He took him outside and said, "Look up at the sky and count the stars - if indeed you can count them." Then he said to him, "So shall your offspring be." Abram believed the LORD, and he credited it to him as righteousness. (Genesis 15:6 NIV)
What then shall we say that Abraham, our forefather according to the flesh, discovered in this matter? If, in fact, Abraham was justified by works, he had something to boast about - but not before God. What does Scripture say? "Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness." Now to the one who works, wages are not credited as a gift but as an obligation. However, to the one who does not work but trusts God who justifies the ungodly, their faith is credited as righteousness. (Romans 4:1-5 NIV)
Was not our father Abraham considered righteous for what he did when he offered his son Isaac on the altar? You see that his faith and his actions were working together, and his faith was made complete by what he did. And the scripture was fulfilled that says, "Abraham believed God, and it was credited to him as righteousness," and he was called God’s friend. You see that a person is considered righteous by what they do and not by faith alone. (James 2:21-24 NIV)
Abraham believed the LORD, and that faith alone was credited to Abraham as righteousness by God. But that faith was demonstrated by Abraham's belief that his estate will not be inherited by Eliezer of Damascus, but by his own offspring, who will be like the stars in the sky. Till today, Abraham's offspring is still not like the stars in the sky. In fact, there are more Chinese and Indians than Abraham's descendants.
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