It is of Faith, that it might be by Grace

It is of Faith, that it might be by Grace
By Al Stoner

"Therefore it is of faith, that it might be by grace; to the end the promise might be sure to all the seed; not to that only which is of the law, but to that also which is of the faith of Abraham; who is the father of us all" (Rom. 4:16).

The Identification of "It". The "it" of reference (it is of faith) pertains to the manner in which the "blessedness", of which David spoke (Ps. 32:1-2; Rom. 4:6-10), comes upon men, who were once associated with sinful defilements. It has reference to the way that righteousness is able to be imputed unto men (Rom. 4:5). It answers the question regarding how that the holy God is able to justify the ungodly (cf. Rom. 4:5). To the unthinking mind, these matters might appear to be insignificant and inconsequential. But not so. It required the most thorough exercise of the Divine wisdom to devise means so that God's banished be not expelled from Him (cf. II Sam. 14:14). And expelled, or cast away, they would have to be, unless suitable and adequate means had been devised of Him.

Present-day religionists are very assuming, and have not even come up to the level of Bildad the Shuhite, who queried, "How then can man be justified with God? or how can he be clean that is born of a woman?" (Job 25:4). And hear Job himself as he asks a similar question, "I know it is so of a truth: but how should man be just with God?" (Job 9:2). It is not until men have been perplexed by questions such as these that they will be enabled to receive with gladness the blessed provision for the putting away of sins in the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. And the means, so far as men are concerned, is by faith.

It is of Faith. Therefore it is of faith, (which is to say), It's not by the means of keeping the law or by the doing of the works of the law. It is not by the means of vain attempts to measure up to God's standard, or God's righteousness, or God's glory. Nor is it by the means of doing the best that one can, as some are heard to speak. And it is not by the means of using resources received from Adam, from the natural man, or from tradition. Those possessing this faith and living by faith are those who are "born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God" (Jn. 1:13).

Rather, it is of faith, it is by the receiving and belief of Divine testimony. "He that hath received His testimony hath set to His seal that God (who cannot lie) is true" (Jn. 3:33; cf. Tit. 1:1). It is by believing God. It is by believing the record which God has given of His Son. Oh, to see more clearly ourselves, and be able to persuade men more effectively of the gravity that is associated with believing this record, as well as the grave consequences of not believing it! This is a matter about which God is most sensitive. He has put His very Person and Character "on the line" (cf. Gen. 22:16-18; Ps. 110:4; Heb. 6:13-20), as it were, in the commitments and promises which He has made regarding "the gospel of His Son" (Rom. 1:9).

It is of faith. That is, it is by taking hold of those things that are revealed in the Scriptures and which have become substantive to our inward perception because of faith. It is by justifying God by the possession of evidence of things that are not seen, only for the reason that He has testified of them. It is by the means of an inward persuasion of things that are revealed of God in His Word, and yet not seen. Such things as these are not perceptible with the resources of the natural man. "The natural man receiveth not the things of the Spirit of God" (I Cor. 2:14).

It is of faith. It is by the means of God working all of His salvational works in and through men, and yet the possessors of this faith are involved in that work every step of the way. "But he that doeth truth cometh to the light, that his deeds may be made manifest, that they are wrought in God" (Jn. 3:21). These are the words of the King, and they are good words! Consider that which was spoken by Isaiah: "Thou also hast wrought all our works in us" (Isa. 26:12). "This people have I formed for Myself; they shall shew forth My praise" (Isa. 43:12). And again, Paul declared, "we are His workmanship created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them" (Eph. 2:10).

All of these things mentioned above are of faith; they absolutely involve the exercise of the faith, of which the Lord Jesus Christ is both the Author and Finisher (Heb. 12:1-2). Again, Paul affirmed, it is given unto men to believe on Christ (cf. Phil. 1:29). And yet that faith is to be diligently maintained by the ones possessing it (cf. Jn. 6:27-29). This is the fundamental "assignment" that God gives to "every man" (Jn.6:45) that would come to Jesus, and continue in Him (cf. I Jn. 2:24). "This is the work of God, that ye believe on Him (Christ) whom He (God the Father) hath sent" (Jn. 6:29). This is a lifetime assignment, and it is an all-encompassing one.

That it might be by grace. It is of faith, in order that God's grace may be brought into the forefront of consideration, both to men and to heavenly intelligences. It is of faith, in order that that good thing which Noah "had" (Gen. 6:8) may not only be the benefit of eight souls (cf. I Pet. 3:20), but, much more than this, may be magnified and multiplied in a vast multitude which shall be as "the stars of the sky in multitude, and as the sand which is by the sea shore innumerable" (Heb. 11:12) "world without end" (Eph. 3:21). It shall be "a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues" (Rev. 7:9). Such is the grace of the Lord Jesus Christ.

It is of faith, so that the contrition and repentance expressed by David after sinning with Bathsheba (Ps. 51), may become the mind of all who are turning away from their sins, and believing on the Name of the only begotten Son of God.

It is of faith, so that God's thoughts may become the thoughts of redeemed personalities. As the Psalmist, transcending the covenant of his time, expressed the mind of all of the partakers of the salvation which is in Christ, "How precious also are Thy thoughts unto me, O God! how great is the sum of them!" (Ps. 139:17). It is of faith, so that men may fellowship with God, even in the matter of the putting away of their sins by the Lord Jesus Christ. Such fellowship is experienced in the possession of a purged conscience, a conscience purged from dead works to serve the living God.

It is of faith, in order that of all the glory that God revealed unto Moses, "merciful and gracious" may now, in these last days, become the most prominent and glorious of them all through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus. Moses had to be hid in "a clift of the rock" (Exod. 33:22) in order that he might behold somewhat of God's glory. But in the world to come, because sins have been effectually put away by Christ, redeemed personalities eternally shall bask with exceeding great delight in the glory of God, because "the throne of God and of the Lamb" (Rev. 22:1, 3) shall be there. "The throne of God and of the Lamb", even in the present time, speaks a marvelous cordial to all those who are now engaged in the warfare of faith, striving against sin, and drawing nigh unto God with a true heart, in full assurance of faith.

It is of faith because Christ has abolished death, and has brought life and immortality to light through the gospel (II Tim. 1:8-10). The blessed abolition of death, eternal life, and immortality are things which are perceptible, yea, they may be handled, in a very real sense, by those who are living by faith. It is of faith, because Christ has tasted death for every man (cf. Heb. 2:9). It is of faith, because Christ has once suffered for sins, the Just for the unjust, that He might bring us to God (I Pet. 3:17).

It is of faith, because God Himself is inclined to be being gracious. It is of faith, because mercy and truth have now met together, and righteousness and peace have kissed each other (cf.Ps. 85:10) in the purging of sins by Christ. It is of faith, so that God may be unrestricted in the display of His love, mercy, grace, and kindness to believing men, namely, to those who are in Christ Jesus.The fact being stated, this is not to cast any reflection on the Character of God. The law was "added because of transgressions, till the Seed (that is, Christ) should come to whom the promise was made" (Gal. 3:19).

To the End that the Promise might be Sure to all the Seed. The temporal blessings promised under the law, because of their dependence on perfect obedience on the part of the doers, were actually not sure to any of the seed under "the first covenant" (Heb. 9:1) . As James declared, "For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all" (Jas. 2:10; cf. Deut. 27:26; Gal. 3:10).

But in Christ, and in the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory (II Tim. 2:10), there is a diametrically different modus operendi. It is that of faith, so that God may be gracious, so that His beloved Son and the salvation which is in HIm may become accessible to "whosoever will" (Rev. 22:17), to honest and good hearts (cf. Lk. 8:15), to those who are given to mourn because of their sin (cf. Mt. 5:4), to those who hunger and thirst after righteousness (Mt. 5:6), to those whom God teaches to greatly value His Son (cf. Jn. 6:45) and who thus receive Him (Jn. 1:12) and continue in Him (I Jn. 2:24).

The promise is sure to all the seed, because fulfillment of the promise depends entirely upon God, and upon Christ. As it is written, "it is not of him that willeth, nor of him that runneth, but of God that sheweth mercy" (Rom. 9:16). By virtue of this situation, men are thrust entirely upon "God, who cannot lie" (Tit. 1:1), and upon Christ, who is "the faithful Witness" (Rev. 1:5), for both the accomplishment and full realization of "the promise of life which is in Christ Jesus" (II Tim. 1:1). "And this is the promise that He hath promised us, even eternal life" (I Jn. 2:25). Jesus said, "Ye believe in God, believe also in Me" (Jn. 14:1).

It is of faith, that it might be by grace, to the end that the promise might be sure to all the seed. --editor@banner.org