We live in an age of skeptics and cynics. You can see evidence of this in our language.
Often people will respond to a promised possibility by saying, "I don't believe
it!" They call that reality, but it is really a form of skepticism that has been
learned by negative experiences.
Unfortunately all of us have had negative experiences. But these negative experiences
have trained us to look at things in a cynical way. Because we have been disappointed so
many times, we are tempted to believe in nothing or no one. When asked to believe in a
promise for the future, often we respond by saying, "I'll believe it when I see
it!" This, however, is really only a partial truth. The sad reality of the situation
is that even when we do see it we often don't believe it even then. You can tell that we
don't, because we generally say, "I can't believe it!" This is how we have been
trained.
Now, I believe that a reluctance to have faith is itself a negative thing that has been
encouraged by Satan. He wants to keep us locked into an attitude of negativity. He wants
us to continue to believe in a lie. One of the deacons in the church I pastored in
Virginia was a farmer by occupation. But he was a keen observer of human nature and an
astute judge of character. We became very close friends. One day he told me something I
have never forgot. He said that most people would rather climb a hundred-foot pole and
believe a lie than stand on the ground and believe the truth. He had a unique way of
putting things. But it's true. We tend to believe what we want to believe and to
disbelieve what we don't want to believe. And far too often that is based on what we're
personally experiencing and how we feel about it.
But the Bible teaches us that faith is the key to everything. So, how do we develop
faith? How do we have faith to believe when the situation looks impossible? How do we
learn to walk by faith and not by sight? The world would say that seeing is believing. The
word of God says that believing is seeing. Is this true? If it is, how do we get that kind
of faith?
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. He is the father of us all. 17 As it is written: ''I have made you a father of many nations." He is our father in the sight of God, in whom he believed-the God who gives life to the dead and calls things that are not as though they were. (Romans 4:16-17)
If you take the time to study what the Bible says about faith, you will come to the
inescapable conclusion that faith must have a solid foundation. It must be grounded in
that foundation. Faith must have an object, a basis. We are not called to have faith in
faith itself. There are many people teaching the Bible today who seem to be saying that
you need to have faith in your faith. But faith is not convincing ourselves of something
that is not true, it is believing in something that is true. Faith is not faith in faith.
The only true basis for faith is God.
All of us are aware of the recent crash of the ValueJet airliner in the Everglades of
Florida. No doubt, because of that recent catastrophe, many people are flying with more
fear and less faith in the reliability of airplanes. But it is not what you feel or fear
that determines whether you crash. Most, if not all, of the people on that ValueJet could
have had no doubts in their minds concerning the reliability of the airplane. Every person
on that flight could have had absolute faith that they would arrive safely at their
destination. But the reliability of the airplane did not depend upon their faith in it, it
depended upon the plane itself. On the other hand, you could board a flight to Florida
with a pounding heart and racing pulse, believing in your mind that it was going to crash,
and still arrive safely at your destination. Again, the reliability of the plane does not
depend upon your lack of faith, it depends upon the plane itself. Faith must have a
reliable basis upon which it is founded.
When Abraham believed, he did not simply believe in the promise that God had
given to him. Abraham's basis for faith was God, in whom he believed. Abraham
believed in God Himself. God must be the clear object of our faith. He is the foundation
for faith. He is the basis for faith. Our faith rests upon the reliability of God, not
upon the changing feelings of the human heart.
We only put our faith in God's Word because of God. Faith in God's Word is faith in
God, who stands behind His Word. Human words are unreliable. This is because humans are
unreliable. God's Word, on the other hand, is reliable because God stands behind it. It is
His Word. It has authority because He is the ultimate authority in the Universe.
Therefore, when we choose to believe God's Word, we are choosing to believe in the God who
stands behind His Word. This is what Abraham did.
18
Against all hope, Abraham in hope believed and so became the father of many nations, just as it had been said to him, ''So shall your offspring be." 19 Without weakening in his faith, he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead-since he was about a hundred years old-and that Sarahh's womb was also dead. 20 Yet he did not waver through unbelief regarding the promise of God . . . (Romans 4:18-20a)
Even knowing that God is the only sure foundation for our faith does not automatically
mean that we will have faith. There are always barriers to faith. Abraham faced these
barriers to faith. Our text mentions two.
The first barrier that we all face is circumstances. Simply put, we look at our lives
and wonder how anything can be done in our situation. This is precisely what Abraham did.
God had made a promise to Abraham that he would become the father of many nations.
But Abraham was every old and so was his wife. He was about a hundred years old
when God reaffirmed His promise to him. His wife, Sarah, was about ninety years old. How
could any person have a child that late in life?
This would surely be a record for the Guinness Book of World Records. It
lists many records for achievement. How much does it list as the weight of the heaviest
man? He weighed 1,069 pounds. How tall was the tallest man? He was 8' 11". What is
the world's record for bearing children? It lists it at sixty-nine. The record states that
a Russian peasant women achieved this great honor. She had eight sets of twins, seven sets
of triplets, and four sets of quadruplets. And this leaves another sixteen individual
births. She was pregnant over thirty-five times. I think she will probably keep that
record intact. But where the Guinness Book of World Records is wrong is that
it states that the oldest mother gave birth in October, 1956 at the age of fifty-seven.
Sarah would beat that record by a comfortable margin.
Sounds incredible, doesn't it. It does today and it did then. Let me share with you
what Ray Stedman said about a hypothetical conversation between Abraham and his wife
Sarah.
I would have loved to have been a bug on the tent wall when Abraham came in to tell Sarah this news! Can you just imagine it? He came in and she said, "Well, dear, your eggs are ready. What have you been doing?" He said, "Oh, I've been having devotions, and what a wonderful time I had! God told me something." She said, "Well, what was it?" Abraham said, "Well, I don't really know how to put this." "What do you mean?" Sarah asked. "Well," he said, "you'd better sit down. God told me something very startling that is going to happen to us." "That's interesting," she said. "What is it?" Then, like a man, he just blurted it out. "You're going to have a baby!" And Sarah said, "WHAT?" Abraham said, "That's what God said. You're going to have a baby." "What, ME?" "Yes, you." "Abraham, did you stop at the wine shop on your way home this morning?"
Sarah laughed. That is what it says in Genesis. She probably thought that this was the
most hilarious thing she had heard in a long time. Wouldn't you?
This is an important point. Abraham did not deny his circumstances. The Bible says that
he faced the fact that his body was as good as dead - and that Sarah's womb was also dead.
This is an important truth. Faith is not ignoring our circumstances, but believing God
anyway! Sometimes that is hard to do. But that is precisely what God challenged both
Abraham and Sarah to do.
This brings us to the second barrier to faith. The second barrier is the possibilities.
When our circumstances look bleak, it is hard to believe that there are real possibilities
for anything to happen. Again, this is an important truth. It is hard to believe in the
promise itself because it seems too good to be true. I am sure it did for Abraham and his
wife. Even in light of the staggering possibilities of the promise he did not waver
through unbelief. In other words, he believed God anyway. Abraham had faith that God
was able to do what He said He would.
Robert Dick Wilson was one of the great professors at Princeton Theological Seminary. One of his students had been invited to preach in Miller Chapel twelve years after his graduation. Old Dr. Wilson came in and sat down near the front. At the close of the meeting the old professor came up to his former student, cocked his head to one side in his characteristic way, extended his hand, and said, "If you come back again, I will not come to hear you preach. I only come once. I am glad that you are a big-godder. When my boys come back, I come to see if they are big-godders or little-godders, and then I know what their ministry will be." His former student asked him to explain, and he replied, "Well, some men have a little god and they are always in trouble with him. He can't do any miracles. He can't take care of the inspiration and transmission of the Scripture to us. He doesn't intervene on behalf of his people. They have a little-god and I call them little-godders. Then, there are those who have a great God. He speaks and it is done. He commands and it stands fast. He knows how to show himself strong on behalf of them who fear Him. You have a great God; and He will bless your ministry." He paused a moment, smiled, said, "God bless you," and turned and walked out. (Kent Hughes, Romans)
If we have faith in a big God it makes a big difference. The staggering possibilities
in light of our circumstances become possible for Him although they seem impossible for
us. You see, the real question is not, "How big is your faith?" The real
question is, "How big is your God?"
. . . but was strengthened in his faith and gave glory to God, 21 being fully persuaded that God had power to do what he had promised. 22 This is why ''it was credited to him as righteousness." (Romans 4:20b-22)
Trusting in God accomplishes a number of important things for the Christian. There are
several benefits of faith for us.
The Scripture says that Abraham was strengthened in his faith. The first benefit
of faith is that faith edifies us. It grows us toward maturity. To be edified is to be
built-up or strengthened. As you exercise faith, your faith grows.
Our text also says that Abraham gave glory to God. Another benefit is that faith
exalts God. It glorifies His greatness. By trusting in God you are visibly expressing your
confidence in His majesty.
Our text additionally says that Abraham was fully persuaded that God had power to do
what he had promised. Faith establishes us. It grasps the truth of God's word.
Trusting in God brings us to the point where we are enlightened and fully persuaded.
And finally, faith enables us. It gives us possession of the promise. Our text reveals
that this is why Abraham received the righteousness of God credited to
him. He received God's righteousness and God's promise.
An old hymn states it this way:
"Do this and live!" the law demands,
But gives me neither feet nor hands.
A better word his grace doth bring."
It bids me fly, but gives me wings.
23
The words ''it was credited to him" were written not for him alone, 24 but also for us, to whom God will credit righteousness-for us who believe in him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead. 25 He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification. (Romans 4:23-25)
The beneficiaries of faith are those who benefit from faith. Abraham certainly
benefited, but we can benefit as well. You see, what was written was not for him alone,
but also for us. Indeed, it is for all who believe in him. Those who benefit
from faith are those who exercise faith.
So we see that the benefits of faith are for us if we are willing to believe in God. So
we must ask ourselves what we're going to believe and who we're going to believe. Will we
look at our circumstances and conclude that nothing and no one can intervene? Or will we
hope against hope and believe God? Will we be big-godders or little-godders. The Scripture
says that our God is the God who gives life to the dead and calls things that are not
as though they were. That sounds like a big God to me.
Copyright (C) 1996 J. David Hoke. This data file is the sole property of the copyright holder and may be copied only in its entirety for circulation freely without charge. All copies of this data file must contain the above copyright notice.
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