God's Unique Way To Strengthen Our Faith - Dale Partridge
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Summary
In this episode of Real Christianity, I discuss how God has given us a unique way to have stronger faith. If you're struggling with assurance, or struggling with doubt, this will be an encouraging episode for you. Resources Mentioned: 1 Corinthians 11:2-16; Ephesians 1:13-14; 2 Timothy 1:1-2; 2 Corinthians 3:3-5; Romans 4:6-7; Romans 5:8; Romans 6:9; Romans 7:10; Romans 8:11; Romans 9:12; Romans 10:13; Romans 11:14; 1 Corinthians 12:1, 2, 3, 4, 5
Transcript
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In this episode of Real Christianity, I discuss how God has given us a unique way to have stronger
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faith. If you're struggling with assurance, if you're struggling with doubt,
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this will be an encouraging episode for you. So get ready, all that and more coming up right now.
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Welcome to Real Christianity. My name is Dale Partridge. Now, as you know, this show is an
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audio and video ministry of relearn.org, where our mission is to bring the church
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back to the Bible. Thank you guys for joining me today. I wanted to give you a quick update
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on a book that I am writing that'll be available for pre-order shortly. It's called A Cover for
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Glory, A Biblical Defense for the Doctrine of Head Coverings. And this is a expositional
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commentary verse by verse for the average Christian to work through 1 Corinthians chapter
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11 verses 2 through 16 on the topic of head coverings. This has been an important discussion
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among many churches, especially of the Reformed tradition, that are wondering,
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is that practice something that is for today? Or was it just a custom of the Corinthian era?
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I answer all those questions and more and make it a very accessible argument
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for the average Christian to just walk through the text verse by verse. I will let you guys know
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when that is available for pre-order, but I wanted to just talk about it now, let you know
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that that's coming. And if you follow along on social media, you will see when we make that
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available for you guys to get yourselves a copy. All right, let's go ahead and dive into this
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episode. Over the past several weeks, we've been discussing the Great Reformation doctrine of
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justification by faith alone. We've also seen Paul defend that doctrine from a variety of
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different angles. We've learned that Paul spends the first quarter of this book to the Romans
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proclaiming and explaining this very truth. Now, we're currently in the fourth chapter,
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but we're really in the third section as it pertains to theological concepts. Section one
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was the prologue of the book where Paul establishes his apostolic authority and his desire to be with
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the church in Rome. The section two was the declaration of the universal condemnation and
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jurisdiction of the law over all men, Jew and Gentile, and that we are justified by faith
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alone in Christ alone. Section three, which we are in now, is a defense of the claims in section two
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about justification by faith alone and the leveraging of the testimony of the Old Testament.
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As we saw, Paul used both Abraham and David to demonstrate that law-keeping was not a path to justification.
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He also discussed the sacramental rites of circumcision were never to be the means of bringing about justification or salvation for a person.
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But he made it clear that the true children of Abraham
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were not merely those that were physically born of Abraham,
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but it was really those who had the same faith as Abraham.
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we talked about how the substance of the promises promised to Abraham
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and that those would be realized through faith.
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And Paul clarified that these children would not inherit the content of the promise
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but that you would inherit the contents of those promises
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You don't just need, you don't need works and faith.
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Yes, we do believe that when you have genuine faith
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Ultimately in 4.13, Paul clarifies that the promise
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that Abraham's children would inherit the earth
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In Ephesians 1.3, Paul is writing to those he calls faithful in Christ Jesus.
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In other words, the lavishing on of our inheritance,
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of these spiritual blessings that Paul is talking about in Ephesians,
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are receiving the substance of the promises of God,
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Today's text, what Paul's going to do is he goes on to explain why this must be true.
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why are the covenant promises realized strictly by faith alone? He says in chapter four, verses
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16, and I'll go all the way through verse 21. It says, for this reason, it is by faith in order
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that it may be in accordance with grace so that the promises will be guaranteed to all the
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descendants, not only those who are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham,
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who is the father of us all. Verse 17, as it is written, a father of many nations, I have made you
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in the presence of him whom he believed, even God, who gives life to the dead and calls into being
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that which does not exist, in hope against hope he believed, so that he might become the father
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of many nations according to that which had been spoken, so shall your descendants be. Without
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becoming weak in faith, he contemplated his own body, now as good as dead since he was about 100
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years old and the deadness of Sarah's womb. Yet with respect to the promise of God, he did not
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waver in unbelief, but grew strong in faith, giving glory to God and being fully assured that
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what God had promised, he was able to perform. Amen. What a powerful passage of scripture. We're
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going to dive in verse by verse here. So this first section, verse 16, it says, for this reason,
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it is by faith in order that it may be in accordance with grace so that the promises
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will be guaranteed to all descendants, not only to those who are of the law, but also to those
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who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all. Okay. As you guys know, I'm
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a proponent of grammar. I block diagram the biblical text every single week. I diagram pretty
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often in Greek. I like to look at the grammar to understand what the author meant by the words that
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he used. And leveraging grammar properly allows us to interpret scripture well. And whenever we
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see the words in order that, or so that, or even just that, we're witnessing what's often called
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a purpose clause. And we have both instances in just this verse. A purpose clause really offers
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the reason for the action that was expressed. So I'm going to read it again, just verse 16.
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For this reason, it is by faith in order that purpose, right? That's the purpose. In order that
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it may be in accordance with grace so that the promise will be guaranteed to all the descendants.
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So we'll stop right there and just kind of work through that. I want you to just keep that in
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your brain. When you start to see the word, so that, or in order that, you want to underline
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that because that's telling you that that's the purpose of the action that was previously
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expressed. So in our case, the reason the promises are received by faith, which is the action,
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is that it would be in accordance with grace, which is the purpose. And Paul is trying to
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communicate an important point with two different dimensions here. And I want to talk about both of
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them. The first is that the covenant promise, we're not resting on our ability to keep the law.
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Paul has already communicated to us that we are unable to keep the law, that we are sinful.
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He says in Romans 3, 9 through 10, quote, for we have already charged that all, both Jews and
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Greeks, are under sin. As it is written, none is righteous. No, not one. End quote. Galatians 3,
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10 through 11 says, for all who rely on works of the law are under a curse. For it is written,
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cursed be everyone who does not abide by all things written in the book of the law and do them.
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Now it is evident that no one is justified before God by the law, for the righteous shall live
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by faith, end quote. So as we discussed, maybe last week, maybe the week before, there are
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two paths, right? We talked about this idea of two paths to receive the substance of the promise,
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He's demonstrating, he's saying that the covenant
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cannot be realized by works because of our sin.
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when the promise is realized by the workless means of faith,
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And it must be by grace because it's not by works.
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Paul touches on this exact same concept when he says,
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you know, the floor is wet because it's not dry.
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of the covenant to Abraham. Therefore, it must be by grace. So the apostles really demonstrated
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that it can't be earned. That's basically the point that's being put forward here. It can only
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be received as a gift of grace through the workless means of faith. The second point
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is that we don't want the promises resting on our ability to keep the law by good works,
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including our salvation. We don't want that. The Jews continue to fight for their involvement in
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their own redemption foolishly. They wanted to contribute to their righteous standing or
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justification before God. It's only because they overestimated their ability to keep the law
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and they underestimated the requirement of the law. And so they didn't understand that the law
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And they overestimated their ability to keep it.
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let this sink into your brain. Any person who wants their salvation to be resting fully or in
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part of their own actions is an absolute fool. Because unlike the legalist, the Christian says,
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my salvation and my heavenly inheritance does not rest upon my actions, but on God's faithfulness
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to me in Christ. It rests on the obedience and actions of Christ, not on my fickle and sinful
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and back and forth backsliding and falling. And this is, I think it was John MacArthur who said,
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if you could lose your salvation, you would. And that's the truth. And so we need to understand
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that we don't want our salvation to be resting in our own hands by our good works or maintaining
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obedience. Let me give you a trite illustration. Holding onto your salvation is kind of like
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holding onto a bird that's going to fly away the second that you make a mistake.
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But putting your salvation in the hands of God is kind of like putting that bird into a secure
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and sturdy cage where it cannot be lost. Essentially, we need to trust in our salvation
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to be in the hands of Christ and the perfect work and law keeping of Christ, not our own
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obedience. So Christianity teaches us that if we hold on by our own strength, we're going to perish.
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But if we let go and rest in the strength of God by faith in Christ, we will live. John 10,
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27 to 29 says, this is Jesus talking. He says, quote, my sheep hear my voice and I know them
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and they follow me and I give them or I give eternal life to them and they will never perish
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and no one will snatch them out of my hand. My father who has given them to me is greater than
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all and no one is able to snatch them out of the father's hand. Romans 8, 38 to 39 says,
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For I am sure that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present,
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nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation
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will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. Ultimately, it's a
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foolish illusion to believe that our souls and spiritual inheritance are more secure in our own
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hands down that path of works. It's a foolish reality. It's that path of works for many people
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is like a mirage. It appears to be a source of refreshment and fulfillment, but upon closer
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inspection, it really reveals itself as being an empty and dead path that leads to eternal
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separation from God. Paul goes on to offer a second purpose for why the substance of the
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promises are dependent upon and received by faith. He says, so that the promise will be guaranteed
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to all descendants, not only those who are of the law, but also those who are of the faith of
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Abraham, who is the father of us all. R.C. Sproul comments on this verse by saying, quote,
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if it were on the basis of works, the promise would fail. However, because it is by faith and
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therefore by grace, it is guaranteed to come to Abraham's true spiritual offspring, all believers,
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whether Jew or Gentile. In other words, unlike human works, God's grace guarantees the substance
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of the promise to be realized to the descendants of Abraham by faith. So again, it's like the path
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of works, we're putting it in our own hands, the path of grace, we're putting it in God's hands.
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It's like that bird in that secure and sturdy cage. It's going to be safe there.
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but then Paul goes on in verse 17 to appeal to the Old Testament as a way to defend what he just
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said at the very end of that last verse in 16. And he declares that Abraham is the father of us
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all. So there's a bit of a transition here. He says in verse 17, as it is written,
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a father of many nations, I have made you in the presence of him whom he believed, even God,
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who gives life to the dead and calls into being that which does not exist. So we can't forget
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that the Jews had cemented in their minds and their experience and culture that they were God's
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sole chosen people and that they were the sole heirs, the circumcised. They were the ones that
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we're going to receive the promises. And so Paul is continuing to correct their understanding
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regarding the true lineage of Abraham, that it's not by blood, but it's actually by faith.
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And he uses the testimony of their very own scriptures. He cites Genesis 17, 5, that says,
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no longer shall your name be called Abram, but your name shall be called Abraham, for I will
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make you the father of a multitude of nations. Now, again, we know that there are Jews that do
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have faith, but there also is the bringing in of the Gentiles where you're going to have people
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who are children of Abraham from every tribe, nation, and tongue. So the substance of the
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promise was realized in two ways. It was realized physically and spiritually. And so it was realized
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physically, because one of the promises that Abraham would be the father of many nations,
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one, he needs to have a kid, right? He needs to have a child. He needs to have a son.
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And it was realized physically in the birth of Isaac and the development of a physical nation.
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And it was realized spiritually in the birth and resurrection of Christ in the development of a
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spiritual church. So you got to see this, is that there was a promise that there was going to be
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a physical child and a physical nation, the nation of Israel. And there would be a spiritual
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reality in the fact that that physical child would result in the serpent crusher, the promised
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seed that would inaugurate the church. And that was Jesus. And Jesus's death and resurrection
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and many nations would be children of Abraham by faith.
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fulfilling God's promise regarding Abraham's descendants
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to be as numerous as the stars all around the world.
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In other words, through Christ, God's people are no longer limited by national boundaries.
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This is something that would be very difficult for the Jew to understand, but instead they become a global and united family in faith in Christ.
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And so Ephesians 3, 4 through 6 talks about this.
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You can perceive my insight into the mystery of Christ,
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which was not made known to the sons of men in other generations
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as it has been revealed to his holy apostles and prophets by the Spirit.
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This mystery is that the Gentiles are fellow heirs,
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and partakers of the promise in Jesus Christ through the gospel.
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This was also prophesied in the Old Testament.
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So the Jews really had no excuse to be shocked by this reality.
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Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be like the sand of the sea,
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It will be said to them, you are the sons of the living God.
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end quote. Zechariah 2.11 continues this line of thinking. It says, quote, and many nations
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shall join themselves to the Lord in that day and shall be my people, end quote. So Paul goes on
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in verse 18 to give you a little bit more concept or context about what's going on. Let's go back
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to chapter four, verse 18. He says, in hope against hope, he believed, talking about Abraham,
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so that he might become a father of many nations
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now as good as dead since he was about 100 years old
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and being fully assured that what God had promised,
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he was able to perform. So Paul goes on to point out that this promise to Abraham regarding
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his immeasurable progeny, as many as the stars, was received by faith before Abraham even had
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one biological child. Do you understand this? You have to see that Abraham is receiving
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by faith, this immense and massive promise. He's got an old body, a wife with a dead womb,
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and no children. And yet he has been given this promise to be the father of many nations.
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And he doesn't even have one biological son. In other words, this kind of faith that we're
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looking at here is not natural faith. This is supernatural faith that Abraham has. It was
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faith in the one, as Paul says, who gives life to the dead and calls into being that which does not
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exist. So Abraham believed God because God is the one who can call light and matter into existence
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from nothing. This is the type of foundation that Abraham has for the faith that is being
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demonstrated. This faith, again, is a gift of God given to Abraham. He gives life to Sarah's
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barrenness and makes nations emerge from her dead womb. I mean, this is miraculous stuff here.
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This is just as miraculous as raising Lazarus from the dead. He gives, we know God does,
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God gives life to dead souls and he makes a living church emerge from dry bones all around
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the world. And he's the God who speaks of things as if they exist when they don't exist. And so he
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spoke to Abraham as a father before he even had a child. He speaks of nations before these nations
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were even formed. And to be honest, there are more nations that will be formed that will have
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people in those nations that'll be children of Abraham by faith. And so the central point that
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Paul is emphasizing is Abraham's willingness to take God at his word. I want you to grasp that
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here. The central point is that Abraham's willingness to take God at his word. We see this
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at the end of verse 21. It says, and being fully assured that what God had promised, he was able
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to perform. And the question you need to be asking is how does this apply to my life? How does this
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Old Testament discussion about Abraham and the promise to him, how does that translate to my
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world? Obviously through the inheritance of the substance of those promises, you are an heir to
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those promises through faith. So that's one thing, but it applies in many other ways. Abraham is our
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father in the faith. And as children, we have the same faith as our father Abraham. And so we can
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look to Abraham's example as our father. He's a forefather to us in the faith. And we can look
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to his example as we would look to our own father's example. We can learn from his response
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to the promise of God. In other words, in the same way that Abraham trusted God regarding the
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promises given to him, we can trust God regarding the promises that are given to us. This is a
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beautiful correlation that you need to pay attention to. When God's word promises us
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justification and sanctification and peace and hope and eternal life, we get to be just like
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our forefather, Abraham, and trust that God can accomplish what seems absolutely impossible to us.
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John Calvin observes this exact point in his commentary when he says,
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quote, all things around us are in opposition to the promises of God.
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He promises immortality, yet we are surrounded with death and corruption.
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He declares that he counts us just, yet we are covered with sins and transgressions.
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He testifies that he is propitiating and kind to us, yet outward judgments threaten his wrath.
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because we saw Abraham trust in the promises given to him.
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His faith is the same faith that dwells in you.
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on this episode discussing this beautiful chapter of Romans chapter four. We have one more message
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in chapter four and we move on to chapter five and six and seven and eight. There is just a growing
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beauty in Romans that we're going to get into some incredible doctrines. So please
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stay along on the journey. If you're a regular listener to this episode of Real Christianity,
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to other people that are searching for biblical content.