Reckoning Faith

I’m sure we’ve all used the phrase ‘I reckon I can do it!’ Or we might say of something, ‘I reckon it will happen!’ The phrase ‘I reckon’, is common in our modern Australian vernacular. However, it is also a meaningful phrase in the Scriptures. ‘Abraham believed God and it was reckoned to him as righteousness.’ Gal 3:6, Rom 4:3, Gen 15:6. This passage is quoted a number of times by the apostle Paul. It is evident that God Himself reckons toward us. And because God reckons toward us, we are able to reckon with Him. Hence, Paul wrote to the Romans ‘Reckon yourselves dead indeed to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus’. Rom 6:11. We’ll call this ‘reckoning faith’.

When we consider the nature of faith, we often think of simply believing in God. However, faith must be much more than that. James wrote ‘the demons also believe and shudder’. Jam 2:19. As we seek to understand faith, we begin with the truth that God has faith. Paul spoke of living by ‘the faith of the Son of God’. Gal 2:20.

The Father, Son and Holy Spirit have faith. And this faith is expressed in their plan and purpose for us. This is the origin of faith. According to this faith, then Jesus speaks to us. We could say that Jesus Christ proclaims the faith of God to us. When we receive His word, faith becomes active in our lives. Faith is not something we conjure up. It is received by a word. ‘Faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the word of Christ’. Rom 10:17. By this means, we begin to participate in God’s faith. We believe with God, not simply believing in God. This was the faith demonstrated by Abraham, as he believed the word of the Lord.

As Abraham began to participate in God’s faith, God began to reckon to him. ‘It was reckoned to him as righteousness’. Gal 3:6. God considered Abraham to be a believer – a man of faith. He viewed him in this way. This doesn’t mean that God no longer saw his difficulties, anxieties and personal struggles. However, God looked beyond these things and began to relate to him as His friend. God had told Abraham that he would have a son and that Jesus would be born in his lineage.

When Abraham believed this word, God began to reckon the substance of His promise to him. Further to this, Abraham was able to reckon in his own life according to God’s promise. He grew strong in faith, ‘being fully assured that what God had promised, He was able to perform’. Rom 4:21. This was not blind faith, hoping for the best. This was reckoning faith according to the word of God. To finish a little colloquially, Abraham would have sat down and thought ‘God said it, and if I believe with Him, I reckon He’ll do it!’

David Baker

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Feature Articles
March 2008

Reckoning Faith

The Sound of Home

The Duties of Wealth

The Mystery of Lack

A Good Shepherd

The Overstated Metaphor