The Character of Faith

At this point in his letter to the Romans, Paul takes the time to elaborate a bit more on the nature of Abraham’s faith. Or maybe he yields here to something like doxology, as he is prone to do (perhaps most notably in chapter 8 of Romans). It could be that Paul has become so excited about the role of faith in justification that he can’t help expounding on the incredible faith of Abraham. In any case, he gives us significant insights into the faith of our spiritual father, the true faith that results in justification.

Abraham believed God would do what He said despite the fact that the promises were contrary to all reasonable expectation. So many of the promises to Abraham concerned children. But, at least from a human perspective, Abraham had no natural reason to expect that he would become a parent. His body was as good as dead and Sarah was barren; both of them were far too old to have children. But Abraham did not focus on those physical barriers to the promises; in other words, he did not yield to unbelief. That’s not to say that he ignored the facts. But he focused on the bigger fact—that it was God who had promised that he would have a son. Dr. James M. Boice writes, “It was not a case of Abraham’s merely believing God in the absence of all external supports; he believed God when the external evidences were actually and sharply to the contrary.” Abraham trusted and believed God, being “fully convinced” that He could and would do as He had said. God, in turn strengthened Abraham’s faith. Because of his faith, “ ‘it was accounted to him for righteousness.’ ” And so he eventually received the promises. And God received glory.

What, then, is faith? It is simply taking God at His word, believing that He will do what He has promised. “We are not saved because we have a strong subjective faith (that would focus the matter on us), but because we believe the promises of God regarding salvation, promises made known to us in the pages of the Bible,” Boice writes. “We are saved not because of our faith but because of God’s promises. True faith is receiving these promises and believing them on the basis of God’s character.” Because our God is holy, truthful, and good, we can believe what He tells us. “For all the promises of God in Him are Yes, and in Him Amen, to the glory of God through us” (2 Cor. 1:20).