Life Group - Romans 9-11

Welcome to Life Group. We invite you to join

us in this verse -by -verse study through the

Word of God. In this lesson, we'll be looking

at Romans chapters 9 -11. In the first eight

Romans 9 · chapter mention

chapters of Romans, Paul taught about man's need

for salvation and God's provision in Jesus through

the Holy Spirit. But here in these chapters,

9 -11, there's a slight shift in focus. Here,

Paul addresses issues related to Israel's condition.

And we see the question, what are the implications

of Israel missing the Messiah? In these chapters,

they deal with a few key points. We see Israel

as a nation. We see them dealing with how God's

redemptive plan unfolds. We see the inclusion

of Gentiles. and the importance of responding

in faith. So let's begin picking up with Romans

Romans 9:1

9 verse 1. With Christ as my witness, I speak

with utter truthfulness. My conscience and the

Holy Spirit confirm it. My heart is filled with

bitter sorrow and unending grief for my people,

my Jewish brothers and sisters. I would be willing

to be forever cursed. cut off from Christ if

that would save them. They are the people of

Israel, chosen to be God's adopted children.

God revealed his glory to them. He made covenants

with them and gave them his law. He gave them

the privilege of worshiping him and receiving

his wonderful promises. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob

are their ancestors, and Christ himself was an

Israelite. as far as his human nature is concerned.

And he is God, the one who rules over everything

and is worthy of eternal praise. Amen. In these

verses, we see Paul is grieved over Israel, not

because God rejected Israel, but because Israel

rejected Jesus as the Messiah. When it came to

ministry, the Jews were Paul's worst enemies.

They harassed and persecuted him from town to

town, stirring up lies and violence against him.

But even then, he still loved them and was deeply

concerned about their souls, and we see that.

Verse 6. Well then, has God failed to fulfill

his promise to Israel? No, for not all who are

born into the nation of Israel are truly members

of God's people. Being descendants of Abraham

doesn't make them truly Abraham's children. For

the scriptures say, Isaac is the son through

whom your descendants will be counted, though

Abraham had other children too. This means that

Abraham's physical descendants are not necessarily

children of God. Only the children of the promise

are considered to be Abraham's children. For

God had promised. I will return about this time

next year, and Sarah will have a son. These verses

show that not all who are born into the nation

of Israel are truly members of God's people.

But they also show that God always intended his

people to be defined by faith, not by their race

and not by their works. Picking up in verse 10.

This son was our ancestor Isaac. When he married

Rebecca, she gave birth to twins. But before

they were born, before they had done anything

good or bad, she received a message from God.

This message shows that God chooses people according

to his own purposes. He calls people, but not

according to their good or bad works. She was

told, Your older son will serve your younger

son. In the words of the scriptures, I love Jacob,

but I rejected Esau. So we see here that we must

keep in mind the omniscience and foreknowledge

of God. God knew the future choices and responses

of people who would be or not be in the lineage

of Jesus. And when we track the stories, we see

that God always showed patience and mercy. For

instance, Esau rebelled against God. He despised

his birthright. He marries outside of God's commands.

And what we need to realize is that, no, God

did not predetermine these choices, but in his

omniscience, in his foreknowledge, he knew Esau

would make them. Another important thing to note

is that English translations put that God loved

Jacob but rejected or hated Esau. But in Hebrew,

that word rejected or hated really means preferred

less. Two, it's important to note that this quote

was written hundreds of years after Esau's death

in Malachi 1 verses 2 through 3. So we see here

Malachi 1:2–3

that God, in his foreknowledge, he preferred

Jacob over Esau to be in the lineage of Jesus.

Verse 14. Are we saying then that God was unfair?

Of course not. For God said to Moses, I will

show mercy to anyone I choose, and I will show

compassion to anyone I choose. So it is God who

decides to show mercy. We can neither choose

it, nor work for it. For the scriptures say that

God told Pharaoh, I have appointed you for the

very purpose of displaying my power in you and

to spread my fame throughout the earth. So you

see, God chooses to show mercy to some and he

chooses to harden the hearts of others so they

refuse to listen. So these verses share a word

called hardened. And what does hardened mean?

Hardened means that God allowed Pharaoh to continue

to walk in the stubbornness Pharaoh had already

chosen. Verse 19. Well then, you might say, why

does God blame people for not responding? Haven't

they simply done what he makes them do? No, don't

say that. Who are you, a mere human being, to

argue with God? Should the thing that was created

say to the one who created it, Why have you made

me like this? When a potter makes jars out of

clay, doesn't he have a right to use the same

lump of clay to make one jar for decoration and

another to throw garbage into? In the same way,

even though God has the right to show his anger

and his power, he is very patient with those

on whom his anger falls. who are destined for

destruction. He does this to make the riches

of his glory shine even brighter on those to

whom he shows mercy, who were prepared in advance

for glory. And we are among those whom he selected,

both from the Jews and from the Gentiles. We

see in these verses that the potter analogy is

about nations and roles, not every specific individual.

God used Israel to bring salvation to all. Picking

up in verse 25. There they will be called children

of the living God. And concerning Israel, Isaiah

the prophet cried out, And Isaiah said the same

thing in another place. If the Lord of Heaven's

armies had not spared a few of our children,

we would have been wiped out like Sodom, destroyed

like Gomorrah. What does all this mean? Even

though the Gentiles were not trying to follow

God's standards, they were made right with God.

And it was by faith that this took place. But

the people of Israel who tried so hard to get

right with God by keeping the law never succeeded.

Why not? Because they were trying to get right

with God by keeping the law instead of by trusting

in him. They stumbled over the great rock in

their path. God warned them of this in scriptures

when he said, I am placing a stone in Jerusalem

that makes people stumble, a rock that makes

them fall. But anyone who trusts in him will

never be disgraced. So we got to ask the question.

How did the Gentiles find righteousness when

many Jews did not? Well, the answer that these

passages show is because the Gentiles received

righteousness by faith. While the Jews continued

to pursue righteousness by trying to keep the

law, the Gentiles received righteousness by faith.

And everyone who will ever be right with God

will do so through faith, by being declared righteous.

The stone the Jews stumbled on was the very stone

of faith in Christ. Picking up with chapter 10,

verse 1. Dear brothers and sisters, the longing

of my heart and my prayer to God is for the people

of Israel to be saved. I know what enthusiasm

they have for God, but it is misdirected zeal,

for they don't understand God's way of making

people right with himself. Refusing to accept

God's way, they cling to their own way of getting

right with God by trying to keep the law. For

Christ has already accomplished the purpose for

which the law was given. As a result, all who

believe in him are made right with God. Again,

we see that the issue is Israel's refusal to

receive righteousness by faith. They pursued

the law instead of trusting in Christ. Picking

up with verse 5. For Moses writes that the law's

way of making a person right with God requires

obedience to all of its commands. But faith's

way of getting right with God says, don't say

in your heart who will go up to heaven to bring

Christ down to earth, and don't say who will

go down to the place of the dead. To bring Christ

back to life again. In these verses we see that

the Messiah is not coming back to finish his

work of salvation. Jesus completed his work the

first time. And everything he accomplished is

now available to everyone who believes. Picking

up in verse 8. In fact, it says, the message

is very close at hand. It is on your lips and

in your heart. And that message is the very message

about faith that we preach. If you openly declare

that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart

that God raised him from the dead, you will be

saved. For it is by believing in your heart that

you are made right with God. And it is by openly

declaring your faith that you are saved. As the

scriptures tell us, anyone who trusts in him

will never be disgraced. Jew and Gentile are

the same in this respect. They have the same

Lord who gives generously to all who call on

him. In these verses, we see that receiving God's

promises is always very close. Whether it's salvation

or any other promise of God, it's always very

close. It's in our hearts. and in our mouths

faith in the word or the message begins in the

heart but it must be acted on through confession

we see the process in the verses we just looked

at you you have to believe in the resurrection

you have to believe that jesus and his work on

the cross can make you right with god but then

you also have to act on that you have to confess

Jesus as your Lord. Verse 13. For everyone who

calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.

What an amazing verse. This is a clear invitation

for everyone. It's not limited or selective in

any way. Confession and belief are the faith

conditions that any human must respond to in

order to be saved. Verse 14. But how can they

call on him to save them unless they believe

in him? And how can they believe in him if they've

never heard about him? And how can they hear

about him unless someone tells them? And how

will anyone go and tell them without being sent?

This is why the scriptures say, how beautiful

are the feet of messengers who bring Good news.

In these verses, we see that there's a clear

command. We must share the gospel. People cannot

believe in Christ without hearing. We must share

the gospel. We must be involved in helping other

people share the gospel with those that we may

never meet face to face. Why? Because people

can't believe. without first hearing. Verse 16.

But not everyone welcomes the good news. For

Isaiah the prophet said, Lord, who has believed

our message? So faith comes from hearing, that

is, hearing the good news about Christ. The message

must be heard before it can be believed. This

is where we get what we say often. Faith comes

by hearing and hearing by the word of God. It

has to be a promise from God before it can be

believed on. And you have to hear it before you

can believe. Verse 18. But I ask, have the people

of Israel actually heard the message? Yes, they

have. The message has gone throughout the earth.

and the words to all the world. But I ask, did

the people of Israel really understand? Yes,

they did. For even in the time of Moses, God

said, And later, Isaiah spoke boldly for God,

saying, I was found by people who were not looking

for me. I showed myself to those who were not

asking for me. But regarding Israel, God said,

All day long I opened my arms to them, but they

were disobedient and rebellious. In these verses

we see that if people are lost, it's because

of something in the process. Either they didn't

hear, or they didn't believe when they heard,

or they would not confess Jesus as Lord after

they heard or believed. The gospel, the good

news, is offered genuinely and universally. Salvation

is possible, and it's offered to all, Jew and

Gentile alike. Chapter 11, verse 1. I ask then,

Has God rejected his own people, the nation of

Israel? Of course not. I myself am an Israelite,

a descendant of Abraham, and a member of the

tribe of Benjamin. No, God has not rejected his

own people, whom he chose from the very beginning.

Do you realize what the scriptures say about

this? Elijah the prophet complained to God about

the people of Israel and said, Lord, They have

killed your prophets and torn down your altars.

I am the only one left, and now they are trying

to kill me too. And do you remember God's reply?

He said, No, I have 7 ,000 others who have never

bowed down to Baal. It is the same today, for

a few of the people of Israel have remained faithful

because of God's grace, His undeserved kindness

in choosing them. And since it is through God's

kindness, then it is not by their good works.

For in that case, God's grace would not be what

it really is, free and undeserved. Here Paul

is saying, has God rejected Israel? And his answer

is, no, of course not. And they teach that there

has always been a faith remnant. And he gave

the example of Elijah. That there were 7 ,000

who had remained in faith. Verse 7. So this is

the situation. Most of the people of Israel have

not found the favor of God they are looking for

so earnestly. A few have, the ones God has chosen,

but the hearts of the rest were hardened. As

the scriptures say, God has put them into a deep

sleep. To this day he has shut their eyes so

that they do not see and closed their ears so

that they do not hear. Likewise, David said,

Let their bountiful table become a snare, a trap

that makes them think all is well. Let their

blessings cause them to stumble and let them

get what they deserve. Let their eyes go blind

so that they cannot see and let their backs be

bent forever. Did God's people stumble and fall

beyond recovery? Of course not. They were disobedient.

So God made salvation available to the Gentiles.

But He wanted His own people to become jealous

and claim it for themselves. Now if the Gentiles

were enriched because of the people of Israel

turned down God's offer of salvation, think how

much greater a blessing the world will share

when they finally accept it. I am saying all

this especially for you Gentiles. God has appointed

me as the apostle to the Gentiles. I stress this,

for I want somehow to make the people of Israel

jealous of what you Gentiles have, so I might

save some of them. For since their rejection

meant that God offered salvation to the rest

of the world, Their acceptance will be even more

wonderful. It will be life for those who were

dead. And since Abraham and the other patriarchs

were holy, their descendants will also be holy.

Just as the entire batch of dough is holy because

the portion given as an offering is holy. For

if the roots of the tree are holy, the branches

will be too. The Jewish rejection of Jesus, and

these scriptures teach us that the Jewish rejection

of Jesus as Messiah did not cause Gentiles to

be saved. It just gave more opportunity for the

gospel to spread to the Gentiles. Many Gentiles

took advantage of this opportunity. Picking up

in verse 17. But some of these branches from

Abraham's tree Some of the people of Israel have

been broken off, and you Gentiles, who were branches

from a wild olive tree, have been grafted in.

So now you also receive the blessing of God has

promised Abraham and his children, sharing in

the rich nourishment from the root of God's special

olive tree. But you must not brag about being

grafted in to replace the branches that were

broken off. You are just a branch, not the root.

Well, you may say, those branches were broken

off to make room for me. Yes, but remember those

branches were broken off because they didn't

believe in Christ. And you are there because

you do believe. So don't think highly of yourself,

but fear what could happen. For if God did not

spare the original branches, he won't spare you

either. Notice how God is both kind and severe.

He is severe toward those who disobeyed, but

kind to you if you continue to trust in his kindness.

But if you stop trusting, you also will be cut

off. And if the people of Israel turn from their

unbelief, they will be grafted in again. For

God has the power to graft them back into the

tree. You, by nature, were a branch cut from

a wild olive tree. So if God was willing to do

something contrary to nature by grafting you

into his cultivated tree, he will be far more

eager to graft the original branches back into

the tree where they belong. So we see in these

verses that Israel was broken off because of

unbelief, and Gentiles were grafted in by faith.

And this all is said to show us that the human

response matters. Verse 25. I want you to understand

this mystery, dear brothers and sisters, so that

you will not feel proud about yourselves. Some

of the people of Israel have hard hearts, but

this will last only until the full number of

Gentiles comes to Christ. And so all Israel will

be saved. As the scriptures say, the one who

rescues will come from Jerusalem, and he will

turn Israel away from ungodliness. And this is

my covenant with them, that I will take away

their sins. Many of the people of Israel are

now enemies of the good news, and this benefits

you Gentiles. Yet, there are still the people

he loves because he chose their ancestors. Abraham,

Isaac, and Jacob. For God's gifts and His call

can never be withdrawn. These verses do not mean

that there will be a time when every person of

Jewish descent will be saved. But they do explain

that there will be a time when the nation as

a whole, especially its leadership, will embrace

Jesus as the Messiah. Verse 30 Once you Gentiles

were rebels against God, but when the people

of Israel rebelled against him, God was merciful

to you instead. Now they are rebels, and God's

mercy has come to you so that they too will share

in God's mercy. For God has imprisoned everyone

in disobedience so he could have mercy on everyone.

This phrase, imprisoned in disobedience, is referring

to the law, showing everyone their need for salvation.

Remember, as we looked at in previous chapters,

that the law imprisoned everyone in sin. And

that's what Paul is communicating here. And also

that grace is what sets us free from that sin.

And it's that same grace for the Jew and for

the Gentile. Picking up in verse 33. Oh, how

great are God's riches in wisdom and knowledge!

How impossible it is for us to understand His

decisions and His ways! For who can know the

Lord's thoughts? Who knows enough to give Him

advice? And who has given Him so much that He

needs to pay it back? For everything comes from

Him and exists by His power and is intended for

His glory. All glory to him forever. Amen. We

see in these verses that God's plan of redemption

from beginning to end is amazing. There is great

knowledge, wisdom, and compassion in his plan.

Past, present, and future. Thank you for joining

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