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Monday, 3 December 2018
What has Abraham found?

Question of the day: So many questions in these 2 chapters. Both chapters start with questions. Romans 3:1a, 2a "Then what is the advantage of being Jewish? ... Much in every way." But I want to take my question today from the start of Chapter 4 ...

Romans 4:1 "What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh, has found?"

Answer: Before we answer this question, let’s fully understand it. Abraham is called our forefather. That's all of us, in fact it was written to Romans, who were not Jewish.

What did Abraham find? Abraham found favor through faith (not observance). His blessing was based on grace (undeserved favor) through faith.

Romans 4:3 2 "For what does the Scripture say? 'Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.'"

Abraham found a grace covenant with God that was fulfilled 1,500 years later through the lineage of King David in Messiah Yeshua. Does it get any more Jewish than that?

Can you sin your way out of grace? It's the wrong question. You can't do anything to deserve grace, so it follows that you can't do anything to not deserve grace. However; what about faith? Do we have to believe (as Abraham did) to receive grace? Verse me! Okay, try this ...

2 Thessalonians 2:13 "But we should always give thanks to God for you, brothers and sisters loved by the Lord, because God chose you as firstfruits for salvation through sanctification by the Ruach and belief in the truth."

"... AND belief in the truth." What is truth? The Bible answers that question. John 17:17 "Make them holy in the truth. Your word is truth."

There you have it. God's word is truth. If one believes one thing and does something else, isn’t that a pretty good definition of hypocrisy (see the RR from yesterday)? What follows is in the New Covenant written to believers ...

1 Corinthians 6:9-10 "Or don't you know that the unrighteous will not inherit the kingdom of God? Don't be deceived! The sexually immoral, idolaters, adulterers, those who practice homosexuality, thieves, the greedy, drunkards, slanderers, swindlers—none of these will inherit the kingdom of God."

Let's find the faith of Abraham and the faith of Yeshua. I say this to mark a distinction of a faith about Abraham and a faith about Yeshua. We're all on the road to New Jerusalem. Let's ease on down, ease on down the road. Success is not reaching our destiny, we succeed every day we walk with God. We all have a shared destiny in Messiah Yeshua. Let's walk with Him today.

Shalom.

Posted By Rabbi Michael Weiner, 11:03am Comment Comments: 0