Romans 4:9-16 Click here for Bible Verses
Hi GAMErs!
Today’s passage is Romans 4:9-16. Let’s go!
Romans 4:9-12 (NIV)
9 Is this blessedness only for the circumcised, or also for the uncircumcised? We have been saying that Abraham’s faith was credited to him as righteousness.
10 Under what circumstances was it credited? Was it after he was circumcised, or before? It was not after, but before!
11 And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. So then, he is the father of all who believe but have not been circumcised, in order that righteousness might be credited to them.
12 And he is also the father of the circumcised who not only are circumcised but who also walk in the footsteps of the faith that our father Abraham had before he was circumcised.
Verses 9-12: To show that righteousness by faith is a gift that God makes available to everyone and not only to Jews, Paul goes back to the example of Abraham. Paul notes that Abraham received his righteousness by faith before he was circumcised (v10). In this way, Abraham is a father of faith (that is, a great example and a forerunner of what it looks like to receive righteousness by faith) for all of us who are not circumcised, i.e. who do not come from a Jewish background (v11). In addition, since Abraham is the founding father of the Jewish people, Abraham receiving righteousness by faith is also an example for everyone who is circumcised, that is, who comes from a Jewish background. Praise God. Whether we are Jewish or Gentile, we see from Abraham’s story that righteousness by faith is a gift that God makes available to all of us regardless of our background.
Romans 4:13-15 (NIV)
13 It was not through law that Abraham and his offspring received the promise that he would be heir of the world, but through the righteousness that comes by faith.
14 For if those who live by law are heirs, faith has no value and the promise is worthless,
15 because law brings wrath. And where there is no law there is no transgression.
On verses 13-15: These verses can be a little hard to understand so let me try to unpack them. God had promised Abraham that he would be “heir of the world” (v13), that is, that Abraham would be the father of so many offspring he would not be able to count them (Genesis 15:4-5). How did Abraham receive this promise? Abraham received this promise “not through law” – that is, not in connection with how well Abraham obeyed God’s law – but in connection with Abraham receiving righteousness by faith (v13; see Genesis 15:4-6). Paul here is emphasizing the importance of having faith in God’s promise as opposed to trying to earn something from God by obeying God’s law. For if Abraham could become the father of many nations by trying to obey God’s law, then having faith in a promise would no longer be necessary (as verse 14 says, “if those who live by law are heirs, faith has no value and the promise is worthless”). But that’s not why God gave the law. Rather, God gave the law to make people conscious of their sin (for “where there is no law there is no transgression” – v15b) and to show people the reason for God’s wrath (“because law brings wrath” – v15a). That is why when you study the life of Abraham in Genesis, you’ll find that God gave Abraham the promise of becoming a great nation alongside Abraham receiving righteousness by faith (Genesis 15:4-6). In other words, the giving of God’s promise had nothing to do with the giving of any laws. In fact, God would not formally institute the law until centuries later through Moses.
All this shows the importance of having faith in God’s promise. Our obedience to God’s commands can never take the place of having faith in God’s promise.
Romans 4:16a (NIV)
16 Therefore, the promise comes by faith, so that it may be by grace and may be guaranteed to all Abraham’s offspring–not only to those who are of the law but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham…
On verse 16a: Paul seems to suggest here that the reason God decided to make righteousness available by faith was for two reasons: (1) so that no one could say that they earned it (“so that it may be by grace”); and (2) so that righteousness could be accessible to as many people as possible (“not only to those who are of the law but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham.”) For if righteousness were available only by obeying God’s law, none of us could ever get righteousness since we have all broken God’s law. But if righteousness is available by faith, then people everywhere and regardless of background are able to get righteousness.
Romans 4:16a (NIV)
…He is the father of us all.
On verse 16b: When I was a kid growing up in church, my Sunday school teachers would teach me a song. The lyrics went like this:
Father Abraham had many sons
Many sons had Father Abraham
I am one of them and so are you
So let’s just praise the Lord!
It must have looked a little weird for a Chinese boy like me living in 21st century North America to be singing about how his father was a middle-eastern man from Mesopotamia who lived thousands of years ago. So why sing that song? It’s because the one thing that a Christian today has in common with Abraham back then is that both Abraham and Christians today received their righteousness from God the same way: by faith.
Back in Paul’s time, both Jews and non-Jews (Gentiles) were coming to faith in Jesus Christ. Since Jesus was a Jew, many Jewish Christians insisted that it was necessary for everyone who came to faith in Jesus Christ to also submit to Jewish customs as well, the biggest of which was circumcision.
Paul counters this argument by showing how in the Old Testament God declared Abraham to be righteous BEFORE Abraham was circumcised (see verse 10). In other words, God didn’t require Abraham to be circumcised before God gave him righteousness. Rather, Abraham received his righteousness 100% by faith. Circumcision was something Abraham would do later as an outward sign of his faith (verse 11), but it was Abraham’s faith in God, and not circumcision itself, that secured righteousness for Abraham.
Like Abraham, you receive righteousness from God by faith in what Christ has done for you on the cross. You don’t need to be circumcised in order to receive the righteousness that God makes available through Jesus Christ. You receive that righteousness by faith alone. We then express that faith today not by getting circumcised but by getting baptized.
When we place our faith in God’s ability to make us righteous and not in our own ability, we are following in Abraham’s footsteps of faith (verse 12). That’s why you and I living in 21st century North America can call Abraham our father! We’ve got the same faith DNA as Abraham! As verse 16 says, “He is the father of us all.”
Father, how amazing it is that we don’t have to do anything to be called righteous in Your sight. Instead, like Abraham, we simply need to receive the gift of God’s righteousness by faith. Thank You that You did it this way so that as many people as possible could have righteousness, regardless of our background. In Jesus’ name, AMEN!
