Romans 4:1-8: "Abraham as the Example"

Paul knew he had just shocked his Jewish audience for the many who had never heard of justification by faith, rather than works in the law. He had laid out a masterful and detailed argument explaining how they can not rely on their heritage, law, and rituals to save them. Paul now wanted the man that most of them looked to as the father of the Jews. For centuries the Jewish people had believed that Abraham had been made right with God because of his own righteousness. However, Paul would now use the very man they looked to as proof that faith came through our own self righteousness, to prove that justification is through grace by faith alone. Paul used Abraham as the example for many reasons. Besides the main purpose which was stated above, Paul used Abraham because, "Abraham lived about 2,000 years before Paul wrote this letter, demonstrating that the principle of salvation by faith rather than by works was not new in Judaism." Another reason stated by MacArthur is, "Paul used Abraham as an example of salvation by faith simply because he was a human being. Until this point in Romans, Paul has been speaking primarily about theological truths in the abstract. In Abraham he gives a flesh and blood illustration of justification by faith."
Paul starts off his next section with another rhetorical question that he will quickly answer, "What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh, has found?" Paul is basically saying, because of all that I have said before this, that Jew and Gentile alike are all sinners and salvation is found in faith alone apart from the Law, what can we find in the example of Abraham, seeing that he is the foremost example of a man justified before God? Paul's answer is that, "If Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about; but not before God." Paul is now going to go step by step to explain how Abraham was justified before God. Using scripture, Paul will show that Abraham will not be able to boast before God, because it was nothing he had done to earn his salvation.

Paul gives us a tremendous example when trying to witness to people, by using Scripture. As infallible and inerrant truths from God, Paul turns to the pages of scripture to help prove his point "For what does the Scripture say?". Paul then quotes from Genesis 15:6, "And Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as righteousness." We can see from this verse that it was because "Abraham believed God", it was not because he did good works, it was not because he was born from a special family, it was not anything Abraham did except believe God. And what we see from this action is that "it was reckoned to him as righteousness". Reckoned, according to MacArthur's commentary, "carried the economic and legal meaning of crediting something to another's account." This is giving something to somebody without receiving anything of value in return. Abraham had nothing to give, nothing to offer a perfect and holy God, yet God credited Abraham's account w/ righteousness although he had given nothing in return. MacArthur writes, "That gracious reckoning reflects the heart of God's redemptive revelation and is the focus of both the Old and New Testaments. God has never provided any means of justification except through faith in Him." What we also must understand, is that a deep look into Abraham's life reveals many sinful actions. The Jews, who held up Abraham in the highest of regards, in fact, did not trust or listen to God many times in his life. Using Macarthur's brief summary of Abraham's life, we can see numerous times, where Abraham did not trust and obey God, "Because [Abraham] on partly obeyed God, however, bringing along his father and nephew Lot, Abraham wasted fifteen years in Haran, where the group lived until Terah died . . . But Abraham's faith was not perfect, just as no believer's faith is perfect. The first test he had to face was a famine in Canaan, and Abraham went to Egypt for help instead of to God. That disobedience put him in a compromising situation with the pharaoh. He claimed that his beautiful wife was his sister, fearing that the pharaoh might kill him in order to have her for himself . . . But again, when testing came, he relied on his own judgment rather than the Lord's word. When Sarah was getting beyond normal childbearing age and remained barren, Abraham took her foolish advice and took matters into his own hands. He committed adultery with Hagar, Sarah's maid, in the hope of having a male heir by her." A look into Abraham's life proves that no man is above sin and disobedience, even the most highly respected in Jewish culture. We can see that all that God blessed Abraham with was nothing he deserved, and was done solely on the sovereign will of God.

Paul helps further explain his point of using Genesis 15:6 by saying, "Now to the one who works, his wage is not reckoned as a favor, but as what is due". In other words, when someone works to earn their wage, they get paid what is due to them. What Paul is doing, is contrasting the difference between working and earning, and being freely given and reckoning. He is trying to help his readers understand that the scripture that speaks of Abraham's righteousness does not mention anything about works or earning something that was due to Abraham. He makes his point by saying, "But to the one who does not work, but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly", which is the case of Abraham, "his faith is reckoned as righteousness". Paul does a masterful job of using the Scriptures, the very ones used by the Jews to get their law, to help explain how even Abraham was given righteousness because he had faith in God, rather than something inherently good within him. MacArthur explains the reckoning in this verse, "The 'reckoning' Paul speaks of here is justification, that forensic act of God whereby He imputes Christ's perfect righteousness to the sinner's account then declares His verdict that the forgiven one is fully just."

After masterfully using Abraham as a proof that from the very beginning all men have been justified through faith, rather than works, Paul then moves to another Jewish icon: David. Paul states in v. 6, "just as David also speaks of the blessing upon the man to who God reckons righteousness apart from works". Paul is saying, not only was Abraham justified by faith, but I will show you that David, the greatest King of Israel, also believed that justification comes through faith only. Paul then quotes David from Psalm 32, "Blessed are those whose lawless deeds have been forgiven, and whose sins have been covered. Blessed is the man whose sin the Lord will not take into account." David understood that man is "blessed", not owed, but blessed, when God mercifully and graciously forgive their lawless deeds. Paul's point is that Abraham was justified by faith, David was justified by faith, he was justified by faith, and no one in history has ever been justified outside of faith in
God. This is a wonderful and rich truth to know that Christ's perfect life will be credited to me, not because I can earn it, or work for it, but because the gracious love of God for those who believe in His son.