3 For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.”
“Abraham believed God,
The only condition God required of Abraham was to believe. “Works” is the effort of one’s own capability, but belief rests on promise. Belief relies on another’s promise and work.
Works rely on doing by the self, but belief receives something from another. These are polar opposites for saving the soul.
Abraham believed what God said to be true. He accepted God’s promises as correct. To believe what God says is to trust Him. It is to take God at His word.
All God wants from us is to be believed, to be taken at His word. He wants us to believe what He says. His honor is at stake. That which we cannot attain, we may obtain as a gift from God. That is all God demands of us.
PRINCIPLE:
Imputation is not a reward for faith.
APPLICATION:
There is no merit in believing God any more than trusting that a hundred-dollar bill is worth something. It is not the one-hundred-dollar bill that makes the bill worth something. It is the fact that the United States Government stands behind the bill that gives it worth. Genuine faith accepts God’s Word or promise as true. The value lies in the object of faith. We are to take God’s Word at face value. We are to believe that God tells the truth.
