“Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that which is only of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all” (KJV, Rom. 4:16).
The text for this devotional comes in the middle of the fourth chapter of the book of Romans. To place it in its context, and therefore to give clarity to the verse that will be discussed, it is important to note that the first three chapters of the book of Romans were spent talking about sin.
Specifically, Paul went to great lengths to establish the fact of universal guilt. All of God’s creation has sinned against God and is deserving of the wrath of God.
However, toward the end of chapter three and throughout chapter four, Paul turns to the hope that God has provided outside of the law. It is at this point that we turn to Romans 4:16.
“Therefore it is of faith”
Paul starts this verse by speaking about faith. Faith is the essential response of man toward the work of Christ. Man must turn to Christ in saving faith for there to be a real, abiding relationship between him and the Savior.
However, Paul also said, “therefore,” and we need to know why. Previously, Paul talked about Abraham and his offspring as being heirs to the promise. In verse 16, we read of the way that Christians are heirs to the same promise of Abraham through faith rather than through the law.
But what is faith? In the book of Hebrews chapter 11, the author helps us on this point. He tells us that faith consists of an assurance in things that are hoped for and also a conviction about that which has not been seen (Heb. 11:1). The work of Christ in the Gospel message cannot be seen, although we can read about it.
Christ, as He has been revealed in the Gospel, must be laid hold of by faith, and a conviction must be present concerning that which has not been seen. Along with this conviction of the unseen, there will be a growing assurance in the hope of eternal life and the forgiveness of sin that was brought about through the work of Christ.
Faith can also be described by highlighting the story of the bronze serpent during the time of Moses. Simply put, the people of Israel rebelled against God and incurred God’s wrath as a result. God sent fiery serpents to bite the people, and when the people were bitten, they died.
The people pleaded with Moses for help. Moses then interceded for the people. God told Moses to make a bronze serpent and put it on a pole. God also said that if someone was bitten, he must look at the bronze serpent. Whoever looked upon the bronze serpent would live.
The story of the bronze serpent foreshadowed the work of Christ. In John’s Gospel, one can read of the connection that is made between Christ and the bronze serpent. The connection that is made is that when someone looks upon Christ (believes in Christ), that same person will live.
Thus, faith is the inward gaze of the soul upon Christ; it is looking to Christ and fixing one’s eyes upon Christ.
“that it might be by grace”
This brings us to the second part of the verse. The quick conclusion that Paul draws for us is that since the promise comes by way of faith, it is also by grace. The only other option that was presented to mankind is that of obedience to God’s commands.
If someone were to entirely fulfill God’s law perfectly, it could be said, in a sense, that someone earned or deserved eternal life, and thus that same person could gain eternal life outside of grace.
However, the reality of the situation is that nobody finds himself in this category. Despite this fact, there are millions of people in other religions seeking to earn a righteousness in and of themselves. The Bible makes it clear that nobody will be justified by the law. It also states that those who place themselves under the law are actually under a curse.
The only hope for humanity is that God would make a way for people to be forgiven. God has made a way for people to be forgiven through His Son Jesus Christ. Jesus came as the God-man. He was fully God and fully man.
Christ died in the place of guilty sinners so that those same sinners could be forgiven of their sin. The work of Christ is laid hold of by repenting of (turning from) sin to Christ and believing that Christ died for your sins personally. Christ rose from the dead, defeating death, and is seated at the right hand of the Father. Looking to this glorified Savior each day and trusting in Him and His work is a mark of a true Christian.
But let us return to grace. Paul makes it clear that salvation must be by grace and not works. Grace is God’s unmerited favor. This means that man does not deserve Christ, eternal life, the joys of heaven, the inheritance of the promise of Abraham, and so on.
However, God gives to man that which man does not deserve. But God does not do this apart from the cross. God’s blessing and God’s grace flow through the cross. Therefore, man must look to the Savior with the eyes of faith, and in this, he will receive much grace.
“to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that which is only of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham”
Paul goes on to make a distinction between the Jew and the Gentile. He brings up the promise that was given to all, as opposed to the law which was given to the Jew. In the book of Romans, Paul spends a considerable amount of time talking about both the Jew and the Gentile and teaching about their proper place in God’s plan of redemption.
In this verse, it is clear that grace and faith are uniting factors among all mankind in contrast to the law of God which was only given to the Jew. Abraham is held in high esteem for his faith in the Scriptures. Much could be said about this man of faith, but time will not allow it.
One matter that must be highlighted in looking at Abraham, the man of faith, is that in Genesis chapter 15, God promised Abraham that he would have a son. Abraham believed God, and the Bible tells us that Abraham was declared righteous in that moment.
Abraham’s having a son and being the father of many nations was a part of God’s plan of redemption. We know more than Abraham knew back then. We have read about Christ; Christ has already come. However, Abraham did not have the whole picture.
The promise that was given to Abraham was one of the first promises in a long line of promises which later found its fulfillment in the Messiah. As Abraham believed God, he, in essence, looked toward the fulfillment, which was a part of God’s plan of redemption. In that, Abraham was justified by faith.
“who is the father of us all”
Abraham is not only highly esteemed for his faith, but he is also declared to be the father of us all. But what does this mean?
The answer can be encouraging to the soul. The Jews placed much value in being sons of Abraham because they knew that the promise flowed through Abraham. Gentiles could not claim to be sons of Abraham – unless there was another way to be a son of Abraham.
The Bible tells us that the Jew and the Gentile have been united by faith, the same faith as Abraham, and we are all children of Abraham. The promise is for all who would believe.
Final Prayer
Father, I thank You for making a way that I could be saved through faith in Christ. Open my eyes that I might see Christ this day. Teach me to look to Him as I ought. In Jesus’ name, Amen.