John wrote:
>The fact is, Abraham could do nothing about the
>promise apart from God's intervention. All that
>was left for him was simply to believe. THAT
>is the bibilical context for the statement.
Good point. Nevertheless, if Abraham did not cooperate and continue to have
sexual relations with his wife, he likely would not have inherited the
promise. Furthermore, his faith was made perfect by works when he offered
Isaac upon the altar, right? In other words, this is not a simple story.
There is much more to the story than just, "Abraham believed God."
I don't see that the above has anything to do with the point Paul is making - although all of what you say may be true. Paul illustrates his point in a very specific way -- presenting a moment in the life of Abraham to make the point that we are saved apart from obedience to law.
John
