Romans 11:1-10

Paul continues his rationale for the obligation he said we have, which began in Romans 8:12 and is finally revealed in Romans 12:1ff.

He has been writing about Israel, God’s chosen people, and how they missed the Messiah when He came…not all of them, but most of them.

Paul has stated that the law, given by Moses was holy, but that it could not save.

Now he is going to write about the Jews who WOULD be saved.

The Verses

1. God chose Israel (He did not choose them because they were somehow special and deserved to be chosen, He chose them - and that's what made them special. He is God and He get's to choose. He chose Israel). God has never abandoned them. The point is, you can count on God to keep His word. He will never act contrary to His word.

2. Our national leaders are on the verge of standing against Israel in Middle East politics. They do so at the peril of our country. There are about 15 million Jews in the world. There are about 6 billion people in the world. There is probably a bigger percentage of Israelites who are believers than there is of gentiles.

3. Israel not only turned from God, they participated in the killing of those who did not turn from God. Elijah pointed out their rebellion. He thought it was ALL of them.

4. God reassured Elijah that He had some followers among the Israelites.

5. He has a remnant of Jews today who have been saved by the GRACE of Christ’s death, burial and resurrection.

6. He again states the theme that salvation is by grace, not works, whether you are Jew or gentile. Grace and works are diametrically opposed to each other in terms of their effecting salvation.

7. Israel’s belief that you could please God by keeping the Law excluded them from being among “the elect” (those saved by grace). Those who came to God through faith in Christ were (and are) saved, while those who did not (and do not) are lost…with hardened hearts.

8. No one had ever been exposed to the gospel as much as the Jews, but they would not accept the light (Jesus). “...could not see or hear” here is not a reference to physical sight and hearing, but to spiritual sight and hearing.

9. “The table” represents material prosperity - feasting. The great feasts of celebration (such as Passover) became very ritualistic and pagan in their nature. The Jews trusted the things they ate without any true confidence in God. By the way, that is the condition of multitudes of church members…they go through the religious motions without ever placing their total trust in God through Christ.

10. God gives light (Christ) so that men might see (receive salvation). Those who refuse Christ will be spiritually blinded.

11. Are the Jews hopeless? NO. But Paul turned to the gentiles to offer them salvation in order that the Jews might see, repent and turn in faith believing.

WISHING YOU AND YOURS

A BLESSED THANKSGIVING DAY!

Romans 10:14-21

We are on our way to figure out why our obligation to God is to present ourselves as a living sacrifice, wholly acceptable unto God and why that is reasonable and worshipful.

Paul has just finished telling us that if we say with our mouths that Jesus is God, and believe in our hearts that God has resurrected Him, we shall be saved.

He went on to say that anyone who trusts in Him (Jesus) will never be put to shame (a euphemism for “going to Hell), and that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

He then begins another section of reasoning.

The Verses

14. One cannot call upon a God one does not believe in…one would just be wasting one’s breath. On the other hand, one cannot believe in a God one has not been told about, by one’s parents, by one’s co-worker, by one’s friend, by one’s pastor, by one’s Sunday School teacher. Here “preaching” does not mean just by the pastor (preacher and pastor are two different things).

15. So, are only preachers “sent?” NO. You have been sent. (Matthew 28:16-20) You have been sent to your neighbor, to your co-worker, to your family and to your fellow church member. (The pastor’s job, according to Ephesians 4:11-16, is to prepare God’s people [that’s you and me] for works of service1, so that we will grow up in our Christian walk.) Isaiah 52:7.

16. Some Jews accepted the GOOD NEWS that Messiah had come…some did not. (Isaiah predicted that some would not believe what we have to say about Messiah [53:20)]).

17. Faith comes when we are told about the GOOD NEWS (the message). The message is heard though the Word of Christ…the Bible…yes, but also by the Holy Spirit (who will NEVER contradict the Word, but instead will point us TO the Word, who is Christ.

18. “They” is a reference to the Jews. They heard. They did not accept. Paul quotes the Old Testament four times: Psalm 19:4; Deuteronomy 32:21; Isaiah 65:1 and Isaiah 65:2)

1What are the works of service? They include: How to serve as a deacon; How to serve in the church office; How to serve in church administration and/or finance; How to serve as an usher; How to serve as a greeter; How to serve overseeing church property; How to serve in the ministry of baptism; How to serve in community projects; How to serve in worship leadership; How to serve in audio/visual ministries; How to serve in music; How to serve in hospitality; How to serve with children; How to serve with Youth How to serve in the Nursery and many, many others. They might also include How to start your new life as a Christian; How to grow as a Christian, etc.

Romans 9:30 – 10:13

We’re still headed toward the obligation mentioned in Romans 8:12 and revealed in Romans 12:1…to offer ourselves as living sacrifices.

The Verses

30. The gentiles were happily on their way living their lives with no anticipation of a Savior or any knowledge of their need for one.

31. Meanwhile the Jews, who were looking for a Messiah, had the idea that the Law was going to help them.

32. See, the Jews were not acting on faith, but on works. When Christ came, He was regarded as a false Messiah and became a “stumbling block”

33. (Taken from Isaiah 8:14 and 28:16)

Romans 10

1. Paul wants Israel to be saved, but knows that can only happen if they come to Christ.

2. The Jews’ enthusiasm for God is not based on their knowledge of God, but on their perceived self-righteousness.

3. They neither knew Christ and His righteousness, nor did they submit to Him.

4. The Law "ended" with Christ, that is, it was completely fulfilled in Christ. Christ became both Righteousness and the source of Righteousness.

5. The Law brought by Moses yielded self-righteousness as the Jews thought the Law held salvation.

6. GET THIS: The righteousness that comes by faith in Christ Jesus does not concern itself with theological mumbo-jumbo (How many angels can sit on the head of a pin. Can God make a rock so heavy that even God cannot lift it).

7. Another example of Law-livers’ theology: Who went to get Christ from the grave? (Answer: nobody. He resurrected Himself).

8. The righteousness that comes by faith says that Christ lives in your mouth and your heart.

9. Verse 8 is the set-up for this famous verse. Say out loud that Jesus IS Lord and believe in your heart that He is alive today and you will be saved.

10. More of the requirements for living in righteousness: The heart believes and the mouth confesses.

11. Christ is the answer…period.

12. We are all the same: Jews and Gentiles…we all need a Savior.

13. Anybody, Jew or Greek (Gentile) can be saved by coming to Christ.

SOMETHING VISIBLE

I found this over at SelahV Today.

I think it is a very significant song.

Watch, listen and be inspired.

MONDAY MUSINGS FROM THE FOUNDERS-Gabriel Duvall

Gabriel Duvall

SOLDIER; JUDGE; SELECTED AS DELEGATE TO THE CONSTITUTIONAL CONVENTION; COMPTROLLER OF THE U. S. TREASURY; U. S. SUPREME COURT JUSTICE

"I resign my soul into the hands of the Almighty Who gave it, in humble hopes of His mercy through our Savior Jesus Christ."

Romans 9:14-29

Since there is no condemnation in Christ; since we live according to the Holy Spirit; and since we are controlled by the Holy Spirit, we therefore have an obligation to (Romans 8:12) offer our bodies as living sacrifices…(Romans 12:1).

The natural man rebels against the sovereignty of God. Man loves to accuse God of being unjust. The trouble is, the natural man forgets that God gets to define what is just and what is unjust because He is God and natural man is not.

The Verses

14. In the previous verses we saw God choosing Jacob over Esau. Was He unjust? No. He is God and defines what is and what is not just.

15. God gets to choose who He has mercy on and who He has compassion on. Because God is who He is and is unmanipulable, prayer must be finding out what God wants and getting on board with it…whatever it is.

16. Man is not the one who gets to choose. But God does. Salvation is not what God gives us because we are who we are; salvation is what God gives us because He is God. It is His mercy, not extended because of man’s will, but because of God’s mercy in Christ.

17. Back when Pharaoh chased the Jews to the Red Sea, God decided to show His power. God gave Pharaoh many chances to follow God’s will, but rejected them all. God’s says, “You may think you are not going to let my people go, but watch this: you ARE going to let my people go.” God forced Pharaoh to do what he wanted to do.

18. God has mercy on whom He wants to and hardens whom he wants to. Now a person can resist the prodding of the Holy Spirit if he/she wants to, but there will come a time when God will harden his/her heart until he can no longer respond to God.

19. Natural man says, “How can a fair and just God blame us for sin?” Because He is God, folks…because He is God. And natural man has rejected Him.

20. Who do we think we are to challenge God? It only shows that we don’t want to know who He is.

21. A potter can make whatever he wants out of the lump of clay he uses. The clay has no voice in the matter. But in the end, what the potter makes is a work of art. What if the potter had not gotten involved? What if the clay had said, “You have no right to mash on me?”

We sing:

Have Thine own way, Lord; have Thine own way;
Thou art the potter; I am the clay.
Mould me and make me after Thy will
While I am waiting, yielded and still.

Is that really what we mean?

22. What if God…This is not a verse setting out something God has done. This is a verse that forces the question, “SO WHAT?” What if God had done this…what if God had done that? SO WHAT? What if God had done the other thing? SO WHAT? HE IS GOD AND WE ARE NOT. HE GETS TO CHOOSE, AND HE HAS CHOSEN TO SHOW ETERNAL MERCY ON THOSE WHO TURN TO HIM IN FAITH BELIEVING, TRUSTING IN, AND ONLY IN, THE FINISHED WORK OF CHRIST AT THE CROSS AND HIS RESURRECTION FOR THEIR SALVATION.

23. Same theme.

24. Same theme and Paul adds that God has chosen the path of salvation by grace through faith for ANYBODY, Jew or Gentile…even you and me.

25-29: Paul’s wish for the Jews repeated: Come to Christ!

MONDAY MUSINGS FROM OUR FOUNDERS-John Dickinson

John Dickinson

SIGNER OF THE CONSTITUTION; GOVERNOR OF PENNSYLVANIA; GOVERNOR OF DELAWARE; GENERAL IN THE AMERICAN REVOLUTION

"Rendering thanks to my Creator for my existence and station among His works, for my birth in a country enlightened by the Gospel and enjoying freedom, and for all His other kindnesses, to Him I resign myself, humbly confiding in His goodness and in His mercy through Jesus Christ for the events of eternity.

"[Governments] caould not give the rights essential to happiness… We claim them from a higher source: from the King of kings, and Lord of all the earth."