Did Abraham have to repent or be baptized to be justified?
No. Scripture says Abraham simply believed God, and his believing was accounted unto him as righteousness. He did not repent, get baptized, join something, or grovel in the dirt. Justification came by faith, not by works, so he had nothing to glory in before God.
Les teaches that Abraham is the great man of faith, and the passage asks what he found pertaining to the flesh. If Abraham had been justified by works, he could have gloried and become proud, telling others what he had done to inherit eternal life. But he could not, because he did not work; he did nothing but believe. Les emphasizes that Abraham believed God, and that was all he did. He did not repent, did not get baptized, did not join something, and did not grovel in the dirt; he simply believed God. His believing was accounted unto him as righteousness. Abraham was not morally better than anyone else, but was very ordinary and later had failures like anyone else. Yet by faith he pleased God, and God called him a righteous man.
For what saith the scripture? Abraham believed God, and it was counted unto him for righteousness.
More Questions
What is the source of the teaching that Abraham's faith was counted as righteousness?
The teaching that Abraham believed God and it was counted to him as righteousness is what the Bible says, not what Les or a denomination or a seminary president says.