Real trust or just talk?

Scripture Read: Romans 4:18 In hope against hope he believed, so that he might become a father of many nations according to that which had been spoken, “So shall your descendants be.”19 Without becoming weak in faith he contemplated his own body, now as good as dead since he was about a hundred years old, and the deadness of Sarah’s womb; 20 yet, with respect to the promise of God, he did not waver in unbelief but grew strong in faith, giving glory to God, 21 and being fully assured that what God had promised, He was able also to perform. 22 Therefore it was also credited to him as righteousness. 23 Now not for his sake only was it written that it was credited to him, 24 but for our sake also, to whom it will be credited, as those who believe in Him who raised Jesus our Lord from the dead, 25 He who was delivered over because of our transgressions, and was raised because of our justification.

Application: Waver - διακρίνω diakrino In R. 4:20 Abraham has a divine promise which far exceeds the possibilities of natural fulfillment. He is full of the fact that God will make a reality of this promise. Here the emphasis obviously falls on the unreserved nature of his confidence. He trusts with his whole heart, and overcomes everything that might impede this trust. One might almost translate: “He was not inwardly divided

Unbelief - Lack of belief or trust

Grew Strong - ἐνδυναμόω endunamoo – rooted in dynamo – “boom!”

Assured - πληροφορέω plerophoreo The meaning “to achieve complete certainty” is undoubtedly attested in Romans, 4:21: Abraham’s faith is completely certain of the full agreement between God’s promise and His power, which can call into being things which are not, awaken what is dead to life, and give Abraham a posterity. Because the faith of Abraham in R. 4 is a model for the faith of Christians, justifying faith, based on confidence in God’s promise and creative power, is a faith which is “fully certain” of God’s act, a faith in the new life which is given to the Christian in justification

As we ponder the faith of Abraham – We must learn to separate our trust from our lack there of. We must be willing to ask ourselves the hard questions. Do we believe God can and will do what He has promised to do? – Many times the answer is “yes” in our thoughts – but how true are those thoughts? Do our actions betray our true thoughts? We should not want to be inwardly divided. We should want the power that God is willing to supply us that will enable us to trust Him. The first place to look is our actions. Talking trust is easy, but living trust is proof! Are we living in such a way that our actions show that we are trusting the Lord? We need to look at our actions and question if they reveal a real trust or just an attempt!