Made Righteous by Faith | Morning Routine Daily Devotional for March 12

After these things the word of the Lord came to Abram in a vision: “Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great.” But Abram said, “O Lord God, what will you give me, for I continue childless, and the heir of my house is Eliezer of Damascus?” And Abram said, “Behold, you have given me no offspring, and a member of my household will be my heir.” And behold, the word of the Lord came to him: “This man shall not be your heir; your very own son shall be your heir.” And he brought him outside and said, “Look toward heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.” And Abram believed the Lord, and God counted it to him as righteousness. — Genesis 15:1-6 ESV

Genesis is the book of beginnings. It details the beginning of the world and the lives of the patriarchs of our faith. Today’s passage details the promise made to Abram, which sets the trajectory for the rest of the scriptures. 

In Genesis 15, the Lord provides a vision to His servant, Abram. God tells Abram that He will give him a great reward. But, since Abram had no son to inherit a reward, this didn’t bring him joy. He was old, about 75 years of age, and there didn’t seem to be hope for him and his wife to bear any children. The Lord, however, had different plans. The reward that the Lord gave to Abram was a great line of descendants, as many as the stars of heaven. Abram’s descendants became the nation of Israel. 

Nothing was especially appealing about Abram, but the Lord chose him. And Abram’s belief is what honored God. The text says, “Abram believed the Lord, and God counted it to him as righteousness.” Our works and virtue don’t grant us righteousness in God’s sight. Isn’t that interesting? It was Abram’s belief that made him righteous. When we trust and believe in Christ, we are made righteous before God. Before that, we are just as Abram was—unrighteous without hope of eternal life. Today, remember it’s not what you do for God that makes you righteous; it’s in believing God that we honor Him.  May you and I bring honor to the Lord as we honor Him with our trust!