Faith Accounted Righteous

Sermon Text

Romans 4:5-8

5 But to him who does not work but believes on Him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is accounted for righteousness, 6 just as David also describes the blessedness of the man to whom God imputes righteousness apart from works:

7 “Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven,
And whose sins are covered;
8 Blessed is the man to whom the Lord shall not impute sin.”

New King James Version (NKJV) Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. All rights reserved.

Main Points

• God has made a way for sinners to be made right with Him, and that way is through Jesus Christ alone.

• Abraham demonstrates that righteousness is credited by faith, not earned by works (Romans 4:3–5).

• God justifies the ungodly—not because they are righteous, but because they trust in His promises.

• Genuine godliness is the fruit of God's grace, not the cause of it.

• Mature Christians face subtle dangers:

  • Forgetting that God's grace, not personal effort, sustains the Christian life.

  • Becoming so focused on imitating Christ that they neglect resting in Christ.

  • Measuring others by their own standard of sanctification rather than Christ's righteousness.

• David's testimony in Psalm 32 illustrates the joy of forgiveness despite grievous sin.

• The heroes of Scripture are not examples of moral perfection but examples of faith in God's promised Redeemer.

• Jesus alone perfectly fulfilled God's law, bore our sins, and provides the righteousness credited to believers.

• The Christian's only hope before God is Christ's finished work, not personal merit.

Key Scripture References

• Romans 4:3–12

• Genesis 15:6

• Psalm 32:1–2

• Romans 3:20

• Isaiah 64:6

• Hebrews 11

• Hebrews 12:2

• James 2

• 1 John 1:8–9

• Exodus 23:7

• Why does Paul use Abraham as the primary example of justification?

• What does it mean that God "justifies the ungodly"?

• Why can no amount of good works earn righteousness before God?

• How does David's experience deepen our understanding of God's grace?

• Why is it dangerous to compare our righteousness with that of others?

• What is the relationship between justification and sanctification?

• How does resting in Christ differ from striving to earn God's favor?

• Why are biblical heroes ultimately meant to point us to Jesus?

• How does Christ's finished work provide assurance for believers?

• How should the doctrine of justification shape daily Christian living?

• Justification – God's legal declaration that a sinner is righteous because of Christ.

• Imputation – The crediting of Christ's righteousness to believers and believers' sins to Christ.

• Faith – Trusting and resting in Christ alone for salvation.

• Grace – God's undeserved favor toward sinners.

• Sanctification – The lifelong work of growing in holiness after justification.

• Righteousness – Perfect conformity to God's holy standard.

• Covenant Sign – An outward sign that seals God's covenant promises (e.g., circumcision in the Old Testament).

• Repentance – Turning from sin to God in faith.

• Forgiveness – God's gracious removal of the guilt and penalty of sin through Christ.

• Gospel – The good news that sinners are saved by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone.