Romans: The Gift

Romans 4:1-8

Is a relationship with God a reward for our good works? Or is it a gift of grace? Maybe it's a mix—receiving this relationship is a gift, but you need to do good works to maintain it? 

What steps should someone take to have a personal relationship with God? That is humanity’s ultimate question. 

Paul has emphasized throughout the first three chapters of Romans that a relationship with God is established through faith in Jesus.

Romans 3:23-25
…For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, whom God put forward as a propitiation by his blood, to be received by faith.

In Romans 4, Paul uses Abraham’s interaction with God to illustrate why a personal relationship with God is based on faith. Abraham is a key example because he was the “Father” of the Jews (Matt. 3:9, et al.). His trust in the Lord serves as the example for faith (Gen. 15:6), and his faith came before the law was given. Using Abraham’s life as a foundation, Paul shares four important truths about justification.

• Since justification is a gift, it cannot be earned by works (Rom. 4:1-8).
• Abraham was justified before he was circumcised; therefore, circumcision has no bearing on justification (Rom. 4:9-12).
• Abraham was justified centuries before the law was provided; so, justification is not based on the law (Rom. 4:13-17).
• Abraham was justified because of his faith in God, not because of his works (Rom. 4:18-25). 

There's a lot to uncover in Romans 4. Today, we'll focus on the first eight verses, where Paul reminds us, once again, that works can't earn our justification. 

Paul sets up his first argument with a question: “What then shall we say was gained by Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh? For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about, but not before God” (Rom. 4:1-2).

The rabbis taught that Abraham was almost superhuman, in that he had a surplus of merits stored up from all his good works, which he passed down to his descendants. Amazing how many people think they can have a right standing before God based on another person’s merits (e.g., parents, grandparents, saints). 

Using that reasoning, Paul agreed that if Abraham could build up such an excess of good works, he would undoubtedly have something to boast about before men. The argument is hypothetical, but even if a person could somehow achieve a finite righteousness on his own, he could never boast of it in the presence of the eternal, holy God. 

So instead of following the claims of the rabbis, Paul asserts, let’s go to the source. 

Romans 4:3
For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness.” 

Paul is quoting Genesis 15:6. Let’s review the context. 

The Example of Abraham
Abraham was an older man when God told him he would be the father of a great nation, and that all the peoples of the world would be blessed through him (Gen. 12:1-3). However, there was one major problem. Abraham and his wife, Sarah, were childless and well past the age of having children. Again, in Genesis 15, God repeated the promise from Genesis 12 and told Abraham, “Your very own son shall be your heir” (Gen. 15:4). 

Genesis 15:5-6
And [God] brought [Abraham] outside and said, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” And [Abraham] believed the Lord, and he counted it to him as righteousness. 

There are two fundamental theological truths in this passage: let’s look at the theological terms, “faith” and “credited” (counted).

Faith
First, Abraham “believed (pisteou) the Lord.” That is, Abraham was “fully convinced that God was able to do what he had promised” (Rom. 4:21). The writer of Hebrews defines faith as “confidence in what we hope for and assurance about what we do not see” (Heb. 11:1 NIV). Faith is central to knowing God. For “by grace [we] have been saved, through faith” (Eph. 2:8a).  

Credited
Abraham believed the promises of God, and God “counted it to him as righteousness.” The word translated as “counted it to” is the Greek term logizomai. It was originally an accounting term meaning “deposited to one’s account.” Therefore, based on faith, God’s righteousness is credited to our account. The sin that was once there has been erased and replaced by a right standing before the Almighty God. 

Paul explains that someone who works for their wages is entitled to a specific amount. The reward follows the work (Rom. 4:4). However, for the person who does not work but believes that God makes the ungodly right before him, that person’s faith—being convinced of God's promises—results in God depositing righteousness into their account; “[their] faith is counted as righteousness” (Rom. 4:5). 

The Example of David
Paul initially used Abraham as an example, but now he refers to King David.   

Romans 4:6-8
…Just as David also speaks of the blessing of the one to whom God counts righteousness apart from works: “Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sins are covered; blessed is the man against whom the Lord will not count his sin.” 

In this passage, Paul quotes Psalm 32. David had sinned, and in this psalm, he goes before God to seek forgiveness. David was already a believer, and here he speaks of the blessing of forgiveness “apart from works.”

What an incredible blessing! Like David, we are forever grateful that our “lawless deeds are forgiven” and that our “sins are covered” by Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross. God will never count our sins against us! He deposits righteousness into our lives; yet he will never credit the penalty of sin back to us when we are his children. 

Let’s wrap up by reaffirming these two key truths from Romans 4:1-8:

• Our right standing before God is based on grace through faith, not works.
• Our right standing before God cannot be undone by our sin. 

PERSONAL TIME WITH GOD 
Time in the Word: Read and reflect on Romans 4:1-8. Meditate on the blessings of God’s imputed righteousness.

Talking to God: Do you genuinely believe that your relationship with God depends on faith alone—or are you still trying to earn his approval through your good works?

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