"That is why it depends on faith, in order that the promise may rest on grace and be guaranteed to all his offspring — not only to the adherent of the law but also to the one who shares the faith of Abraham, who is the father of us all[.]" -Romans 4:16

Abraham was granted righteousness by faith. Before any action or obedience, he had faith. It is faith like his where we find righteousness ourselves. By believing in Jesus, having faith, we are saved.

Paul makes it clear here that first, you are incapable of fulfilling the law; second, if adherents to the law are heirs, then faith is empty and the promise is void.

We know that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). But somehow we come to a place in life where we think we might just have it together enough to earn something. This text is meant to shake us out of our delusions of grandeur and bring us back to our need for a savior.

From this place of humility, we realize that we can't achieve the perfection required; if we could, faith would be pointless and the promise of a Savior in Scripture—the promise to Abraham to bless the world through his offspring—would be bankrupt.

But the promises of God are not void. No, they are all fulfilled and answered with a resounding yes in Christ.

You are saved by grace through faith. Nothing else will do. That is a gift and should free you to set aside your burdens today and rest in the finished work of Jesus.