The Primary Text · Romans 4:9–12

Is this blessing then only for the circumcised, or also for the uncircumcised? For we say that faith was counted to Abraham as righteousness. How then was it counted to him? Was it before or after he had been circumcised? It was not after, but before he was circumcised. He received the sign of circumcision as a seal of the righteousness that he had by faith while he was still uncircumcised. The purpose was to make him the father of all who believe without being circumcised, so that righteousness would be counted to them as well, and to make him the father of the circumcised who are not merely circumcised but who also walk in the footsteps of the faith that our father Abraham had before he was circumcised.

The Cart Before the Horse

Application

1. 01Don’t make the cart do the pulling. The quickest way to get off-track in your faith is to put the cart of works in front of the horse of faith.
2. 02Know your greatest blessing. The greatest blessing is to be counted righteous and to have your sins forgiven. There is nothing that even compares.
3. 03Hear the word of God and believe it. Faith is believing what God says. To know him, we need to know his word (Romans 10:17).
4. 04Let your faith be manifested in obedience. The same heart that believes God also obeys God.
5. 05Where is God calling you into the obedience of faith? What is he calling you to leave behind?
6. 06Strap everything to the horse of faith. Put your full confidence for righteousness in the finished work of Jesus Christ on the cross and the life he gives you through his resurrection.