January 6: "Counted as Righteousness"

Genesis 13:5—15:21

Matthew 5:27-28

Psalm 6:1-10

Proverbs 1:29-33

 

"[Abram] believed the LORD, and he counted it to him as righteousness." (Genesis 15:6)

 

Everybody loves a transformation story, and Abram is one of the all-time greats. Before he met the Lord, it's doubtful that Abram would ever have imagined his life going the direction it did. In fact, we're told elsewhere that Abram's father "served other gods" (Joshua 24:2). In all likelihood, Abram and his family would have been part of a religious culture devoted to a moon god named Sin. All that changed when the Lord called him out of his comfort zone and to a whole new purpose.

 

So here in chapter 15 we find ourselves at the high-water mark of Abram's calling. God had made a promise to Abram: the promise of land, the promise of blessing, and the promise of descendants. And because of Abram's continual trust in God, we're told that his faith "was counted to him as righteousness." This is a loaded statement. What does it mean to have your faith "counted as righteousness?" It means that even though Abram had no prior record of obedience, God would treat him as if he did!

 

This, of course, says far more about God than it does Abram. If God declares a former pagan "righteous," there's hope for the absolute least of us.

 

If you have a background in church, you know it's this passage that the New Testament later picks up to explain the gospel (cf. Romans 4). When we trust in Christ, God likewise counts our faith as righteous. And it works the same way: though we have no righteous deeds of our own, God considers us as sharing Jesus' perfect moral record! All this is possible because of our union in Christ.

 

Therefore, the electrifying good news of the gospel is that God accepts us not on the basis of our religious performance, but faith alone in Jesus Christ. Christ-follower, what do you seek security in? Maybe it's wealth. Maybe it's the approval of others. Maybe it's being politically right. But Abram's story reminds us that we can rest in knowing that our security has a different source. Christ is our righteousness, and in him you and I are saved and secure.