The Turning Point

“Abraham entered into what God was doing for him, and that was the turning point. He trusted God to set him right instead of trying to be right on his own.” — Romans 4:3 (MSG)

I wrote this scripture down a few weeks ago when I was reading Romans from the Message Bible. Abraham’s turning point came when he finally realized what God was doing for him (Abraham). How many times do we work really hard without realizing that God is already doing all the hard work on our behalf. Perhaps we would be much better off if we stopped trying to work for God and instead began to realize that God is already working for us. As that passage continues, it says that, “He trusted God to set him right instead of trying to be right on his own.” How profound! We all know it. We can’t be made right on our own. We can’t even do right on our own let alone “be made right” on our own. We all know that. However, how we live our lives proves that we don’t believe it. We may know it; yet we don’t actually believe it.

But here’s where it got really good for Abraham. At some point — this turning point — Abraham began to believe what he already knew. He began to believe not only that God was working on his behalf, but also that God, in this working, made him righteous. No longer did Abraham have to strive to make himself right. Instead, he began to rest in the truth that he couldn’t make himself right and this had to be left completely to God. What peace this brings. In some ways, we can’t understand. How can we be made right without doing a thing? This is the essence of faith — not really understanding but choosing to believe and receive anyway.