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In chapter number four we're looking at the looking at Abraham and the faith of Abraham in the Old Testament. Now what we're going to do tonight is we're going to go through verse by verse in Romans chapter 4 and we're going to inadvertently end up doing is destroying dispensationalism tonight. We're going to talk about Abraham, how he was saved, how he was justified. We're going to look at what was Abraham's faith, when did he get saved. You know we're going to look at we're going to kind of dissect Abraham's life a little bit and that will help us kind of decode what Paul is talking about here because Paul is aware of all these things. Paul was a very educated man. You'll be able to see throughout the book of Romans and he was very educated on the Word of God on the Old Testament. So let's start out in verse number one. Feel free to write some of these things down and take some notes but keep a finger in Genesis. We're going to start in Genesis chapter 12. That's the first place you want to be. Romans chapter 4 in verse number 1 the Bible says, What shall we say then that Abraham our father as pertaining to the flesh hath found? For if Abraham were justified by works he hath whereof to glory but not before God. For what sayeth the scripture? Abraham believed God and it was counted to him for righteousness. Now turn to James chapter 2. James chapter 2 in the New Testament. James chapter 2. So let me read verse 2 and 3 again for you. For if Abraham were justified by works he hath whereof to glory but not before God. Saying that if Abraham was justified by works he could glory in that. If I was justified by my own works I could boast about that. I mean I would have something to boast about but not before God. And I went over this in James chapter 2 and there was a reason that I preached that sermon on James chapter 2 because it fits perfectly in with Romans chapter 4. And if you if you're there in James chapter 2 look down at verse number 21 and I want to show you how James chapter 2 in verse 21 through 23 is the flipside of the coin of what Romans chapter 4 in verses 2 and 3 is saying. So if we read James chapter 2 verses starting in verse number 21 the Bible reads, Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar? Seest thou how faith wrought with his works and by works was faith made perfect? And then in verse number 23, And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God and it was imputed unto him for righteousness. Now that's exactly what Romans chapter 3 says. Abraham believed God and it was counted unto him for righteousness and he was called the friend of God. So when was Abraham justified by works? What does that mean? And when was he justified when was it counted when did Abraham when was righteousness imputed onto him by God? That's what I want to show you tonight. Turn to Genesis chapter 12. We're gonna kind of cut up the life of Abraham. I want to go through Abraham's life and I want to show you some key points in Abraham's life that will make this fit together for you. In Genesis chapter 12 in verse number 4 the Bible says this, And Abram, he's not yet Abraham, God has not yet renamed him, and Abram departed as the Lord had spoken unto him and Lot went with him and Abram was seventy and five years old when he departed out of harem. So in Genesis chapter 12 Abraham or Abram is 75 years old. Turn to Genesis 15. Genesis chapter 15 just a couple a couple chapters over. Genesis chapter 15 and let's look at when Abraham gets righteousness imputed to him and how that happens. Okay let's start reading in verse number 1. Genesis 15 in verse number 1. After these things, so we know he's at least 75 years old at this point, okay? After these things the Word of the Lord came unto Abraham in a vision saying, Fear not, Abraham, I am thy shield and thy exceeding great reward. And Abram said, Lord God, what will thou give me seeing I go childless? And the steward of my house is Eleazar of Damascus. And Abram said, Behold to me thou hast given no seed, and lo one born in my house is mine heir. And behold the Word of the Lord came unto him saying, This shall not be thine heir, but this shall not be thine heir. But he that shall come forth out of thy own bowels shall be thine heir. And he brought him forth abroad and said, Look now toward heaven and tell the stars if thou be able to number them. And he said unto him, So shall thy seed be. He's saying that you could number your seed by the stars, he says to Abram. And then it says about Abram in verse number six, and he believed in the Lord and he counted it to him for righteousness. So that's the gospel in the Old Testament right there, okay? There is Abram being having righteousness imputed onto him by belief alone in the Old Testament, okay? Now turn to Genesis 17. Genesis 17. I'm sorry, Genesis 16. Genesis 16. In Genesis 16 and verse 16 the Bible says this. It says, And Abram was four score and six years old. A score is 20 years, so he was 86 years old when Hagar bare Ishmael to Abram. Now the story goes like this. Abram was promised a son by God when he was sometime after he was 75. You know, he made some poor decisions and he decided, his wife said, you know, Hey just go into my servant and she will bear you a son. You know, that obviously was not God's plan, but when Hagar bare Ishmael to Abram he was 86 years old, okay? So we know that Abram was considered righteous by God. He was saved somewhere between 75 and 86, okay? We don't know have an exact date on that, but just remember that. Sometime between the age of 75 and 86 years old. Now turn to Genesis 17. Genesis 17. Now this is another key point in Abram's life. He is now Abraham. And the Bible says this in Genesis 17 verse 24. And Abraham was 90 years old and 9. He was 99 years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin. So Paul references Abram's circumcision several times in Romans chapter 4 and in other places. And we see that when Abraham was circumcised he was 99 years old, okay? So that's a key point that we need to remember. Turn to Genesis 21. Genesis chapter 21. Genesis chapter 21. And in verse 1 the Bible reads this. And the Lord visited Sarah and he had said, and the Lord did unto Sarah as he had spoken. For Sarah conceived and bare Abraham a son in his old age at the set time of which God had spoken to him. And Abraham called the name of his son that was born unto him whom Sarah bare to him, Isaac. And Abraham circumcised his son Isaac being eight days old as God had commanded him. And Abram was a hundred years old when Isaac his when his son Isaac was born unto him. So Isaac's born. Abraham is now a hundred. It's a year later. Isaac is born. Abraham is a hundred years old. Now another key verse that James talks about is when Isaac was to be offered by Abraham. When God told Abraham to go when he tested Abraham to go and offer his only son on the altar. Now I believe that that happened about ten to fifteen years later. And if you turn to Genesis 22 you'll see why. We're not told exactly when that is but it's several years later after Isaac is born. So if you look at Genesis 22 God has visited Abraham. He has told Abraham take Isaac, take him up to the mountain, sacrifice him. You know Abraham does this. He even brings. I believe that many of the people that Abraham that worked for Abraham and that lived in Abraham's house knew exactly what Abraham was doing. There's evidence for that as well. In Genesis chapter 22 in verse 7 the Bible says this, and Isaac spake unto Abraham his father and said my father and he said here I am my son. And he said behold the fire in the wood but where is the lamb for the burnt offering? So obviously Isaac is old enough to know that they're going up to make a sacrifice to God. That they're bringing all the materials that they need, the wood, all that. But where's the lamb? So he's probably you know older than ten or eight or something like that. So it's ten to fifteen years later okay. Now in Genesis 23, so Abraham was probably a hundred and ten hundred and fifteen years old. That's what I'm getting at. In Genesis 23 in verse 1 the Bible says, let me turn there, Genesis 23 the Bible says this, and Sarah was in hundred and seven and twenty years old. These were the years of the life of Sarah. So Sarah dies at a hundred and twenty seven years old. And we know from Genesis 17 7, which I'll just read to you real quick, that Abraham was ten years older than Sarah. I told you we're getting doctrinal tonight so it's important though okay. Now it's in Genesis 17 17 the Bible says this, then Abram fell upon his face and laughed and said in his heart shall a child be born unto him that is a hundred years old and shall Sarah that is 90 years old bear. So we see that Abraham is ten years older than Sarah. So if Sarah dies when she's 127 Abraham is 137 years old at the point of Genesis 23 1. And then if we go to Genesis 25 7 we see the death of Abraham in verse 7. And these are the days of the years of Abraham's life which he lived in hundred threescore and fifteen years. So that's a hundred and sixty plus fifteen a hundred and seventy five years okay. So all that to say this, when did Abraham get saved and when did Abraham offer Isaac? Because both of these situations are being talked about in Romans chapter 4 and James chapter 2 okay. So he was saved somewhere between 75 and 86 all right. He didn't offer Isaac for another 30 years okay. So what I'm trying to get at if we look back at James chapter 2 in verse 21 I should have had you can't turn back there if you're not there. James chapter 2 in verse number 21. Let's go back to that and let's compare the first couple verses of Romans chapter 4 with James chapter 21 now that we understand when things happen in Abraham's life okay. In James chapter 2 in verse 21 the Bible says this, Was not Abraham our father justified by works? Yes he was. He was justified by works when he offered Isaac his son upon the altar all right. Look at verse number 22. See as thou how faith wrought with his works and by works was faith made perfect. And then in verse number 23 we tie it all together right here. And the scripture was fulfilled with saith, Abraham believed God and it was imputed unto him for righteousness. That's Genesis 15 verse 6. That's his salvation. And then and he was called the friend of God. That's justification before men. That's when he offered Isaac. You see you see how in in James chapter 2 and verse 23 he ties up those two events. Now look here's the point that I'm trying to make with when we went through Genesis and all those different events. Those things didn't happen at the same time right. Abraham was saved 30 years ago before God. He was that's when God imputed righteousness unto him. That was his salvation. He was justified before men when they saw that he was willing to sacrifice his only son. And he was called the what? The friend of God. By who? By men. All right now if you go back to Romans chapter 4 and look at verse number 2 it says for if Abraham were justified by works he hath whereof to glory but not before God. See he was not justified by his works to God. He was justified by his works before men. And all men can see are your works. So it makes perfect sense. All right now look when you look at Romans chapter 4 verses 1 2 & 3 and you look at James chapter 2 and verses 21 22 & 23 and they just tie right in like this together. And then you look at the Bible and what Moses wrote isn't that a proof that God wrote the Bible? I mean no I mean unless these two men or these three men were like geniuses and working together you know there's no other way that you could explain this other than God wrote the Bible. And that's why no matter who's the author it all ties together and it fits perfectly and it all teaches the same story and it gets even better. That's just the first three verses okay let's continue. All right Abraham grew in his faith that's a point that you can make here right? I mean his faith was made perfect so the Bible says that his faith in Romans chapter you know the Bible says that you know he was called a friend of God and his faith was made perfect in James chapter in chapter 2 in verse 22. Now you should grow in your faith too. We should all grow in our faith. That's a goal is for our faith to become perfect more and more perfect every day of our life. All right look down at Romans chapter 4 in verse number 4 let's continue. All right now Paul just continues you know continues on here and you know he's still soul winning in Romans chapter 4 here and he says in Romans chapter 4 in verse number 4 now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace but of debt. So you have two guys I'm gonna read I'm just gonna read Romans chapter 4 and verses 4 and 5 and then I'm gonna explain those two verses now to him that worketh is the reward not reckoned of grace but of debt so you have a man that does works and then in verse number 5 you have but him to worketh not but believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly his faith is counted for righteousness. So you have two men here one is you know the guy does works the guy does works he does a lot of works you know but it says that all that man has is debt in verse 4 and in verse 5 the Bible says but to him that worketh not does no works it doesn't say he works a little it said he worketh not he does no works but he believeth on him that justifieth the ungodly his faith is counted for righteousness now look these are great soul-winning verses for somebody who's hung up on works for somebody who's Catholic and believes you know hey you can't tell people that you can't tell people that it you know you can never lose it you can you can't tell people it's faith alone these are great verses but you have two guys right here that one does works and one doesn't the guy that does works is going to hell you know that's a reality of the situation today that we need to understand and it might be hard for a logical people to think about this you know not once you're saved hopefully but you have to understand that people who are better in the eyes of men there might be a man who's better who does better works in his life and is a better person even according to the law of the Bible then somebody else does doesn't do any works it's just kind of a bad guy but he's going to hell and this guy's going to heaven because it has nothing to do with works so those situations are of course gonna happen because it has nothing whether you go to heaven or not has nothing to do with your works period all right so I mean these churches that have slipped into these repenting your sins we're gonna talk about all this stuff on Sunday morning but all these churches that have slipped into these they've basically gone into the the way of the book of Galatians and and they just need to refresh on up on on their Bible in Romans chapter 4 and in verse number four and five is really all they need so that's verses four and five now let's keep going now here's another thing that you need to explain to people when you're soul winning notice in verse number four the Bible says but to him that work is not but believeth on him you need to explain what believeth on means okay now the Bible uses those two words most of the time when it's talking about believing it will say believeth on they believed on him believe on believe on and believeth on what that means is you need to understand that that means that they put their total faith and trust on Jesus and not you can't be 5% myself 95% Jesus people need to understand that we'll get into that a little bit more throughout this sermon but look at verse number six in Romans chapter 4 even as David also described the blessedness of the man unto whom God imputed righteousness without works I'll turn to I'll read you David's words in Psalm the book of Psalms and in Psalm 32 1 this is what Paul is talking about the Bible says blessed is he whose transgression is forgiven whose sin is covered blessed is the man unto whom the Lord imputed not iniquity once again evidence that the Bible was written by God and not by man look worketh not without works not of works I mean how many different times does Paul need to say this you know I've had this debate several times with it's a philosophical debate that we'll never know the answer to but it's do these heretics know that they're heretics or do they not know are they doing it on purpose and which ones look some of them of course know and they're doing it on purpose maybe some of them don't know I don't know but it's so clear in the Bible it almost has to be on purpose I mean it's so clear you cannot misunderstand this let's look down at verse number seven in verse number seven saying blessed are they he continues who impute blessed is the man whom God imputed righteousness without works saying blessed are they whose iniquities are forgiven and whose sins are covered back in the book of Psalms blessed is the man whom the Lord will not impute sin if you're saved the Lord will not impute sin to you cometh this blessedness then upon the circumcision only that means the Jews remember or upon the uncircumcision also for we say that faith that faith was reckoned to Abraham for righteousness now I want you to notice that word faith where he says because this is very important this wording he says for we say that faith he's saying faith you know faith right was reckoned to Abraham for righteousness how was it then reckoned was he in circumcision he was 99 years old when he was circumcised remember or in uncircumcision and then Paul answers the question now not in circumcision but in uncircumcision Abraham was saved before he was circumcised has nothing to do his salvation had nothing to do with being circumcised so Paul knew everything we just learned about Abraham's life and that's exactly what he's saying here but that's why we went to Genesis to kind of catch up to Paul as we could read through this okay turn to John chapter 8 John chapter 8 and I'm gonna I'm gonna read for you Romans 4 11 and this is where it gets fairly deep so if you're asleep wake up right now and he received the sign of circumcision a seal of the righteousness of what the faith okay the faith which he had yet being uncircumcised so look brother Matt and I can have a faith okay I can have a faith in that piano and brother Matt can have a faith in that chair is that the same faith no but notice how he said that Abraham he said faith in the verse before but now he gets much more specific and he says the faith which he had yet being uncircumcised so there was a specific faith that Abraham had in vert in Genesis 15 verse 6 there was a specific faith okay remember remember that lock that in that he might be the father of all of them that believe though they be not circumcised that righteousness might be imputed unto them also you see what happened here and he received the sign of circumcision a seal the righteousness of the faith which he had yet being uncircumcised that he might be the father of not the Jews of all of them that believe see that was the promise that was the promise that righteousness might be imputed to them also it gets even better verse number 12 and the father of circumcision to them who are not of the circumcision only referring to the Jews but also who walks walk in the steps of what that faith that specific faith that Abraham had when he got saved see it's not a faith it's not a belief it's the faith of Abraham but who also walk in the steps of that faith of our father Abraham which he had being yet uncircumcised so his circumcision it didn't have anything to do with his salvation that's what he's saying but he's saying that being a child or Abraham being your father has to do with having that faith or the faith of Abraham see Romans 4 13 and now we wrap it up right here for the promise that he should be the heir of the world was not to Abraham or to his seed meaning the Jews through the law those are the Jews when he says he was not to Abraham or to his seed through the law that that's referencing the physical Jews but through the righteousness of faith meaning anyone who has righteousness through faith the faith that faith of Abraham is Abraham's Abraham is their father that's what he's saying so Abraham is our father through the common faith that's it that's what he's saying here all right did you turn to John chapter 8 you can see why Jews today are not on board with the Bible right I mean it's it's it's not good all right John chapter 8 let's look at verse number 37 this is Jesus speaking he's speaking to the Pharisees and he says I know that you're Abraham's seed but you seek to kill me because my word has no place in you I speak that which I have seen with my father and you do that which you have seen with your father they answered and said unto him Abraham is our father Jesus saith unto them if you were Abraham's children you would do the works of Abraham see because they would be justified before men if they did that okay but you seek to kill me a man that have told you the truth which I have heard of God this did not Abraham you do the deeds of your father then they say unto him we be not born of fornication we have one father even God Jesus said unto them if you're if God were your father you would love me but I proceeded forth and came from God neither came I of myself but he sent me why do you not understand my speech he's like wondering why if Abraham really is your father you would have believed Abraham and you would have believed me basically is what he's saying as he said elsewhere even because he cannot hear my word ye of ye are of your father the devil and the lusts of your father ye will do he was a murderer from the beginning and abode not in the truth because there is no truth in him when he speaketh a lie he speaketh of his own for he is a liar and the father of it so he basically tells them Abraham's not your father the devil is your father okay and then Paul is saying in Romans that if you have the common faith of Abraham Abraham is your father that's what he's saying so we're saved the same way that Abraham was saved period there is your dispensationalism gone Romans 4 14 keep reading the Bible says this for if they which are of the law be heirs faith is made void and the promise is made of none effect so now he just keeps he just grinds it in I mean I just love it let me turn to turn to Romans chapter 11 in verse number 6 Romans chapter 11 in verse number 6 you see how he uses this term through the law was not to Abraham or his seed through the law through the physical Jews that's what he's talking about and then he says it again in Romans 14 where he says for if they which are of the law be heirs they of the law who are they the Jews right if they be of the law be heirs then faith is made void and the promise is made of none effect in a row in Romans 11 verse 6 let's read again the Bible says and if by grace then it is no more of works otherwise grace is no more grace but if it be works then it is no more grace otherwise work is no more work it's either all works or it's all faith that's it and he's using the Jews as he's equating that to works you see what I'm saying them of the law the Jews are of the law so if the Jews are children of Abraham just because they're of that line of heritage that's works that's of the flesh that's what he's saying but it's not and it would make faith completely void because it can't be a combination of both it's all or nothing all right now that that shows you that there could be literally no benefit for being a physical Jew as far as your salvation goes it's not saying that Jews can't get saved it says that they need to get saved the same way everybody else through faith because if it was the other way faith would be void meaning meaningless not not worth anything so we see that the idea of being saved through being a physical or hereditary descendant of Abraham is paralleled here with believing in work salvation see it's the same thing that's that's pretty neat how he did that now it can't be both even a little bit because then faith is made void all right let's look down to verse number 15 and we'll keep reading the Bible says because the law worketh wrath for where no law is there is no transgression therefore it is of faith that it might be by grace to the end the promise to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed not to them which is of the law the Jews again I love that he just repeats things but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham the specific faith of Abraham see who is the father of us all right as it is written I have made thee a father of many nations before him who whom he believed even God who quickeneth the dead and call it those things which be not as though they were who against hope believed in hope that he might become the father of many nations according to that which was spoken so shall thy seed be now there was times when Abraham didn't do the right thing and he didn't you know he obviously didn't have perfect faith in the Bible but once saved always saved that's proof of eternal security as well and being not weak in faith he considered not his own body now dead when he was about an hundred years old when Isaac was born neither yet the deadness of Sarah's womb he staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief but was strong in faith giving glory to God and in verse number 21 I want you to pay attention to these two words and being fully persuaded that what he has promised he had promised he was able also to perform so the Bible says here in verse number 21 that when Abraham believed God he was fully persuaded he believed on see it wasn't yeah I think maybe he will and then but I'm also gonna you know he was fully persuaded the Bible says that is believing on the Lord Jesus Christ that is what it means so you must when you were out soul-winning here's another here's another tip you must fully persuade people of the gospel of Jesus Christ you must fully persuade people that it's not of works you must fully persuade people that it's only through Jesus Christ no man come through the Father but by me it's only Jesus they if you have preached the gospel to someone who is a Buddhist or a Muslim or whatever and they still yeah I believe the Quran but yeah I also believe this they are not fully persuaded you must fully persuade someone in order for them to be saved period and therefore in verse number 22 he says it again just in case we forgot in the last five minutes he was fully persuaded and therefore it was imputed to him for righteousness right there he believed on right there now it was not written for his sake alone that was imputed to him but for us also to whom it shall be imputed if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead who is delivered for our offenses and was raised again for our justification so you see how you can take that believe on and fully persuaded and those two things go together again isn't that great look so it's important you know so he's talking again he starts talking about Jesus in verse number 24 but for us also to whom it shall be imputed our sins were imputed to Jesus if we believe on him that raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead who was delivered for our offenses and was the raised up again for our justification so it's important that you explain Jesus well when you're out soul winning as well people need to know that Jesus had our sins imputed to him and that is how we can be wet free no I will often use the analogy of whoever I'm with and it's probably not true usually but I usually say you know brother Matt you know he might we're good friends he might die for me if he needed to but brother Matt cannot die for my sins because brother Matt has his own sins to pay for and Jesus had no sins to pay for he was innocent so that's why he could take those on himself take that punishment on himself and God would accept that sacrifice okay someone who didn't owe had to pay period and Jesus didn't owe anything okay now the application of the main thing that I want you to take away from this sermon tonight is that there's a common faith throughout the whole Bible and that's very clear in Romans chapter 10 James talks about it and in Genesis talks about Abraham's faith it's a common faith we are all Abraham's children through the faith in the Messiah that God sent to redeem the world from sin these people knew you know we've had this philosophical debate in my family and all this before and I have an opinion on it that I won't give now but how much of this promise that Abraham you know how much of detail that Abraham actually understood of that promise that's a good philosophical debate to have because the Bible doesn't really tell us all we know I know that my faith in Jesus Christ is the same faith that Abraham said because the Bible says so and guess what I don't need to go into all these weird rabbit holes and come up with all these strange doctrines because you know what I'll just ask Abraham when I get to heaven you know but we know that they were looking forward to a Messiah in the Old Testament they were saved on credit think of it that way that God would send a Messiah to you know bruise you know Satan's head right that God would send a Messiah we look back on the Messiah and his name was Jesus Christ and we look back and we have all the details of all that that happened you obviously can't believe today that there's coming a Messiah because once Jesus came you had to believe that that was him because that's who God sent see but it's a common faith whether you were looking forward to it or you're looking back at it is a common faith that's what Romans chapter 4 is telling us and it's that faith that you have to have to be saved it's the same gospel no matter where you're from you know what you can see it when you visit other people from other places in the world who are saved when you visit other people I mean when you see people that grew up in different cultures I love visiting the churches or even around this country and in other places in the world in the Philippines because you just it's weird but you just connect with people you just know you're just like you're just brothers and sisters like right away because we have we share a common spirit it's a common faith it's a common gospel that saved us all so look you know people have different hangups when you're out there so winning you're gonna run across people that have all kinds of different hangups some people are hung up mostly it's works in one way or the other but you're gonna have people that have weird hangups on hell you're gonna have people that have weird hangups on they don't think they're a sinner you're gonna have people that have weird hangups on all these different things and you might have to go to different places in the Bible to kind of back those things up and show them if they're willing to listen but look it's the same gospel that they have to eventually believe and they have to be fully persuaded and they have to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ the same as you and I all did that is the same endgame the salvation is always the same it's always been the same okay from Genesis to Revelation right so that's why another culture moment here that's why we want to have like awesome soul winners in this church we want to have people that can go out and they can they can figure out where you know they can be personable with people and they can figure out where people's hang-ups are and they have the Bible the the knowledge of the Bible where if somebody does have some strange hang-up they know where to go to kind of help fix that person's hang-up you know you'll be able to do that with people somebody will have sincere questions about certain things that they saw somewhere on the internet or whatever they grew up in some weird thing and they'll sincerely want to know and we should be able to show them those things we should have enough knowledge of the Bible to be able to go out there and not only just give a you know a you know a soul winning presentation but to be able to you know navigate our Bibles and show people you know the truth and get them back to that common gospel you know get fix these little issues in their heart that they have and if they have you know if they're sincere about it we can we can fully persuade them of the gospel okay let's bow our heads and have a word of prayer dear Heavenly Father we thank you for the book of Romans we thank you for your word your your whole word we thank you for Lord how it how it fits together perfectly we just we thank you Lord for you know for Paul and for how you use him to write down these deep these deep doctrines and and just bless the rest of our night Lord bless the fellowship to come bless the rest of everybody's week and bring us back safely for a soul winning on Saturday and church on Sunday in Jesus name we pray amen