to be like. He becomes a conscious imitator of Jesus.

The Inseparable Line

These blessings are real! A life free from the nagging burden of guilt is available! Life free from the fear of hell is possible! The ability to feel clean and pure before God exists! Any Christian can live in the joy of hope knowing that he is righteous before God instead of in the anxiety of failure fearing that he is lost!

These blessings are not the result of superhuman, near perfect obedience. They are not the result of living the majority of the days of ones life without making any mistakes. They are not the result of rendering such incredible service to God that one is confident that he is good enough to be saved.

These blessings are available only through possessing the faith which makes one righteous before God. The key to possessing that faith is developing full, confident trust in Gods promises. Mans faith and Gods promises are inseparably linked. The faith of righteousness trusts promises in the face of personal doubts. It trusts promises when all circumstances scream that God cannot keep His promises. Even when one errs, he still trusts the promises. The faith of righteousness allows Gods promises to serve as the basis of decision making and to be the determining factor in the way one lives and directs the course of his life.

Now that you understand the faith of righteousness, now that you know its power, its promise of full life, and its blessings, cultivate that faith in your life as a baptized believer in Jesus Christ. Be neither content nor satisfied with anything less!

Chapter Thirteen Questions

1. Explain this statement: becoming a righteous person has never been a matter of human achievement.

2. Why do some Christians not want the righteousness which is through faith?

3. How is the conclusion that being saved and righteous is only a matter of obedience both harsh and comforting? Why is the comfort a false comfort?

4. Explain this statement: Christians who do not learn of and understand the faith of righteousness seek to live for the ideal Savior with a law-of- Moses attitude and perspective.

5. What has Jesus made unnecessary for the Christian?

6. How is a relationship with God in which God will not reckon sin produced?

7. In what ways will living by the faith of righteousness transform a Christians life?

8. For what reasons does that transformation occur?

9. What will be the effect of that transformation upon the person?

10. Why must mans faith and Gods promises be inseparably linked?

Suggestion

Have the class discuss the most important lessons they have learned from this study.