“What does Scripture say? ‘Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.’”
I remember one of my very first ministry experiences was playing the guitar and singing on the worship team at my church. I loved music but I was new to the faith and very shy about being up in front of people. I was too timid at the time to ask, but a new friend I had met who was already on the team knew this and motivated me to at least come to worship rehearsal to check it out. That first night at practice changed my life. I was expressing my faith and love for music for the first time with a group of other believers, and there was nothing like it. Even more impactful was my new friend, who took over an hour after each rehearsal every week to help mentor me both in music and the faith. His example in the Lord shaped who I was as a child of God, and he helped lead me down the path I am on today.
It is wonderful to have those spiritual mentors to help guide us in the faith, isn’t it? A lot of us have stories of the friends, pastors, or others that God put in our path to help set us on our spiritual journey. My friend Sam was that person for me, and I was honored to have him as a groomsman in my wedding. In Romans 4, Paul writes about Abraham, the father of the Hebrew people, and his great faith. Paul explains how even though Abraham wasn’t perfect, just like all of us, that God took Abraham’s strong faith and counted it towards righteousness.
Abraham is a great example to us in our faith, like how my friend Sam was to me. Just as God counted Abraham's faith as righteousness, so too does He count our belief in Jesus as righteousness. Just as we are not perfect, like Abraham wasn’t perfect, our faith in Christ brings us salvation. In Ephesians 2:8-9, Paul reiterates this point: “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.”
It’s not what we do that makes us righteous in God’s eyes, but rather our faith in what Jesus did! Abraham was our example on how faith can justify us in God’s eyes, and Jesus is who we must believe in. Let us follow Abraham’s example of faith and find salvation in the sacrifice that Jesus made for us on the cross.
Spiritual Mentors
Romans 4:3
“What does Scripture say? ‘Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness.’”
I remember one of my very first ministry experiences was playing the guitar and singing on the worship team at my church. I loved music but I was new to the faith and very shy about being up in front of people. I was too timid at the time to ask, but a new friend I had met who was already on the team knew this and motivated me to at least come to worship rehearsal to check it out. That first night at practice changed my life. I was expressing my faith and love for music for the first time with a group of other believers, and there was nothing like it. Even more impactful was my new friend, who took over an hour after each rehearsal every week to help mentor me both in music and the faith. His example in the Lord shaped who I was as a child of God, and he helped lead me down the path I am on today.
It is wonderful to have those spiritual mentors to help guide us in the faith, isn’t it? A lot of us have stories of the friends, pastors, or others that God put in our path to help set us on our spiritual journey. My friend Sam was that person for me, and I was honored to have him as a groomsman in my wedding. In Romans 4, Paul writes about Abraham, the father of the Hebrew people, and his great faith. Paul explains how even though Abraham wasn’t perfect, just like all of us, that God took Abraham’s strong faith and counted it towards righteousness.
Abraham is a great example to us in our faith, like how my friend Sam was to me. Just as God counted Abraham's faith as righteousness, so too does He count our belief in Jesus as righteousness. Just as we are not perfect, like Abraham wasn’t perfect, our faith in Christ brings us salvation. In Ephesians 2:8-9, Paul reiterates this point: “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God—not by works, so that no one can boast.”
It’s not what we do that makes us righteous in God’s eyes, but rather our faith in what Jesus did! Abraham was our example on how faith can justify us in God’s eyes, and Jesus is who we must believe in. Let us follow Abraham’s example of faith and find salvation in the sacrifice that Jesus made for us on the cross.
By: Zachary Wessell of https://jacobsladderccw.com/