What does Romans 4:11 teach about righteousness being credited through faith? Setting the Stage • Romans 4 builds on the truth that “a person is justified by faith apart from works of the law” (Romans 3:28). • Paul selects Abraham—the revered patriarch—as the living illustration that God’s way of making people right with Him has always rested on faith, not on human effort or religious ceremony. Text in View “And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised, so that he would be the father of all who believe but have not been circumcised, in order that righteousness would be credited to them as well.” (Romans 4:11) Faith Before Ritual • Genesis 15:6—“Abram believed the LORD, and He credited it to him as righteousness.” This occurred years before Genesis 17 records his circumcision. • Therefore, righteousness (right standing) was already “credited” long before any physical sign was applied. • The timeline matters: God’s declaration of righteousness rested solely on faith, proving it is never earned by religious works. Circumcision: Sign and Seal, Not Source • Sign: outward badge marking Abraham as belonging to God. • Seal: divine confirmation of a reality that already existed—God’s crediting of righteousness through faith. • Circumcision did not create righteousness; it simply testified to what God had already done. Father of All Who Believe • Two groups stand in view: – “All who believe but have not been circumcised” = Gentiles who trust Christ. – “Those who are of the circumcision who also walk in the footsteps of the faith” (Romans 4:12) = Jews who likewise believe. • Result: Abraham becomes the spiritual father of every believer, demonstrating that God’s family is formed by faith, not ethnicity or ritual. What “Credited” Means • Banking imagery: God transfers righteousness to the believer’s account, counting that person as fully right with Him. • Philippians 3:9—Paul desires to “be found in Him, not having my own righteousness from the law, but that which is through faith in Christ.” • 2 Corinthians 5:21—Christ “became sin for us… so that in Him we might become the righteousness of God.” Connecting Verses • Romans 4:3—“Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.” • Romans 4:16—“Therefore the promise comes by faith, so that it may rest on grace.” • Galatians 3:6–9—those of faith “are children of Abraham.” • Ephesians 2:8–9—salvation “is the gift of God, not by works.” Takeaway Truths • God credits righteousness on the single basis of trusting His promise, now centered in Jesus Christ. • Religious rituals, while meaningful, never earn acceptance; they affirm what faith has already received. • The door of salvation is flung open to every person—Jew or Gentile—who believes, fulfilling God’s plan to bless “all nations” through Abraham’s seed (Genesis 22:18). |
    |