Good morning. It's Wednesday already. The days just keep flying by, but thankfully each day we have opportunity to open God's Word and to look into it and be challenged and encouraged by the truth that we find written in God's Word. So today we're back to Romans chapter 4. Paul has, for us, shown the need that we have for a righteousness that comes apart from our own behavior, our own actions, an alien righteousness, something outside of us. Now, Paul is in the midst of showing how that righteousness which God provided in Jesus Christ, how can that be granted to us? Paul explains to us that that righteousness can only be granted to us by faith. And so, in verses 1 through 8, he labored to establish the fact that this was the way it was for Abraham. Abraham was saved by faith. that the forgiveness of sins, the blessedness, is only for those to whom the Lord does not take their sins into account. In other words, that their account is wiped clean. And so Abraham was a sinner. He didn't earn his way. But instead, it was Abraham believed God, and God credited to him that he was righteous. intertwining with that argument is the glory that the Jewish, even Jewish believers would have had in their circumcision. The circumcision was to be a sign of the covenant. And therefore the covenant they are tempted to believe is, pardon me, the covenant standing in position with something vital and important, a part of their works was their circumcision. And so Paul wants to address and attack that wrong view that circumcision benefited. Excuse me. So we pick it up in verse 9 here this morning. of Romans chapter 4. Is this blessing then on the circumcised or on the uncircumcised also? For we say faith was credited to Abraham as righteousness. How then was it credited? While he was circumcised or uncircumcised? not while circumcised, but while uncircumcised. And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had while uncircumcised, so that he might be the father of all who believe without being circumcised, that righteousness might be credited to them, and the father of circumcision to those who not only are of the circumcision, but also of those but who also follow in the steps of the faith of our father Abraham, which he had while uncircumcised. So Paul relates to another intertwining issue. I mean, what about, we are the people of God. We weren't pagan, we were the true religion. And we take pride in our sign of being the people of God, our circumcision. And so Paul notes another significant aspect of Abraham's faith and righteousness was the fact that faith preceded any signs of faith. And this makes sense. that faith must precede signs of faith, but it's not always thought through by religious people. Abraham was circumcised. That circumcision takes place in Genesis chapter 17. The declaration of Abraham believed God and the belief was credited to him as righteousness took place in Genesis 15 Well, it's only just a couple couple minutes later. No, it's actually 15 years that transpires between Abraham's faith and Abraham's sign of faith So Paul demonstrates here in this section in other words that Abraham believed prior to circumcision. And that means that he is the father of all, both the circumcised and the uncircumcised. Faith alone is the instrument that grants all access to Abraham's fatherhood. In other words, you can be a part of Abraham's blessed descendant, not ethnicity, but a child of faith, part of the spiritual family, if you too believe. That's the only determining factor. So one of the key questions is whether Abraham's obedience was the cause of his salvation or the fruit of his salvation. And Paul wants us to see that he was the father of all who believe, circumcised and uncircumcised alike, because the key issue was faith, which then leads to obedience. So building on David's mention of blessedness, of salvation, for those who are redeemed by faith, Paul draws on the question whether or not this took place prior to circumcision or not. The order in his spiritual experience was faith, justification, circumcision. Or we might say faith, justification, then obedience. From the fact that Abraham's justification preceded the initiation of the rite of circumcision, Paul can draw a couple conclusions. The first is that there is a universality of the justification by faith alone. In other words, in the experience of Abraham, we see justification of an uncircumcised Gentile who then becomes a believer. It wasn't that Abraham was circumcised and then received justification or faith. In a sense then, and in a real sense, There was no people of God prior to God's call on his life, his response of faith to that call. Abraham was the primary Gentile who gets saved. He was saved by faith, and that faith was prior to circumcision. So he asked, is there blessing then on the circumcised or on the uncircumcised also? Before we say, let me just remind you of the key text Paul says, faith was credited to Abraham as righteousness. How then was it credited? So how did this all play out? While he was circumcised or uncircumcised? Well it certainly wasn't while he was circumcised, but while he was uncircumcised. And so circumcision obviously didn't save Abraham. He was saved as an uncircumcised Gentile. Instead, he goes on in verse 11 to say, and he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had while uncircumcised. And so circumcision was a sign and a seal. In other words, it pointed to and it was a confirmation of the faith that Abraham had so that he might be the father of all who believe without being circumcised. So Abraham's circumcision in his own life was evidence of the fact that he was a genuine believer by faith. To say that it was a sign and a seal means that it has no intrinsic value. It was a seal that was placed on the righteousness that he gained by faith. What do you mean as a seal? Well, we might say it can't make one real, it can't make one genuine, it can't convert you. It simply documented that Abraham was in fact trusting God and therefore had a relationship with God through faith. we might compare it to baptism, right? I argue that baptism is significantly crucial and important because baptism is a sign of my faith that has gone on in my heart. And somebody who refuses to be baptized has caused to doubt whether they are truly born again. Failure to identify with Christ publicly and to join with the people of God is a big, huge, whoa, what's going on here? However, that does not mean baptism saves or that you cannot be saved without baptism. Baptism doesn't save. The thief on the cross wasn't baptized. It was like we're in a transition time. Okay, there have been others who have been saved on their deathbed. And they might be in the latter stages of cancer or something like that, but still coherent and cry out for faith in God and are born again. never get baptized, but they're truly saved by faith. It was not a refusal to be baptized because they didn't want to identify with the people of God, it was a refusal to be baptized because they can't. So baptism isn't like a last rite in the Catholic faith, or it isn't something that kind of seals the deal, completes it. It is a sign and a seal pointing to or confirming what has gone on in the heart. Well, Paul is arguing something similar in regards to circumcision. Circumcision for Abraham was not a cause of regeneration. It wasn't the means for justification. Instead, It was the reality that Abraham was trusting God. So then, if that's the case, verse 11, if this is really the way it is, Abraham, as the spiritual father of all believers, both Gentiles and Jews, is the spiritual father of them as those who believe. Because Abraham believed while uncircumcised and that belief was credited to him, he is the father of all Gentile believers as much as he is the father of all who would believe and were already circumcised. He is qualified to be the father of all Jewish believers and all Gentile believers because they're all believers. That was the key component. Now, Abraham in this time, and Paul has a powerful argument that he's arguing here for these predominantly Jewish who are being argued with at the moment. He was revered as the father of Israel, especially in the Old Testament. And, you know, this is part of the struggle of this whole initial apostolic period, the time of transition. To become born again in the Old Testament, following the giving of the Mosaic Law, one had to be rightly related to the people of God. And Abraham is the spiritual father of all of those who were Jews. You could become a Jew, even though your ethnicity wasn't Jewish, Rahab, Ruth. So you could, but you had to rightly relate to the God of Israel through the Old Testament law. And that would require in that Old Testament economy, that one Gentile becoming a Jew would be circumcised. But that was to be a sign of my faith in God, not the saving act necessary for salvation. Well, the times have changed. And therefore, God in his grace had given a record of Abraham's own experience to show that salvation was not a works thing requiring certain behavior by human beings, apart from the one action which is not even a work, it is a gift, it is faith, trusting in what God has done through Christ. And so, because Abraham was a Gentile, uncircumcised, he is the father, then, of all who will believe. And because he believed and was also circumcised, he is qualified to be the father of all who were part of the nation of Israel and who believed. And so, Abraham is the father, as it were, of the promise of Genesis 14, 17. That is, Abraham is the father of many nations. All of those who are saved by faith are true spiritual children, whether Jew or Gentile. The key question is in this current time, is salvation by the Mosaic law? In other words, by partaking in the Jewish nation and therefore Jewish circumcision? And the answer, of course, is no. Because that law, that covenant, and I think that's helpful for us to think through, it was the covenanted relationship. God had divorced Israel. that covenant had been nailed to the cross. Christ fulfilled its obligations, yes, but when the exile happened, the covenant had been set aside and we await a new covenant for the nation of Israel. in which, again, one will, in the future time, have to be in a right relationship with God by worshiping God through that new covenant, but the nations will be saved, and they'll be saved by faith. And so this is, I think, a hugely important passage for us even to understand our own experience in our own lives. He's going to go on and this is going to transition as Paul navigates under the work of the Holy Spirit. This is going to transition into Abraham's exercise of faith and growing strong in faith and therefore our growing strong in faith. Remember his point is those who are justified by faith will live. So his point is not, faith alone remains alone, it never has any behavior that shows it's faith. He's not in contradiction of James, there's no conflict. James says genuine faith shows itself through it's works. Guess what James uses? James uses the same passage, Abraham believed God and it was credited to him for righteousness. How can James use that? Because this is obviously salvation apart from works. Because James isn't arguing for salvation by works. He's arguing that that faith that believed God The reckoning that he was righteous was true because God's salvation by faith alone showed itself when Abraham, who eventually was circumcised because he failed his faith, didn't work, but yet God continued to work on him, and eventually he had a son, and when God came said, you need to sacrifice your son. Abraham didn't blink an eye. He said, okay, God. And so it's not that his faith earned his salvation. God was just showing that the faith of Abraham, by which he was initially saved, was a real faith that showed itself in growing stronger and stronger. Well, Paul is going to actually show us this same progression as we work through Romans 4, 5, 6. Struggle of chapter 7 it is the just by faith Who show itself in in obedience to God? Not perfect obedience right because when did circumcision come in? When Abraham didn't maintain the promise of Meaning, Sarah said, we'll take my handmaid. So he did. And they conceived a child. And in conceiving that child, it was not the child of promise. This is not the one. Abraham, I said, was you and Sarah. Yeah, but she's getting older, and we can't conceive. And we thought maybe the handmaiden was some sort of weird line through, and this would be. And no, Abraham, let's remember to trust God with this whole conception of the child. So we'll take your sexual organ and we'll do a procedure on it that is quite painful to remind you that this sexual relationship by which conception of a child will transpire is requiring you to keep trusting me for the conception of the child. And so Abraham did. get circumcised as a, not because he had perfect faith, it just is coming off, but this sanctifying faith, circumcision was part of this sanctification of his faith growing stronger and stronger. And so that's what Paul means when it was a sign and a seal. It was the indication that he in fact did trust God and that having trusted God, he obeyed God. But it was by faith and faith alone that he had been declared righteous and that righteousness would then play itself out in his obedience and growing stronger and stronger in that faith. And so how does this help you and I navigate our lives today? Well, if you're like me, And you are in some ways, what ways? We're both sinners. And when we confess our sin, we can be mired in the pit of despair. I was angry yesterday. I've already blown it with the kids or with my spouse today. I've asked God to help me. I'm not there yet. Maybe I'm not really saved because I'm struggling with this sin. You're looking at the wrong reality. Obedience flows out from faith. Obedience grows strong, or faith grows strong, producing obedience. You're in the midst of the struggle of sanctification perseverance, repentance, the Spirit of God helping you put to death the deeds of the flesh, the wrestling, the things I don't do, I should do, I wanted to do, but I don't do, those things, the things I don't want to do, I end up doing, that whole Romans 7 struggle. In other words, as you find the need to repent today, It's not to say, well, sin doesn't matter. No, don't, don't go there. It is to say, praise God as I'm here saying the same thing about my sin. My sin is an offense to you. It deserves your just punishment. I deserve hell for these things I'm confessing, but thank you for Jesus. See, sometimes in our confession of sin, we never even bring Jesus into the equation. We fall short by saying, um, I'm really bad God. And I know I'm miserable because I'm such a bad person. And, and I just, I don't know. It's hopeless. And I, I, you know, I don't want to do this and we, we muddle and mire and, and yes, there should be genuine repentance. This includes tears, but it includes grace. and that grace comes to you through Jesus. And so our confession of sin doesn't help further our sanctification because we never get to Romans 3. There is a, apart from the law, a righteousness of God that has been made known, revealed, and is a righteousness that is made known through the law because we are all having sinned and continually falling short of the glory of God. But we are justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus. And so how does this help us? This understanding of Abraham's sign and seal as it relates to his declaration of righteousness, I think does help us both understand that it is faith and faith alone that caused our justification. And it is faith and faith alone, therefore, that will carry us along in the pathway of sanctification. Obedience flows out from justification. So as we confess our sins today, we turn back to Jesus. Jesus becomes sweeter, brighter, more glorious, more marvelous, more amazing, more brilliant in his care and wonder and concern and delight and all of these things. Jesus is fairer because Jesus is the one who justifies us, and we receive that only by faith. It's not by being better and doing better. It's, I come at this point of having sinned, and I come to you who has declared me to be righteous because I, by faith, have trusted in what you've done. That's what happened for Abraham. And Abraham is the father of faith. And he, as Paul will transition here in this chapter, he is the one who grows strong in faith by continuing to trust the promise of God. And it's a strengthening process. And we don't grow stronger in faith if our confession of sin falls short of taking us back to Jesus. We grow stronger in guilt. We mire in unworthiness. And it's not that we are to find ourselves worthy. That's just a reality. That's a given. It is being justified as a gift, a freely received at no cost to me, a gift by means of his grace through the redemption purchased that is found only in Christ Jesus, received by faith alone. So Abraham is your pattern. And this is so helpful for Jewish believers to live in unity. They need to not be trying to be better than the Gentile believers. And to bring that all down, wherever we are in the stage of sanctification, We are all in Christ by faith. So there are no levels. There are those united to Christ and those apart from Christ, saved and unsaved. And when we all come by faith, then there's an amazing ability. When Christ is everything then, then it doesn't matter where you are. Yes, we may feel ashamed of our sins, and yet there's a willingness to just be a Christian by faith, a willingness to be open, a willingness to battle sin together, a willingness to struggle along with one another and to help and to encourage and not condemn, but yet help be accountable. All of this flows out of a genuine faith. So I hope, yes, he's establishing a very theological point, but it does have a purpose and a point that I think is very applicable still to us, that we don't get caught up on circumcision or non-circumcision as much today. We still have to see the point is faith. It's faith for the atheist who gets converted, It's faith for the Baptist child who grows up in kids for truth, knowing the catechisms, both need to be saved. And the only way they get saved is by faith. That's it. And that they are saved will be played out in their obedience as that is the sign and the seal that they're truly born again. It's not the cause. It's just the evidence. All right. Well, enough for this morning. I do look forward to our time together this evening and for our kids to learn those catechisms and answers as just another layer of trying to reach them with the gospel. And so I hope you'll be able to join with us. Look forward to seeing you here this evening if you can. Lord bless you. Bye-bye.