In Nomine Iesu

Pastor Thomas L. Rank
Trinity 8
July 17, 2005

Text: Romans 4:9-25
Does this blessedness then come upon the circumcised only, or upon the uncircumcised also? For we say that faith was accounted to Abraham for righteousness. 10 How then was it accounted? While he was circumcised, or uncircumcised? Not while circumcised, but while uncircumcised. 11 And he received the sign of circumcision, a seal of the righteousness of the faith which he had while still uncircumcised, that he might be the father of all those who believe, though they are uncircumcised, that righteousness might be imputed to them also, 12 and the father of circumcision to those who not only are of the circumcision, but who also walk in the steps of the faith which our father Abraham had while still uncircumcised. 13 For the promise that he would be the heir of the world was not to Abraham or to his seed through the law, but through the righteousness of faith. 14 For if those who are of the law are heirs, faith is made void and the promise made of no effect, 15 because the law brings about wrath; for where there is no law there is no transgression. 16 Therefore it is of faith that it might be according to grace, so that the promise might be sure to all the seed, not only to those who are of the law, but also to those who are of the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all 17 (as it is written, “I have made you a father of many nations”) in the presence of Him whom he believed -- God, who gives life to the dead and calls those things which do not exist as though they did; 18 who, contrary to hope, in hope believed, so that he became the father of many nations, according to what was spoken, “So shall your descendants be.” 19 And not being weak in faith, he did not consider his own body, already dead (since he was about a hundred years old), and the deadness of Sarah’s womb. 20 He did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, 21 and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform. 22 And therefore “it was accounted to him for righteousness.” 23 Now it was not written for his sake alone that it was imputed to him, 24 but also for us. It shall be imputed to us who believe in Him who raised up Jesus our Lord from the dead, 25 who was delivered up because of our offenses, and was raised because of our justification.

THESE ARE YOUR WORDS, HEAVENLY FATHER, SANCTIFY US BY YOUR TRUTH, YOUR WORD IS TRUTH. AMEN.

How is faith made strong? This is an important question because it deals with what we will consider to be important for the nourishing of saving faith in Jesus Christ. Will your faith be stronger when you see the promises of God come true in your life? Will your faith be stronger if you be wealthy as a Christian? Will your faith be stronger when your loved ones do not become sick and are pictures of health and happiness? Will your faith be stronger when you yourself are able to achieve greater and greater victories over sin and Satan?

The book of Hebrews defines faith this way: "Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen." Faith is not about seeing results. It is about being certain of the results without seeing them. Do you understand that difference? It will make all the difference in how you will think your faith in Christ will be nurtured and sustained in this world. Either you will seek evidence for your faith to hold on to, or you will rely simply on the promises of God.

Think of it this way: who needs more faith, my son to whom I promise to give $20 in the future, or my daughter to whom I've already given the promised $20? The daughter does not need faith. She already has the money. The son must still trust that my word is good, and that sometime he will receive the promised $20.

Faith is not nurtured by evidence, for evidence does not require faith. Consider Jesus' words to His disciple Thomas a week after Easter. Thomas' faith was not strong enough to rely on the mere promise of the resurrection of Jesus. He needed to see, to touch. Jesus allowed that on the Sunday after Easter. But He also told Thomas, "...because you have seen Me, you have believed. Blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed" (John 20:29).

In the novel, The Lord of the Rings, two of the main characters, Frodo and Sam, must rely on special food given to them by the Elves, called lembas. Their own food had given out during the darkest and most dangerous part of their journey. They had to trust their lives to that simple looking bread of the Elves. What they discovered to their amazement was that the more they relied only on that bread the more they did not need the usual food. That bread alone satisfied and nourished them beyond their expectations.

What we discover as the people of God is that the more we rely on the simple promises of God, the greater our faith grows. And that is what St. Paul desires us to learn and cherish from this fourth chapter of Romans.

Many of Paul’s day thought that circumcision and other laws of the Old Testament people of Israel were required even for the non-Jews in order to be considered faithful Christians. Even St. Peter, that great man of God, was initially deceived by this false teaching. But through careful examination of God's Word, and particularly the life of Abraham, St. Paul sets forth the truth that faith preceded the sign of circumcision and the laws of Moses so carefully followed by the Jews.

Faith does not depend on those outward expressions of the keeping of the law. To do so would be to make faith null and void. Faith is all about the promises of God being able to carry us, without our own works or our own efforts.

St. Paul points us to Abraham and the promise he had from God that he would be the father of many nations. We heard about this a little last week already. What do you need to be a father? You need to have a wife, and you need to have babies. Abraham did have a wife, but St. Paul tells us that Sarah’s womb was dead – unable to bear children for Abraham. And what about father Abraham himself? He was as good as dead. Paul writes – "[Abraham] did not consider his own body, already dead (since he was about a hundred years old)...."

Yet, despite this outward appearance of death, with no hope of children, how did Abraham react?

And not being weak in faith, he did not consider his own body, already dead (since he was about a hundred years old), and the deadness of Sarah’s womb. 20 He did not waver at the promise of God through unbelief, but was strengthened in faith, giving glory to God, 21 and being fully convinced that what He had promised He was also able to perform.

Do you see what faith is? What did Abraham focus on? What did Abraham rely on? Was it his own body or the fertility of Sarah? No, there was no hope in either himself or his beloved wife. Instead, Abraham, strong in faith and without anything other than God’s promise to sustain him concludes: God can do what He promised.

No doubt it would have been easier for Abraham if he had dozens of children running around. Then he could have seen the beginning of a great nation, of hundreds of thousands, of millions, of descendants. It was harder to see without any children. It took faith.

Without the promise of God Abraham would have despaired of being the father of a great nation. He would have had no hope and no basis for hope. Yet because of God's promise, because of that true Word of God given to him, Abraham did not need the props of this world. He could be content in the fact that God would not lie to him, and that in God's own time, and in God’s own way, the promise would be fulfilled. Abraham did not need to see it himself. He had all he needed in the promises of God.

So, if we return to the question we started with, how is faith made strong? It is made strong by growing away from the need for evidence, and learning to rely on what God says, despite no evidence or even evidence to the contrary. This means hearing God’s Word. It means trusting that when God says, Your sins are forgiven, it is true. It means that when God says that His Son Jesus died and rose for you, it is true. It means that when God says the body and blood of Jesus are here in the simple signs of bread and wine, it is true. What do you have to rely on? Only the promise of God. And that is all faith needs, and in fact, that is how faith grows stronger.

This is not easy. There are many trials in life when we will consider that the promises of God are not strong enough to bridge our need for proof. But even then, God is sustaining and nourishing our faith.

God help us to learn more and more to trust the promises of God, the promises that give us life, forgiveness of sin, salvation.

Then hope, my feeble spirit, And be thou undismayed;
God helps in ev’ry trial, And makes thee unafraid.
Await God’s time with pleasure, Then shall thine eyes behold
The sun of joy and gladness His brightest beams unfold. (ELH 208:6)

Amen.