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Timothy: Romans 4:13-25
The Promise Realized Through Faith

13 For the promise was not through Law to Abraham, or to his seed, for him to be the heir of the world, but through a righteousness of faith.

14 For if those of Law are heirs, faith has been made of no effect, and the promise has been annulled.

15 For the Law works out wrath; for where no law is, neither is transgression.

16 On account of this, it is of faith, that it be according to grace, for the promise to be certain to all the seed, not to that of the Law only, but also to that of the faith of Abraham, who is father of us all,

17 according as it has been written, “I have appointed you a father of many nations;” before God, whom he believed, the One making the dead live, and calling the things that are not as if they were. Gen. 17:5

18 He against hope believed in hope, for him to become a father of many nations, according to what has been said, “So shall your seed be.” Gen. 15:5

19 And being about a hundred years old, not weakening in faith, he did not consider his body to have died already, nor yet the death of Sarah’s womb,

20 and did not stagger by unbelief at the promise of God, but was empowered by faith, giving glory to God,

21 and being fully persuaded that what He has promised, He is also able to do.

22 Because of this, “it was also counted to him for righteousness.” Gen. 15:6

23 But it was not written for him only, that it was counted to him,

24 but also on account of us, to whom it is about to be counted, to the ones believing on Him who has raised our Lord Jesus from the dead,

25 who was delivered because of our deviations, and was raised because of our justification.

[Literal Translation of the Holy Bible]

Dear God, my Beloved Father, I praise and thank You for granting me a new day with the Eternal Living Word of God. I rejoice in Your blessings. I pray that Christ strengthens me, and that the Holy Spirit helps me understand the truth in the Scriptures. I thank the Triune God.

I am meditating and writing down my understanding of Romans 4:13-25, as follows:

Dear Father, I understand that Your promise to Abraham was based on Your love and intention for him, and he received what You had promised because he believed in Your promise. Similarly, anyone who believes in what You, the Lord Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit have promised to Your people in the Bible will surely receive those things in this life and in the life to come. Most importantly, salvation comes through faith.

Dear Father, I understand that the promise to Abraham that he would inherit the world means that he would be the heir of the earth, not only for himself or his descendants who are the people of Israel, but for anyone who has faith in God. For the one who has faith in God is counted as righteous and will inherit the earth as an everlasting possession, as it is written in Psalm 37:29, “The righteous shall inherit the earth and live on it forever.”

Dear Father, I understand that in the condition where human beings live in sin, the law only brings wrath upon those who have sinned, for the law speaks of the punishment for those who break God’s commands. When humans no longer sin, there is no need for the law. The Lord Jesus once said that the law will remain until heaven and earth pass away. This means that during the period of the Thousand-Year Kingdom, the law will still exist because humans will still sin, as prophesied in Revelation 20:8-9. However, when the old heavens and earth pass away, and the new heavens and earth are established, the Eternal Kingdom will be established, and the law will no longer exist because there will be no more sin.

Dear Father, today the verse “before God, whom he believed, the One making the dead live, and calling the things that are not as if they were” reminds me to remember that the God whom I trust, obey, and worship is the Almighty God, the God of Life, the Creator God, who is able to do all things, who calls the dead to life, and calls things into existence out of nothing. This comforts and encourages me greatly, helping me to understand and remember that in You, I have no despair but only hope for all the good things that You have promised to those who believe in You, as recorded in the Bible. By faith, I gladly receive all the promises that You have given me in the Bible. Thank You.

Dear Father, I understand that those who firmly believe in the Word of God are called righteous because they obey all the commands of God. In my time, these are the people who:

• Truly repent of sin, according to the call of the Father, of Christ, and of the Holy Spirit.

• Fully acknowledge the atonement for sin by Christ, through the Father’s giving, the accomplishment of Christ, and the revelation of the Holy Spirit.

• Through this, they are forgiven by the Father, cleansed of the sinful nature by Christ, and granted by the Holy Spirit the ability to live a new life in full obedience to God’s commands.

Dear Father, I understand that anyone can be called righteous through their faith in the Gospel, which means having faith in the redemptive death of Christ. As for Christ, He was made alive by You, Father, because of the justification of those who believe in the Gospel. This means that:

• The innocent physical body of Christ died as a substitute for the punishment of human sin, but because Christ was righteous, God made Him alive again.

• All those who believe in the Gospel are saved from the punishment of sin by faith in the redemptive death of Christ. Therefore, they become righteous, and as the righteous ones, they are made alive again by God.

• The resurrection of Christ proves the resurrection of those who believe in the Gospel, whom God has called righteous.

Dear Father, my heart is joyful and filled with anticipation for the day when Christ will come, and the righteous who have died will be resurrected, and those who are alive will be transformed, each receiving a new body that You have prepared for us in heaven. As it was explained by the Holy Spirit through Paul the Apostle and recorded in II Corinthians 5:1.

I am grateful to You, Father, as well as to Christ and the Holy Spirit, for granting me the understanding of the Living Word of God. May my life reflect the glory of God. Amen!

In the grace of Jesus Christ, my Lord.

Timothy Christian Huynh
03/16/2023