Faith That Justifies

In chapters 1-3 of Romans, Paul outlines the lost state of all human kind, both Jew and Gentile, because of their failure to obey the Law of God. All would be lost, save for God's intervention through the redemption provided in Christ Jesus in which God saves sinners by crediting to them the righteousness of his Son. In chapter 4 we see the great example of how faith results in the application of righteousness to a sinner in the life of Abraham who "believed God and it was counted to him as righteousness." He is the father of all who have faith in God, in particular those who believe the Gospel in which God raised Jesus from the dead. Even the faith we have to believe is a gift of God - so salvation is of the Lord, not of any human works, merit, or righteousness.