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One of my favorite chapters in the book of Romans is chapter 8. Remember, the entire book of Romans is doctrinal. The word doctrine means truth or truths. Jesus proclaimed the truths of the Kingdom; the Apostle Paul explained how to apply the truths, how to live in the Kingdom while on earth.

Four Principles of Romans 8

There are four important principles that we can learn from Romans 8 that will help us to understand how we are to become victorious in this life:

1. The only way we can successfully overcome temptation and sin is to recognize that as a believer in Jesus Christ, His Holy Spirit lives in. The Holy Spirit is available to teach us, lead and guide us, and most importantly, empower us to do what is right in God’s eyes which brings the blessing!
2. The presence of the Holy Spirit (seal, and awareness) confers upon us a new relationship with the Lord, and that is sonship. We are, in reality, sons and daughters of God through adoption and therefore brothers with Christ and heirs of all that the Father has. In other words, we get to inherit.
3. The Holy Spirit encourages and gives us the confidence that we will overcome and see the victory no matter what we are going through now. In the end, we win!
4. As Believers, we can be sure that God’s love for us will never fail. Never think that your behavior can cause God to love you less. We live in a “fallen” world consumed by sin. (Isa 5:20, Rom 1:18-23) and the enemy of your soul, the devil wants you to reject the Love of the Father, the sacrifice of the Son, and the power of the Holy Spirit.

Today we only have time to cover the first principle; we will continue with the others next time. 

Romans Chapter 8:1-13

Free from Indwelling Sin

Romans 8:1 “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.”

If you are in Christ, you are not condemned. Condemnation is a sentence to punishment in the same manner as an earthly Judge sentences a criminal to prison or death. Condemnation means guilt, shame, separation, and does not come from God. Satan is called the “accuser of the brethren,” and he tries to condemn us before God, but Jesus is our intercessor who sits at the right hand of the Father, and Jesus claims us as His own. Furthermore, Jesus says that no one can “snatch us out of His hand”, John 10:27 “My sheep hear My voice, and I know them, and they follow Me. 28 And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of My hand. 29 My Father, who has given them to Me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of My Father’s hand. 30 I and My Father are one.”

Now, the evidence that you are in Christ is that you behave in a manner that reflects God in you. That means to walk in the Spirit, notice that the Spirit has a capital “S,” which refers to the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of God. Christianity is not about belonging to a Christian organization or institution; it is about a relationship with the living God! Remember, when Jesus ascended to heaven after His resurrection, He went to sit at the right hand of the Father to make intercession for us. When Jesus went up, the Holy Spirit came down to dwell in the believer just as Jesus promised in the Gospel of John.

• John 14:15 “If you love Me, keep My commandments. 16 And I will pray the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may abide with you forever— 17 the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; but you know Him, for He dwells with you and will be in you. 18 I will not leave you orphans; I will come to you.”
• John 14:26 “But the Helper, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in My name, He will teach you all things, and bring to your remembrance all things that I said to you.”

As a side note, don’t fall into the trap of “self-condemnation” or let others heap condemnation on you! Feeling condemnation will only cause you to separate yourself from God. Instead, pick yourself up, run to Him and repent. Be assured that the Holy Spirit lives in, and you are loved, forgiven, and accepted. 

Romans 8:3 “For what the law could not do in that it was weak through the flesh, God did by sending His own Son in the likeness of sinful flesh, on account of sin: He condemned sin in the flesh, 4 that the righteous requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us who do not walk according to the flesh but according to the Spirit.”

The Law, or the Law of Moses, was given so that we would know what sin is. It also was given so that we would know what God expects from us; the law is like a set of train tracks to keep us going in the right direction. God’s desire is to bless His creation, and when we live to please Him, we have access to the abundant life. The problem is that we don’t want to stay on the “tracks”; we want to go to the left or the right, and when we do, we sin. So, the temptation to sin is powerful because we all want our own way; we want what we want! All of this is because of what Paul calls the “Sin Nature” that all of mankind acquired due to the “Fall” in the Garden of Eden. Paul makes the case in Romans 7 that we wind up doing what we don’t want to do or unable to do what we want to do. The problem is that we operate in the flesh, that is, doing what we think is right in our own eyes or opinion.

What Jesus did was to fulfill the Law through His final sacrifice once and for all on the Cross; now who ever accepts Jesus as Lord and Savior has been delivered from condemnation and receives the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit knows the mind of the Father and is able to lead us into righteousness!

Romans 8:5 “For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. 6 For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.”

What you set your mind on, you will follow. The Scriptures say that who you obey is master over you. Obey the carnal desires, and the flesh is your master and death will be your outcome; obey the Holy Spirit’s promptings, and God is your master resulting in life and peace. Something I’ve learned in life is that if your focus is on sin, it will lead you to sin, but if you focus on righteousness and grace, it will lead you to righteousness. So, instead of concentrating on avoiding sin, focus on doing right, and temptation will fall away!

Romans 8:7 “Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. 8 So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God.

If you have been a Christian for any length of time, it should be obvious that without the Spirit of God working in us, it is impossible to avoid sin and do the right thing. It is so difficult to rely on your own self-control to please God. That’s what “those who are in the flesh cannot please God” means. You need the Helper; the Holy Spirit helps you overcome temptation and sin!

Romans 8:9 “But you are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you. Now if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he is not His. 10 And if Christ is in you, the body is dead because of sin, but the Spirit is life because of righteousness. 11 But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through His Spirit who dwells in you”.

When you allow the Spirit of Christ to empower your life, you won’t be controlled by the flesh. By the way, if the Holy Spirit doesn’t live in you, you can’t belong to Jesus! You cannot pick and choose your doctrine! On a positive note, now that Christ lives his life in you even though your body may be dead because of the effects of sin, his life-giving Spirit imparts life to you because God fully accepts you. Yes, the Father raised Jesus to life! And since God’s resurrection spirit lives in you, He will also raise your mortal body to life by the same Spirit that breathes life into you!

Romans 8:12 “Therefore, brethren, we are debtors—not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. 13 For if you live according to the flesh you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live”. 

Therefore, brothers and sisters, the flesh has no claims on us, and we have no further obligation to live in obedience to it. For when you live controlled by the flesh, you are about to die. But if the life of the Spirit puts to death the corrupt ways of the flesh, we then taste His abundant life.

Let me close this section with the words of Paul in Galatians 2:20, “I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me.”

The Purpose of the Law.

The purpose of the Law is to show us the character of the Lord and what He expects from us. His expectation of us is to obey Him so that He can bless us and fulfill His purpose.

Galatians 3:19-25 “What purpose then does the law serve? It was added because of transgressions (Adam and Eve), till the Seed (Jesus) should come to whom the promise was made; and it was appointed through angels by the hand of a mediator. 20 Now, a mediator does not mediate for one only, but God is one.”

The Law was given because of the transgressions of Adam and Eve. As a result of the Fall, mankind had a conscience, discerning good from evil. In the Garden of Eden, after the Fall, the Lord made a promise to provide a Seed or Messiah. A Savior to deliver mankind from sin and the transgression that released the sin-nature. The beauty of Jesus is that He mediates for us; a mediator intercedes between two parties. Because Jesus is God, He is also one with the Father. When we come to Jesus, there is no better mediator because when we come to Jesus, we come to the Father as well.

Galatians 3:21 “Is the law then against the promises of God? Certainly not! For if there had been a law given which could have given life, truly righteousness would have been by the law. 22 But the Scripture has confined all under sin, that the promise by faith in Jesus Christ might be given to those who believe.” 

The Law is not against the promises of God, but the Law cannot give life. Therefore true righteousness cannot be through the Law. The scriptures clearly state that “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23).” However, faith in Jesus Christ releases the work of the Messiah or Savior to deliver from the hold of the sin-nature.

Galatians 3:23 But before faith came, we were kept under guard by the law, kept for the faith which would afterward be revealed. 24 Therefore the law was our tutor to bring us to Christ, that we might be justified by faith. 25 But after faith has come, we are no longer under a tutor (the Law).

Before faith came the Law showed us what was expected of us and the knowledge that by our own strength or efforts, we could not keep the Law. The Law was a tutor or teacher showing us what was expected of us until the message of Faith came in the New Covenant. Now that the Gospel has been revealed and the gift of Grace is released by Faith in Jesus alone, His righteousness is transferred or imputed to us by faith. “For by Grace we have been saved through Faith, it is a gift of God not of works (of the Law), lest any man should boast” (Ephesians 2:8-9).

Romans 7

In Romans 7 1-6, Paul puts forth the argument that the only way to be free from the Law is to be dead to the Law. He uses the illustration of a married woman. As long as her husband is alive, she is bound to her husband for as long as he lives. However, if the husband dies, she is free to marry another and not be called an adulteress. In verse 4, Paul says, “Therefore, my brethren, you also have become dead to the law through the body of Christ, that you may be married to another—to Him who was raised from the dead, that we should bear fruit to God.” In other words, we need to be spiritually Born-again! To be Born-again means that the old has died and all things are new (2 Corinthians 5:17). You have died to sin and now re-born to live for God.

Romans 7:7-12 points out that the Law actually creates a desire for what is forbidden but not the power to resist temptation. As Believers, we know that it is foolishness to resist God, but Proverbs 9:17 states a truth: “17 “Stolen water is sweet, and bread eaten in secret is pleasant.” 18 But he does not know that the dead are there, that her guests are in the depths of hell.” The very temptation that seems so sweet and pleasurable turns around and causes guilt, shame, and condemnation!

Romans 7:13-25, Righteousness in a sin filled world.

The realization that although I want to do the right thing very often, something comes over me, and I wind up doing the very thing I don’t want to do. Has that ever happened to you? It certainly has happened to me, and the Apostle Paul acknowledges that he had to deal with that as well.

The way Paul puts it, there seems to be a battle between my will or mind and my flesh. This is a real problem for the Christian even today. The conflict between what I know is right to do and the ability to do what is right often escapes me.

I think if we are honest with each other, we would all admit that we all face times when we know what is right and yet we do the opposite, then afterwards we wonder why we did it? The Apostle Paul calls this the sin nature of man, which is opposed to the Spirit of God.

Remember, the Devil is the author of lies, half-truths, and temptations. He makes the temptation so attractive and pleasant-looking, then once you have fallen into his trap, he accuses you and heaps guilt, shame, and condemnation! Satan or the Devil is called the accuser of the brethren in the Bible (Revelation 12:10), and he does his evil work very effectively.

Conclusion

In Romans 7:24 Paul cries out,” O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? 25 I thank God—through Jesus Christ our Lord!” Perhaps you have felt this way too, the good news is found in the beginning of Romans 8, “There is therefore now no condemnation to those who are in Christ Jesus, who do not walk according to the flesh, but according to the Spirit. 2 For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has made me free from the law of sin and death.” 

Paul is saying that because of what Jesus accomplished at the Cross of Calvary, I am not condemned. I’ve been set free of the control of the sin nature, and I am empowered by the Holy Spirit to resist sin and temptation. My attitude is gratitude for the Lord in that He took all of my sins and “remembers them no more.” I now choose to be guided by the Holy Spirit because I am loved, forgiven, and accepted. Choosing to follow Jesus is a journey, but in time I will be able to submit to God and resist the Devil (James 4:7) in all areas of my life. 

When I stumble and fall, I know that I can come to the Lord repent, and He will pick me up. He will never reject me! 1 John 1:5 says the following: “This is the message which we have heard from Him and declare to you, that God is light and in Him is no darkness at all. 6 If we say that we have fellowship with Him, and walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth. 7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus Christ His Son cleanses us from all sin.8 If we say that we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us. 9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.”

Finally, remember that the Lord is much more interested in the attitude of the heart than outward appearances. His grace is sufficient; in 2 Corinthians 12:9 Jesus said to the Apostle Paul, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” What is true for Paul is true for each one of us who desires to follow Jesus! In your weakness, be quick to repent. You are His, and He is yours. He will never leave you nor forsake you.

More on the glorious promises of victory found by walking in the Spirit in Chapter 8 of Romans, the next time we meet. 

We have been looking at the book of Romans, which the Apostle Paul wrote We need to understand that the entire book was actually a single letter or epistle. The natural tendency is to begin at the beginning of a chapter and then read to the end of the chapter as if it were a single letter, but a chapter is just part of a letter. Keep in mind that all of the scriptures are made available to us because of God’s great love for us.

So far, we have looked at Romans Chapter 5 (Episodes/Posts 114 – 115), which dealt with grace, righteousness, and justification. Romans 4 (Episodes/Posts 116 – 117) examined the importance of faith in receiving the grace of God in Jesus Christ. Again, never lose sight of God’s love for you as you read and study the scriptures.

Today we will look at Romans 6, which deals with the difficult challenge of living a righteous life in the world today. There are two crucial issues in Romans 6 for the Believer, the first is the concept of “being dead to sin,” the second is the idea that “who you obey is master over you!” 

Let’s look at the first issue, being dead to sin.

The first verse in Romans 6 states, “What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound?” This statement only makes sense if we look at the end of Romans 5, “But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more.” The Apostle Paul was trying to avoid a false idea that the more one sinned, the more grace would abound or that it was ok to sin because grace was available. However, when we read the end of chapter 5 and the beginning of chapter 6 together, it makes sense, “5:20 Moreover the law entered that the offense might abound. But where sin abounded, grace abounded much more, 21 so that as sin reigned in death, even so grace might reign through righteousness to eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord. 6:1 What shall we say then? Shall we continue in sin that grace may abound? 2 Certainly not (or of course not)! How shall we who died to sin live any longer in it?

Here the principle of being dead to sin is introduced. You must choose to see yourself as dead to sin. If you are dead to sin, then sin can’t have any control over you! Before you knew Christ, you did not have the Holy Spirit to guide you. The Holy Spirit makes the Bible, the Word of God, come alive and have meaning for you. The Holy Spirit also battles with the flesh to lead you into righteousness instead of sin, but you must make choices every step of the way. Remember 2 Corinthians 5:17 “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” The spiritual reality is that the “old you” is dead, and you are now alive in Jesus Christ. Romans 6 says, “Or do you not know that as many of us as were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into His death? 4 Therefore we were buried with Him through baptism into death, that just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, even so we also should walk in newness of life.”

Let’s jump to Romans 6, beginning in verse 12. We’re told that we have to decide to make sure that sin doesn’t control our bodies and that we don’t find ourselves in situations and circumstances that will lead to unrighteousness or sin. We must choose to present ourselves to God as being alive from the dead and our actions and words reflect the righteousness of God. Because we’re given this promise in verse 14, sin will not have dominion over us because we’re not under Law (legalism) but under Grace (relationship). In other words, we don’t have to let sin control us. God is at work in you to desire and to empower you to please the Lord, which means dying to sin. (Philippians 2:13) Because of the Holy Spirit in us, we can always choose to say and do the right thing as difficult it may seem in the beginning. 

The second issue in Romans 6 is the issue of who has control over your life?

You can serve the Lord, or you can serve the “flesh.” The flesh, in this case, are the natural urges of humankind, the philosophies of the world. The flesh also includes as the hurtful habits or ways of thinking, that we have learned, that are contrary to the will of God. Listen to what Romans 8 tells us about the flesh and Spirit, “5 For those who live according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according to the Spirit, the things of the Spirit. 6 For to be carnally minded is death, but to be spiritually minded is life and peace. 7 Because the carnal mind is enmity against God; for it is not subject to the law of God, nor indeed can be. 8 So then, those who are in the flesh cannot please God.”

Paul makes this major point in Romans 6:16, “Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness?”The brutal truth is that Satan wants to enslave you into doing his will. Satan’s desire is to steal, kill and destroy, but the Lord’s purpose is that you would serve the Lord and experience the abundant life! (John 10:10) A life filled with love, peace, and joy.

Finally, Romans 6:23 ends with a verse that we should all memorize, “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.”

The Benefits of Grace.

The benefits of grace, righteousness, and faith only apply to a believer in Jesus Christ. A true believer is one who has accepted Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior! Now, what does the phrase “Lord and Savior” mean? Let’s take the word Savior first. Accepting Jesus as Savior means that you believe that Jesus died for your sins and rose again to be alive with the Father in Heaven. In other words, your place in Heaven is assured, and your confidence is in Jesus that you will rise again. Death has no “sting” which means we don’t fear death. Don’t get me wrong, we are all human, and we naturally don’t look forward to death, but death doesn’t produce terror because we know that no matter what happens, our destination is Heaven. We have peace with God!

The word Lord, in Lord and Savior, means that we voluntarily submit to Jesus as our King. As our King, we do all that is in our power to obey Him and His teachings. Now, we don’t have the strength or power to obey the Lord in our own natural strength and ability; as much as we try, we always fall short. However, Jesus in His wisdom gave us the Holy Spirit to help, comfort, teach and guide us in overcoming the attractions of the flesh and the world! Every true believer has the Holy Spirit, whether they believe it or not. It is a matter of learning to discern His voice and then to obey.

I’ve been using the term “true believer” as one who is truly redeemed or saved. How does one become a true believer, Romans 10:5-13 says it best:

Then starting in Romans 10:8, But what does it say? “The word is near you, in your mouth and in your heart” (that is, the word of faith which we preach): 9 that if you confess with your mouth the Lord Jesus and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, you will be saved. 10 For with the heart one believes unto righteousness, and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation. 11 For the Scripture says, “Whoever believes on Him will not be put to shame.” 12 For there is no distinction between Jew and Greek, for the same Lord over all is rich to all who call upon Him. 13 For “whoever calls on the name of the LORD shall be saved.”

True faith is a Commitment, not just a Statement! 

Calling on the Lord means that you have confessed with your mouth and believed in your heart that God raised Jesus from the dead. Confessing with your mouth is that act of repentance, recognizing that your sin has separated you from God and that you truly want to see that relationship restored. Believing in your heart is that act of commitment to follow Jesus wherever he may take you! It’s not enough to just say the words the words must be followed up with the desire to follow Jesus. 

For some people fulfilling the commitment to Jesus is easier than for others. All of us have different backgrounds and “baggage” to overcome in life. We are not to judge the progress of another Christian as long as they are moving forward in their relationship with Jesus Christ. We should be encouraging them. As in all things in life, when you encounter something new, there is a learning curve, that process where you take baby steps in the beginning and then move forward into maturity. As one matures, they are able to take the greater steps that we often associate with a strong believer. 

We should be thankful that God is patient, loving, merciful, and kind and he accepts us right where we are and brings us into places that we could never imagine. The Lord is gracious, his love boundless, and his desire is that you would walk with him, knowing that you are never alone because His Holy Spirit is with you leading and guiding you into the abundant life.

Faith is Spiritual

As stated in Hebrews 11:1, “Faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.” So, faith for a Christian is believing in the spiritual or unseen. You put your faith in Jesus and your hope in His promises. Again, it is not faith in faith or even faith in the promises found in the Bible, but faith in the One who made the promises in the Bible.

So, faith is not wishing, hoping, or wanting something to be. Instead, it is the confidence and assurance that because of the love of God, He will not leave you or abandon you to your circumstances. The Apostle Paul says in Romans 8:38-39, “For I am persuaded that neither death nor life, nor angels nor principalities nor powers, nor things present nor things to come, nor height nor depth, nor any other created thing, shall be able to separate us from the love of God which is in Christ Jesus our Lord”. Do you believe that… that nothing can separate you from God’s Love?

It is your faith in the Lord that causes you to behave or act in a manner that shows you have already received that for which you are believing. Now that was a mouthful! Let me put it this way; the world says, “Show me and then I will believe!” God says, “Believe in Me and then I will show you!” Genuine faith believes in the promise even before the promise is fulfilled!

Faith

For some Christians, faith is seen as something to employ in order to get God’s attention. We may have a need, desire, or some impending health crisis. Don’t get me wrong; when we have needs, we should bring them to the Lord. We are encouraged in the Word to bring our issues to the Lord. But faith is not something we turn to only when we are in trouble. Faith is the continual manifestation of our righteousness before God. In other words, I am trying to live in a way that is pleasing to God.

It is because of my fellowship or intimacy with God that I am confident, sure that He hears me and will answer me in my time of need. He is my help as I walk by faith in Jesus.  “Paul says in Philippians 2:12 Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, not as in my presence only, but now much more in my absence, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling; 13 for it is God who works in you both to will and to do for His good pleasure”.

As in the Garden of Eden, before the Fall, God wants to walk with you and fellowship with you. As you see your relationship with Him in this manner… you will find that your faith will grow, and all of the promises that faith brings will be yours.

Romans 4

I can think of no better book of the Bible than Romans 4, that speaks to the three concerns that we have today. Those three concerns are grace, Law, and faith. The Apostle Paul uses examples that the Jews of the time would be very familiar with, Abraham and King David. Abraham because he truly is the father of Israel in the sense that God had promised Abraham that out of his loins would come a great nation, and of course we know that is Israel, but also that a multitude of people would come from his loins. Clearly, the Jews of the day we’re very familiar with the promise of God to give this Israel a land of their own and prosperity. King David, of course, is the one whom God used to bring the struggling nation of Israel to power and prominence. 

Listen to what the Apostle Paul writes about Abraham beginning in chapter 4; Paul wrote that Abraham discovered the things of the flesh or what later became known as the works of the Law really meant nothing to God. Verse three says, “for what does the scripture say Abraham believed God and it was accounted to him for righteousness”, now that’s a powerful statement in itself. What Paul was saying was that it was faith that brought righteousness to Abraham. Remember Abraham believed God, and that’s what faith is. Faith is simply believing in God and then doing according to what you believe. He goes on to say in verse 4, “now to him who works the wages are not counted as grace but as debt.” In essence, Paul is saying that if you’re trying to work for your Salvation, then it can’t be by grace. Grace is a gift of God and is not earned or deserved.

He then goes on beginning in verse 5 to recount the words of King David in Romans 4:5, “But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness.” Notice that David was not believing in a system, ritual, or organization… he believed in Him!

David was a man who believed God and God’s righteousness was imputed to him, verse six says, “just as David also describes the blessedness of the man to whom God imputes righteousness apart from works,” and the keys here are “that David believed in God” and “apart from works.” 

There were many in that day that believed that because of circumcision and the covenant of the Law, they automatically were heirs to the promises of Abraham. Let me put it another way they believed that all they had to do was follow the rules and regulations of the Law, and the fact that they were Jews meant that they had earned the right to the promises of God. However, beginning in verse 9, Paul makes the case that Abraham was declared righteous because of faitheven before circumcision was instituted. This fact alone meant God was not only the God of the Jews but also non-Jews if they just simply believed in the Lord and acted accordingly. 

To be a doer of the Word is what God is looking for. Doing the Word is the evidence that you truly believe in Him. Many are content to just understand the Word, and they believe in an intellectual sense, but their lives do not reflect what they believe. Intellectual belief alone is not sufficient to have the righteousness of God imputed to you! What the Lord seeks is a relationship, not just following rules and regulations. A true relationship will produce a desire to please the One who has rescued and delivered us, our Lord Jesus Christ!

The rest of Romans 4 is an illustration of the faith that Abraham had in his Lord. In verse 16 Paul writes, “therefore it is of faith that it might be according to grace so that the promise might be sure to all the seed not only to those who are of the law but also to those who are the faith of Abraham who was the father of us all.” I hope you can see that Paul was saying that the promise was not simply for the Jews but for anyone who would believe in the Lord and trust him. 

Verse 19 begins a very powerful section of this chapter, and it begins with, “and not being weak in faith he did not consider his own body already dead since he was about 100 years old and the deadness of Sarah’s womb”. Remember, the promise was that they would have a son, and they waited patiently for the fulfillment of that promise. Here they were beyond the age of childbearing, and they still believed. Verse 20 says, “Speaking of Abraham he did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief but was strengthened in faith giving glory to God 21 and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform 22 and therefore it was accounted to him for righteousness”. Can you see it? It’s by faith that we come to God. It’s by faith that we appropriate or receive the promises of God; it’s faith in the One who made the promises found in the Bible.  The Lord is the one from whom all blessings flow.

In verse 23, Paul writes, “now it was not written for his sake (meaning Abraham) that it was imputed to him but for us. It shall be imputed to us who believe in him who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead who was delivered up because of our offenses and was raised because of our justification”. Hallelujah, he took away our sins, his righteousness was imputed upon us, and in God’s eyes, we are justified!

Grace and Faith

In my opinion, the following verses speak so clearly to the importance of grace and faith. Ephesians 2:8-9, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, 9 not of works, lest anyone should boast. 10 For we are His workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.”

Remember, grace is receiving something that you don’t earn or deserve; it is a gift. Salvation is offered as a gift from God, and we receive that gift by putting our faith in Jesus Christ and him alone. Notice, that the gift is not based on works, which simply means it has nothing to do with your own efforts to make yourself worthy or to make yourself good enough. After all, how good is good enough? Grace doesn’t end with the gift of salvation, what grace does it creates a desire to please the One who has extended grace to us. As the scripture clearly says, “we are his workmanship created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand that we should walk in them.” Simply put, God has a plan for your life, and as you walk out his plan, then you will see the blessings of God poured out on your life. 

Remember you can’t please God without faith, “But without faith it is impossible to please Him, for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him.” (Hebrews 11:6)

As you go through life bring to remembrance, or remind yourself that, “For by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, not of works, lest anyone should boast.” Or as another translation puts it, Hebrews 11:1, “Now faith brings our hopes into reality and becomes the foundation needed to acquire the things we long for. It is all the evidence required to prove what is still unseen.” (TPT)