Romans - Week 8

When We Have Faith

READ

Romans 3:29-31

29 After all, is God the God of the Jews only? Isn’t he also the God of the Gentiles? Of course he is. 30 There is only one God, and he makes people right with himself only by faith, whether they are Jews or Gentiles. 31 Well then, if we emphasize faith, does this mean that we can forget about the law? Of course not! In fact, only when we have faith do we truly fulfill the law.

The Jews considered they were special because of the way God treated them in giving them the law. Paul reminded them, however, that there is only one God, both for those who have the law and those who do not. In both cases, the only way to get right with Him is through faith. Paul had expressed previously that the law shows a person how sinful he is. This means the only hope is to turn to God by faith. Having faith in God shows the law has accomplished its purpose.

REFLECT

You are not under the 613 laws of the Old Testament. Think on how just the 10 commandments in Exodus 20 reveal a person’s need of salvation by faith because no one, except Jesus, could perfectly keep the commandments.

RESPOND

Read Ephesians 4:5-6 to see another emphasis of the apostle Paul about there being only one God.  Even with all the diversity of the various ethnic groups, all are answerable to the same God. And all can only become right with Him through faith in Jesus Christ.

Counted as Righteous

READ

Romans 4:1-3

1 Abraham was, humanly speaking, the founder of our Jewish nation. What did he discover about being made right with God? 2 If his good deeds had made him acceptable to God, he would have had something to boast about. But that was not God’s way. 3 For the Scriptures tell us, “Abraham believed God, and God counted him as righteous because of his faith.”

Paul now turns to give some examples of those in the past who came to God by faith. He begins with Abraham who lived before the time of the law. Paul cites Genesis 15:6 to show that Abraham became right with God through faith. The descendants of Abraham looked to him as one who did many good works, but Paul says those did not make him right with God. Notice Paul’s example for all believers—he relied on what God’s written word said.

REFLECT

Are you learning more about God’s written word, the Bible, so you can better answer people’s questions by citing what God has inspired to be written?

RESPOND

Spend time with your disciple talking about the need to have a better understanding of the Scriptures to answer the questions of others. Read together what Paul told young Timothy in 2 Timothy 2:15-18 about how to be the kind of worker who pleases God.

Wages and Gifts

READ

Romans 4:4-5

4 When people work, their wages are not a gift, but something they have earned. 5 But people are counted as righteous, not because of their work, but because of their faith in God who forgives sinners.

Having mentioned that Abraham became right with God through faith, Paul now shows why that could not occur by good works. This goes contrary to almost everyone’s thinking. Most are keenly aware that if they want something, they have to work for it. Now the Scriptures say the greatest eternal benefit is achieved not by working but by believing. This reveals the working of the Holy Spirit in one’s life is needed to enable this difference to be understood and appreciated.

REFLECT

What a relief it should be to you to realize everyone must come to God by faith. If it were by works, where would this leave you?

RESPOND

The next time you give a gift, that will be an excellent time remember what Paul says. If it’s a gift, it is not earned. If it is earned, it is not a gift. This ties in so closely to what Paul wrote in Ephesians 2:8-9. Talk about this with your disciple.

Oh What Joy

READ

Romans 4:6-8

6 David also spoke of this when he described the happiness of those who are declared righteous without working for it: 7 “Oh, what joy for those whose disobedience is forgiven, whose sins are put out of sight. 8 Yes, what joy for those whose record the Lord has cleared of sin.”

After using Abraham as an example of one who lived before the time of the law, Paul now uses David who lived during the age of the law. David was also declared righteous without working for it. The Scriptures do not gloss over the sins of either Abraham or David, but both had to believe God by faith to become right with Him because it could not be earned by works. Paul is showing that those without the law and those with the law had to come to God in the same way—by faith.

REFLECT

How does this help you in talking to others about their need to trust in Jesus for salvation? Have Paul’s comments helped you to have a better understanding?

RESPOND

Read Galatians 2:15-16 to see what Paul, a Jew, said to Peter, a fellow Jew. This type of thing could be said for those who substitute doing good works for the law in trying to obtain salvation.

God Accepted Abraham

READ

Romans 4:9-10

9 Now, is this blessing only for the Jews, or is it also for uncircumcised Gentiles? Well, we have been saying that Abraham was counted as righteous by God because of his faith. 10 But how did this happen? Was he counted as righteous only after he was circumcised, or was it before he was circumcised? Clearly, God accepted Abraham before he was circumcised!

Because the rite of circumcision was so important to the Jewish people as a part of their faith, Paul addressed it in these verses. Some were claiming you had to be circumcised to be in right relationship with God. Paul shows this was not true of Abraham because he was declared righteous before the rite of circumcision even existed. And if this is true of the Jews, it is also true of the uncircumcised Gentiles. Here again, Paul was accepting what the Scriptures said about this. It was not just an idea he had.

REFLECT

Are there other rites you or your family have thought were tightly tied to the salvation experience? How are those rites any different than what Paul was saying to the Jews about circumcision?

RESPOND

To know the Scriptures Paul was basing his comments on you need to check the Old Testament. Read Genesis 15 – 17 to find the relevant chapters in Abrahams life. There you can clearly see that God declared Abraham righteous at least 13 years before the rite of circumcision was given to him.