Unlimited: Righteousness Credited Before Circumcision
Jul 13, 2022 895
Is this blessedness only for the circumcised, or also for the uncircumcised? We have been saying that Abraham’s faith was credited to him as righteousness. 10 Under what circumstances was it credited? Was it after he was circumcised, or before? It was not after, but before! (Romans 4:9–10).
For the Jews in the time of Paul, the most important “work” that every Jewish male needed to do in order to qualify and signify that they were recipients of the righteousness of God was to be circumcised. Paul is pointing out something that his Jewish audience may never have realised. Abraham was credited as being righteous before being circumcised and not before!
Therefore, the “work” that they did was the sign of the righteousness they had already received, and not the pre-requisite for the righteousness that was credited to them. Again, Paul is telling us, the righteousness of God is credited to our account apart from any works. The works follow salvation, and not the other way around!
The righteousness of God is credited to our account apart from any works.
One of the deadliest traps into which we can fall, due to the deceitfulness of sin, is to think that our works come before our salvation. As a result, we focus on our works, rather than on our relationship with Christ. It seems so obvious, doesn’t it? We feel better when we do the right things, and we feel bad when we do the wrong things.
If you want to have good fruit, water the roots, and not the fruit. If you focus first on your relationship with Christ our righteousness, your good works will flow naturally in your life.
Spiritual Application
Reflect on your own life. Were you saved before you did good works, or after you did good works? You were saved as a sinner, not as a saint. You were saved while you were still God’s enemy (Rom. 5:8.)
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