Paul's Theology Leads to Doxology

November 19, 2024 by Andrew Forrest in Bible

Romans 11:25-36

25 Lest you be wise in your own sight, I do not want you to be unaware of this mystery, brothers: a partial hardening has come upon Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in. 26 And in this way all Israel will be saved, as it is written,
“The Deliverer will come from Zion,
he will banish ungodliness from Jacob”;
27 “and this will be my covenant with them
when I take away their sins.”
28 As regards the Gospel, they are enemies for your sake. But as regards election, they are beloved for the sake of their forefathers. 29 For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. 30 For just as you were at one time disobedient to God but now have received mercy because of their disobedience, 31 so they too have now been disobedient in order that by the mercy shown to you they also may now receive mercy. 32 For God has consigned all to disobedience, that he may have mercy on all.
33 Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!
34 “For who has known the mind of the Lord,
or who has been his counselor?”
35 “Or who has given a gift to him
that he might be repaid?”
36 For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.

For the past three chapters, Paul has been making one long, technical argument, and in today’s reading he finally brings it to fulfillment by recapping the main themes he has been emphasizing in chapters 9–11.

Remember: The Roman church to which Paul is writing was made up of both Jewish Christians and Gentile Christians, and most likely the Gentile Christians were in the majority. Throughout this whole long, complicated section, filled with Old Testament allusions and quotations, Paul has been examining and answering four related questions:

Why did so many of the Jews refuse to accept Jesus as Messiah?
In light of Jewish rejection of Jesus and Gentile acceptance of Jesus, has God replaced the Jews with the Gentiles as His chosen people?
Is there any hope that the Jews who previously rejected Jesus as Messiah might one day turn back and believe?
In light of all of the above, what is God up to?

25 Lest you be wise in your own sight, I do not want you to be unaware of this mystery, brothers: a partial hardening has come upon Israel, until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in [Romans 11:25].

Paul says that God has allowed Israel—His chosen people—to have hard hearts toward the Messiah so that the Gentiles have a chance to believe. “The fullness of the Gentiles” implies completion—whatever the actual number of Gentiles who become Christians, Paul says that God is going to keep going until every possible person is saved. As Paul has been arguing in previous verses, the closed doors of the Jews have caused the Gospel to be shared with the Gentiles, who seem to have opened their doors to Christ.

But then Paul makes this startling claim:

26 And in this way all Israel will be saved, as it is written,
“The Deliverer will come from Zion, he will banish ungodliness from Jacob”;27 “and this will be my covenant with them when I take away their sins” [Romans 11:26–27].

How or when “all Israel” will be saved, he doesn’t say, but the clear implication that what was once only a minority of the Jews putting faith in Jesus will become, in God’s timing, the vast majority.

28 As regards the Gospel, they are enemies for your sake. But as regards election, they are beloved for the sake of their forefathers. 29 For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable. 30 For just as you were at one time disobedient to God but now have received mercy because of their disobedience, 31 so they too have now been disobedient in order that by the mercy shown to you they also may now receive mercy. 32 For God has consigned all to disobedience, that he may have mercy on all [Romans 11:28–32].

Paul uses strong language to make the point that God is now using the Jews to provoke the Gentiles to faith, and then God will use the Gentiles to provoke the Jews to faith, because He is committed to the Jews as His chosen people, and because God uses bad things for good. And all along God’s goal has been to show mercy to as many people as possible!

33 Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!
34 “For who has known the mind of the Lord, or who has been his counselor?”35 “Or who has given a gift to him that he might be repaid?” [Romans 11:33–35].

The issues involved in chapters 9–11 are profound, and Paul (and us) is forced to acknowledge that God’s ways are deep and mysterious.

But the depth of God’s wisdom and mercy causes him to close this section of the letter with a doxology—a “word of glory.”

36 For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen [Romans 11:36].

What a good way to wrap up today’s commentary!

Why "Once Saved, Always Saved" Is Sloppy Theology

November 18, 2024 by Andrew Forrest in Bible

Romans 11:17-24

17 But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, although a wild olive shoot, were grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing root of the olive tree, 18 do not be arrogant toward the branches. If you are, remember it is not you who support the root, but the root that supports you. 19 Then you will say, “Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in.” 20 That is true. They were broken off because of their unbelief, but you stand fast through faith. So do not become proud, but fear. 21 For if God did not spare the natural branches, neither will he spare you. 22 Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God's kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness. Otherwise you too will be cut off. 23 And even they, if they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in, for God has the power to graft them in again. 24 For if you were cut from what is by nature a wild olive tree, and grafted, contrary to nature, into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these, the natural branches, be grafted back into their own olive tree.

The Roman church to which Paul is writing was made up of both Jewish Christians and Gentile Christians, and most likely the Gentile Christians were in the majority. Throughout this whole long, complicated section, filled with Old Testament allusions and quotations, Paul has been examining and answering four related questions:

Why did so many of the Jews refuse to accept Jesus as Messiah?
In light of Jewish rejection of Jesus and Gentile acceptance of Jesus, has God replaced the Jews with the Gentiles as His chosen people?
Is there any hope that the Jews who previously rejected Jesus as Messiah might one day turn back and believe?
In light of all of the above, what is God up to?

Paul here is directly addressing the Gentile Romans Christians, and he tells them not to get puffed up and think they are any better than the unbelieving Jews, just because God has graciously “grafted” them into His covenant people.

17 But if some of the branches were broken off, and you, although a wild olive shoot, were grafted in among the others and now share in the nourishing root of the olive tree, 18 do not be arrogant toward the branches. If you are, remember it is not you who support the root, but the root that supports you [Romans 11:17–18].

The image is of an olive tree in an orchard, with the olive grower grafting in wild branches into the cultivated tree. The life comes from the root; Paul wants the Gentiles to remember that they are the ones being adopted in as God’s people, and not the other way around.

And then Paul hits the final note of his argument, which is breathtaking in its implications:

19 Then you will say, “Branches were broken off so that I might be grafted in” [Romans 11:19].

He imagines a prideful Roman Gentile Christian saying, “Well, yes, I’ve been adopted in, but that’s only because the Jews were disobedient, hard-hearted, and unbelieving.”

Paul’s response:

20 That is true. They were broken off because of their unbelief, but you stand fast through faith. So do not become proud, but fear [Romans 11:20].

He tells the Gentiles, “Don’t gloat over your salvation, but stand in awe and reverence before God, who has permitted you to be saved through faith.”

And then he hits the Gentiles with a bracing reminder:

21 For if God did not spare the natural branches, neither will he spare you [Romans 11:21].

In other words, don’t you dare think that your current status as being part of God’s people mean that you can live as an unbeliever or allow your heart to become coarsened toward God, because if unbelieving Jews aren’t saved, neither are unbelieving Gentiles—stay faithful and persevere to the end!

He goes on:

22 Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God's kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness. Otherwise you too will be cut off. 23 And even they, if they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in, for God has the power to graft them in again. 24 For if you were cut from what is by nature a wild olive tree, and grafted, contrary to nature, into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these, the natural branches, be grafted back into their own olive tree [Romans 11:22–24].

This is both a powerful warning and a word of encouragement to American Christians. There is lots of sloppy theological sentiment that is bandied about these days, and Paul’s words apply a necessary correction:

The phrase “once saved, always saved” is helpful when it offers comfort to Christians who find themselves backslidden or having engaged in sinful practices and who sincerely mourn their sins and repent. Jesus never refuses anyone who cries out for mercy—you cannot “lose” your salvation accidentally, the way you might accidently drop your car keys.
On the other hand, the phrase “once saved, always saved” plainly is not what the New Testament teaches, if by that glib phrase we imply “Once you are baptized, it is impossible to reject God and walk away from His grace.” Look at the plain sense of what Paul says here:

22 Note then the kindness and the severity of God: severity toward those who have fallen, but God's kindness to you, provided you continue in his kindness. Otherwise you too will be cut off [Romans 11:22].

What Paul is saying to the Gentile Christians is, “Don’t think you can make the same mistake that the unbelieving Jews have made—they presume upon God’s kindness just because of their former status, even though they are presently rejecting His grace.”

This passage is a warning to us as well. We must continue to faithfully respond to God’s grace toward us or face the consequences.

But this passage is also an encouragement:

23 And even they, if they do not continue in their unbelief, will be grafted in, for God has the power to graft them in again. 24 For if you were cut from what is by nature a wild olive tree, and grafted, contrary to nature, into a cultivated olive tree, how much more will these, the natural branches, be grafted back into their own olive tree [Romans 11:23–24].

There is hope for everyone—until the very end, God is graciously offering everyone the opportunity to repent and receive His mercy. So, even unbelieving Jews, if they were to turn back to God and accept Jesus as Messiah, would be be brought back into God’s grace. After all, if God can graft in “wild” branches, who knows what he might do with the “natural branches”, i.e., with unbelieving Jews at some point in the future?

Pray today for spiritual awakening among the Jewish people.

Is It Too Late For Unbelieving Jews?

November 15, 2024 by Andrew Forrest in Bible

Romans 11:11-24

11 So I ask, did they stumble in order that they might fall? By no means! Rather, through their trespass salvation has come to the Gentiles, so as to make Israel jealous. 12 Now if their trespass means riches for the world, and if their failure means riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their full inclusion mean!
13 Now I am speaking to you Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry 14 in order somehow to make my fellow Jews jealous, and thus save some of them. 15 For if their rejection means the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance mean but life from the dead? 16 If the dough offered as firstfruits is holy, so is the whole lump, and if the root is holy, so are the branches.

Remember that chapters 9–11 make up one unified, technically complex section, filled with Old Testament allusions and quotations. As we work through this section, we see that Paul is examining and answering four related questions:

Why did so many of the Jews refuse to accept Jesus as Messiah?
In light of Jewish rejection of Jesus and Gentile acceptance of Jesus, has God replaced the Jews with the Gentiles as His chosen people?
Is there any hope that the Jews who previously rejected Jesus as Messiah might one day turn back and believe?
In light of all of the above, what is God up to?

So, in today’s reading Paul asks, Is it too late for the unbelieving Jews? Has their “stumbling” by missing the Gospel mean that they are going to permanently fall away from salvation?

11 So I ask, did they stumble in order that they might fall? [Romans 11:11].

Paul gives a two-part answer to the question:

No, it’s not too late for the Jews!
And by the way, the Jewish refusal to accept the Messiah has meant that God has moved to bring in the Gentiles—an amazing act of God; so, along the same lines, if Jewish refusal brings in the Gentiles, can you imagine how great it will be when the Jews finally accept the Messiah?!

11 So I ask, did they stumble in order that they might fall? By no means! Rather, through their trespass salvation has come to the Gentiles, so as to make Israel jealous. 12 Now if their trespass means riches for the world, and if their failure means riches for the Gentiles, how much more will their full inclusion mean! [Romans 11:11–12].

Paul’s primary mission has become a mission to the Gentiles, and here Paul talks about that:

13 Now I am speaking to you Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry 14 in order somehow to make my fellow Jews jealous, and thus save some of them [Romans 11:13–14].

His point is that he hopes that the success of his ministry to the Gentiles will actually get the Jews’ attention and cause them to reconsider and then believe in Jesus as Messiah. Note that Paul is here talking about saving unbelieving Jews who have previously rejected Jesus. Verse 14 is proof, therefore, that just because someone has rejected Jesus previously does not mean that it is too late for that person. Remember the amazing message of Jeremiah 18 (which Paul has explicitly referenced in Romans 9 but that is in the background of this entire section of chapters 9–11):

5 Then the word of the Lord came to me: 6 “O house of Israel, can I not do with you as this potter has done? declares the Lord. Behold, like the clay in the potter's hand, so are you in my hand, O house of Israel. 7 If at any time I declare concerning a nation or a kingdom, that I will pluck up and break down and destroy it, 8 and if that nation, concerning which I have spoken, turns from its evil, I will relent of the disaster that I intended to do to it. 9 And if at any time I declare concerning a nation or a kingdom that I will build and plant it, 10 and if it does evil in my sight, not listening to my voice, then I will relent of the good that I had intended to do to it. 11 Now, therefore, say to the men of Judah and the inhabitants of Jerusalem: ‘Thus says the Lord, Behold, I am shaping disaster against you and devising a plan against you. Return, every one from his evil way, and amend your ways and your deeds’ [Jeremiah 18:5–11].

The point of the Jeremiah passage is that God will respond to people according to their willingness or their refusal to repent:

If they repent and turn from disobedience toward obedience, then God will change His plan of destruction to a plan of blessing;
If they turn from obedience toward evil, then God will change His plan of blessing to a plan of destruction.

In 11:14, Paul is specifically referring to the possibility of future salvation for Jews who have previously rejected Christ. In other words, it is never ever too late, and God’s desire is that people turn and repent. From a reading of Romans 9–11 that takes into account the entirety of Paul’s long, technical, and complicated argument, I believe that we cannot come to the conclusion that God has previously decreed—“predestined” that some people will be saved and others will be damned. You may disagree and I respect and expect disagreement, but you better be ready to back up your argument with support from chapters 9–11!

15 For if their rejection means the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance mean but life from the dead? 16 If the dough offered as firstfruits is holy, so is the whole lump, and if the root is holy, so are the branches [Romans 11:15–16].

Once again, Paul holds out hope that, if God has used the rejection of the Jews in order to bring in the Gentiles, then shouldn’t we expect something great to happen if and when the Jews finally come to faith?!

Because the synagogues slammed the door in the apostles’ faces, so to speak, the apostles turned to the Gentiles who were open to the message about Jesus. But Paul holds out hope that, because some Jews have believed—he calls these Jewish Christians “the firstfruits” (v.16)—who knows that, in the end, the rest might also believe?

Don’t you ever give up hope for anyone.

Some Of The Jews Were Spiritually Blind

November 14, 2024 by Andrew Forrest in Bible

Romans 11:1-10

11 I ask, then, has God rejected his people? By no means! For I myself am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, a member of the tribe of Benjamin. 2 God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew. Do you not know what the Scripture says of Elijah, how he appeals to God against Israel? 3 “Lord, they have killed your prophets, they have demolished your altars, and I alone am left, and they seek my life.” 4 But what is God's reply to him? “I have kept for myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal.” 5 So too at the present time there is a remnant, chosen by grace. 6 But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works; otherwise grace would no longer be grace.
7 What then? Israel failed to obtain what it was seeking. The elect obtained it, but the rest were hardened, 8 as it is written,
“God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes that would not see and ears that would not hear,
down to this very day.”
9 And David says,
“Let their table become a snare and a trap, a stumbling block and a retribution for them;10 let their eyes be darkened so that they cannot see, and bend their backs forever.”

Remember, throughout this whole long, complicated section, filled with Old Testament allusions and quotations, we see that Paul is examining and answering four related questions:

Why did so many of the Jews refuse to accept Jesus as Messiah?
In light of Jewish rejection of Jesus and Gentile acceptance of Jesus, has God replaced the Jews with the Gentiles as His chosen people?
Is there any hope that the Jews who previously rejected Jesus as Messiah might one day turn back and believe?
In light of all of the above, what is God up to?

Paul begins our section today once again stating his certainty that God has not given up on the Jews:

1 I ask, then, has God rejected his people? By no means! For I myself am an Israelite, a descendant of Abraham, a member of the tribe of Benjamin. 2 God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew [Romans 11:1–2].

Paul makes the point that it’s not as if none of the Jews have accepted Christ, and he puts himself forward as a prime example to prove his point—Paul, after all, was Jewish.

No, “God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew.” (v. 2)

Note the word “foreknew” here. In the context it cannot mean “those whom God already predestined for belief” because Paul is obviously talking here about Jews who have NOT believed. When Paul uses that word here and in Romans 8:29, he simply means “the people God has already known” or “known for a long time in the past.”

Paul then references the Old Testament story of Elijah (1 Kings 19:18) to make the point that God always has a remnant of faithful people. (I find this point very encouraging.)

2 God has not rejected his people whom he foreknew. Do you not know what the Scripture says of Elijah, how he appeals to God against Israel? 3 “Lord, they have killed your prophets, they have demolished your altars, and I alone am left, and they seek my life.” 4 But what is God's reply to him? “I have kept for myself seven thousand men who have not bowed the knee to Baal.” 5 So too at the present time there is a remnant, chosen by grace. 6 But if it is by grace, it is no longer on the basis of works; otherwise grace would no longer be grace [Romans 10:2–6].

There are some Jews that have believed, and it’s not that they earned their salvation; rather, their salvation is a gift of God.

Then Paul goes on to cite some Old Testament verses to make the point that although the elect—the ones who believe—have responded in faith to Messiah Jesus, the rest have been blind and unable to see what’s right in front of them.

7 What then? Israel failed to obtain what it was seeking. The elect obtained it, but the rest were hardened, 8 as it is written,
“God gave them a spirit of stupor, eyes that would not see and ears that would not hear,
down to this very day.”
9 And David says,
“Let their table become a snare and a trap, a stumbling block and a retribution for them;10 let their eyes be darkened so that they cannot see, and bend their backs forever” [Romans 11:7–10].

Way back in Romans 1, Paul told us that one of the consequences of sin is spiritual blindness. Therefore, an important prayer to pray for unbelievers is that the Lord would open their eyes to the truth.

For whom do you need to be praying today?