Abraham's Faith Vindicated by Works

sermon transcript

Introduction

The more I look at this magnificent chapter, the more it encourages and strengthens me in my faith. We have in Genesis 22 an amazingly complete Old Testament picture of salvation, both from the human side — Abraham’s — and from the divine side — God’s. Two weeks ago we considered an aspect of Abraham, namely his obedience. Today we look more at the human side of salvation, and specifically to try to understand the relationship between faith and works, the nature of the kind of faith that saves, and how the faith that saves or justifies gets worked out in an energetic life of obedience.

Two themes emerge with beautiful richness. The first is the literal historical human side — a life of faith as Abraham walks on earth and leaves footsteps that we can follow. Paul talks about following in Abraham’s footsteps in Romans 4:12, enabling us to learn what he was like in order to imitate his faith.

The second theme emerges in type, or prophecy acted out in Abraham’s life. Specifically, his life mirrors the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Abraham’s obedience depicts for us the sacrifice of Jesus Christ in a beautiful way.

There are two marvelous aspects of the human side. One has to do with the issue of friendship with God. Abraham was called God’s friend. James describes what that means. He says that Abraham was willing to offer Isaac up as a sacrifice and thus he was called God’s friend. Jesus says in John 15, “You are my friends if you do what I command.” There is a connection between a lifestyle of obedience and submission to God’s law and friendship with Him. Conversely, James 4 says that “Friendship with the world is hatred toward God.” The issue is one of friendship with God. Are you God’s friend?

Many of you perhaps came hoping for friendship. There is much loneliness in the world and in America. We see the isolation that comes in our culture. People do not know each other, they do not know their neighbors as much as they used to. They are isolated from each other. Perhaps this is a reason why many come to church, in hopes of building relationships, of finding friends, of being welcomed. It is my prayer that that would happen all the more, that we would be more and more loving of strangers, inviting people in, because there is so much loneliness and brokenness out there.

The church is a place to meet people and be refreshed, but more than that, I am concerned that you be friends with God — the one who hears and obeys His commands is His friend. Abraham was God’s friend because he was willing to obey. We see stair steps in that relationship — first faith, then the fear of the Lord as the angel of the Lord stopped him and said, “Now I know that you fear God because you have not withheld your son.” Then we see costly obedience as a result of fear of the Lord, and finally we see friendship.

The other aspect of the human side is the harvest and vindication of Abraham’s faith. This was a lifetime of working that God had been doing in Abraham. It did not happen overnight. This was the test or trial of a mature faith, not a baby or beginner trial. It was the harvest of all that God had been doing in his life all those years, building up in maturity.

In effect, Abraham was God’s masterpiece. I had the chance in the summer of 1986 to go on a mission trip to Kenya. We had 18 hours in the city of Amsterdam before we caught our connecting flight. I went to the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam, where some of the Dutch masters were — the paintings of Rembrandt and others. One painting was absolutely huge. It would have filled all the way across one of the walls in here. It was skillfully done, with the lighting, the shadows, the expressions on people’s faces. I wondered how long it took Rembrandt to paint that. It was breathtaking. I imagined what it would have been like if, after working in the basement by candlelight, painting this magnificent painting, when he was finished and dry, he had rolled it up and stuck it somewhere and never showed it to anyone. What would the point of that be?

Ephesians 2:10 says, “We are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance that we should walk in them.” If you are a Christian, you are God’s workmanship. He is putting his craftsmanship on display. This week, even today, He will arrange some good works for you and He calls you, demands you to walk in them. Based on our text, we will look at how saving, justifying faith relates to being God’s workmanship and doing good works.

First, let us review what we learned last week. This was Abraham’s greatest test. We learned right from the beginning, “After these things, God tested Abraham.” I made the point that we should be ready for testing from God, brother and sister in Christ. He will test you. It is like the assayer’s fire which is used to determine the purity of gold or silver. He will test you and try you in that way. In the midst of being tested, do not say “What is going on in my life; what is this strange thing that is happening to me?” It is not a strange thing but rather is the very thing He told you He would do. He will test your faith.

God tests us for several reasons. He tests us for His own glory. He tests us to reveal His character so that we might know him better. He tests us to reveal our character so that we can know ourselves better, not to provide a good picture but a negative one as sin bubbles to the surface. He tests us to increase our faith-filled dependence on Him since we are very independent, thinking we can do life on our own, but these trials show us otherwise. Ultimately He tests us to build our character.

The nature Abraham’s test is described in verse 2. God said, “Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and go to the region of Moriah, sacrifice him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains. I will tell you about.” This was a mature test for a mature faith. Every word seem to be designed for pain: “Take your son, your only son, Isaac, whom you love, and sacrifice him as a burnt offering…” Oh, the pain. That was the nature of his test. He was tested to the uttermost: God did not call it off until right at the very end when Abraham was about to kill his son.

The nature of Abraham’s response was faith-filled, total obedience. We can follow in his footsteps, as Romans 4:12 says. His obedience was immediate: The very next day, he saddled his donkey, after gathering his supplies, and departed. His obedience was faith-filled: Based on a lifetime of experience with the word of God, he had trusted in it, and he was ready for this test. His obedience was practiced: He had regularly obeyed all the commands God had given him, 19 recorded in Genesis 12-21. He obeyed every single one, even some very difficult ones, like being circumcised at an old age and having his whole family and his whole household circumcised. His obedience was reasoned: Faith and reason are not opposites, not enemies, but friends. Faith-filled people accept a larger database of reality which includes the unseen spiritual world. We accept its existence by faith and then use our reason to work with the promises of God and other spiritual things. That is exactly what Abraham did. He reasoned that God must raise Isaac from the dead, and so he obeyed. His obedience was complete: He did not obey 80%. He did not say, “At least I went two days.” Right to the end, he obeyed to the uttermost.

We discussed those things in detail last week. This week we will look at the details of God’s response to Abraham and the the New Testament commentary on the aspect of faith and works.

God’s Commendation

God commended Abraham in a beautiful way. Brothers and sisters, I desire that you would have a moment like this, that God would commend your courageous obedience. Aren’t you hungry and thirsty to live in such a way that God would commend you as He did Abraham? The commendation from God is sweet.

Last Minute Reprieve

Genesis 21:11-12 says, “But the angel of the LORD called out to him from heaven, ‘Abraham! Abraham!’ ‘Here I am,’ he replied.” [Wouldn’t you love your soul and your spirit to be so ready to obey God?] ‘Do not lay a hand on the boy,’ he said. ‘Do not do anything to him. Now I know that you fear God, because you have not withheld from me your son, your only son.’” This was an absolute last-second reprieve. The knife was probably on its downward arc. One second later, Abraham would not have been able to stop his arm, it was that close. He obeyed right to the end. But then he got a reprieve, in effect, a stay of execution. Abraham had passed the test; he had been faithful, and it was time for the rewards of obedience.

This is similar to 2 Timothy 4:7-8, Paul’s magnificent statement: “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith. Now there is in store for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will award to me on that day — and not only to me, but also to all who have longed for his appearing.” What a triumphant note that was for Paul. His test was to preach the gospel to the megalomaniac Nero in Rome, and he passed it. What a sweet air of obedience and God’s commendation on the other side of that. That is what it was for Abraham too.

Astonishing Mystery

With the commendation, however, comes an astonishing mystery, this incredible statement, “Now I know that you fear God.” We could meditate on that for a long time and never plumb the depths. Now I know? It would be one thing to we speak that way to each other in a human way, in human language: “Now I know how much you love me” or “Now I can see that you are willing to obey me by how you are acting.” We did not know. It could have gone either way.

Not so with God. He is omniscient. He knows the end from the beginning. He is the Alpha and the Omega; He was Omega at the same time that He was Alpha. Knowledge does not unfold to God — He knows all things. That means that foreknowledge, knowledge of the future, is part of His omniscience. He knows everything in the future, the way it will come. AW Pink says, “God not only knows whatsoever has happened in the past in every part of His vast domains, and He is not only thoroughly acquainted with everything that is now transpiring throughout the entire universe, but he is also perfectly cognizant of every event, from the least to the greatest, that will ever happen in the ages to come! God’s knowledge of the future is as complete as is His knowledge of the past and the present; and that because the future depends entirely upon Himself. Were it in any way possible for something to occur apart from either the direct agency or permission of God, then that something would be independent of Him and He would at once cease to be Supreme.”

I tell you now, God — the King of kings and Lord of lords — will never cease to be supreme in His universe. He knows the end from the beginning. David meditated on this same theme in Psalm 139:16: “All the days ordained for me were written in your book before one of them came to be.” That is the God that we serve. He is a foreknowing God. Psalm 139:4 says, “Before a word is on my tongue, you, Lord, know it completely.” (“Altogether” in the ESV.) That is the God we worship.

Then what is happening when the angel of the Lord says, “Now I know that you fear God.” Did He not know before He tested Abraham? Herein lies the mystery of His statement. This teaches me, first, that this little brain will never understand all there is in the Word of God, but also that life matters, that history matters, that decisions matter. It teaches that God is watching and observing to see what we will do with the next temptation, and He will note it and record it. He remembers everything, because we matter, and so do the people we interact with at every moment. Life matters, and God’s record books matter. Today is unspeakably precious — not that yesterday was not or that tomorrow will not be — life is unspeakably precious, and it makes a difference what we do with the test of our lives. God said in a human way of understanding, “Now, I know that you fear God.” Without Abraham’s total obedience this statement would never have been made.

The Promise Restated and Intensified

The angel restates and intensifies the promise in Genesis 22:15-18: “The angel of the LORD called to Abraham from heaven a second time and said, ‘I swear by myself,’ declares the LORD, ‘that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.’” How sweet to hear! This is no different than the promises that He had made before — many descendants, the promised land. Here, the promise is intensified with new insights and details — taking possession of the cities of his enemies — in the context of what was previously promised.

Then this interesting statement: “…through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed…” Paul picks up on this in Galatians 3:16: “The promises were spoken to Abraham and to his seed. The Scripture does not say 'and to seeds,’ meaning many people, but ‘and to your seed,’ meaning one person, who is Christ.” Paul, inspired by the Spirit, is a good commentator on Scripture. He is saying the angel was not speaking about the millions of Jews that would come, but through Abraham’s seed, meaning one person, all nations on earth will be blessed. Jesus, when facing his tormentors and opposers in John 8:56, said, “Your father Abraham rejoiced at the thought of seeing my day; he saw it and was glad.” This could be the moment of revelation to Abraham; or that moment came in Genesis 15, when God directed him to look at the stars. There is an unfolding revelation of Christ, including at Mount Moriah through this obedience.

Faith’s Reward #1

Faith has rewards for Abraham. The first reward is praise and commendation of God. It is a wonderful and blessed thing to be able to spend eternity in Heaven praising God. I am looking forward to that; it will take a central place because He is at the center of Heaven. We should praise Him now. But a lesser Judgment Day theme is that God actually praises sinful human beings. Can you believe that God would actually speak a word of praise or commendation about a sinner? But He will.

Jesus said in one of his parables that the master praised the servant, saying, “Well done, good and faithful servant. You’ve been faithful with a few things. I’ll put you in charge of many things. Enter now into the joy of your master.” Your heart will swell with joy to hear that from God. How will it feel to have God, the meticulous judge, look across your life with the cleansing work of the blood of Christ — because nothing we do is perfect — and commend your life with detail.

Is this not a great reward that God would praise you? Many Scriptures speak of this. John 5 says that we should seek it, when Jesus criticizes the Jews for seeking praise from one another, and yet make no effort to obtain the praise that comes from the only God. Romans 2:29 says, “No, a man is a Jew if he is one inwardly; and circumcision is circumcision of the heart, by the Spirit, not by the written code. Such a man’s praise is not from men, but from God.”

Is that valuable to you at all? Would it be precious to you to have God praise you, not just once, but for a lifetime of obedient things, for things well done? Go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father who is unseen, and your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you. Will He give you some trinket or material reward? No. He will praise what was done. That is better by far than any wreath or any medal around your neck. Praise from God is the reward. 1 Corinthians 4:5 says, “Therefore judge nothing before the appointed time; wait till the Lord comes. He will bring to light what is hidden in darkness and will expose the motives of men's hearts. At that time each will receive his praise from God.”

Faith’s Reward #2

The second reward for Abraham is greater self-revelation from God. Would you like to know God better here on earth, to have Him open up and show himself more? It is precious that He would show Himself more than He has shown before. Isaiah 45:15 says, “Truly, you are a God who hides yourself, O God of Israel, the Savior.” You may think, “That is not the God I know.” Yes, it is. We do not see Him, and sometimes may wonder if He is there. Those are echoes from the devil. Our God hides himself and chooses to reveal Himself more and more to those who obey Him by faith. If you obey him in a costly way, He will show Himself more to you. John 14:21 says, “He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will disclose Myself to him.” He will reveal Himself, manifest Himself to the obedient keeper of His commands. Would you like to know God better? Then walk in the footsteps of the faith that your father Abraham had in Genesis 22.

Do you think Abraham knew God better when he walked down Mount Moriah, with his living son, Isaac, than when he walked up? He learned more of God’s faithfulness. He learned more of God’s future plans. God had revealed and opened Himself up to him. That is the faithfulness of God.

God Swears by Himself

Hebrews 6 provides New Testament commentary on our text. It is about God swearing by himself for our benefit. That is an odd thing, an oath in which God swears by himself. Genesis 22:15-18 says, “The angel of the LORD called to Abraham from heaven a second time and said, ‘I swear by myself, declares the LORD, that because you have done this and have not withheld your son, your only son, I will surely bless you and make your descendants as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore. Your descendants will take possession of the cities of their enemies, and through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.’” What an interesting thing for God to do.

The author of Hebrews picks up on this, reaching back to Genesis 15, with the solemn covenant ceremony. Abraham asked, “How can I know that I will possess the land?” God had him cut the animals into pieces and make a path, then God, in a kind of a theophany or picture, came down on a blazing fire pot and moved through the pieces. In Genesis 22, he was taking an oath stance, saying, “I hereby swear by myself, that through your seed, all peoples on earth will be blessed.” In effect, He links His character and His own existence to whether Abraham will get the land. He links his truthfulness as a God to whether through Abraham’s seed, all nations on earth will be blessed.

The author in Hebrews does not want us to miss that. It was written for us, not for Abraham, who had been dead for 500 years when this was written; he was already in his eternal reward. It was written for us, so that we succeeding generations could read it and be greatly encouraged in our faith. That is the bottom line. The reason we are studying Genesis 22 carefully and talking about God swearing solemnly by Himself is so that we will realize how truthful is God who has made promises to us. Our God is truthful. The One who passed through in the fire pot, the One who said, “I hereby swear by myself,” is the God that we are dealing with.

Hebrews 6:13-19 says, “When God made his promise to Abraham, since there was no one greater for him to swear by, he swore by himself, saying, ‘I will surely bless you and give you many descendants.’ And so after waiting patiently, Abraham received what was promised. Men swear by someone greater than themselves, and the oath confirms what is said and puts an end to all argument. Because God wanted to make the unchanging nature of his purpose very clear to the heirs of what was promised, he confirmed it with an oath. God did this so that by two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for God to lie we [including you and me] who have fled to take hold of the hope offered to us may be greatly encouraged [exhorted, strengthened in our faith]. We have this hope as an anchor for the soul, firm and secure.” He wants to give us stability in our Christian life, to give us an anchor that will not pull out when the storms and trials come. We know they will come. That anchor, connected to Christ, is strong enough to hold our souls in place.

In Genesis 15, when God in the fire pot moved through the pieces, He was saying first, “If I do not keep my promise, may I be blown to bits as this animal is cut up,” and second, “I hereby swear solemnly, by myself, that through your seed, all nations on earth will be blessed.” By these two unchangeable things, in which it is impossible for Him to lie, we are greatly encouraged in His covenant promises to us, better than those He made to Abraham. We will live forever in an incorruptible place and an incorruptible body with other people like us, worshiping the eternal God face-to-face. He wants us to be certain of it, and encouraged, to throw off the discouragements of life, and to say, “This Gospel towers over anything that is going on in my life —physical illness, monetary problems, anything else — because God has made me an unshakable promise.”

Some day, if you are a Christian, you will be in an incorruptible body with a soul that shines like the sun, in purity and holiness. Hebrews 6 is for my great encouragement and yours too.

The Vindication of Abraham’s Faith

Faith and Works

The final issue is faith and works. James 2 presents the vindication of Abraham’s faith. James and Paul, who would likely have been friends, seem to disagree over the meaning of the word justification. Those who say there are contradictions in the Bible might point to this example of what seems to be opposing ideas.

In Romans 3:28, the apostle Paul says, “For we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from works of the Law.” As a result of faith and no works, or apart from works of the law, one is justified. But James 2:21-24 says, “Was not Abraham our father justified by works when he offered up his son Isaac on the altar? You see that faith was active along with his works, and faith was completed by his works; and the Scripture was fulfilled that says, ‘Abraham believed God, and it was counted to him as righteousness’ — and he was called a friend of God. You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone.” I would say to the one trying to prove this contradiction in the Bible, “You have chosen well,” and proceed to work through it.

How is it that Paul can say, “…we maintain that a man is justified by faith apart from works of the Law” but James says, “You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith alone.” Martin Luther was so distressed by this that he made two mistakes. First, he called James an epistle of straw in comparison with Paul’s epistles. He saw in effect a canon within the canon, that some Scriptural books were more holy and better than others. He agreed that James is canonical and Scripture, but Paul and the Gospel of John is the core, what is really necessary. That leads to liberalism, and eventually, to the point where you do not respect the Word of God at all. It is like a worm that starts to eat the sweater — it will not stop when it gets to the good part. It will continue, and before you know it, you have no Scripture left at all. It was a mistake.

Luther also did what you could call the unforgivable sin of translating, adding words that are not in the text. In Romans 3:28, he said, “For we hold that one is justified by faith alone, apart from works of the law.” He added allein in the German or solos in his Latin works was not in the Greek. He justified it by saying, “This is what Paul means.”

How will we reconcile this? Alexander Ross said, “[Paul and James] are not antagonists facing each other with crossed swords; they stand back to back, confronting different foes of the gospel.” They use terminology differently in order to do that. Paul was fighting a Pharisaic Jewish legalistic understanding of salvation that says by good deeds — circumcision, temple sacrifices, dietary laws, keeping the law of Moses, works of the law — your sins are hereby paid for. Paul said, “May it never be! Or else you could boast.”

Martin Luther fought against the Roman Catholic version of that — by sacraments of penance, going up sacred staircases on your knees, reciting the Ave Maria, paying money to the church, doing whatever the priest told you for penance — you could thereby pay for your sins. Luther said, “May it never be!” “For we maintain that a person is justified by faith apart from works of the law.” How then are sins forgiven? How can we who are wicked and sinful be made right on Judgment Day? What will atone for our sins? Paul and Luther got it right. It is by faith in the promises of God. Abraham believed God and it was credited to him as righteousness, at the beginning of his life as a spiritual man made alive in Christ. He was innocent before the judgment seat of God, but had done no good works. Paul and Martin Luther both faced that enemy.

But James was facing an opposite enemy that would appear only after that understanding of salvation was in place. Once you understand that by simple faith alone we are made righteous, the next thought that comes is that we can live any way we want and go to Heaven. Have you ever faced that in witnessing, when someone says that it is simply by grace through faith, no works? Yes, that is true for salvation. But then why do we not murder our enemies, or do whatever evil things we want? James was dealing with that enemy of the Gospel. James 2:14 says, “What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith [a faith like that] save him?”

He was dealing with the question of what kind of faith justifies you: A faith that produces no obedience, that will not take Isaac up on Mount Moriah and sacrifice him, that says no to the commands of God, that throws off the yoke of King Jesus, even though he said, “Take my yoke upon you and learn from me.” A faith that will not obey, James says, is dead faith, demon faith, useless faith. It is a dead faith because it produces nothing. It is a demon faith because even the demons say they believe in God but they hate Him and shudder. It is a useless faith because it produces nothing. If that is the kind of faith you have, then you are not justified. Abraham’s justification was set out in the mind of God, but lived out in Abraham’s life. His faith and his actions were working together, and he was called God’s friend.

This may not be easy to understand, but it is taught repeatedly. God has saved you so that you might be zealous for good works, as Paul says in Titus. Jesus said in John 14:15, “If you love me, you will obey what I command.” John 14:23: “Jesus replied, ‘If anyone loves me, he will obey my teaching. My Father will love him, and we will come to him and make our home with him.’” John 15:10: “If you obey my commands, you will remain in my love, just as I have obeyed my Father's commands and remain in his love.” God said in Genesis 22:18, “…through your offspring all nations on earth will be blessed, because you have obeyed me.” God gives a gift of justifying faith. He displays it through a series of trials and tests that bring to the surface what He has invested in you. It is a mystery. Your own will, your own heart, are intimately involved. You have successes and failures. As Charles Swindoll said, “Three steps forward and two steps back,” God revealing a saving faith through a lifelong pattern of obedience. If that pattern is not there, question whether you are in the faith at all. That is what James 2 is saying.

Timeless Lessons and Applications

God Will Test Your Faith

God will test your faith. He will not ask you to sacrifice your only son. That is a one-time picture of the Gospel. But He will ask for something. He will speak daily through His word. Matthew 16:24-25: “If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will find it.” Romans 12: “Offer yourselves as a living sacrifice holy and pleasing to God.” Put yourself on the altar every moment. Romans 8:12-14: “Therefore, brothers, we have an obligation [we are debtors] — but it is not to the sinful nature, to live according to it. For if you live according to the sinful nature, you will die; but if by the Spirit you put to death the misdeeds of the body, you will live.” This is the kind of faith that saves. Walk with Jesus daily, every moment.

Faith Apart from Obedience

Faith apart from obedience is dead. Many in America claim to be Christians. I walked the aisle. I remember it distinctly. I remember praying that prayer at the end of that little pamphlet. They told me that was it. Well, that is not it. That is what James 2 is written for. That kind of faith does not save.

The Rewards of Faith-Filled Obedience

The reward of faith-filled obedience is greater knowledge of God himself. There must be great men and women of God listening to me right now who have not yet found out the great things God has in store. Be courageous for Him. Step out in faith. That strange voice you hear inside, telling you to do something heroic and sacrificial, that would take great courage for the Gospel, is the Holy Spirit. Test it by seeking wise counsel and praying through it, but then do it. Then you will know God better. Then He will give you new assignments, and so on. Be fruitful for Him and be courageous.

Test Yourself

Finally, test yourself to see if you are in the faith. 2 Corinthians 13:5 says, “Examine yourselves to see whether you are in the faith; test yourselves. Do you not realize that Christ Jesus is in you — unless, of course, you fail the test?” We are not very introspective. Do not take for granted that you are a Christian by the fact that you go to church. That is not enough. Are you living as Abraham did? Jesus said, “If you were Abraham's children, you would do what he did.” Obey and walk in faithfulness the way he did.