Justification by Faith: Credited, not Earned - Dr Joel Lai

𝐁𝐲 𝐟𝐚𝐢𝐭𝐡, 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐛𝐲 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐤𝐬

𝐁𝐲 𝐟𝐚𝐢𝐭𝐡, 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐛𝐲 𝐥𝐚𝐰

𝐁𝐲 𝐟𝐚𝐢𝐭𝐡, 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐛𝐲 𝐬𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭

Even Abraham, with all his obedience and faithfulness, could not stand before God and say that he had earned righteousness.

God doesn't work on human merit. He is not impressed by how much we can do. What impresses God is faith. Abraham trusted that God would do what he said he would do. The same promise that Abraham received by faith is now extended to us in Christ Jesus. Not as a burden to be earned through the adherence to law, but as a gospel to be believed.

The law reveals what is right, but it also reveals how far we fall short. God’s promise, on the other hand, is not something we earn. It is based on God's grace.

Some of us try to strengthen our faith by tightening our grip and giving God less areas to work with. Abraham, on the other hand, grew in faith by lifting his eyes to heaven and saying, “God, I trust you”. Genuine faith trusts God even when circumstances seem impossible. Abraham believed that God is faithful even when his prayers were unanswered. That God is good even when his circumstances did not shift. That He is still God, even when everything in him wanted to give up.

Do you trust God with your whole heart, with your whole life? When the odds are against you, when the evidence says it is impossible, or when you don't feel like it? If we dare to believe, and we throw the full weight of our hope onto the faithfulness of God, something miraculous will happen.