What came first...

What came first – the chicken or the egg?  What came first – faith or obedience?

Go ahead and grab your bibles and open up to Romans 4.  In Romans 4, Paul talks about Abraham as the “father” of all who believe.  To understand Paul, we must first consider Abraham (who was first known as Abram).  Bookmark this chapter as we will come back to it.  Now flip all the way to the front of your bible to Genesis 12.

Read Genesis 12:1-3.

The Lord had said to Abram, Go from your country, your people and your father’s household to the land I will show you.  I will make you into a great nation, and I will bless you; I will make your name great, and you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”

If you keep reading, you will discover that Abraham’s obedience is flakey.  His lies about Sarah being his wife (twice).  We see him trying to implement God’s promise of a son through a woman other than Sarah.  But even with all the mistakes and issues Abraham had, we are told that he “believed the Lord; and the Lord credited it to him as righteousness” (Gen. 15:2-6). 

Now flip back to Romans 4.  Go ahead and read verses 1-10.  Paul asks a question in verse 10 to summarize the statement he had just made in the previous verses.  Paul basically asked: Was Abraham considered righteous before or after he had the sign of circumcision?  Good question.  Was Abraham righteous before or after he went through a religious ceremony that would physically mark him as set apart.  I love that Paul then goes on to answer his own question (answer is “before”).

Read Romans 4:11-12.  This is huge.  Abraham was found righteous not because of his actions or his obedience in obeying God.  Abraham was found righteous because of his faith in the Father.

I can honestly say that there are many times that I do not feel righteous or struggle to think that I am righteous because I still struggle with sin.  I still struggle with feelings of inadequacy and selfishness and pride.  I battle thoughts and feelings that are not rooted in God, but instead come from my own evil desires. 

Thank God that you and I are not found righteous based on our own ability to follow the law or our holding to religious ceremonies.  We can be and are found righteous in the Father’s eyes not because of what we have done, but because of what Jesus has done.  We are not made righteous because of who we are, but because of who Jesus was and still is today.  Like Abraham, our obedience does not make us righteous.  Our obedience is a byproduct of God’s grace through Jesus Christ.