1. Faith Counted As Righteousness October 12, 2013

2. God’s Assurances to Abram 1)You have nothing to fear so…do not fear. 2)You are being protected…for I am your shield. 3)You will be blessed…for your reward will be substantial.

3. Abram Questions God 1)Your promise of an heir remains unfulfilled. 2)Your promise seems to have a loophole.

4. God Affirms the Promise to Abram 1)There is no loophole to the promise, your very own son will be your heir. 2)From your very own son multitudes of descendants will come.

5. Three Significant Words 1)‘believed’ – To believe in, to sustain, to trust. 2)‘counted’ – To be credited, accounted, reckoned, to be imputed. 3)‘righteousness’- Right standing, qualified right standing before God.

6. Practical Implications of ‘faith counted as righteousness’ 1)It was Abram’s faith and trust in what God said that counted as righteousness– nothing else. 2)Abram was not counted righteous because he did righteous things.

7. Practical Implications of ‘faith counted as righteousness’ 3)Abram’s faith was considered by God to be ‘saving faith’. 4)The saving faith of Abram is the same saving faith of believers today.

8. God’s Faithfulness to Abram  Past Faithfulness – ‘I brought you out of Ur’.  Future Faithfulness – ‘I will give you this land’.

9. The Covenant Ceremoniously Sealed 1) The blood path ceremony 2) God foretells the future story of his people. 3) Only God participates in the ceremony that seals the covenant. 4) God speaks and specifically promises the location of the land.