Faith and Righteousness
Genesis 15:1-6
In our study of the book of Genesis we are following Abram’s walk with God. His life of faith began when Lord called him from Ur of the Chaldeans to go to Canaan. As the New Testament writer of Hebrews says, “By faith Abraham obeyed when he was called to go out to the place which he would receive as an inheritance. And he went out, not knowing where he was going” (Heb. 11:8). We saw God’s call to Abram expressed in Genesis 12:1-3,
1 Now the LORD had said to Abram: “Get out of your country, From your family And from your father’s house, To a land that I will show you. 2 I will make you a great nation; I will bless you And make your name great; And you shall be a blessing. 3 I will bless those who bless you, And I will curse him who curses you; And in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”
The Lord’s call to Abram included a command to leave his country, his family, and his father’s household to go where God would lead him. It came with great promises that God would make of Abram a great nation, that the Lord would bless him and make his name great. This call and blessing carried the obligation for Abram to be a blessing to others such that those who bless Abram would be blessed, those who curse him will be cursed and that all the families of the earth would be blessed in Abram.
Since that calling Abram’s walk of faith has seen its ups and downs. His faith has been tested in several ways. When Abram got to the land God promised to give him, he found it occupied by the wicked Canaanites. He experienced a famine in the land and fled to Egypt where out of fear he resorted to deception. The Lord delivered Abram and his wife Sarai from their trouble in Egypt and he returned to his walk with God in the land of promise and his worship of the Lord. In Genesis 13 Abram was tested by prosperity and chose to walk by faith in God’s promises rather than to walk by sight like his nephew Lot. In Genesis 14 we saw Abram’s courageous faith in battle as he rescued Lot and as he refused the wealth of Sodom, giving glory to God for his victory.
Now in Genesis 15 God strikingly confirm the covenant that He began with Abram in Genesis 12 in a most striking way. Derek Kidner says this, “The New Testament finds this a momentous chapter in two respects: first in its declaration that Abraham was justified by faith in verse 6. That phrase is at the heart of Paul’s gospel in Romans, chapter 4 and in Galatians, chapter 3; secondly it finds this chapter to be momentous because it records for us the covenant. For this … is the foundational covenant of the Old Testament. … To honor this promise God would bring His people out of Egypt and send His Son into the world.”
Follow along in your Bibles as I read our text, Genesis 15:1-6:
1 After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision, saying, “Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward.”
2 But Abram said, “Lord GOD, what will You give me, seeing I go childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” 3 Then Abram said, “Look, You have given me no offspring; indeed one born in my house is my heir!” 4 And behold, the word of the LORD came to him, saying, “This one shall not be your heir, but one who will come from your own body shall be your heir.” 5 Then He brought him outside and said, “Look now toward heaven, and count the stars if you are able to number them.” And He said to him, “So shall your descendants be.” 6 And he believed in the LORD, and He accounted it to him for righteousness.
In Genesis 15 Abram faith is seeking assurance from the Lord. God had made great promises to Abram that included numerous descendants (Gen. 13:14-17) and possession of the land (Gen. 12:7). But Abram has been a stranger, a pilgrim, in the land for years now and has yet to see these promises come to pass. Abram took a bold step of faith and trusted the Lord‘s promises. But he was still waiting for the fulfillment of the promises. The land was still occupied by others and Abram still had no son. His wife Sarai was barren (Gen. 11:30). Perhaps the delay in the fulfillment of the promises of God caused Abram to wonder, “Will the LORD do what he has said?”
So first in this text we see …
1. Abram’s fear and God’s Assurance (Gen. 15:1)
Genesis 15:1 says “After these things the word of the LORD came to Abram in a vision.” It was God who took the initiative with Abram again. This is the first time in the scriptures we find the, “the word of the LORD came.” This phrase occurs in the Old Testament 104 times, almost always indicating God revealing His word to His prophets. God approaches Abram in a vision. But the purpose of the vision is to convey what? To convey the word of God. The vehicle is the vision, but the central point is the message, the “the word of the LORD.”
And what did the LORD say? What was the Lord’s word to Abram? He encouraged Abram with the words, “Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward.” Now why would Abram be afraid? One clue is that this chapter begins “After these things …” What things? Abram had just experienced a great victory in battle when he freed Lot and many others from the marauding kings of the east. He had just honored God by giving a tithe to Melchizedek, priest of the Most High God. He had just refused the wealth of Sodom and the implied alliance with their wicked king. He had acted bravely and decisively and faithfully.
Perhaps Abram was fearful of retaliation after his shocking defeat of the four kings from Mesopotamia. Doubtless smarting after Abraham chased them north of Damascus, they might well be expected to mount a counterattack. Abram has made himself a target. He is no longer laying low in the land of Canaan. It is understandable that he would now be afraid.
But as the next verses show, Abram’s greater fear no doubt related to God’s promise to give him a son. Many years earlier the Lord has said he would give Abraham descendants as numerous as the dust of the earth (Gen. 13:16). Even then Abraham was over 75 years ago. Now he is at least 85 and not getting any younger. His wife Sarah is far past childbearing age. Even though he has just won a great victory, nothing can satisfy his deep desire for a son.
God did not seem in a hurry to give them a child. How much longer would he wait? Why had he delayed? Had God changed his mind and not told Abraham? Was there some problem he didn’t know about? Had they sinned? Was there something Abraham and Sarah doing that was displeasing to God? Why was Sarah’s womb still closed? If God had promised, why was it taking so long to be fulfilled?
God knew exactly what his servant was thinking. He saw the doubt. He understood the fear. Now he moves to reassure Abraham that all will be well. And so the LORD said to him “Do not be afraid, Abram.” And He also gave him the reason why he shouldn’t be afraid. “I am your shield, your exceedingly great reward.” First the LORD says that He Himself would be Abram’s shield, his protector from his enemies. This is the first intimation of this frequently repeated character of God in Scripture (cf. Psalm 3:3; 28:7; 84:9; 91:4). Psalm 18:2 says, “The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer; My God, my strength, in whom I will trust; My shield and the horn of my salvation, my stronghold.” Psalm 119:114 says, “You are my hiding place and my shield; I hope in Your word.”
Second the LORD says that He Himself is Abram’s “exceedingly great reward.” Abram had just turned down the riches of Sodom. Now the LORD assures Abram that he will not lose his reward. The Lord Himself is his reward, one that is exceedingly great. Is the Lord Himself your great reward? Nothing in this world can substitute for a relationship with God Himself. To be loved by God and to glory in His presence for all eternity, that is an exceeding great reward!
God has assured Abram. But he still has questions. So next we see …
2. Abram’s crisis and God’s Promise (Gen. 15:2-5)
“2 But Abram said, “Lord GOD, what will You give me, seeing I go childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” 3 Then Abram said, “Look, You have given me no offspring; indeed one born in my house is my heir!”” (Genesis 15:2–3).
Abram’s concern was valid, wasn’t it? LORD, you have promised to make me into a great nation. You have said that my descendants would be like the dust of the earth, if one could number the dust of the earth. But I continue to walk in this world childless. In fact, it looks as if Eliezer of Damascus will be my heir when I die. Will You do this through him? Help me to understand, LORD. When and how will You do this?
Abram’s struggle is not a reflection of unbelief. He addresses God as “Lord GOD.” This is a combination of two names for God: Adonai, which means sovereign, master, lord; and Yahweh, the covenant name of God, the I AM. So even though Abram is confused and asking God to clear up matters for him, he is asking submissively, not defiantly. It is a struggle of faith which Abram reflects. Abram’s response is not a sheer manifestation of unbelief as if Abram is saying, “Well, Lord, You haven’t done anything for me yet. How can I believe that this is going to happen?” This is not the dynamic that is going on in this passage. Remember this. God had made an explicit promise, an explicit commitment to Abram, and the blessing of the whole of humanity depended on God fulfilling that promise. And God’s provision of a seed, of an heir was absolutely integral to God’s plan of promises for Abram. God’s covenant promises to Abram, and to us are dependent upon God’s provision of a seed.
And in the face of this crisis of faith, the Lord emphatically reaffirms His commitments to Abraham, “And behold, the word of the LORD came to him, saying, ‘This one shall not be your heir, but one who will come from your own body shall be your heir.’”
The LORD made if very clear that he would fulfill his promises concerning a great nation and many offspring, not through a legal heir, like Eliezer of Damascus, but through Abram’s “very own son”, one that would come from his loins. Sure, it must have seemed impossible to Abram, but this was the word of the LORD.
And notice that the LORD helped Abram along in his faith by giving him a visible sign. Not only did God give Abram his word to hear, he also gave him something to look at: “Then He brought him outside and said, ‘Look now toward heaven, and count the stars if you are able to number them.’ And He said to him, ‘So shall your descendants be.’” (Genesis 15:5). The word “descendants” is literally “seed” and it is in the singular. As Paul makes the point in Galatians 3, “Now to Abraham and his Seed were the promises made. He does not say, “And to seeds,” as of many, but as of one, “And to your Seed,” who is Christ.” Abram’s ultimate heir is the Lord Jesus Christ through whom all of Abraham’s true children will be saved.
Can you picture Abram walking outside of his tent late at night? Imagine how dark it must have been in those days with no city lights to pollute the night sky. And imagine how impressive those stars must have been! It is an overwhelming experience to consider how vast our universe is, and how many stars there are in the heavens. God attached His promises to Abram to these stars. Therefore, from that day forward every time Abram looked up to the night sky he would be reminded of the promises of God.
The Lord Jesus also gave us a visible reminder of the promises of God in the Lord’s Supper. Every time we eat the bread and drink from the cup we do it in remembrance of Him who gave His life on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins and who was raised to life for our justification.
This brings us to the key verse …
3. Abram’s faith and God’s righteousness (Gen. 15:6)
In Genesis 15:6 we see Abram’s response to the word of the LORD: “And he believed in the LORD, and He accounted it to him for righteousness.”
Certainly Abram had faith prior to this moment. He obeyed the word of the LORD when he left Ur to journey to the land that God would show him. That he did because he believed the LORD. Why then is this declaration reserved for this moment? Did not Abram have faith previously? Was he not made right with God prior to this event? Why does Moses mention here that Abram believed God and that God reckoned it to him as righteousness?
Martin Luther said that Abram was justified by faith long before this time, but that it is first recorded in this context in a connection where the Savior is definitely involved in order that none might venture to dissociate justification from the Savior (cited in H. C. Leupold, Exposition of Genesis [Baker], 1:479). John Calvin thought that it is mentioned here, long after Abram was first justified, to prove that justification does not just begin by faith, only to be perfected later by works. Rather, justification is by faith alone, apart from works, from start to finish (Calvin’s Commentaries [Baker], 1:408-409).
What Abram believed on this occasion is the specific word of the Lord concerning a son (seed) which would come forth from his body. Abram knew that through this seed, blessing would come to all the families of the earth (Gen. 12:3). So when Abram believed in the Lord, what he believed specifically was the promise that a Savior for the world would come forth from his descendants.
You may wonder, how much did Abram know about Jesus Christ, who would be born 2,000 years later? He knew more than we may assume! Jesus Himself said, “Your father Abraham rejoiced to see My day, and he saw it and was glad” (John 8:56). Paul said that God preached the gospel beforehand to Abram when God promised, “In you all the nations shall be blessed” (Gal. 3:8). Though Abram surely didn’t know Jesus’ name and he had no visible evidence other than God’s verbal promise, Abram looked forward in faith to God’s Redeemer and thus it is recorded here that God reckoned it to him as righteousness.
It’s that kind of personal trust in His promises about the Savior that God wants from you and me. The Christian life is not using God to obtain happiness and good feelings in this life; it is trusting God and His promises concerning the life to come. It concerns the question, “How can a sinful person like me be right with a holy God? Abram “believed in the LORD.” It was a personal faith in a personal God.
I wonder, do you have that kind of faith? Do you believe the LORD? Are you trusting in Jesus the Christ? It is possible, I suppose, to trust in all kinds of things — even things that are associated with the Christian religion — and to not trust the LORD. Some trust in their knowledge of the things of God; others trust in their religious devotion; and still others trust in their goodness and obedience to God’s commands. But I am asking, do you trust in the LORD who died for you and was raised to life? If it is to be true and saving faith, it must be faith in a person — in the Lord Jesus Christ.
The result of Abram’s faith was righteousness. “And he believed in the LORD, and He accounted it to him for righteousness.” When Abram believed the LORD, Abram was counted right with God. This is one of the most important doctrines in the Bible, that God declares righteous the guilty sinner who trusts in Christ. It is the very core of the gospel. It has always been the only way to be made right with God. Although it is stated clearly here that Abram was justified by faith, so were Abel, Enoch and Noah. Of Abel we read, “By faith Abel offered to God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained witness that he was righteous” (Hebrews 11:4). Abel exemplified righteousness by faith. Of Enoch Genesis says, “And Enoch walked with God; and he was not, for God took him” (Gen. 5:24). Enoch’s walk with God grew out of his faith as Hebrews 11:5 declares, “By faith Enoch was taken away so that he did not see death, “and was not found, because God had taken him”; for before he was taken he had this testimony, that he pleased God.” Enoch’s life demonstrated a righteousness based on faith. Of Noah Genesis 6:9 says, “Noah was a just [righteous] man, perfect in his generations. Noah walked with God.” Noah’s righteousness was also because he believed God. Hebrews 11:7 explains, “By faith Noah, being divinely warned of things not yet seen, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark for the saving of his household, by which he condemned the world and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith.”
As Paul spells out in Romans 3 & 4, Genesis 15:6 means that God declares righteous the guilty sinner when that sinner does not trust in his own good works, but rather when he trusts the perfect obedience and the substitutionary death of the Lord Jesus Christ on his behalf. Romans 4:1-5 says,
1 What then shall we say that Abraham our father has found according to the flesh? 2 For if Abraham was justified by works, he has [something] to boast about, but not before God. 3 For what does the Scripture say? “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness.” 4 Now to him who works, the wages are not counted as grace but as debt. 5 But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness.
Hear me on this: You cannot and will not be justified in God’s sight as long as you think that you can earn it or deserve it. You will not be right with God as long as you think of yourself as a pretty good person. We must come to see that we are ungodly sinners who are under God’s condemnation. Only then will we despair of ourselves and flee to God’s remedy in Christ. At the moment you do that, God credits to your account the very righteousness of His Son Jesus, and He takes your sin and puts it on Christ so that you stand before Him acquitted! It all depends on God and not at all on you. Faith is simply the hand that receives the free gift of God in Christ.
May I ask you right now, do you believe that at this moment you are right with God entirely through what God has done for you in Jesus Christ, so that if you were to stand before Him right now, you would not enter into condemnation because Christ has borne your sins?
If you will come to Jesus right now, acknowledging your ungodliness, but trusting in His shed blood as the just payment for your sin, like Abram, God will account to you the righteousness of Christ. You will be justified today.
