Gospel Guidebook: Getting and Keeping It Right 
한국어 日本語
Even More Objections Answered regarding Romans 4
by Robert P. TerryUpdated January 1, 2025
This article supplements and partly overlaps three other articles that deal with Romans 4.
Hebrews 11:8-9 and Imputed Righteousness
Romans 4:17-22 and the Demonstration of Abraham's Faith
More Objections Answered regarding Romans 4
Objection 1: The Apostle Paul says that he is referring to Abraham according to flesh in Romans 4:1. Therefore, Abraham's works according to the spirit are different from his works according to the flesh.
Answer 1: In Romans 4:1, the Apostle Paul does not use the word "flesh" to contrast it with the "spirit." He is using the word "flesh" simply to refer to Abraham's experience in the body. Works of the flesh refer to sinful works (Galatians 5:19-21), but the Apostle Paul is talking about Abraham's good works in Romans 4:2. From the perspective of men, Abraham had reason to boast, but those good works gave him no standing with God. That is Paul's point. He is not contrasting fleshly works with spiritual works.
Objection 2: The Apostle Paul is referring to ceremonial works in Romans 4. That is why he refers to Abraham in the flesh in Romans 4:1 and then later goes on to speak about circumcision. Therefore, Paul is making the point to say that ceremonial works cannot contribute to a person's justification.
Answer 2: The Apostle Paul is referring to all works in Romans 4, both ceremonial works and moral works. In particular, the context of Romans 1:18 to Romans 3:31 shows that he is mainly concerned with moral works. For example, immediately after condemning the immorality of both Jews and Gentiles in Romans 3:9-19, he says, "because by the works of the Law no flesh will be justified in His sight" (Romans 3:20). This is the context that immediately precedes Romans 4:1. Paul uses the Greek conjunction oun (meaning, "so," "then," "therefore") at the beginning of Romans 4:1 to connect Abraham's experience to his foregoing discussion on justification in Romans 3. Furthermore, in Romans 4, Paul continues to emphasize the moral condition of man by referring to the "ungodly man" who needs his lawless deeds forgiven and his sins covered (4:5-8). The boasting of Abraham in 4:2 certainly could have included his circumcision, but it would be a mistake to limit it to his circumcision. Jesus spoke of the "works of Abraham" in John 8:39 and from the context, it is clear that Jesus was not referring to Abraham's circumcision. In Romans 4:2, Abraham's works included both his moral and ceremonial works. The flesh can refer to the "circumcision in the flesh" (Ephesians 2:11), but Paul's discussion of Abraham and circumcision in Romans 4:9-16 is not mainly about the act of justification. Rather, it deals with the scope of justification, and his main intention is to show that justification is available to all people, not just Jews.
Objection 3: In Romans 4:12, the Apostle Paul refers to following in the steps of the faith of Abraham. This obviously implies that faith is a process and that justification is therefore a process.
Answer 3: The Apostle Paul mentions "following in the steps of the faith of Abraham" in the context of circumcised Jews who still needed to believe. He is simply encouraging them to do what Abraham did, namely, believe in God for justification. The phrase "follow in the steps" should not be interpreted as a process. Paul is merely telling circumcised Jews that they should "follow the pattern" of Abraham. It is important to remember that Paul is talking about justification in the context of the "ungodly man." A life of faithful living is in stark contrast to the life of the "ungodly." When Abraham was living faithfully, he was referred as God's friend (James 2:21-23, cf. Genesis 22). In contrast, Paul is referring to "ungodly Abraham" (Romans 4:5, cf. Joshua 24:2-3). The justification Paul is referring to is something that "ungodly" people experience.
Objection 4: James also quotes Genesis 15:6, and he is referring to Abraham's life of faithful living. Therefore, we must interpret Romans 4 against this backdrop.
Answer 4: I answer this objection in my articles Romans 4:17-22 and the Demonstration of Abraham's Faith and New Perspective on James.
Objection 5: Romans 4:17-22 shows that Abraham was justified by an ongoing faith that spanned from Genesis 15 to Genesis 17. It is lifelong faith that justifies.
Answer 5: I answer this objection in my article Romans 4:17-22 and the Demonstration of Abraham's Faith
Objection 6: Romans 4:24 teaches that a believers justification is still future. This implies that justification is process that must be attained.
Answer 6: Romans 4:24 does not refer to a future justification of currently believing people. Paul is simply referring to the fulfillment of the scripture quoted in Romans 4:23 as if contemporary with Abraham. He does the exact same thing in Romans 5:14 when he speaks of Adam as "the figure of the one who is to come." Christ already came, but Paul refers to a future coming of Christ as if he were contemporary with Adam's transgression. Romans 3 and 4 teach that believers are justified when they believe. Romans 5:1 uses the aorist past-tense participle, "therefore, being justified by faith."
Objection 7: Romans 4:25 tells us that our justification has its basis in the resurrection of Christ. Therefore, it is by living in the resurrection life of Christ that people are justified.
Answer 7: I answer this objection in my article Justification Precedes Regeneration.