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Q2. Accounting Faith as Righteousness


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2a)Abram put his trust in the promises of God and believed they would be fulfilled, and God counted this steadfast faith as righteous before God.

B)Basis for righteousness Jesus Christ He died for my sins.He made it just as if I died

C)Jesus sacrifice, was the substitutionary sacrifice for our sins. We are to live in the will of God,living with good morals,but that doesn’t enable us to be righteous before God,only Jesus makes this possible,and believing in him..

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  • 1 month later...

I think that amazing thing about this verse is that if we have faith then we are counted as being righteous. Abraham was considered righteous because he believed.

The significance this has on our New Testament understanding of justification by faith is that is what Abraham was showing was his faith and God considered him righteous. This is true with us; if we have faith in Jesus then we are considered righteous.

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By this time, Abraham already had enough wealth.  What he needed was a son.  Would it be Eliezer, or one from his own body?  In Gen. 15:2-6, we are given the answer.  He needed an heir and was told that there will be one.  In a sense with this heir, Abraham would be "complete."  He wouldn't have to adopt a son, he would have one.

 

The vision gives Abraham something to think on in the day and in the night; as he looked at the sand, he could recall God's promise: "I will make your offspring like the dust of the earth" (13:16); and in the night, when he looked at the stars, he could recall God's promise, "So shall your offspring be (15:5).  Wither in the day or the night, Abraham could recall God's promise.  "Abraham had questioned God's first promise of reward.  Now he believes that God will fulfill his promise of offspring" (Dr. Wilson).  "Abraham believed the Lord, and he credited it to him as righteousness" (15:6).

 

Since Abraham was steadfast in the faith, God counts it as righteousness.  " . . . God counts, considers, reckons, accounts his faith to be righteousness before God" (Dr. Wilson).

 

This is the verse (15:6) of Paul's teaching on justification by faith: (Rom. 4:3-6, 9, 20, 25; Gal. 3:6-9; James 2:23).  There are three elements: having faith, crediting, and righteousness.

 

Abraham is certain that God's promises will be fulfilled.  Although he doesn't know how, yet, he believes God keeps His promises.

 

"Accounted" is God's response.  He "counted" that faith to him as righteousness.  It is "the employment of the mind in the thinking activity" (Lesson).

 

The Lord, "counts" and "considers" his faith to be righteousness.

 

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Q2. (15:6) What is so amazing about this verse? On what basis does God declare Abraham a righteous person? What significance does this have to our New Testament understanding of justification by faith?

The amazing thing about Genesis 15:6 is that Abraham believed God and it was credited to him as righteousness. Even today our faith in Christ is our righteousness.

God accounts Abraham's righteousness in the fact that Abraham had believed and obeyed God.

Our New Testament understanding of justification by faith comes to us because we believe in what Christ has done for us on the cross. He was our substitutionary sacrifice for our sins. G 

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  • 3 years later...

Q2. (15:6) What is so amazing about this verse? On what basis does God declare Abraham a righteous person? What significance does this have to our New Testament understanding of justification by faith?

Verse 15: 6 says that Abraham believed in the Lord and the Lord God accounted it to him for righteousness. This is one of the key verses in all the Bible. The word ‘believed’ in Hebrew is Amen. God made a promise and it’s as though Abraham said, “Amen! I believe that promise. I believe it.” And because Abraham believed God’s promise concerning this future event, God credited Abraham’s faith as righteousness. There is a play on words in Hebrew which when translated would be: Because Abraham couldn’t do what God told him to do i.e. count the stars, yet still he trusted God to keep His word, therefore God did the work for him by counting his faith as righteousness. He began to look forward to that future when he will have uncountable descendants as though it was already a present reality. And to that God said, “That’s all I require to make you right with Me, to give a relationship with Me”. It’s justification by faith.

This was an amazing statement of Abraham, for God allowed this act of faith to be counted to him for righteousness. This is the first time in Scripture we see faith, justification and righteousness in a single statement. In Romans Chapter 4, in Galatians chapter 3 and in James chapter 2 this verse is highlighted as the pivotal verse to explain the major doctrine of “justification by faith”. We’re not saved by our righteous acts, not our exemplary moral conduct, nor belonging to any Christian organization, but purely by believing God. Like Abraham who just believed in the declared promise of God, we too when we believe and take God at His word, we are saved.

All of the world’s religions in relation to salvation can be divided into two categories. One is the religion of human achievement, which is all about what I do, how I work, what I practice, how I pray etc. The second group is divine accomplishment and it’s putting your trust in what Jesus did on the cross. He paid a debt which I couldn’t pay and I trust in His work to accomplish my salvation. There’s no boasting in our achievement in that. If in heaven all we do is boasting of our zeal and our religiosity, what a boring place heaven would be!! When we cannot stand those boastings on earth, imagine it in heaven. Because now, everyone will boast on the Lamb who took away my sins and made me trophy of His grace.

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Q2. (15:6) What is so amazing about this verse? On what basis does God declare Abraham a righteous person? What significance does this have to our New Testament understanding of justification by faith?

It is the fact that He chose to believe knowing that God would not fail Him on His promise to deliver it. On the basis of Abraham's faith. It shows us that we must do what it says in Hebrews 11:6.

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  • 1 year later...

(15:6) What is so amazing about this verse? On what basis does God declare Abraham a righteous person? What significance does this have to our New Testament understanding of justification by faith?

Abram puts his trust afresh in the certainty of God's promise. Abram saw clearly in the vision, that his desire and longing for his own offspring, was going to be fulfilled. Day and night he had a reminder of this. By day it was the 'dust of the earth' and by night it was 'the stars in the sky'. 

God declares Abram as righteous on the basis that he trusted God (had faith in Him) and remained steadfast in the Lord. 

Justification by faith. It is nothing that we have done or can do, it is by faith alone. 

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What is so amazing about this verse? On what basis does God declare Abraham a righteous person? What significance does this have to our New Testament understanding of justification by faith?

I'm confused by this verse. Paul clearly believes faith is a gift of God, one not given to all people but to some. ( For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God. eph 2). 

So, here, in Genesis, God credits to Abraham the "gift" of faith that God had originally given to Abraham. Was Abraham's faith God's gift? Or, was Abraham responsible and therefore worthy of being credited for his strong and unwavering belief in God's promises? 

If God considers Abrahams faith the basis of his righteousness, then our faith (somewhat like our works) is not His gift but is something we are responsible for mustering up, by forcing ourselves not to doubt, or choosing to believe when the choice not to believe could have been ours.

I'm not smart enough to answer this question. I don't understand how God could credit to Abraham his faith. I don't understand how, on the basis of his faith, God declared Abraham to be righteous. This smacks of earning our salvation, not through deeds, but through an unwavering mind. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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  • 2 months later...

 

Abraham was justified by his faith not by works. Living right is important but trying to do everything right will not justify a person before God. We are justified by faith in Jesus not by the law. No amount of works will qualify for justification before God. We study the law to help us better understand God's holy standards but not to stand before God and try to justify ourselves by it.  

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