Joshua 1:8
"...[B]ut you shall meditate in it day and night, that you may observe to do according to all that is written in it. For then you will make your way prosperous, and then you will have good success." (Joshua 1:8).
"You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me." (John 5:39).
"And you will seek Me and find Me, when you search for Me with all your heart." (Jeremiah 29:13).
Paul continues to contend for justification through faith rather than by works. Verse 4 is interesting: "Now to him who works, the wages are not counted as grace but as debt." Wages counted as debt? The economy of God is completely opposite of our understanding. But I suppose it would have to be, otherwise we could find reason for boasting...
ReplyDeletePaul's example in this chapter is Abraham, the father of our faith, "...who believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness". The promise was not given to Abraham through the law - in fact the law wouldn't be given for another few hundred years. And circumcision was given to Abraham as a SIGN of the covenant God had made. Verse 14 states, "For if those who are of the law are heirs, faith is made void and the promise made of no effect, because the law brings about wrath; for where there is no law there is no transgression." As Fusco would say, "That's powerful!" I realize Paul is writing specifically to Jews who have come to faith, but it's just as relevant to us. Isn't it amazing that even amongst those of us that claim to be living in grace (by faith alone) works still become of utmost importance? It's so easy to get caught in the assumption that God won't accept us unless we're doing something that is acceptable to Him. Even though he came for us, searched us out, and redeemed us prior to anything we ever did - or as Paul would say, prior to our circumcision - we still get sucked into that mentality of what NEEDS to be done. Wages are counted as debt.
Point to ponder: If God knows everything, why did He account Abraham's belief as righteousness when Abraham would then try to work out God's promise by himself (through Sarah's maid resulting in the birth of Ismail)? Couldn't one say that Abraham didn't really believe at all?
Karyn and I are sitting here pondering the point. Is it that, just like all of us, Abraham did believe God and other times decided to take matters into his own hands and bad things happened? Ultimately though, just by believing Him, God credited Abraham as righteous by His Grace.
DeleteI think you're right on. Abraham was, like us, human. Being human is being imperfect. We believe and then fall on our faces. I can personally relate to that. I am so grateful that the Bible is full of imperfect people that I can relate with.
ReplyDeleteI know that when we take things on our own shoulders (self made man idea) and things don't go our way, we can sit back and recognize that it was because we were doing something we weren't supposed to do (we got caught). But do we feel as guilty or recognize that we made the wrong decision taking things into our own hands when things "work out"? I would say we don't - or that we're stupid, because time and time again we try to do it all on our own.
ReplyDeleteI'm not entirely sure what you mean by "work out" but I think it's important to remember the Providence of God, that is despite our amazing selves nothing can be done apart from God's will. Remember Jesus while he stood accused before Pilate said nothing except "you have power to do nothing apart from the will of my father".
ReplyDeleteI think we should give God the credit for both the good and bad and rejoice in His sovereignty regardless. The hard part is actually applying that in our lives.
It's God's will that we have free will and the choice to fall flat on our face. That's how God gets our attention and we figure out that we CAN'T do ANYTHING for ourselves outside of God's help. But yes He allows us to do it ourselves without Him if we choose. I wish He didn't. :)
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