Children of the Promise

Romans 9 now introduces us to what is surely one of the most substantial doctrines of the Bible – the compassionate sovereignty of God, notably a doctrine that can also stir up much controversy.  Just to review, in Romans so far we have studied these three significant areas of Christian truth:

1. The catastrophic sin of all humanity, Romans 1-3
2. The act of God to provide Redemption based on Justification by Faith, Romans 4-5
3. The provisions and enablements provided by God for the Christian Life, Romans 6 -8.

Now, the Compassionate Sovereignty of God, Romans 9-11:

So, we might ask, “How did Paul come to needing to develop this challenging subject?”  And, “How did he come to see needing to include an in-depth look at Israel’s place in Christ’s Redemption?”  Note how Rom. 8:29 closes the chapter:  No one “will be able to separate us from the love of God.”  Perhaps you have heard the phrase “Once saved, always saved.”  That is true – if you have believed in Jesus as your Savior and committed to obey Him as the Lord of your life, you are redeemed, you are “once and for all” a child or God, never to be snatched out of His hand (Jn. 10:29).   God has chosen you to be His child (Eph. 1:4-5),  by His sovereign foreknowledge, He knew that you would be drawn to Christ and you would choose to accept His gift of salvation.  When you did that, He baptized you into Christ (Rom. 6:3) and you became a child of God.

However, Paul has also discerned that this calling by God has implications to his Jewish listeners who say “what about us – we have been faithful to our father Abraham and the Laws of Moses and have been anticipating the Messiah – are we included in God’s calling?”  God told Abraham to look to the heavens and his progeny would be as vast as the stars in the heavens – is that still true?  Paul takes a break from the main theme of his letter in order to clarify the biblical truths surrounding the sovereignty of God as a part of His great plan for Man’s Redemption.  In Paul’s letters, he frequently “broke stride” from the line of thinking he was on in order to elaborate some relevant point or side issue.  These parenthetical passages (sometimes a couple of verses, others take one or more chapters) are always interesting and insightful, but they do require the careful Bible student to understand how the parenthetical material fits into the larger document.  Romans 9-11 are such a parenthesis, albeit a large one.  Having laid the foundational truths of salvation, and while intending to go into a development of how the Christian is to live these truths (which he does starting in Rom. 12) Pau. is first led by God to open up from his mind and heart regarding burning questions the Jews have been throwing at him for the last two decades.

As Paul has traveled and preached in many churches and public arenas, he almost always stood before a mixed audience of Jew and Gentiles.  While he was called by God to carry the Gospel to the Gentiles (Rom. 11:13; 15:16), but he also had a passionate desire to see his fellow Jews believing in Christ (Rom. 9:3).   He “preached Christ and Him crucified” (1 Cor. 2:2), using the Greek “christos” in parallel to the Hebrew “mashiach”, both meaning “anointed one”.  He declared Jesus Christ as the promised Messiah Whom the Jews had been looking for over the last 2000 years.  The Jews considered Jesus to be a false Messiah and they hated Him, and ended up crucifying Him about 20 years or so before Paul wrote Romans.  It is truly remarkable to see the grace of God at work as the first church took form after Pentecost in Jerusalem, consisting entirely of Jews at the beginning.   During the next decades as God raised up Paul to travel throughout the Roman empire preaching Christ, he encountered many groups of people that were both Jew and Gentile, saved and unsaved.  Paul knew the “issues”, as the harassing Jewish leaders kept attacking him in attempts to distract his ministry, but there were still Jews coming to Christ as Savior.  Paul understood that every letter he wrote, including this one to the church in Rome, would be read and heard by a mixed group that included Jews.  He knew he needed to set down the facts of how the  Jews’ “issues” were answered by the Gospel of Christ, so God inspired him to write Romans 9-11.

>>  Through Romans 9-11, Paul shows that Israel does have a place in God’s plan of Redemption.  Israel and Jews in general were in a state of unbelief, but there were individual Jews who coming to Christ to be a redeemed remnant of Israel.  Praise the Lord, this is still happening today.  God’s sovereignty takes center stage in this discussion as Paul deals with such questions as whether the covenant promises failed, and how does “righteousness without the Law” work for the Jew?

Romans 9-11 can be studied along the lines of the chapter divisions:

• Chapter 9 — In the past, God’s gracious sovereignty in His dealings with Israel
• Chapter 10 — In the present, God’s provision of salvation for the Jew and Israel’s rejection
• Chapter 11 — In the future, the plans God has for Israel and the Church

Romans 9 — God’s Gracious Sovereignty

God led Paul to turn his attention to the concerns in many listener’s minds around the question of “How does the grace of God in providing our salvation through Jesus’ death on the Cross fit into what the Jews believe about their Messiah and their relationship to God?”  In order to answer the question, Paul chose to emphasize the overarching work of God’s sovereignty which reaches across Jew and Gentile alike.

God’s sovereignty can be an emotional and polarizing subject, especially if viewed apart from having redeeming faith in a loving God.  This subject has such high impact on many aspects of biblical doctrine, as well as the practical impact that it has on every Christian’s life, so it is an important study.  In reality, we could ask how we could even know we have saving faith if it weren’t for God’s sovereignty.  How do we believe that our salvation isn’t contrived by us, the created ones?  If salvation originates in God, I am secure forever – I may change or fail, but God is immutable, all powerful, sovereign.

In Romans 9, we discover that God has brought salvation to the Gentiles through the unbelief of the Jews.  The Jews had the hope of the Messiah but they ended up suffering in unbelief, turning away from Him.  Even with all the blessings that God bestowed on Israel, they failed to place their faith in Jesus the Messiah.  The Gentiles saw the reality of Jesus, Who suffered on the Cross and then arose in Resurrection glory and they believed in faith.   It broke Paul’s heart, as he expresses it in Rom. 9:1-3, he would die in their place if he could.  They needed to hear the truth.  Israel had many precious privileges from God – they were eyewitnesses of God’s glory and power, they had the covenants, the Law, and the promises!  And the hope of the Messiah was fulfilled!  The reality is that God allowed for Israel’s unbelief in order to deliver salvation to the Gentiles.

Rom. 9:1-5 — Paul’s Passion and the Jew’s Privilege

As Paul turns his attention directly to the Jews, he begins with a passionate expression of concern for them to be saved.  The Jew’s blessings are spelled out clearly, which culminated in the true Messiah coming as promised.  Privileges bring responsibility, and the Jews failed to follow that principle – they abused their privileges from God.

It is sad to think about all the ways God worked on Israel’s behalf and yet at every turn, they turned away from Him.   Israel constantly defaulted to idolatry, they ignored God’s laws, and they didn’t recognize their Messiah when He stood right in front of them.

Bible Study Journal

• • • • What do we learn about Paul in Rom. 9:1-3?
      • Why is Paul so concerned for his Jewish brethren?
      • According to Rom. 9:4-6, what are the eight privileged blessings God gave to Israel?

Rom. 9:6-13 — God is Still on the Throne

The Bible makes it clear that God is still on the throne, and He is still working.  In light of that, it’s actually impossible to suggest that anything God has stated would fail.  As was the case in Rom. 2, Paul brings out a truth that Jews have glossed over: salvation wasn’t guaranteed to every descendant of Abraham, not all Jews were “true Jews” but only those who had true faith.  Israel wanted to assume “corporate” redemption – that the nation as a whole was assured of  being God’s elect.  But God still held each Israelite individually accountable, as elaborated in this passage.  Romans 9:8 says the key is having faith in God’s promises, not just His tangible blessings.

The sad truth is:  Israel failed, not God’s Word – the elective purposes of God will be satisfied by His calling some (Malachi 1:2-3, Jacob, not Esau) to true faith.  So, is God’s plan to provide a Redeemer still intact, or did it fail?  No, that plan doesn’t depend on man’s response, the Redemption is completed but it doesn’t depend on man’s physical acts or relationships.  In this passage, Paul refers to the “line of Redemption”, the line of descendants through which the Messiah, our Savior, would come.  He uses this to show that “the purpose of God according to election might stand, not of works by by God” (Rom. 9:11).   In fact, that line of “true children” has come through the ages to now include each of us, Jews and Gentiles, who have believed in Christ as our Savior.

Bible Study Journal

• • • God has chosen to allow that some of mankind will follow a course in life that will bring them to salvation.  God chooses some to be redeemed, but not everybody.  How does Eph. 1:4-6 help us to understand this important truth?
    • What do you learn from Acts 2:22-23 about God’s plan and choices?
    • What is important about the genealogies written in Matt. 1:1-17 and Lu. 3:23-38 regarding God’s plan of Redemption?
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Rom. 9:14-18 – It’s Not Fair

In Rom. 9:14-18, Paul once again declares “What is there to say?”, inferring we have no adequate response to the truth he is observing.  He then answers two objections people might try to put against election and injustice.  First, is it fair that some didn’t get a chance to believe?  You may hear some suggest that it isn’t fair that an unreached group of people in the middle of the a jungle would go out into eternity condemned by their sin with no chance to believe in Christ.  No, God does not arbitrarily choose some to be saved and others not to be.  Actually, what would be tragically “fair” is for the entire human race to be punished for its relentless rebellion and sin.  Yet instead, using Moses and Pharoah as examples,  Paul quotes Exo. 33:19 to emphasize that God will choose who receives His mercy, it’s not up to us – the Good News is that He does choose some.  Remember, the Gospel message is that while “all have sinned” (Rom. 3:23), Christ died for all mankind (Rom. 5:8).  The Gospel message is open to all to believe (Jn. 3:16), and many will believe and receive mercy, forgiveness and sonship (Rom. 10:9-13).

Bible Study Journal

• • • We learned from Rom. 8:28-29 that “all things” work together in God’s plan to have good results.  Even the bad things that people sometimes do to us can be weaved into the fabric of God’s plan.
    • Read the verses from Exodus that Paul quotes (Exo. 33:19; 9:16) and note the immediate context for each.  How does the OT context guide your understanding of Rom. 9:15-18?
    • So, God designs, controls and executes His plan or redemption.  He desires that “all” would come to Him (2 Pet. 3:9), but not all (Matt. 7:13-14) will come.  How does God make this plan “fair”?
    • Consider how Rom. 1:19-20 explains that God has revealed Himself in such a way that a person in a jungle village can observe His character and have faith in Him.

An important guideline for Bible Study is that it is not enough to casually read through a passage.  You must slow down and turn the words over in your mind, dig into a complete understanding of the words and truths, and allow the Holy Spirit to nurture the truths and deepen your roots in God’s Word (Psa. 1:2-3).

Rom. 9:19-24 — Who do you think you are?

In these verses, Paul draws the picture of an offended person complaining that God isn’t fair.  Paul asks once more, “Who are you to complain to God?  This can be compared to Job suffering his great afflictions and yet he came away from the experience still believing in God.  God chooses, just as the potter chooses to make some pots for menial tasks and others for more impressive use, but the pots can’t raise up and complain.  It is irrational, not to mention arrogant, for men to question God’s decision for certain sinful people to be saved.

Verses 22-23 are a beautiful passage as Paul turns the table to view how God really blesses mankind by preparing some Jews and Gentiles to be “vessels of mercy”, those who ultimately believe in God’s provision of redemption through Christ.   We can’t resist God, or tell Him how to do things – God on His own chooses some sinful men & women to bless with “the riches of His mercy”.  “Prepared for destruction” refers to man’s sinful condition, his continued rejection of God.  God doesn’t make them sinful, but He also allows them to continue in their sinful behavior.  The basis of judgment is God’s will, not man’s actions.  In truth, man sets himself up for hell – but it is God Who prepares him for heaven.

Bible Study Journal

• • • Considering that God is sovereign over all the affairs of man, how should this affect your view of your circumstances in life and how you have responded to them?
    • How does Rom. 6:23 address the distinction of humanity into believers and non-believers?
    • From Rom. 9:22-23, how would you describe the difference between “vessels of wrath” and “vessels of mercy”?
    • Do you live according to God’s sovereignty?  How can you improve?

Rom. 9:25-33 — A Rock of Offense

Paul confirms that God isn’t frustrated, His plan is being fulfilled without interruption.  Three dramatic OT quotes express how Israel hardened its rejection of God’s blessings.  From Hosea 9:25-26; 1:10; 2:23, we are reminded of how Israel continued through its history to fulfill the prophets warnings of apostasy.  Rejection & restoration of Israel is the OT prophets’ message, yet this has its parallel in God’s covenant favor initially with Abraham which excluded the Gentiles, but then later followed by their invitation and reception to the Gospel.  Note the dramatic conclusion in vv.28-29, contrasting the end result for Gentiles and Israel.

Then for the final section of this great chapter, Paul comes back to the personal reader, “what shall we say then?”  The truth is that God is at work fulfilling His promised of Redemption.   Gentiles are “attaining” righteousness (by God’s declaration, not by man’s efforts), and Israel has “not attained” – they want to attain by works, not faith, they have stumbled on the call for faith as expressed in Psalm 118:22; Isa. 8:14; 28:16.  The “chief cornerstone” has instead become a  stone of stumbling for rebellious Israel.

In Rom. 9:30-32, Paul makes one more use of his probing question, but this time he uses the question in order to introduce the actual correct answer.  God has blessed sinners with “righteousness of faith” even though they hadn’t been looking for it.  And Israel is caught mistakenly looking for a “righteousness of law” and they fail to attain it.  Paul has more to say to the Jews about compassion heart and desire that they be saved as we read on in Rom. 10-11.

Bible Study Journal

• • • Since Paul quotes from it, go back and read Psalm 118 – meditate on how God is your refuge, exult in the Lord, give Him thanks.
    • From the Gospel accounts of Jesus’ life, how does the picture of Him being a stone on which people stumble make sense?
    • The Jews certainly did “stumble” over Jesus Christ.  How do we see that stumbling still happening today for both Jews and Gentiles?  How can we express the Gospel message in ways that understand that stumbling?