Sermon

February 17, 2008
Lent 2a
Romans 4:1-5, 13-17
Pastor Ben Berger

How's Your Credit?

How’s your credit? In the financial world that is a rather important question. If you want to borrow money to buy a car, they’ll ask, “How’s your credit?” If you want to borrow money to refinance or buy a house, they’ll ask, “How’s your credit?” And if you don’t have good credit, you either won’t get the money or you’ll pay more interest on the loan. Credit has become even more important since the banks loaned money to people with poor credit who couldn’t pay them back. Your financial credit is based upon history. Your credit report shows whether or not you’ve paid back the money you borrowed and whether you paid it on time.

How’s your credit before God? If credit is important in the financial world, it’s even more important in the spiritual world. In fact, rather than just determining the amount of money you can borrow and how much interest you’ll pay, your spiritual credit will determine where you spend eternity. Spiritual credit is also based on history. Either you want credit for your history – how you’ve lived your life; or you want credit for God’s history – how well he kept his promises. So, how’s your credit? Are you boasting about your works or trusting in God’s promises?

Abraham had reason to boast about his works. Paul uses Abraham as his example because most of the Jews pointed to Abraham as the model believer; they tried to be just like Abraham. They usually pointed to his works. After all, look at how Abraham obeyed God. He answered and followed God’s call to leave his home and family and country. He journeyed in faith to a land he didn’t know. He even took care of his nephew Lot. And later he showed great obedience in his willingness to sacrifice his only son. Abraham had many reasons to boast about his faith.

But not before God, Paul said. Abraham could make no such boasts before God. Abraham knew that in spite of all the great works he had done, he was still sinful. He knew that he was born in a sinful condition. He showed that sin when he told his wife to act as his sister because he didn’t trust God to protect them. He did that twice. He showed his sin when he tried to fulfill God’s promise of a son by his own hand. He took his wife’s maidservant into his bed because he didn’t have patience for God to fulfill his own promise. While Abraham obeyed God in many cases, he also sinned. While Abraham had reason to boast before men, he could not boast before God.

You might think that you have reason to boast too. Just look at all the great things you do. You have been faithful to one spouse your entire marriage. Or, you’re still saving yourself for that one spouse. You are loving parents, who provide a beautiful life for your children. You not only belong to the church, you even attend worship – and maybe Bible class on top of that. You send your beautiful children to the Lutheran school. And you give time and money and energy to the church. You have many, many reasons to boast about your works.

But not before God. It doesn’t matter if we’re good people who have done many good things. We are all still sinful. We were all born with a sinful condition that we inherited from our sinful parents. And that sin shows itself daily in our “good” lives. In spite of my faithfulness to my wife, I have sinned against her. I have become angry for not getting my way. I have been impatient while waiting. I have been resentful of the time she has at home. I have not been the perfect parent – getting frustrated at the crying needs of my child. I have not been the perfect church member – complaining for every minute worship exceeds an hour, refusing to give more time to God, hording God’s blessings to my self. I have sinned; we have sinned. We have nothing to boast about before God.

Paul explains to us that our good works are only credited to us out of obligation. Now when a man works, his wages are not credited to him as a gift, but as an obligation (4). You understand that when you go to work at your job, you’ll get a paycheck. That paycheck is the expected obligation your employer gives you for your work. It’s not the same as a bonus or Christmas gift for which you did nothing. Whatever good things we do in life do not and cannot earn a gift. It’s just what’s expected of us. Students are always asking me for extra credit. I tell them that they can’t earn “extra” credit unless they first have full credit. Of course, if a student already has 100%, he doesn’t ask for extra. Our good works cannot earn extra credit before God.

In fact, Paul later says in verse fifteen that law brings wrath. If we want to earn credit before God by following the law, we’ll only bring wrath on ourselves. Unless we keep the law perfectly, the law demands from us the punishment of death and hell. In addition, Paul says in verse fourteen that for those who live by the law faith has no value and God’s promise is worthless. If we want to earn credit by keeping the law, then we can’t ask God for his promise of forgiveness and salvation.

So, how’s your credit? If you’ve been boasting about your works, trusting in your own history, you’re credit is pretty bad. However, your credit looks differently if you trust in God’s promises.

In verse three Paul answers his own question about Abraham. Abraham did not try to boast before God. Rather, the Scriptures say that Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness. Abraham did not boast about his works but believed God’s promises. He believed God’s promises to make his name great, to give him the Promised Land, to make him into a great nation and to bless the world through him. In John 8:56 Jesus himself said that Abraham rejoiced at the thought of seeing his day. Abraham believed God’s promise of a Messiah-Savior. Abraham even believed in the resurrection from the dead as he said when about to sacrifice his son.

Abraham’s faith was credited to him as righteousness. Faith did not make Abraham righteous in himself; he was still a sinner. But, faith credited Abraham with righteousness. By faith Abraham possessed righteousness. By faith Abraham held righteousness in his heart and in his hands. God accepted that righteousness in place of Abraham’s sin. The good works which Abraham did followed his faith. In faith Abraham followed God’s call; in faith he cared for Lot; in faith he circumcised his family; in faith he was willing to sacrifice his son. God did not credit Abraham with righteousness because of good works. Abraham did good works because God credited him with righteousness.

God has also credited you with righteousness. He does not credit you with righteousness on the basis of your works, but through faith. Paul said, to the man who does not work but trusts God who justifies the wicked, his faith is credited as righteousness (5). You do not earn righteousness; God gives it to you as a gift through faith. By the power of the Holy Spirit you believe God’s promises to be with you, to provide for you, to watch over you, to forgive your sins, to give you peace and joy, and to take you to heaven. By such faith you are credited with righteousness. You hold righteousness in your heart and in your hands. And God accepts that righteousness in place of your sin.

That righteousness came by Christ. God promised to send a Messiah-Savior. He kept his promise by sending his only Son. As we heard last week, Jesus defeated all of the devil’s temptations and lived a perfect life. He fulfilled all of God’s law. He earned righteousness for himself. And then he gave it away to us. He took his righteousness and placed it in our hearts and our hands by faith.

Because of Jesus’ righteousness, God justifies the wicked. That’s us. We are the wicked. Purely by grace, no credit from us, God declares us sinners not guilty. God doesn’t justify the righteous; he justifies the wicked. He cancels our debt of sin. He credits us with righteousness.

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