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Abraham's Trust

¹ Let's talk about Abraham, the sire of the Jewish people. What was it God saw in him? Was it the things he did? ² If it was, he'd have plenty to brag about. But that's not what God saw in him. ³ The Good Book says, "Abraham trusted God, and because of this faith, God saw him as righteous." ⁴ Think about it this way, a fellow that day works is owed a wage because of his work. It ain't a gift. ⁵ But what God offers can't be earned, only gifted. And this gift comes through faith and trust in God. ⁶ Old David even talked about it long ago when he spoke of the happiness of the cowboys who God had chosen, not because they were Top Hands, but because they had top faith. They got all of this without toeing a stirrup. He said, ⁷ "Blessed are them whose screwups are forgotten, whose sins are forgiven. ⁸ Blessed is the cowboy whose sins the Boss won't never hold against him."

⁹ So is David saying these gifts only belong to those who've had their pickles clipped? Absolutely not! It belongs to anyone with faith and pickles don't have nothing to do with it. We've already said, "Abraham trusted God, and because of this faith, God saw him as righteous." ¹⁰ But many asked if God said this before or after Abraham's pickle was clipped. Let me tell you. God said it before it happened, not after. ¹¹ Yes, he did have his pickle clipped to show a sign of his faith and that God had accepted him because of the trust. We might say Abraham is the ramrod of all who are accepted by God through faith, regardless of pickles. ¹² But he is also the ramrod of those who are circumcised and live a life of faith like he did before he was cut.

¹³ God's promise to give the whole world to Abraham's line was not based on how well rules were followed, but on a right relationship with God through faith and trust. ¹⁴ If God only did this for those who obeyed the Code, the faith would be useless. ¹⁵ The Code is only to show you that you can't be perfect and must depend on faith and trust in God to save you.

¹⁶ The promise of God is a free gift we get for having faith. We know this gift is guaranteed through faith, regardless of whether we follow the code of Moses or not. It's about having faith, not following rules. Abraham had this kind of faith and so can we. That's why he is the sire of God's people. ¹⁷ That's what the Good Book means when it says, "I have made you the sire of my people, the first of many that will come." Abraham received this blessing because he believed in God who could bring the dead back to life and whose word brings something from nothing.

¹⁸ With the deck seemingly stacked against him, Abraham kept trusting God—believing he would be the sire of a many nations. God had said to him, "Your offspring and theirs will be more than the number of stars in the sky." ¹⁹ Abraham was nearly one hundred years old and his wife was barren,²⁰ but still he believed in what God told him about being the sire of many nations. ²¹ He was absolutely positive God wouldn't go back on his word. ²² Because of this confidence, God looked at him as righteous. ²³ But this isn't just reserved for Abraham and his kin. ²⁴ It's also for every cowboy who has bent the knee and knows God raised Jesus from the dead. ²⁵ He took our place in the firing line and died. Then his daddy raised him from the dead so we could be raised too.