The Road to Salvation – We study Paul's letter to the Romans
Review of Romans 10
Paul concludes the chapter by quoting Isaiah and he contrasts the Gentiles with the Jews. The former did not seek God, and yet He appeared to them. It is just grace. He reaches out to his own people daily, but they do not want to be in his presence.
What will become of Israel?
Paul knows that God has not rejected his people because he himself is part of the people and knows the Old Testament scriptures and can quote them. Before his own conversion, the Old Testament was his hope for salvation for his people. It still is. In verses 3-4 he quotes from Kings. See 1 Kings 19:10-18. There would always be individuals from Israel who remained faithful, and it is for those who God remains faithful.
As a nation, however, Israel did not get what was its share. See Deuteronomy 29:4; Psalm 69:22-23 and Isaiah 29:10. They neither see nor hear the message. See verses 7-10. The result is that the void they left has been filled by others. The state of unbelief that Israel is currently in has left the gap for the Gentiles to repent (Acts 13:46-51). What they lost was for the benefit of others. This is the focus of dispensational theology, the correct way to show God's plan.
Paul outlines how the Gentiles took advantage of Israel's condition, but he is quick to teach the Gentiles the lesson that they should not be proud. Israel is still God's chosen people and Paul is still an Israelite (verse 1) with a line of important ancestors.
Verse 17 onwards outlines the difference between Israel and the Gentiles very nicely. We as Gentiles are the wild olive tree, but we get our nourishment from the roots of the true olive tree. Our salvation is grace; Israel's salvation is promise. If we as a Church really move in God's will today, we will ensure that we always keep the Jews in mind, regardless of how they feel about us. We are nothing special, and we must never forget that. Even those from Israel who currently live far outside God's will, He can also inoculate again (verse 23) in their original state as a nation. He will do it too. See verse 26.
Now follows an interesting piece of theology, the "fullness of the Gentiles" that Paul writes about in verse 25. This expression refers to the grace dispensation of the Church (2000+ years), during which any person gets the opportunity for salvation. Once this dispensation is over, Israel is saved. Verse 26 mentions that all Israel will be saved. We must understand the word "whole" in context.
- First read Isaiah 59:20, which Paul quotes here. Zion represents Jerusalem, and Jacob represents Israel.
- I think you may have to read the whole book of Zechariah first. A little background on the book is that we must remember that the books of the Old Testament do not appear in chronological order, nor in order of importance. Zechariah describes a people who drifted away from God (Zechariah 1: 3ev); and eight different faces (visions). Following are promises of great blessing (Zechariah 8); Judgment on other peoples and the promise of the Messiah (Zechariah 9); and a prophecy that only has meaning in the gospels much later (Zechariah 11: 12-13). Following is the frightening image of the tribulation and Israel's purification (Zechariah 12-14). See how the Battle of Armageddon described in Revelation 19 is actually no blow, and no shot is fired (Zechariah 14: 12-13). Finally, a quick picture of circumstances in the world is given after Jesus Christ begins to reign as Messiah (Zechariah 14: 14-21).
- Now read Zechariah 13: 8-9. We must be able to see in this that during the tribulation, even with God's protection of the people, two-thirds of Israel will die. The one-third who remains are those who are protected and saved. It is they who will be tested, and who see the Lord coming from heaven and recognize as the Messiah. See Matthew 23:39.
- Finally, read Matthew 23:39. Only when Jesus Christ returns visibly as the Messiah of the people of Israel (Psalm 118: 26; Zechariah 12:10; and Zech 14: 3-4) will they accept Him.
The purpose of the tribulation is twofold:
- It is to purify and prepare Israel for the coming of their Messiah; and
- To show the unbelieving humanity who did not want to accept the message of salvation during any period until the rapture, how God's judgment will be for them.
The church period preceding the tribulation is the indefinite period, already over 2000 years, between Daniel's 69th and 70s week, of which we will learn in a few weeks from now.
For those of us who live by the gospel, Israel is our enemies (verse 28 - and we must understand it in the right context - they are enemies of the gospel because it makes them feel guilty. See Isaiah 53.). Yet they are God's loved ones. They may now be in disgrace, but we as Gentiles were also in disadvantage with God. However, His grace was big enough to save you and me. So He saves them.
Paul ends with a hymn in which he sings the omniscience of God. No one can fully understand His love. He quotes Isaiah 40:13, then Job 41:11, and lastly Jeremiah 23:18.
A watershed
Romans 9 to 11, and specifically chapter 11, is a watershed for both the church and Israel as a nation. The Reformed theological view, who sees the church as the replacement of Israel, now has a problem, because Israel has been described as a nation for a few chapters. Paul is clear that the salvation of Israel as a nation can only occur after the church dispensation is completed (verses 25-26). The church and Israel are clearly two different identities with whom God walks two different paths to salvation. However, Israel's hardening paved the way for the Gentiles to be saved. We must thank Israel for this.
Summary
On one occasion, I attended a presentation of someone who apparently knows the book Romans very well. The focus was to introduce interested parties to the book as part of a one-year course in general spiritual growth and how we personally need to impact our environment. I wanted to hear what the person would say about Romans 9-11. However, it was clear that the presenter followed a Reformed theology, and simply ignored these three chapters. The presenter quoted Romans 8:39 and immediately afterwards Romans 12:1 as if the three chapters in between do not exist. This certainly created a distorted image and left many of the audience's questions unanswered. You cannot omit parts of the Bible because they do not fit into your wrong theology.
We will look at chapter 12 next week, the life of dedication of the believer. Go read it as long as preparation.
Chapters
- Romans Chapter 1
- Romans Chapter 2
- Romans Chapter 3
- Romans Chapter 4
- Romans Chapter 5
- Romans Chapter 6
- Romans Chapter 7
- Romans Chapter 8
- Romans Chapter 9
- Romans Chapter 10
- Romans Chapter 11
- Romans Chapter 12
- Romans Chapter 13
- Romans Chapter 14
- Romans Chapter 15
- Romans Chapter 16