The Nature of Faith
A Sermon on Romans 4:18
Originally preached Oct. 4, 1957
Scripture
18Who against hope believed in hope, that he might become the father of many nations; according to that which was spoken, So shall thy seed be.
Sermon Description
How does faith impact one’s entire life? In the sermon “The Nature of Faith” on Romans 4:18, Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones outlines five ways that Abraham’s faith affected his whole world, not just his justification. It is important to note that faith is much different from merely belief. Faith is an unwavering, concrete certainty. Faith is the substance of things hoped for and the evidence of things not yet seen. Because of Abraham’s strong faith, it allowed him to truly believe God’s promises for him and his life. It enabled him to rest on God’s word alone without any other evidence. His faith also helped him believe the promises of God even though they seemed completely impossible. Lastly, his faith enabled him to act upon the promises that the Lord set before him. Dr. Lloyd-Jones also outlines how Abraham’s faith enabled him in these five ways. When one examines their own life, it can be easy to trade faith for merely belief. True faith faces the facts and makes a person strong, never staggering at the Lord’s promises. May the listener hear this sermon and be encouraged to have faith like Abraham.
Sermon Breakdown
- Abraham became the father of many nations through faith alone.
- Abraham believed God’s word of promise that his seed would be innumerable.
- Abraham believed this promise on the bare word of God alone, with no evidence.
- Abraham believed this promise despite all appearances to the contrary. Everything was against the promise being fulfilled naturally.
- Abraham had an assurance and was fully persuaded that God would fulfill His promise. Faith provides assurance and certainty.
- Abraham acted upon his faith. He lived his life based on the promise and looked forward to its fulfillment.
- Faith enabled Abraham to do all these things by making him strong. Faith prevented him from being weak in faith and staggering in unbelief at the promise.
- Abraham considered the facts, including his old age and Sarah’s barrenness, but was not weakened in faith. Faith faces difficulties but overcomes them.
- Abraham did not stagger at the greatness of the promise through unbelief. Unbelief causes us to waver and be at variance with ourselves, staggering between belief and unbelief.
- Faith provides stability, preventing us from staggering like waves. We can stand firm through faith.
Sermon Q&A
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones on Justification by Faith and Abraham's Example
What is the main theme Paul develops in Romans chapter 4?
According to Dr. Lloyd-Jones, Paul's main theme in Romans 4 is justification by faith alone. The apostle uses Abraham as the perfect case study to illustrate this doctrine. Paul demonstrates that Abraham was justified by faith before he was circumcised and before the law was given. As Lloyd-Jones states: "It is of faith that it might be by grace... to the end, that the promise might be sure to all the seed." Paul addresses various Jewish objections concerning Abraham and shows that Abraham's example actually confirms rather than contradicts justification by faith.
How does Romans 4:18-25 serve as a definition of faith?
Dr. Lloyd-Jones suggests this passage provides perhaps "the greatest definition of faith which you'll find anywhere in the whole of the scripture." He mentions it contains all the essential elements of faith in a short compass, even comparing it favorably to Hebrews 11. The passage demonstrates faith through Abraham's example - showing how he believed God's seemingly impossible promise, was fully persuaded despite natural impossibilities, and acted upon that faith. Lloyd-Jones states it reveals "the great elements in faith" in "a particularly clear manner."
What were the five things that Abraham's faith enabled him to do?
According to Dr. Lloyd-Jones, Abraham's faith enabled him to: 1. Believe God's staggering word of promise ("so shall thy seed be") 2. Believe on the bare word of God with nothing else to go on 3. Believe despite all appearances to the contrary ("against hope believed in hope") 4. Have complete assurance about God's promise ("being fully persuaded") 5. Act upon what he believed (changing his name to Abraham and living as a pilgrim)
How does faith differ from mere intellectual belief according to Lloyd-Jones?
Lloyd-Jones distinguishes true faith from mere intellectual assent or what he calls "believism." He explains that faith includes an element of certainty, assurance, and confidence that goes beyond simply saying you believe. As he states: "Faith knows there is this element of knowledge in faith, and we must never take it out of faith. Being fully persuaded." He warns against the heresy of "sandimanism" which teaches that "as long as you say that Jesus is Lord, that as long as you say you believe, you're saved." True faith involves the whole person - intellect, emotions, and will - not just verbal agreement.
What does Lloyd-Jones say about faith and doubt?
Lloyd-Jones teaches that faith doesn't mean the absence of doubt, but rather the ability to overcome doubt. He states: "There are some people who think that because they're assailed by doubts, that they haven't got any faith. That's a complete fallacy." He notes that many great saints have been "attacked and assailed by doubts to the end of their lives" but their faith enabled them to master and conquer these doubts. He quotes Browning's phrase that "faith means unbelief kept quiet, like the snake needs Michael's foot." Faith acknowledges difficulties but isn't weakened by them.
The Book of Romans
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones (1899-1981) was a Welsh evangelical minister who preached and taught in the Reformed tradition. His principal ministry was at Westminster Chapel, in central London, from 1939-1968, where he delivered multi-year expositions on books of the bible such as Romans, Ephesians and the Gospel of John. In addition to the MLJ Trust’s collection of 1,600 of these sermons in audio format, most of these great sermon series are available in book form (including a 14 volume collection of the Romans sermons), as are other series such as "Spiritual Depression", "Studies in the Sermon on the Mount" and "Great Biblical Doctrines". He is considered by many evangelical leaders today to be an authority on biblical truth and the sufficiency of Scripture.