Romans 4:18-22
Abraham may not have been a highly moral man, but he was a man with strong faith. His faith is what caused God to view him as righteous (Romans 4:3, 22), and this faith was honored even when his actions were weak.
Faith is best characterized as a measure of what you really think of God. If you think that God is angry and distant then you will be less likely to ask for things, or to believe that He desires to do good in your life. Your faith will be weakened by a view of a distant God. On the other hand, if you think that Jesus’ sacrificial work was done for you and that you are a beneficiary of all that Jesus paid for, then you have a view of God as loving, appeased and helpful. This causes you to ask and believe because you see nothing separating you from God’s mercy and grace.
The word “glory” is often misused by Christians as we read God’s word. The Greek word is “doxa” and it has two basic meanings. One definition deals with praising God and lifting up His name, and this is certainly an important thing to do. But, when you reference the word in Greek, this definition is the second most common definition, not the first. The first definition is, “to have a good opinion of”, and it is the most commonly used definition of “glory” in all of the New Testament. Insert that definition into Abraham’s life and see what a difference it makes:
“He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God;” (Romans 4:20).
Remember, insert “have a good opinion of” into the place of “glory” and you get that Abraham was strong in the faith, having a good opinion of God. What made him strong in faith was his good opinion of God. With a good opinion of God his faith was made stronger, while a poor opinion of God would keep our faith weak. Each one of us should evaluate our opinion of God to determine how strong our faith is.
Your faith comes to you as you hear of Jesus (Romans 10:17), but your faith is made stronger as your opinion of God lines up with Jesus’ finished work. If you view God as having anger against you, then your opinion of God is weak, though you may love Him very much. You have limited God due to a bad opinion of Him. By not honoring the finished work as a truly finished work, you have stated that Jesus did not pay it all and there is more left to be paid. This insults the finished work and it tramples on the blood of Jesus.
Let’s change our opinion of God to one of a loving Father who has paid a great price for us. When that opinion turns to a good opinion our ability to walk in faith increases. Abraham was strong in faith, not because he was closer to God than any of us, but because he believed God was a God of His Word. Do you?
Abraham may not have been a highly moral man, but he was a man with strong faith. His faith is what caused God to view him as righteous (Romans 4:3, 22), and this faith was honored even when his actions were weak.
Faith is best characterized as a measure of what you really think of God. If you think that God is angry and distant then you will be less likely to ask for things, or to believe that He desires to do good in your life. Your faith will be weakened by a view of a distant God. On the other hand, if you think that Jesus’ sacrificial work was done for you and that you are a beneficiary of all that Jesus paid for, then you have a view of God as loving, appeased and helpful. This causes you to ask and believe because you see nothing separating you from God’s mercy and grace.
The word “glory” is often misused by Christians as we read God’s word. The Greek word is “doxa” and it has two basic meanings. One definition deals with praising God and lifting up His name, and this is certainly an important thing to do. But, when you reference the word in Greek, this definition is the second most common definition, not the first. The first definition is, “to have a good opinion of”, and it is the most commonly used definition of “glory” in all of the New Testament. Insert that definition into Abraham’s life and see what a difference it makes:
“He staggered not at the promise of God through unbelief; but was strong in faith, giving glory to God;” (Romans 4:20).
Remember, insert “have a good opinion of” into the place of “glory” and you get that Abraham was strong in the faith, having a good opinion of God. What made him strong in faith was his good opinion of God. With a good opinion of God his faith was made stronger, while a poor opinion of God would keep our faith weak. Each one of us should evaluate our opinion of God to determine how strong our faith is.
Your faith comes to you as you hear of Jesus (Romans 10:17), but your faith is made stronger as your opinion of God lines up with Jesus’ finished work. If you view God as having anger against you, then your opinion of God is weak, though you may love Him very much. You have limited God due to a bad opinion of Him. By not honoring the finished work as a truly finished work, you have stated that Jesus did not pay it all and there is more left to be paid. This insults the finished work and it tramples on the blood of Jesus.
Let’s change our opinion of God to one of a loving Father who has paid a great price for us. When that opinion turns to a good opinion our ability to walk in faith increases. Abraham was strong in faith, not because he was closer to God than any of us, but because he believed God was a God of His Word. Do you?
