Bible Commentaries
Romans 4

Verses 1-5

The righteousness of God is by faith alone
(Romans 4:1-5)

Romans 4:1. What then shall we say that Abraham, our father ac­cording to the flesh, has found?

Romans 4:2. For if Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about; but not before God.

In Galatians 3:7, we read that “it is those who are of faith that are sons of Abraham.” Our Lord said in Luke 19:9 concerning Zaccheus, “Today salvation has come to this house, because he, too, is a son of Abraham.” In John 8:39, the Jewish leaders said, “Abraham is our father.” And the Lord answered, “If you are Abraham’s children, do the deeds of Abraham.”

We have Abraham as an illustration of how one is justified. He found that all that the flesh stood for could not stand before the presence of God. If it were by works, he would be able to glory in what he had done.

Can you imagine what heaven would be like if men got there by their good works? Why, they would be boasting all through eternity about what they had done. They wouldn’t glorify God at all. It’s not me-plus-Jesus. It’s not Jesus-plus-me. He did the whole thing. He satisfied God. We are the re­cipients of His wonderful grace. Justification be­fore God can never be on the ground of works.

Abraham had “something to boast about; but not before God.”

Romans 4:3. For what does the Scripture say? “AND ABRAHAM BELIEVED GOD, AND IT WAS RECKONED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS.”

Now, quite often someone says to me, “But, Mr. Mitchell, there must be a conflict here. In the Book of Romans, Abraham is justified by faith without works. In the Book of James, chapter 2, Abraham is justified by his works. Now which one is right?” Some of the old timers, the old worthies who wrote many years ago, used to call the Book of James, “An Epistle of Straw.”

No, in Romans we have the root of the mat­ter; in James we have the fruit. In Romans we stand before God, hence we need faith. In James, we stand before men, hence we need works. In Genesis 15:6, we see the ungodly Abraham saved. In James 2:1-26, we see the godly Abraham tested. In one, you have faith alone; and, in the other, you have the works of faith.

For example, Romans is dealing with Genesis 15:5-6 where God said to Abraham, “‘Now look to­ward the heavens, and count the stars, if you are able to count them.’ And He said to him, ‘So shall your descendants be.’ And he believed in the LORD; and He reckoned it to him as righteous­ness.”

But James 2:24 says, “You see that a man is justified by works, and not by faith alone” when he offered up Isaac his son upon the altar.

And, by the way, lest someone misunderstand me, let me say this, that even in the Book of James the writer is not talking about works of the law or works of the flesh. He is talking about the works of faith. I can’t see your faith. God sees your faith and whether it is real or not. All I can go by is your works—and by that I don’t mean that you are going to go out and perform miracles. The life of faith is a life of walking in fellowship with God.

If I do not see any manifestation of a godly life in you and someone asks me if you are a Christian, I say, “I don’t know. He may be. He says he is, but I don’t know because I do not see the works of faith evidenced in his life.” But when I see one who is walking before God, seeking to please Him, and you ask me if that fellow is saved, I say, “Why, cer­tainly. I see his faith manifested by his works.”

In the Book of Romans we have what God sees. In the Book of James we have what man sees. James says, for example in 2:24, “You see.” “You see”—not God, but “you.” You see how Abra­ham was justified by works when he offered up Isaac. And what did Abraham have in the flesh? Nothing at all.

I repeat it again. No works of man can stand be­fore God. Abraham was justified by faith, and he had nothing in which to glory before God.

“For what does the Scripture say? ‘And Abraham believed God, and it was reckoned to him as right­eousness. ’”

You see, the key to this passage is that he stood before God. Here you have works and grace contrasted. Abraham did one thing. He believed God. When was he justified? When he believed God. It was not when he worked, but when he be­lieved God.

Romans 4:4. Now to the one who works, his wage is not reckoned as a favor but as what is due.

Romans 4:5. But to the one who does not work, but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is reckoned as righteousness.

Now he is going to narrow it down a wee bit. When was Abraham justified?

Before he was circumcised.

What kind of a man was Abraham when God called him?

Joshua told the people of Israel in Joshua 24:2; Joshua 24:14 (as they entered the land of Canaan) that their forefathers were idolators in Ur of the Chal­dees. In Isaiah 51:2 and Acts 7:3-4, we read that the God of glory appeared unto Abraham, when he was in Mesopotamia, and said, “Depart;” and “he departed.”

In the first few chapters of Abraham’s life, noth­ing is said about justification until Abraham be­lieved God when He told him his seed would be as the stars of the heavens for multitude.

Paul narrows it down in Galatians 3:16 where we read, He said, “Now the promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. He does not say, ‘AND TO SEEDS,’ as referring to many, but rather to one, ‘AND TO YOUR SEED,’ that is, Christ.” And when his faith was coupled with the heavenly seed, with Christ, he was counted righteous.

You say, “Well, Mr. Mitchell, I’ve always believed in God. I believe in the Creator. I’m not a pagan. I’m not a heathen. I’m not an atheist. I really be­lieve there is a God. Did God not create all things? I believe in God.”

My friend, you cannot stand before God ac­ceptably on that ground. You are not justified be­fore God until you believe in His Son, Jesus Christ. If you go down to Acts 10:1-48, you read of Cor­nelius, the Roman officer of the army. He was a good man. He was told, “Your prayers and alms have ascended as a memorial before God;” but he wasn’t a Christian.

The Apostle Paul in Philippians 3:1-21 was a real Jew. He was a Hebrew of the Hebrews. As touch­ing the law, he was a Pharisee. He was not a lib­eral. He was conservative in theology. And con­cerning zeal for God, he was persecuting the church. Touching the righteousness which was in the law, he was blameless.

And yet he was not saved.

A person can be a moralist and a religionist and not be saved, not be fitted for God’s presence. There must be relationship to God’s precious Son. It was Jesus Christ who satisfied the character of God for you and for me. It was Jesus Christ who removed the barrier between God and you, God and me. He removed the barrier of sin. That’s why He died. And His resurrection was the guarantee that He not only put away your sin, but He abso­lutely satisfied the character of God.

God comes to us and brings us the good news that Christ died for us and made the provision whereby you and I by faith in Jesus Christ can stand in the presence of God in all the righteous­ness and beauty of Christ.

You see, you have here in verses 4 and 5 the principle of works and the principle of grace.

One is an obligation, a debt; the other is of grace and the kindness of unmerited favor. You have the working method versus the believing method.

No, my friend, there must be a definite pay for a definite work; or you have to accept the grace of God to the undeserving. And we find that here in verses 4 and 5:

“To the one who works, his wage is not reckoned as favor but as what is due.”

You work for a man, and he pays you your wages. It’s not a gift; it’s a debt.

“But to the one who does not work, but believes in Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is reckoned as righteousness.” Not his works, but his faith. It was the faith of the ungodly Abraham that was counted for righteousness.

God’s very righteousness reaches right down to men in whatever state they are as they accept the Lord Jesus Christ as Saviour.

It’s not changing an ungodly man into a godly man who will believe. It’s the ungodly man who be­lieves and becomes a godly man.

People say, “If I were only better.”

No, God doesn’t say, “When you get better and believe, I’ll take you.”

You’ve got to be saved first; then you become better. Let’s put it straight. It’s by faith A-L-O-N-E, not faith plus anything else. It is just faith in the Lord Jesus Christ.

Forgive me for repeating all this, but I so des­perately want to impress these precious things upon your heart so you can impress them upon the hearts of others.

Verses 1-25

THE SAMPLE FAITH (Romans 4:1-25)

Verses 6-8

The righteousness of God is without works
(Romans 4:6-8)

As we come to verses 6 to 8, Paul uses David to illustrate the blessedness of righteousness by faith. Now, when he used Abraham, he was stress­ing the question of faith; with David he stresses that it is without works.

Romans 4:6. Just as David also speaks of the blessing upon the man to whom God reckons righteousness apart from works:

Romans 4:7. “BLESSED ARE THOSE WHOSE LAWLESS DEEDS HAVE BEEN FORGIVEN, AND WHOSE SINS HAVE BEEN COVERED.

Romans 4:8. BLESSED IS THE MAN WHOSE SIN THE LORD WILL NOT TAKE INTO ACCOUNT.”

Please mark this passage. Paul is dealing with the blessedness, the joy that a person has in the forgiveness that is perfect, that is divine, that is eternal. David, filled with joy in the Psalms 32:2, writes, “Blessed is the man to whom the Lord does not impute iniquity.”

For God not to charge you with your sin is to impute righteousness. May I change it around? When you and I put our faith in the Saviour, He counts us righteous; and He will never under any consideration charge us with our sin. God is re­vealing His character as the Righteous One in not imputing sin to those who believe and put their trust in His Son.

Now here is an amazing thing. The enemies of the Word of God make a joke of David and Bath­sheba. They hate the God of David. They prefer the sin of David with Bathsheba to a righteous God who demands judgment.

And David, under the judgment of God, comes before Him in repentance and confession. God for­gives his sin, and David is filled with the joy and the blessedness of a forgiveness that’s real, that’s eternal, that’s divine.

Now that didn’t free David from judgment. The child died. Amnon was killed. Absalom was killed. Adonijah was killed. The sin of David went through his family. He had nothing to present to God but sin. He stood before Him in his shame. As he could say in that 32nd Psalm, verse 4, “The hand of God was heavy upon me. I was just filled with tears and the drought of summer” (my ver­sion). He went through hell for a whole year until Nathan came and opened his heart. And when David saw the sinfulness, the blackness, the aw­fulness of his own heart, he bowed in repentance and shame before God in confession.

Immediately, he confessed and God forgave him and cleansed him; and David described the bless­edness of the grace of God who can pick up men and women like him and like you and me and cleanse us and forgive us and impute righteous­ness without works.

What work could David bring? What work can you bring? I’m afraid too many of us are like David in that we can condemn the sin we see in others and not condemn ourselves. Yet the marvel of it, the wonder of it that the moment a sinner comes into the presence of God, confesses his sinfulness, repents, and in simple faith puts his trust in Jesus Christ without works of any kind, God imputes righteousness. Oh, the blessedness!

“Oh, but Mr. Mitchell,” you say, “that’s works.”

Oh? Is it? Confessing to God that you are a sin­ner is a work? Repenting of your sinfulness is a work? Never! It is the process of placing faith, the process of being justified.

My friend, I’m dealing with a foundational thing. God in infinite, wonderful grace through His blessed Son takes the ungodly, the sinner, the outcast or whatever God finds him to be and pro­nounces him righteous without works when he puts his trust in His Son. “Blessed is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin.”

My, what a joy! What a wonderful thing that you and I can come into the presence of a righteous, holy God. And, as we stand in His presence, we have that conscious realization, that blessedness, that joy of knowing that the righteous God will never again impute sin to the one who puts his trust in His Son. Now that’s the good news from God.

I want you to get the thrill of this and the joy of it and the peace that comes. I have met peo­ple who are afraid to come into the presence of God. Well, what are you afraid of?

“Oh, but Mr. Mitchell, I’ve been such a sinner. I’ve failed so much.”

Listen, my friend, nobody will ever see your sins or your failures when you get to heaven. That’s why I like the 11th chapter of Hebrews. Did you ever notice all those Old Testament worthies? Not a word is said about their failures. Did Abraham fail God? Yes, but you don’t find it in Hebrews 11:1-40. Did David fail God? Yes, but you don’t find it in Hebrews 11:1-40.

Did Moses fail God? He certainly did. But you don’t find it in Hebrews 11:1-40.

When I come to John 17:8, just before our Lord went to the cross, He said to His Father, “The words which thou gavest Me; I have given to them; and they received them.”

There is not a word about the fact that they were going to run away, that they were going to deny Him. No. When He stands before His Father and prays for His disciples, not a thing is said about failure or weaknesses.

Oh, what a salvation is this that you and I can come into the very presence of God in Christ Jesus and know that we stand before Him in all His righteousness and that every sin is forgiven, put away and forgotten.

Now you and I may remember them down here.

You say, “Won’t I remember them in heaven?”

I don’t think so. You’ll be so occupied with our blessed Saviour in the glory of it all that what happened down here will be long past.

Now, in the first five verses we have the posi­tive side of the Gospel. God takes sinners who without works just put their trust in Jesus Christ by simple faith, and He covers them with the righteousness of Christ.

And then in Romans 4:6-8, we have the other side of the coin. Their sins and their iniquities will He remember no more. How blessed is the man whom the Lord will not charge with sin. The blood of Je­sus Christ, God’s Son, has cleansed us from all sin. We can truly sing, “Hallelujah! What a Sav­iour!”

Verses 9-16

JUSTIFICATION IS WITHOUT CEREMONIES
(Romans 4:9-16)

Now we come to the third thing in the passage, and this runs from Romans 4:9 right down through Romans 4:12. Justification is without works and now without ceremonies.

I recognize that the Apostle Paul has the Jewish people in mind. But when we bring it down to the present day, we have “churchianity” in mind. We have a great many folk who are professing Chris­tians, who make a great deal of ordinances and ceremonies.

Theoretically, we see there is no value to it from the question of salvation. But we stress it so much that we take to ourselves some value that is not there. For, when we push an ordinance beyond what is written, we defeat the very thing for which it was written. And not only so, if we trust an or­dinance, it means that we are not trusting the Son of God. Let’s read:

Romans 4:9. Is this blessing then upon the circumcised, or upon the uncircumcised also? For we say, “FAITH WAS RECKONED TO ABRAHAM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS.”

Romans 4:10. How then was it reckoned? While he was circumcised, or uncircumcised? Not while circumcised, but while uncircum­cised;

Romans 4:11. And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had while uncircumcised: that he might be the father of all who believe without being circumcised; that righteousness might be reckoned to them,

Romans 4:12. And the father of circumcision to those who not only are of the circumcision, but who follow in the steps of the faith of our father Abraham, which he had while uncircum­cised.

Let me stop here very briefly. When was Abraham justified? He was justified 14 years be­fore he was circumcised.

You see what Paul is after? The Jew has divided the human race into two groups, saying, “We are of the circumcision. Everybody else is of the uncir­cumcision. We are God’s people, and the rest are outside of God’s covenant. We are the people. We are of the circumcision.”

Circumcision was a sign to Abraham of his un­ion and relationship to God, that he was one with God, that God was his God. He was separated unto his God. Jehovah was his God. The Living God was his God. He had been called out by the God of glory, out of idolatry in Ur of the Chaldees. Now he could say, “In my being I have a sign, given to me by God, that I belong to Him. He is my God.” And it is a sign to the outside world of his separation from the world unto God. It’s a sign. That’s all it is—an outward sign to the world and to Abraham that he was justified by faith in God.

The blessings which came upon the Jewish race were not through the faith of a circumcised man but through the faith of an uncircumcised man.

Or, if I might change the wording, the blessing which came upon the Jewish race was through the faith of one who was declared righteous while he was a Gentile. Indeed, if you want to follow it through, if the Jews are going to be saved at all, they have to come the Gentile way—that is, by faith.

Now, you remember, in Acts 15:1-41 there were some Jews who were Christians; and they wanted the Gentiles to come to Christ through Judaism. They wanted the Gentiles to be circumcised, to keep the law.

And, you remember, both Peter and James with­stood that. And Paul withstood it. In fact, Peter said in verse 11—it was nice the way he put it— “But we believe that we are saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, in the same way as they also are.”

How’s that?

By faith.

And here in Romans, Paul insists that no ordi­nance will ever take the place of Christ’s work for us.

I’m going to repeat that. No ordinance or cere­mony will ever take the place of Christ’s work for you or for me.

It’s an amazing thing. Here in professing Chris­tendom how much merit we put in ordinance and ceremony, whether it be baptism or the Lord’s Ta­ble or whatever it may be.

But we are not saved by baptism or by observ­ing the Lord’s Table.

One dear woman said to me one time, “Why, Brother Mitchell, I’ve been baptized seven times, and I would be baptized the eighth time if I had to.”

Well, bless your dear heart. I don’t care what you’ve done. It means nothing as far as that is concerned. I’m not opposed to baptism or to the Lord’s Table.

What I’m saying is this, that the moment you add the least thing to salvation, however precious that thing is to you, you add to the work of Christ; and that moment you ruin God’s good news.

I remember in Galatians 1:8-9, the curse, the anathema of God is upon anyone who brings to you any other message than this. And I repeat it. Nothing you can do in the way of religious obser­vances of any kind can add or take away from the work of Christ.

Abraham was justified 14 years before he went through any circumcision, any rites of any kind. Abraham wasn’t justified after he had this circum­cision ceremony. No, he was justified 14 years be­fore that.

“Well, Mr. Mitchell, do you mean to tell me that he would have been a saved man if he hadn’t been circumcised?”

Of course. Of course. Circumcision was only a sign to the world that Abraham was a man sepa­rated unto God.

Now, I’m asked this question quite often; and I know I’m talking to people who will disagree with me. That’s your right; that’s your prerogative. I wouldn’t expect you to agree with me anyhow. But, brother, if you’re going to come and argue with me, bring your Bible.

No soul was ever saved by faith in Christ plus any work or any ceremony.

“But, Mr. Mitchell,” you say, “baptism is not a work.”

Well, what is it? It’s something you do, and what you do physically is works. Now baptism is a sign to the world of your separation unto God. It’s a sign of your testimony that you are trusting in what Jesus Christ did in His death and burial and resurrection. To those who believe, it is a sign that you have received the Spirit of God.

Now, I’m not going into the question of water baptism—what it teaches or even the mode.

I’m after only one thing, and that is that baptism does not add one iota to your salvation in Christ. Christ is a perfect, complete, eternal Saviour; and His death on the cross is 100 percent. You can’t add to it; and, if you try to add to the work of Christ, you spoil the Gospel. It is no longer good news.

God in just one swoop (as we have in chapters 1, 2 and 3) took men and put them all on the same plane. All have sinned and come short of the glory of God. All need the same Saviour and can be saved on only one ground—on the ground of grace through faith. It couldn’t be any other way. If there is one God and all are sinners, then they’ve got to be saved by one way and that is by faith. It has to be either by works or by faith.

And, if it’s by works, there can be no reason why Christ died. If it is by faith, then God does the whole business. You have to accept it by faith and revel in Him.

Then, because of your relationship to God, you ought to live like a Christian, like a child of God. This does not lead to license.

Listen, my friend, and I say it very bluntly because I have been accused of this—that, when you teach the grace of God, you teach man to go out and do anything he wants to. When a person makes that statement, he reveals to me his shal­low thinking and his ignorance of the grace of God.

The more one sees the grace of God, the marvel­ous privilege that God has made for men, the more we want to please Him and the more we want to be obedient to His Word and submissive to His will.

And, whether you believe it or not, my friend, this is what the Book says; and I’m going to go by the Book. This is divine revelation. Justification is without works and by faith and without ceremo­nies. And Paul is insisting on this, you know. No ordinance of any kind will ever take the place of the work of Christ.

Now, you have God’s promise in Romans 4:13-16 —God’s promise to Abraham that he would be the heir of the world on one ground, the ground of faith.

Let’s read those four verses.

Romans 4:13. For the promise to Abraham or to his descendants that he would be heir of the world was not through the Law, but through the righteousness of faith.

Romans 4:14. For if those who are of the Law are heirs, faith is made void and the promise is nullified;

Romans 4:15. For the Law brings about wrath, but where there is no law, neither is there violation.

Romans 4:16. For this reason it is by faith, that it might be in accor­dance with grace, in order that the promise may be certain to all the     descendants, not only to those who are of the Law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all.

This dear man Abraham was called out from Ur of the Chaldees, from the house of idolatry. He went out not knowing where he went; and, step by step, there came to his heart the revelation of God. And, one day, when God said (Genesis 15:5; Genesis 22:17), “Now look toward the heavens, and count the stars . . . so shall your descendants be,” he believed God; and it was accounted to him for righteousness. Galatians 3:16 says that that seed was Christ. When his faith was coupled with Christ, he was justified.

But God went beyond that and declared him the inheritor of the whole world. God had made Adam and had given him dominion over all the works of His hands. Sin came in, and Adam lost the whole business. God found a man whom He called His friend, a man who walked with Him in all his tests and trials, in all his accomplishments and failures. And Abraham believed God.

He believed God in spite of everything.

And God said, “I’ve found my man. I’ve found the one through whom My Son shall come. I’ve found the one to whom I’m going to give the whole world. He is the heir of the world through faith.”

Go now beyond this question of justification for a moment. The Jews said, “Abraham is our Father. We are God’s people. We are going to rule the world. We are going to be the leading nation of the world.” They could go back to the Old Testament to prove that.

Did Zechariah not say, “The time is coming when ten men from every nation from under heaven will lay hold of the skirt of him that is a Jew and say, ‘We are going to go with you. ’” Does it not say in Isaiah that men shall call Jews the priests of God, the ministers of God? Does it not say that the Word of God shall go forth from Jeru­salem and all the nations of the earth shall be un­der His dominion?

Paul says, “Yes, but don’t forget that this promise that Abraham would be the heir of the world, this in which you Jews are boasting, is not received through the law or through works or through ceremonies. It is received by faith.”

Then, in the 14th verse of this fourth chapter, he makes this amazing statement, “For if those who are of the Law are heirs, faith is made void and the promise nullified.” If it is by works, if it’s by the law, the Jews have broken that law. They do not qualify. The Gentiles are outside the pale of the law, hence they cannot qualify. And if the Jews and the Gentiles cannot qualify, then God can’t keep His Word. Hence, it must be by faith to the end that the promise might be made sure to the seed.

Now will you please notice that God’s promise that Abraham would be the heir of the world was not on the ground of the law because he didn’t have the law. It was not on the ground of works. It was not on the ground of ceremonies, but on the ground of one thing—faith. And this is ever the di­vine mode of blessing.

Friend, listen. Nothing pleases the Lord more than for people to believe Him. It just rejoices the heart of God when you dare to believe what God says is true, whether you feel it or you don’t feel it. For example, do you have eternal life?

You say, “Yes.”

Do you feel it?

You say, “No.”

Are you justified?

“Yes.”

Do you feel it?

“No.”

Justification is just God’s declaring the man who believes in His Son to be righteous. This is what God sees. I have eternal life because God says it and because I have put my trust in the One who has perfectly satisfied God.

“Do you mean, Mr. Mitchell, I will never die?”

That’s right. I may leave my body behind, but the man who lives in this body is eternal. That’s because we have put our trust in the Saviour. And Abraham became the heir of the world through faith. Adam lost it through sin, but God promised it to His friend Abraham on one ground—faith. And there are no barriers between.

Now, notice what it says in Romans 4:14-16 (let me paraphrase): “If they which are of the law be heirs, then there is no need for faith and the prom­ise is no good because the law worketh wrath—for where no law is, there is no transgression. There­fore it is by faith that it might be by grace to the end that the promise may be sure for all the seed.”

If it’s by the law, if it’s by the works of the law, then there is no need for a promise.

Nobody can receive the promise if it is on the ground of the law.

The law just shuts everybody up.

Let me repeat the argument in Romans 4:14-16. Verse 15 says the law brings about wrath. The law never saved anybody. It doesn’t justify anybody. It doesn’t help anybody. All the law could do is to curse. And, where there is no law, there is no transgression. If there is no law to break, of course you can’t transgress what is not there.

What is he saying? The Jew was the only one who had the law of Moses, but he broke that law. Hence, he was disqualified from being the heir of the world. The Gentiles didn’t have the law; and, hence, they were automatically disqualified. They knew nothing about the law. So, if the inheritance is by law, then the promise of it is no good because nobody can keep the law. The Jews didn’t keep it; the Gentiles didn’t have it. Hence, there would be no heirs.

So, in Romans 4:16, “For this reason it is by faith, that it might be in accordance with grace; in order that the promise may be certain.”

Aren’t you glad for that? He makes the thing sure to all —Jew and Gentile—who are of the faith of Abraham who is the father of us all.

In other words, Abraham is put up here as the sample faith. He dared to believe God in spite of everything else. He didn’t add one iota of works to it.

So it is with us.

You see, you have three things in the chap­ter: 1) We are declared righteous by faith. It is without works, and it is without ceremonies. We have every sin forgiven. For God not to impute sin is to impute righteousness. He is not going to im­pute sin to us at any time.

And then, 2) we become the heir of the world through faith. That’s why Romans 8:17 says, “And if children, heirs also, heirs of God, and fellow-heirs with Christ.” So we have justification. We are forgiven; and 3) we have an inheritance, guaran­teed not on the ground of works but on the ground of grace through faith. Or, as one has so well said,

Under the law with its terrible lash,
Learning, alas, how true;

But the more I tried,
The sooner I died,
While the law cried, “You, you, you.”

Hopelessly still as the battle raged,
“O wretched man,” I cried.
And deliverance I sought
By some penance bought,
While my soul cried, “I, I, I.”

Then came a day when my struggling ceased
And trembling in every limb,
At the foot of the tree
Where One died for me,
I sobbed out, “Him, Him, Him.”

So, let me repeat. Verse 16 says, “For this rea­son it is by faith, that it might be in accordance with grace, in order that the promise may be cer­tain, certain, certain to all the descendants.”

We have this confidence because God has done it. Listen, friend, if this were by works —your works, religious works, moral works —you would never be sure that you had done enough. You would never have peace. You would never have as­surance. No, to make the thing sure, God puts it entirely on the ground of His grace.

Let me digress just a moment. There is one word in verse 15 I must touch on since we have been discussing the question of works and the question of the law. I read: “For the Law brings about wrath.”

You see, someone is going to ask the question, “Then why in the world, Mr. Mitchell, did God give the Jew the law of Moses? What is its purpose?”

You remember in John 1:17 that “the law was given through Moses; grace and truth were real­ized through Jesus Christ.” The law is the opposite of faith. We had that in Galatians 3:12: “The Law is not of faith.” The law is the opposite of faith, and God brought Israel out of Egypt on the ground of grace.

You take Exodus from chapter 1 right on down to the beginning of chapter 19. God brought Israel to Himself entirely on the ground of His grace. Then in chapters 19 and 20, He gave the law. Why? Because their confidence was in the flesh. They did not appreciate the mercy and grace and love of God. Indeed, they told God, “All that the Lord our God has said we will do.” You have them boasting what they would do for God.

But, notice, in Exodus 19:1-25; Exodus 20:1-26 that, when the law was given, you have darkness and ter­ror. In fact, they were so scared, they told Moses to go before God. Hebrews 12:21 says that even Moses was scared.

Brother, I’ll tell you there is no joy in the law. Haven’t you heard it thunder? It’s a terror. There is no mercy in law—not even in the law of Moses. So, why did God give the law? Galatians tells me in chapter 3:19 that the law was an “added” thing until Christ should come. From Abraham to Moses they were under the grace, under the promise of God. And then God gave them the law, and from Moses to Christ the law was an added thing. And why was it given?

Let me give you a few reasons.

First, the law was given to make sin exceed­ingly sinful. That is, the law was given to give a distinctive character to sin. You take this 15th verse of Romans 4:1-25—the law brings about wrath. Where no law is, there is no transgression. Trans­gression means missing the mark. Abraham, Isaac and Jacob were not under the law. They were standing on the promise of God. There was no law given.

Now that doesn’t mean they didn’t sin.

Though they were frail and failed God, they knew God. They had peace with God. But the law brings about sin.

You take Romans 7:7-11. Let me condense it. “I would not have come to know sin,” says Paul, “if the law had not said, ‘Thou shalt not covet;’ and that which I thought was going to give me life, be­hold it brought death.” In Romans 5:12, you have the same thing.

James says the law was like a looking glass, but you don’t wash your face with the glass. The glass shows you just where all the dirt is and what you look like. The law does exactly the same thing.

And, second, the law is the strength of sin. In 1 Corinthians 15:56-57, the law is not the strength of righteousness or of goodness. The law is the strength of sin. “But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”

Do you remember Romans 6:14, “Sin shall not be master over you”?

Why?

Because you are not under the law but under grace. You put men under the law, my friend, and you put them under the dominion of sin. You can’t separate the law and sin. The law was given to show us what sin really is. It was never given to save. It never forgives. It has no mercy.

And, then the third thing, the law was given to bring us to Christ. You have this in Galatians 3:24. The law is effective only as it drives the sin­ner to the Saviour. The law was our schoolmaster to bring us to Christ. And having come to Christ, says the Apostle Paul, we are no longer under the schoolmaster.

Now, to sum up, that’s why the law was given— to make sin exceedingly sinful. It is the strength of sin. It was given to bring us to Christ. The only way the law is effective is to drive us to Christ.

What does the law do then? First, the law demands perfection. You remember James 2:10 says that he who breaks the law in one point is guilty of all. Not much chance, is there? A man can live 68, 90 years of age and not break the law; and then, one day, he just breaks the law once. Too bad. He is under the sentence of death, and there are no extenuating circumstances. The law demands perfection.

“Why, Mr. Mitchell,” you say, “there is no man who is perfect except Jesus Christ.”

That’s right. And the law demands perfection. Listen to Galatians 3:10: “Cursed is every one who does not abide by all things written in the book of the law, to perform them.” We are going to use that verse again in a little while. They were obli­gated to do the whole law, not just part of it. The law doesn’t say that, if you do the best you can, you will have some mercy. The law doesn’t have any mercy to give you.

The second thing the law does in this verse, Romans 4:15, is that “the law brings about wrath.” It doesn’t work salvation. It doesn’t work peace. It doesn’t work justification. It doesn’t give you forgiveness. The law works wrath.

Third, the law is a ministration of death. You have this in 2 Corinthians 3:7-18 and in Ro­mans 7:5, 12 and 13. The law says you must die. And Paul says, “That which I thought was going to give me life, behold it brought death.”

And the fourth thing that the law can do is curse. We have already mentioned that in Gala­tians 3:10 to 13. It curses whom? Those who con­tinue not in all things which are written in the book of the law to do them.

And, you know, man doesn’t believe that. He just goes on trying to keep the law to gain favor with God. He doesn’t believe the law curses. The law is the ministration of death. The law works wrath. The law is the strength of sin. It makes sin exceedingly sinful.

Well, can’t it do anything?

No. I’ll give you four things about this, too.

The law cannot save you. You remember in Romans 3:20, Paul says, “By the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight; for through the law comes the knowledge of sin.” The law can­not save. You find that in Galatians 3:11.

Second, the law is not of faith. We had that in Galatians 3:12. You have it also in Romans 11:6. One could multiply these passages. I am just pick­ing them out to let you see the truth.

And then, third, the law cannot give life. Paul could say in Galatians 3:21, “For if a law had been given which was able to impart life, then right­eousness would indeed have been based on law.”

And then, last, the law cannot perfect God’s people. That is, it cannot fit men for the presence of God. In Hebrews 7:19, we read the fact that “the Law made nothing perfect, and on the other hand there is a bringing in of a better hope, through which we draw near to God.” The law made noth­ing perfect.

Oh, listen, friend. When you and I accept the Saviour, we are saved apart from the law entirely— we are absolutely outside of its jurisdiction. The law has no authority to save, help or forgive you.

And the moment you and I, as sinners, whether Jews or Gentiles, put ourselves under the law of Moses, then, my friend, you have to face the fact: “Cursed is every one who does not abide by all things written in the book of the law, to perform them.” All it can do is to curse.

No, thank God, we are delivered from the law and its curse, as Galatians 3:13 says: “Christ re­deemed us from the curse of the Law, having be­come a curse for us—for it is written, Cursed is every one who hangs on a tree.”

When Jesus Christ died in your place and my place, when God’s Son bore your sin and my sin, and I say this reverently, all the holy law of God could do was to curse Him because it is written, “Cursed is every one who hangs on a tree.”

Thank God, we are delivered from its curse. And we are also delivered from its authority. That’s what you have in Romans 8:3 and Galatians 4:4-5 when God sent His Son “in the likeness of sinful flesh.” Do you remember that?

In the fulness of time, God sent forth His son, born of a woman, born under the law so that He might free us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us—that He might deliver us from the law and all that pertains to it—that we might receive the adoption of sons.

I’m talking about Galatians 3:1-29; Galatians 4:1-31 and Titus 3:5—“He saved us not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy, by the washing of regeneration and re­newing by the Holy Spirit.”

I repeat it, the law has no mercy. It never did have any mercy for transgressors.

Friend, did you ever break the law of God? “Why,” you say, “everyone has.”

Then they are under the curse.

“Oh, but Mr. Mitchell, I’m going to do better from now on.”

You are too late, brother. You have already bro­ken it. The law says you must die. If you break the law in one point, you are guilty of all and you must die. That is the administration of death. Either you die or somebody else dies for you.

Oh, listen. The good news from God to you is that God the Son came, bore your sins and died your death so that you and I might be set free.

That’s why I like Romans 10:3-4. You remem­ber—the Jews, “not knowing about God’s right­eousness, and seeking to establish their own, they did not subject themselves to the righteousness of God. For Christ is the end of the law.” He is the end of the law, not the beginning of the law. He is “the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes.”

May I make a strong statement? The law of God was never given as a means of life to the unsaved, nor was it given as a rule of life to the saved. Christ is the end of the law for righteous­ness. And, as Galatians 3:24 says, “The Law has become our tutor to lead us to Christ;” and, having come to Christ, we are no longer under the schoolmaster.

My friend, to go back to the law, either for salva­tion or even as a rule of life, denies the sufficiency of the work of Christ. To put anybody under the law, Christian or non-Christian, is to put him un­der a curse. And as Galatians 5:4 says, “You who are seeking to be justified by the law; you have fallen from grace.”

Either Christ is sufficient to save us and keep us or He is not a Saviour at all.

I’m putting it right on the line.

It’s about time we Christians, especially we Christians, got down to the place where we can see that, when the Lord Jesus Christ came, He abso­lutely and perfectly completed the work of redemp­tion. And the resurrection is the guarantee of it.

And for one who professes Christ as Saviour to go back under the law, even as a rule of life, is to deny the sufficiency of the work of Christ.

You put yourself under the curse, and you fall from grace.

Indeed, I might say this, that the death of Jesus Christ has forever severed the relationship be­tween the believer and the law.

If I were to take up this question in the Book of Galatians, which I am not, I would point out that the death of Jesus Christ has severed our relation­ship to sin and to the world and to our religion, to self, to the curse of the law, to the law itself and to the flesh and its lusts.

If we turn from the Levitical priesthood of the Old Testament to Christ, then we must turn from the covenant of law to the covenant of grace.

I would remind you of Hebrews 7:11-12 where we read what the purpose of the priesthood was.

“If perfection was through the Levitical priest­hood, (for on the basis of it the people received the Law,) what further need was there for another priest to arise according to the order of Melchize­dek” or for the law’s being changed? Or the priest­hood’s being changed.

Where there is a necessity, there is also a change of covenant.

And, if I change from Levi and Moses to Christ, then I change from law to grace.

He speaks of this in the 12th verse: “For when the priesthood is changed” from the Aaronic priesthood to Christ’s priesthood—if I change the priesthood—then “of necessity there takes place a change of law also.”

For I read farther on in verse 19, “The Law made nothing perfect, and on the other hand there is a bringing in of a better hope, through which we draw near to God.”

Therefore (Romans 4:16), “it is by faith, that it might be in accordance with grace, in order that the promise may be certain to all the descendants” (Jew or Gentile, apart from the law and ceremonies of works and all the rest of it).

Christ is our perfect—blessed be His name—our perfect Saviour.

Now then, we come to verses 17 to 25 and I ask the question again, “What is justifying faith?”

Verses 17-25

IT IS FAITH IN THE GOD OF RESURRECTION
(Romans 4:17-25)

How do we know when we have the right kind of faith? You remember it says in Hebrews 11:6, “Without faith it is impossible to please Him.”

Now Abraham is given to us again as a sample.

He is the father of those who believe. And if you want his history, you have to go from Genesis 12:1-20 right on down to chapter 25:8 when he was taken away at 175 years of age.

Abraham was not the only one who had faith at that time. You remember in chapter 14 you have Melchizedek, who was the priest of El Elyon, the Most High God. But Abraham’s faith is given to us as the sample faith.

Look again at Luke 19:5-9 where Jesus said of Zaccheus, “This day is salvation come to this house, forsomuch as he also is a son of Abraham.”

And what did Abraham do? Abraham believed in the God who made alive, who quickened the dead. He believed in the God of resurrection. Now, that’s really what it says.

Romans 4:17. (As it is written, “A FATHER OF MANY NATIONS HAVE I MADE YOU”) in the sight of Him whom he believed, even God, who gives life to the dead and calls into being that which does not exist.

Romans 4:18. In hope against hope he believed, in order that he might become a father of many nations, according to that which had been spoken, “SO SHALL YOUR DESCENDANTS BE.””

Romans 4:19. And without becoming weak in faith he contemplated his own body, now as good as dead since he was about a hundred years old, and the deadness of Sarah’s womb;

Romans 4:20. Yet, with respect to the promise of God, he did not waver in unbelief, but grew strong in faith, giving glory to God,

Romans 4:21. And being fully assured that what He had promised, He was able also to perform.

Romans 4:22. Therefore also IT WAS RECKONED TO HIM AS RIGHTEOUSNESS.

Romans 4:23. Now not for his sake only was it written, that “IT WAS RECKONED TO HIM,”

Romans 4:24. But for our sake also, to whom it will be reckoned, as those who believe in Him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead,

Romans 4:25. He who was delivered up because of our transgres­sions, and was raised because of our justification.

Now, the great thing about Abraham was that he believed in God that quickeneth the dead. He believed in the God of resurrection. He consid­ered not his own body now dead. That is, he was conscious of a physical impossibility; yet he rose above it in faith and believed he was going to have a boy. He looked away from his own physical in­firmity and stood upon the Word of God.

“Whatever the circumstances, whatever anybody else says, I am going to believe in God.” He didn’t waver one little bit. He dared to believe God be­cause God had spoken.

Now here, when God said, “You are going to be the father of a boy,” he had hope. But when we come to chapter 16 in Genesis, you have where Sarah, who was barren, believed that Abraham could still have a boy; and so she gave him Hagar, her handmaid, through whom Ishmael was born.

God said, “This is not the boy. This is not the heir.” And then I read in Genesis chapter 17, the first verse, “Now when Abram was ninety-nine years old . . .” From a physical viewpoint, there was no hope at all of Sarah’s having a baby or of Abraham’s having one either.

But God said, “I’m going to make your seed like the stars of heaven.” God says, “I’m going to give you a boy. You are going to have an heir.”

And Abraham believed God in spite of his body. He believed beyond the physical in a God who could keep His word.

Oh, friend, do you?

Or are you still trusting what you can do?

Way back in your old heart, are you saying, “Oh, if I could only live a little better, if I only could go through certain circumstances, ceremonies, join some church, be a better man, be a better woman, maybe the Lord will—”

No, friend. No, friend.

There must be faith in the God of resurrec­tion. When Abraham had come to the end of him­self, he had no hope. Sarah came to the end of herself. She had no hope. Abraham still believed God. He was not going to waver.

Circumstances said, “You will never have a boy.” All they knew about the physical said, “You can’t have a boy.”

God said, “I’m going to give you a boy”; and Abraham believed God. This is the sample faith. We must have this same kind of faith.

“But, Mr. Mitchell, I don’t have the faith Abra­ham had,” you say.

I didn’t ask you if you had the same amount of faith. You have to have the same kind of faith.

Let me quote from 1 Peter 1:3; 1 Peter 1:21 where Pe­ter says, “Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to his great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. . . . Who through Him are believers in God, who raised Him from the dead and gave Him glory, so that your faith and hope are in God.”

Abraham just believed that God would do what He said He would do.

The disciples and even the Lord Himself never spoke of the cross without resurrection. The cross was a tragedy apart from resurrection. The bless­ing of justification is secured by the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead. He was delivered up because of my offences, yours and mine. He bore your sins and my sins. He bore the penalty.

How do I know He put my sins away?

God raised Him from the dead. That’s why, when you come to the Book of Acts, you have nearly 30 times when the apostles proclaimed the resurrec­tion of Jesus Christ from the dead.

Friend, if there is no resurrection, there is no salvation. But if He be raised from the dead, then His work at the cross absolutely, perfectly satisfied God.

And I’m going to say what I’ve said so often: The resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead is God’s personal proof to you that Christ Jesus has put away your sins. He has satisfied God. God is now free to take anybody who puts his trust in Jesus Christ as Saviour and not only forgive his sins, but also cover him with the righteousness of Christ.

Now, let me give you a little Bible study.

We are justified by God. This is chapter 3. This is the source of our justification.

We are justified by grace in Romans 3:24, “Being justified as a gift by His grace.” That’s the principle of it.

We are justified by faith, as you have in Romans 5:1, “Therefore having been justified by faith, we have peace with God.” This is the method of receiv­ing justification.

We are justified by His blood, the ground of justification. Romans 5:9 says, “Much more then, having now been justified by His blood, we shall be saved from the wrath of God through Him.”

Resurrection is the proof of it as you have in Romans 4:25. “He was raised because of our justi­fication.” Now, let me repeat it quickly. We are jus­tified by God. That’s the source of it.

We are justified by grace. That’s the principle of it.

We are justified by faith. That’s the method of it. We are justified by blood. That’s the ground of it. And resurrection is the proof of it.

As 1 Corinthians 15:17 says, “If Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless.” We haven’t anything. We just haven’t anything.

Now, that raises another question.

In chapter 3:21-31, we found that justification is by faith and in chapter 4 we have been dealing with what sample faith is.

We are justified by faith without works, without ceremonies, without the law.

We are justified by faith in the God of resurrec­tion. The very foundation of our Christian faith is based upon not only the death of Jesus Christ but the resurrection. “If Christ has not been raised . . . you are still in your sins. . . . We are of all men most to be pitied” (1 Corinthians 15:17; 1 Corinthians 15:19).

But now there is another question raised.

“All right, Mr. Mitchell, I believe in the God of resurrection. I believe that God raised Jesus Christ from the dead. And I believe this One, who bore my sins, put them away. God raised Him from the dead as the guarantee that He is satisfied with that work. But suppose I lost my faith? Is it possible for me to lose faith?”

Lose your faith?

Why don’t we change the question?

Is it possible for a real Christian, one who has really trusted the Saviour, to lose his faith?

Now the answer to that question is given to us in Romans 5:1-11.

I wish you would read that through, and in our next chapter we will be taking up this guarantee— the guarantee of faith.

Faith in the God of resurrection cannot be de­stroyed.